Blues 13 Crusaders 15
The Crusaders have spent years playing as if they were the SAS of rugby, yet last night they had no idea that fortune favours the brave.
Their mission was presented to them in simple terms - win with a bonus point and welcome to the playoffs.
Strangely, they appeared to
translate their task slightly differently. They had obviously decided that the win had to come first and they would take their chances as to whether that would be enough.
There was no sense of urgency brimming within the visitors. They were happy to kick away much of their possession. Just as happy to run a little too laterally.
And they paid the price for that. They weren't able to administer the lethal blow and kept the back door open with Isaia Toeava storming through it in the last five minutes to leave the Crusaders 13-12 down.
Step up Leon MacDonald. The most experienced back on the park, stepped into the pocket, called for the ball and then dropped the goal.
The strike was far from convincing but it was the set-up, the quick decision to play themselves into position and then execute that impressed.
New Zealand teams, remember, aren't great when it comes to drop goals. They have this aversion to them but what we saw last night was a team that didn't care how they won, as long as they won.
All the points came from the boot of MacDonald and they couldn't care less. They were not going to be budged from their belief that a scrambling win was a better option than a risky big win. Open the game up, the Crusaders reasoned, and they were giving the Blues a chance.
The mavericks in the crowd would have found the Crusaders approach a little disappointing - particularly when you throw in the fact they were also playing against the side with the second-worst defensive record in the competition. A bit like anything built in Auckland this past decade, the Blues leak.
If you put the pressure on them, ask them to make tackles and then make more tackles, they really leak.
Yet, for all that, there was a desperate aversion to risk. But when you have conservatism plugged into the brain, it's kind of hard to change. Adventure does not pump through the Crusaders' blood.
To be fair, that has been their way all season and they wouldn't have been in the mix in the first place had it not been for their commitment to pragmatism.
And let's be fair, the Crusaders have a knack of reading things well. They tick the right boxes and leave it to others to run themselves ragged.
Should things have gone their way in Durban earlier this morning - they were hoping the Sharks didn't get the five points required to oust them - and they are still alive, then what will have concerned coach Todd Blackadder from last night was the lack of clout at the collision, a mixed performance at the set piece and some sloppiness in their general execution.
Stephen Brett, after making a neat break just before halftime, then made the mistake of holding on to blow a golden opportunity.
Shortly after halftime, Thomas Waldrom was over the line but dropped the ball trying to place it. Not only would those two tries have pushed them halfway towards the required target, they also would have put the game beyond the Blues.
It was hard to tell whether it was the wet ball, the pressure of the occasion or lack of concentration that was behind the mistakes.
The net result was that the Blues were able to hang in there on limited possession. They weren't being outclassed as they have been in previous weeks and they held their shape and discipline.
They were left to work on scraps, though. They barely saw the ball in the second half until late in the game, when Toeava used his strength and awareness to muscle over from close range.
The crowd went wild for that, as they needed something to take home from both the night and the season.
The first half was an excruciating 40 minutes where there was no flow, no rhythm from either side. It didn't really get much better in the second.
Only the drama of the occasion saved the crowd from wondering why on Earth they hadn't stayed at home with a nice bottle of red.
Blues 13 (I. Toeava try, J. Gopperth con, 2 pens) Crusaders 15 (L. MacDonald 4 pens, drop goal). Halftime: 3-6.
