MATCH REPORT: Crusaders storm back to claim statement win in fiery thriller

We walked out at FMG Stadium Waikato knowing the pressure was squarely on us after a difficult opening fortnight, and by full time we had delivered the response we desperately needed. 

In front of a Hamilton crowd and against a Chiefs side fuelled by early‑season derby wins, we overturned a 14–0 deficit and survived a frantic finish to claim a 43–33 victory. 

The Chiefs started with real purpose and intensity. Quinn Tupaea opened the scoring after just five minutes, reaching over from close range after their pack hammered away on our line. 

Soon after, they backed their instincts from deep, counter‑attacking from inside their own in‑goal. Leroy Carter burst out, linked with Josh Jacomb and Xavier Roe, and when the ball found Josh Lord thundering upfield, the lock’s one‑handed pass sent Etene Nanai‑Seturo clear down the left. 

His finish in the corner, converted again by Jacomb, pushed the Chiefs out to 14–0 and had the Waikato crowd in full voice. 

We needed a foothold and found it through our forwards. A strong scrum close to the line gave us momentum and, after Dom Gardiner controlled messy ball, George Bell straightened from ten metres out and powered past Simon Parker to score under the posts. 

Taha Kemara converted to cut the margin to 14–7. 

The Chiefs struck back almost immediately. Parker secured a lineout and Tupaea punched into midfield before Samisoni Taukei’aho picked a sharp line on Roe’s shoulder and crashed over from close range. 

Jacomb’s third successful conversion made it 21–7. 

From there, we mounted the comeback that defined the match. Building off a solid scrum just inside our own half, we launched a well‑worked strike to the left, where Will Jordan took the ball at pace, sliced clean through the line and raced into the 22. 

He found captain David Havili running a classic inside support line, and Havili in turn freed Noah Hotham to finish beside the posts. 

Kemara’s conversion reduced the deficit to seven and shifted the momentum. 

Soon after, a dominant scrum on the Chiefs line earned a penalty advantage and invited the forwards to have another crack. 

Christian Lio‑Willie drove hard down the short side and, although he was initially ruled held up, the TMO spotted the grounding to level things at 21–21 once Kemara knocked over the extras. 

The final minutes of the half were tense and scrappy. Both sides traded kicks and territory, with our scrum continuing to squeeze penalties and our defence beginning to win key breakdown contests. Frustration bubbled over when Jared Proffit tipped Havili in back play, prompting a long discussion between James Doleman, both captains, and his assistants. 

When play eventually resumed, we showed patience with ball in hand. Bell carried strongly once more to set the platform, and another penalty followed. Kemara, from about 40 metres out, nudged us into the lead for the first time at 24–21 as the half closed. 

The Chiefs began the second spell determined to wrestle back control, but our defence refused to budge.  

Carries from Jacobson, Tupaea and Nanai‑Seturo were met with sharp line speed and strong contact, while Jordan and Chay Fihaki defused high balls and kicked smartly for territory. 

Whenever the Chiefs found a crack, someone in red and black stepped through it: Dom Gardiner forcing a turnover, Tamaiti Williams diving on a loose ball, or George Bower driving Proffit into a spill. 

We turned that pressure into points. Another passage near their line came after Hotham sniped, Fainga’anuku carried hard through contact and the Chiefs arrived late to the breakdown.  

With their defence on the back foot, Lio‑Willie exploded through the middle to grab his second try of the night, and Kemara converted from right of the posts to stretch our lead to 31–21. 

Our next strike showcased Jordan’s influence again. With the Chiefs penalised after Shaun Rona was caught in possession, we played under advantage.  

Jordan straightened, split the defence and fired a long ball to Sevu Reece on the left. Reece stepped back against the grain, drew the cover and released Havili on the outside. The captain finished acrobatically in the corner for our sixth try.  

Kemara’s first miss of the night kept it at 36–21. 

The scoreboard pressure climbed again when we produced arguably our best team movement of the match.  

Starting from a scrum inside our own 22, we attacked down the right with Kemara putting a precise kick in behind. Fihaki gathered the rolling ball at pace, burst into the open field and linked back inside with Kemara, who was dragged down only metres short.  

Tahlor Cahill carried close, and when the defence splintered, Lio‑Willie picked and powered through the ruck to complete his hat‑trick. Fihaki converted from wide on the right to push us out to 43–21 with just over ten minutes left. 

The Chiefs refused to fade. After we went down to 14 when Hotham was shown a yellow card for a late tackle on Narawa, Tupou Vaa’i burst up the middle from a broken lineout, linked with Jacobson and finished under the posts.  

Jacomb’s conversion narrowed it to 43–28. 

They kept coming. From deep in their half, Cook‑Savage broke the line and fed Tyrone Thompson, with Narawa and Tupaea driving them past halfway.  

Another attacking sequence saw Sititi and Finau hammer at the line before Havili ripped the ball free just short. Still, the Chiefs pressed on. With time almost gone, Carter flung a cut‑out ball to Narawa on the right and the winger finished to make it 43–33.  

Jacomb pushed the conversion wide, but FMG Stadium sensed a last‑gasp bonus‑point chance. 

It almost arrived in spectacular fashion. Receiving a deep restart, the Chiefs launched from inside their 22, shifting left to put Carter into space. He streaked clear over halfway and looked certain to go the distance, until Jordan arrived from nowhere. Our fullback chopped him down metres short and dislodged the ball, sealing the win and shutting down the Chiefs’ final chance to salvage anything. 

After the match, standout player with a hat‑trick, Lio‑Willie summed up our shift in attitude, saying it was “one way to get back”. 

“For the past couple of weeks, we’ve been trying to see who the man in the mirror is and we came down here with that sort of mentality. It set us up well to come here and reveal our true character, and I think the boys showed it tonight.” 

Havili admitted we started slow but praised the lift in the team after halftime. 

“We brought some good physicality in the second half but still a bit to work on. 

“I’m just extremely stoked to come away with a great win.” 

Rob Penney built on that theme, saying he was most impressed with the attitude his men brought into the game.  

“This was always going to be a bit of a turning point; we had to front. We were up against a great side, probably the most consistent Super team through the preliminary games. 

“I’m just rapt for the team. We’ve got a bunch of young boys coming through and that’s their first taste of what it’s like to be in that cauldron. It’s just awesome for the group to come away with the victory here,” says Penney. 

Final score: Crusaders 43 Chiefs 33