Try of the year contender propels Crusaders to victory over Highlanders in Dunedin
For 66 minutes of the Crusaders-Highlanders game in Dunedin, there was nothing between the teams, with just a solitary point separating the southern rivals.
Enter Will Jordan.
The brilliant broken-field runner ran a support line inside George Bridge, and somehow evaded four Highlanders defenders on the way to the line for a try of the year contender.
It was the critical moment as the Crusaders wrapped up a 32-19 win, with giant prop Tamaiti Williams sealing victory inside the last five minutes.
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It was tough on the Highlanders, who played their part in a compelling contest.
Gun fullback Will Jordan lodged a contender for try of the year as the Crusaders beat the Highlanders in Dunedin. Getty
They threw plenty at the Crusaders, especially in the form of big midfielder Fetuli Paea and winger Sam Gilbert.
However, the Crusaders are masters at getting out of difficult situations. As the game progressed, and they rolled on their front-row replacements, their scrum began to dominate, and they also had the luxury of injecting Bridge from the pine.
The Highlanders started with a controlled aggression that rattled the Crusaders, whose discipline was again poor early.
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No.8 Cullen Grace was lucky not to collect a yellow card in the opening minutes for a high shot on Josh Timu as the Highlanders owned the opening 10 minutes.
Grace clearly hit Timu high and was fortunate the incident was not looked at again by the officials.
Sam Gilbert then raced in for a clever try from a lineout move that manipulated David Havili defensively, and Jordan was then smashed in a huge double tackle led by All Blacks prop Ethan de Groot and supported by lock Manaaki Selby-Rickit.
Jordan, however, is a hard man to keep out of the game in current form, and he led the Crusaders revival that also reflected young No.10 Fergus Burke's growing influence.
Livewire winger Sevu Reece scored twice after a period of dominance, the second after a lovely set-up by Jordan.
If anyone wants to stop the Crusaders, they'll have to stop the fullback.
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