Blues player ratings: Beauden Barrett ‘sorely missed’ as All Blacks playmaker struggles and Aucklanders completely outclassed
Blues playmaker Stephen Perofeta and an inset of Malachi Wrampling.
Following the Blues’ 52-31 defeat to the Crusaders in the Super Rugby Pacific Qualifying Final, here is how we rated Vern Cotter’s charges in Christchurch.
Blues player ratings v Crusaders
15 Zarn Sullivan: The full-back overcooked a tactical kick in the 17th minute, which sparked a series of events leading to Malachi Wrampling’s red card. He certainly can’t cop the blame for what occurred thereafter or for the defeat as it was a rather solid performance overall. In general, he kicked well and made good decisions but wasn’t a real threat to the Crusaders when carrying to the line. 5
14 AJ Lam: Beat Johnny McNicholl in the air early on to win an attacking lineout for the Blues which they capitalised on. The Aucklanders tried to make good use of his size and physicality but he wasn’t too effective and was held up over the line. He also made a really poor tackle attempt on Sevu Reece as the ‘Saders winger danced his way over the try-line. 6
13 Xavi Taele: Flashes of brilliance, winning a breakdown turnover, and making good reads in defence but the Crusaders managed to largely nullify his overall influence on proceedings. 5
12 Pita Ahki: Never really has a poor game and today was no different. Carried with real bite while distributing well for the most part and pitched in with a try assist. His ankle-high tackles are always a joy to watch. Ultimately, outplayed by David Havili but the Crusaders captain was one of the best on the park. 6
11 Caleb Clarke: Sent Havili flying with a brutal carry in the 16th minute and relentlessly chased the up-and-unders. He made more metres than any other player (86), doing so from 10 carries, suggesting that the Blues really needed to get him a bit more involved. He brilliantly finished off his try late on. 7
10 Stephen Perofeta: Lacked control and game management, which was sorely missed during the 20-minute sin-binning period. Frankly, the Blues missed Beauden Barrett running the show. Perofeta is a talented player but simply doesn’t have command over a backline as Barrett does and it proved costly today. 4
9 Sam Nock: A real shame that he was forced off so early in the match, as Nock was enjoying a superb performance. His pinpoint box kick forced an error from McNicholl and earned the Blues an attacking lineout in the early knockings, and it was Nock who latched onto the last pass to open the scoring. He nailed a 50:22, which was spoiled by a poor lineout throw, and continued to kick well out of hand and, overall, made good decisions with ball in hand. Forced off the pitch in the 21st minute. 7
The forwards
8 Malachi Wrampling: For about 20 minutes, he was excellent as he fronted up against a powerful Crusaders pack. His physicality on both sides of the ball was really impressive, but his terrible tackle technique ended his involvement. He had a clear line of sight to Leicester Fainga’anuku in the Blues’ 22, shot up and never had a change in height as he clattered into the Crusaders star’s head. It’s exactly the kind of hit that World Rugby wants stamped out of the game and he has no excuse for it. Undid all the good work he had done beforehand and cost the Blues. 3
7 Anton Segner: Took his chance to score well and came agonisingly close to doubling his tally. It’s been a standout season from the All Blacks hopeful and while today wasn’t his best outing, it was far from a poor one. 6
6 Torian Barnes: A relentless carrier for the Blues, the busiest in fact, but he struggled to make inroads into the Crusaders’ defence as he charged into heavy traffic. No lack of effort but got little reward. 5
5 Sam Darry: Bound to return to the All Blacks jersey this year, particularly with Scott Barrett sidelined. Darry showed his class at the lineout and in general play, forcing an error from the Crusaders’ set-piece which led to the try in the second minute. He made a great break 13 minutes later after winning a lineout and playing what was in front of him. Arguably the Blues’ best. 7
4 Patrick Tuipulotu (c): A hit-and-miss shift from the skipper who won a lineout steal in the 10th minute but also slipped off tackles that the Crusaders brutally punished and scored tries from. Hit double digits on tackles and carries but did look somewhat lethargic. 4
Want more from Planet Rugby? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for world-class coverage you can trust.
3 Marcel Renata: The scrum battle was rather even all game and outside of that, Renata simply ticked the boxes, making his tackles and carries without doing anything that stood out. 4
2 Bradley Slater: The lineout was a bit of a mess for both teams and the issues for the Blues was a collective one rather than Slater’s throwing. He competed well at the breakdown, made his tackles and made some decent carries but was also penalised at a ruck and stripped of the ball by Ethan Blackadder. 5
1 Ofa Tu’ungafasi: A memorable day as he became the Blues’ most-capped player of all-time but a rather forgettable performance. He wasn’t able to get the upper hand over George Bower at scrum time, and while he landed some hefty hits, he missed several too. 5
Replacements: Finlay Christie was solid for much of the match but the Blues were less threatening when Nock left the pitch; that was until the final 15-odd minutes when a win was beyond the Auckland side’s reach. Hoskins Sotutu had some good moments while the bench really upped the energy and attack endeavour late on, but again, they were left with far too much to do and the Crusaders knew that. 6