From bad to worse and with more big challenges on the horizon, the Crusaders’ horror run of four defeats to start their championship defence will test their players, the team’s management, and to a certain extent their supporters.
Their 14-10 defeat to the Hurricanes in Christchurch on Friday came on top of losses to the Chiefs, Waratahs and Fijian Drua and, while they were leading until Justin Sangster’s converted try for the visitors with two minutes remaining, there was nothing particularly surprising about any of it.
They are second to last on the Super Rugby Pacific table with two competition points, one point above the last-placed Force.
They are under-manned due to injuries and departures of key players, but are deficient across the field, and if anything summed up where they are at it was Owen Franks’ yellow card after the final whistle for making contact with an opponents’ head as he attempted to make a tackle.
After their latest disappointment on a cold and wet night, a former Crusaders coach messaged me to say “the effort was better”, which is about as low a bar as you could aim for given this franchise has won seven titles in a row and, under former coach Scott Robertson, set new standards in terms of excellence and consistency.
And it could have been worse if not for wing Sevu Reece, who was tireless on defence and rescued his teammates several times. Reece, returning from a long-term injury which ruled him out of the World Cup, is one of their few shining stars – certainly he is the one experienced player consistently performing for the Crusaders.
"Lost for words," said a disconsolate Reece after the Hurricanes loss.
"It's not the way we thought our season would start. Tonight was another great example of the story of our season so far. Everything is there. We start off well and [there’s] just not the finish we are after.
"I know the boys are all feeling a bit down. I feel for the boys. We definitely need to come back on Monday and start working on a few things and start learning a lot faster from the mistakes and how we could close games off or just how we could be better in general."
Following in Robertson’s footsteps was always going to be difficult for Penney.
Richie Mo’unga, Jack Goodhue, Leicester Fainga’anuku and Sam Whitelock would be big losses for any team. Codie Taylor is taking time off before returning later in the season. Will Jordan is out for the season due to a shoulder injury.
Due to Fergus Burke’s long-term Achilles injury, No.10 has been a revolving door featuring the inexperienced Rivez Reihana, Taha Kemara, and, more recently, Riley Hohepa.
Skipper Scott Barrett is out for more than a month due to a broken finger.
Levi Aumua, the new signing from Moana Pasifika, has yet to find his feet in the midfield.
But it is the collective that will disappoint and potentially concern the Crusaders. Their traditionally strong set piece hasn’t been dominant and their driving maul has become toothless. They are missing too many tackles.
Penney is remaining optimistic in front of the cameras, but the record must be weighing on him.
It’s understood he took over at the Crusaders with a brief to stay for two years before handing the reins to the highly-thought of assistant Tamati Ellison, who also worked under Robertson, and Penney wouldn’t be human if he wasn’t thinking back to his time at the Waratahs when he was sacked after an 0-5 start to his last season in Sydney.
And then there is the team’s supporters.
After their woeful first season in Super Rugby in 1996, when they finished last, the Crusaders have become synonymous with resilience, innovation and excellence which become stronger in the wake of the Christchurch earthquakes when they became a symbol for the city.
They won their first title in 1998, beating the Blues at Eden Park, and won two more after that for good measure. They have won 14 in total.
While their new Te Kaha stadium is being built in the CBD, the Crusaders continue to play in their draughty and unfit “temporary” stadium in Addington which was put up in 100 days in 2011. They are due to move into their new home in 2026.
Without on-field improvements, they may struggle to attract crowds until then. Crusaders fans know what they like and it’s not this.
Penney’s men face the Blues at Eden Park next.
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