Crusaders keep the excitement

Experience is only any use, Crusaders coach Robbie Deans said in the verbal shadowboxing before last night's Super 12 semifinal, if it keeps the players excited.

After another magnificent team display and mastery from his most seasoned campaigner, Justin Marshall, Deans should have been doing cartwheels in the coaches' box.

But he has attended too many finals, as a manager and coach, to be presumptuous about next Saturday's conclusion in Christchurch.

Instead, he will have gathered his cautious tone for public utterances, lauded his men appropriately in the bowels of their changing room and waited for some quiet, private moment to vent his pleasure.

In a series where sides aim to peak for the playoffs, the Crusaders found another level with an ominous warning for either of their opponents in the final, the Waratahs or Bulls.

No one was better than Marshall, a halfback with the competitive streak of Zinzan Brooke, the power of a loose forward and the priceless asset of rugby brains.

For either he or Tana Umaga, the only players who had also appeared in the first season of the professional series, last night was going to be their Super 12 exit after a decade of excellence. Both men are nudging their 32nd birthdays, both are keen to play next year but only Umaga will do so in New Zealand.

Marshall is leaving, a contract with Leeds in his briefcase, a few years in Old Blighty to salt away what he has earned through consistent excellence. Signing that deal, though, has not reduced Marshall's excitement about his chosen sport.

If anything, he looks sharper this season, he is the answer to Deans' challenge.

In truth, it was a challenge laid down by the new All Black selectors on the end-of-year trip to Europe. They knew Marshall was looking around for a deal in Britain so they began their plans for the future. That four-match trip, they reckoned, was the opportunity to test some ideas and planning for the Lions series.

Byron Kelleher had to be given a lengthy test-drive at halfback while Daniel Carter had all the skills to be the first five-eighths. Out went Marshall and Mehrtens.

Marshall was displeased. The feisty halfback vowed to fight back and last night he underlined that declaration with quality decisions, strong delivery, the defence and attacking snipes which will be needed against the Lions.

"He's not going to leave quietly, is he," Carter said. "I would like to see him stay around for another couple of years because he makes my job easier."

So does Deans, the schemer behind the Christchurch demolition. There was no secret formula for the forwards, just more of the same template which no other team has - setpiece authority, and offensive defence stitched to stealing turnovers.

Analysis of the Hurricanes defence showed they rushed from the outside, and Carter and others were encouraged to grubber into the gaps for the speed of the Crusaders back four to take effect. It was smart rugby, something Deans, Marshall and the Crusaders have produced consistently for repeated successes.