Crusaders lose five in a row as Stephen Perofeta delivers statement performance for the Blues

Dylan Coetzee
Blues players during a Super Rugby Pacific match.

Blues players during a Super Rugby Pacific match.

The woes for the Crusaders continued as the perennial Super Rugby Pacific winners lost their fifth game in a row as the Blues claimed a dominant 26-6 win at Eden Park.

The loss extends the Crusaders’ worst losing record in the club’s history whilst the Blues marked their captain Patrick Tuipulotu’s 100th game for the club with a memorable win.

Fly-half Stephen Perofeta was absolutely outstanding and would have caught the eye of All Blacks head coach Scott Robertson who has been very concerned about the state of the Crusaders since his departure.

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The first half of the clash was very tight with Perofeta kicking a penalty after just four minutes to take a slim lead. The game struggled to get going in the wet weather as Crusaders fly-half Riley Hohepa levelled the score with a penalty on the 20-minute mark.

Perofeta would add two more penalties and Hohepa one before the end of the half with the Blues leading 9-6 at the break.

That would be it for the Crusaders as the Blues must have had the better team talk with the side bursting out the gates in the second half with two quick tries.

The big front-row Ofa Tu’ungafasi crashed over in the 43rd minute for a converted try before three minutes later AJ Lam scored with Perofeta keeping his accuracy from the tee. The 10-minute blitz after the break completely took the wind out of the Crusaders’ sails.

Perofeta ran the rest of the game brilliantly where it was clever kicks down the field finding grass or sparking an attack that the home side failed to finish. The All Black would have the final say with a penalty to extend their lead in the 63rd minute.

The Crusaders had no response as their nightmare start continues and whilst they have had horrible luck with injuries to key players the poor run could well force a closer look at whether the coaching group is the right fit.

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