A glowing Christchurch
It took the sturdy hands of Joe Moody to carry a symbolic pounamu to the centre of the pitch before the opening game. The 2015 All Blacks Rugby World Cup-winning prop won 44 of 57 Tests and seven Super Rugby championships in 127 games for the Crusaders.
Angus Gardiner, who played 38 games for the Crusaders and won Super Rugby Championships in 1998 and 1999, was part of the alumni guard of honour. His son Dom played a blindside blinder. The Crusaders won all 14 lineouts while the Waratahs won only 64 per cent of their possession. Gardiner had an outstanding night, claiming half the Crusaders lineouts and adding eight tackles, a line-break, and topping the Crusaders carries and metres carried count.
A Codie Taylor rolling maul try. He has 54 tries for the Crusaders, too many to count from mauls.
It’s 111 steps from the top of the East Stand to the next Castles. Better wait until halftime.
The first Sweet Caroline, at last, came in the 58th minute with the Crusaders comfortably ahead 26-13. What about a Te Reo version? Somebody would make a fortune.
Dallas McLeod scored the first Crusaders try at the new venue and added a second in the 56th minute. He has nine tries and won 44 of 62 games for the Crusaders.
Crusaders halfback Noah Hotham scored a solid 7 out of 10 in the New Zealand Herald after-match rankings. Before the game, he was asked what the stadium means to the people and answered, “It was built for the people by the people?
Reporter: “Have you ever quoted Abraham Lincoln on the field?
Hotham: “ Never heard of him.”
Radio star with a face for TV, Simon Barrett, revving up the crowd before kickoff. Is Seven Deadly Sins by the “Travelling Wilburys up next, dedicated to Lesister Fainga'anuku?
Five Fans Reaction
Robert: “This confirms why Auckland need a modern, enclosed waterfront stadium, an amazing venue.”
Rebecca: “There’s a bird’s-eye view even from behind the goalposts.”
John: “They’ve done a great job, easy to get in and even easier to get out. Lots of interesting food options and almost no queues.”
Tim: “I’ve been to 83 countries and stadiums in most of those places. This is right up there.”
Tony: “Christchurch has literally risen from the Ashes. I’ve been going to rugby in this city since 1977. It’s just marvellous.”
Christchurch Ingenuity
Depleted by forward injuries, the Crusaders summoned the spirit of ingenuity that has prevailed in Christchurch since Richard Pearse used irrigation pipes to build an engine to fly an aeroplane. Lesister Fainga'anuku switched from wing to openside. In the 49th minute, he scored a try, tenaciously squirming over and giving the Crusaders a scoreboard cushion they never lost.
Swapping a winger to flanker isn’t without precedent in New Zealand. On June 9, 1956, crafty coach Dick Everst deliberately selected flanker Rex Pickering on the wing for Waikato’s match against the formidable 1956 Springboks. Expecting a physical onslaught, the experiment worked. Pickering, educated at Nelson College six decades before Fainga'anuku, scored a vital try in a 14-10 Mooloos win. Pickering later became an All Black.
Waratahs coach Dan McKellar praised the Crusaders’ audacity in emulating a Springboks-style “hybrid” player but ruled out a “cut and paste” solution for his side, currently outside playoff contention. Crusaders coach Rob Penny jockingly suggested that co-captain David Havili could move into the forwards, something the All Blacks' second five-eighth ruled out.
Food, Glorious Food.
With at least 14 local vendors, there was an abundance of food, and its quality represented a significant step up from other stadiums in New Zealand.
Korea House Chicken and Bacon Bros Burgers were a smash. A cousin of Ruben Love, who worked for Little Fish Co, was a delightful chap. The Fish n’ Chips were tasty and plentiful, and the lad even timed his break to catch the All Black set up a try. Other highlights were hot cinnamon doughnuts drizzled in chocolate sauce and audaciously spicy jalapeno poppers.
