Crusaders chief executive Colin Mansbridge fronted up to the media once their fate was confirmed and would not commit to Penney returning to see out his two-year contract.
“We do a review. We do one every year,” Mansbridge said. “We’ll make sure it’s a quality review. It will be performance-focused and focused on what we can do better. We won’t be scapegoating anyone, and we won’t be making any knee-jerk reactions.
“Regardless of result or position on the competition table, we remain proud of our team, of our club and the huge mahi put in across the entire organisation to deliver the season that has been.
“Many results didn’t go our way and at times our on-field performance was not at the level we expect of ourselves. Fine margins define results and table position and we lost six of our games by less than seven points.”
The Crusaders’ points differential of -6 for the season was the sixth-best in the competition, with the sides around them in the table all posting negative numbers in the triple figures.
They enjoyed rousing wins over the Blues and the Chiefs – who finished second and fourth – and would have been an undesirable quarter-final opponent had they sneaked inside the top eight.
But they also suffered a number of historic defeats as their stranglehold on Super Rugby came to a crashing end, frustrating a playing group whose feedback would now be sought.
“All the players have a say – some of the more senior players will have an opportunity to expand,” Mansbridge said. “Player opinions every single year are really important.
“We haven’t got their formal feedback, but it’s fair to say they’re disappointed and frustrated.”
