Crusaders boss Colin Mansbridge stirred controversy by banning cowbells for the grand final.
Chiefs coach Clayton McMillan faces pressure, with potential long-term implications if the team lose another final.
Moana Pasifika must adjust after Ardie Savea’s loan to Kobe, affecting their Super Rugby momentum.
An observation...
Credit to Crusaders boss Colin Mansbridge and his Chiefs counterpart Simon Graafhuis for stirring the pot in what has been a ho-hum grand final week. The narratives were set fairly early on in the week in terms of on-the-field action, so to ban cowbells and stirthe pot a little bit has added some fun to it all, even if it is a little contrived.
Better still has been the indignation of some that not being allowed those godforsaken instruments is some sort of human rights violation. Great storyline. It should, however, be noted that Wellington banned them from their stadium more than a decade ago.
The fact it’s been ho-hum reminded me of when ex-Crusaders prop Joe Moody said the quiet part out loud in 2020 and admitted there was some genuine hatred between his side and the Chiefs. Maybe it was the lockdown talking, but it was the most honest a player has been and added some genuine spice to the fixture. Unfortunately, the art of tribalism has largely been lost in Super Rugby.
All Blacks and Crusaders prop Joe Moody. Photo / Photosport
A suggestion...
Not winning a final can hang over you. Long after the initial disappointment dissipates, you can be tagged as not having what it takes to win the big games. The top two inches.
Just ask Ian Foster, who admits in his new book that there was a lot made of the fact he never won a title with the Chiefs.
If Clayton McMillan oversees a fourth final loss in five years tomorrow night, that tag could follow him long after he’s left New Zealand - and back again if he returns to try for the All Blacks job down the track. It’s a bit much to say McMillan’s coaching future could be decided tonight but, should he win the decider, suddenly those three defeats become less important in the overarching narrative.
A prediction...
The final will be a coin flip, and the referee will probably decide it. There’s a somewhat bizarre symmetry between this year and 2023, when these sides last met in the final. The Chiefs won twice that season and then ... couldn’t get over the Crusaders in the final. If that happens, I can recommend to Chiefs fans a great documentary, the Four Falls of Buffalo (screening on Disney+), about the Buffalo Bills’ four straight Super Bowl defeats in the 1990s. It won’t necessarily be cathartic, but you may find solidarity.
Is it better to have Ardie once or never to have had Ardie at all? That’s what Moana Pasifika fans must be asking themselves after having their recently acquired “toy” loaned out to Kobe for another season, with the promise he’ll come back in 2027.
Just as Moana Pasifika began to get a foothold in Super Rugby, they must appoint a new captain and start somewhat from scratch again. Is there any other sport in the world where a player would trade a stronger competition for a lesser one for a few months? It’s only rugby’s skewed financials that allow such moves.
And would it be better or worse for Super Rugby not to have Savea at all over the current contract period, rather than the “is he or isn’t he here” question with two sabbaticals? Do you gain more by having Savea for one year on, one year off than you do allowing him to head to Japan for four years – clearing any confusion – and still allowing him to be eligible for the All Blacks?
