Final quarter finesse saw the Crusaders seal a win that belied how hard they had to work to finally contain the Highlanders 40-20 in Super Rugby Aotearoa in Dunedin on Saturday.
The Crusaders moved to the head of the ladder and will have a top of the table clash with the Blues next weekend.
Again, it was the ability to absorb pressure and then pour on the application in the final stages to draw the sting out of a game home team.
It was also the depth of the Crusaders that bore fruit. Will Jordan was given a shot on the wing, instead of fullback, but that didn't prevent him scoring two more tries.
Flanker Tom Christie had been out of action in the return to play but marked his comeback with two tries while Sevu Reece was like a jack-in-the-box when coming on for the last 30 minutes. He popped up all over the field looking to put his footwork to use while he produced an exquisite drive to dive over in the corner for a key try.
The Highlanders were not without inspiration, especially the compelling display produced by blindside flanker Shannon Frizell who was at his most destructive with some powerful play.
But in the final measure, it was the unrelenting cohesion of the Crusaders that made the difference on the night.
Untidy lineout play marred the first quarter from both sides but when it was required Crusaders hooker Codie Taylor stormed from the front of a lineout. That set up a quick ruck which saw left-wing Leicester Fainganuku charge forward to get close to scoring before lock Mitchell Dunshea also went close.
As pick-and-go efforts were tried by the pack, the ball was released to the backs and in the face of scrambling Highlanders' defence, they got the ball across to try scorer of the moment Jordan.
The Highlanders suffered the loss of lock Josh Dickson to a leg injury but from the restart they appeared undeterred with Frizell showing impressive determination, featuring several times with the ball in hand before charging to the line wrapped in Crusader defenders but still able to ground the ball for the try.
Another miscued lineout throw to the back of the line flew over Dickson's replacement Jack Whetton, but halfback and skipper Aaron Smith burst around the back at speed to claim the ball break the defensive line and carry the ball into the 22m area. He offloaded a ball to second five-eighths Patelesio Tomkinson who was ground.
The ball was moved immediately and wing Ngatungane Punivai got across in the corner to give the Highlanders the lead.
But a poor refereeing call by Mike Fraser, or his touch judges, missed a blatant forward pass off a Crusaders lineout move, as Taylor fed Faingaanuku coming inside him. As it was a penalty was called and Mo'unga landed to level the scores.
Fortunately, for the Highlanders, another forward pass was missed when Smith threw a ball forward for first five-eighths Mitchell Hunt which resulted in a penalty being conceded by the Crusaders. That allowed Hunt to land the penalty goal for the Highlanders to go to the break 17-14 up.
Concentrated attack with two powerful breaks by Jordan and David Havili resulted in Christie scoring to regain the lead for the Crusaders, although a deliberate hold robbed centre Braydon Ennor of the chance to be on hand in support to score which would have ensured a penalty try.
Hunt got the Highlanders back within a point with a penalty but applied dynamism from the Crusaders saw the machine work its way into the Highlanders' goalmouth where halfback Mitchell Drummond threw a long pass across the face of his blindside backs to find replacement Reece with enough room to dive across in the corner.
The same methodology was the route to the win when Christie crossed again on the back of some frenetic build-up work as the Crusaders, probed, probed and probed again for a breakthrough. Quick flick-ons among the backs were employed and finally, it was Christie who was on the end of one move to score his second and give his side an unbeatable lead.
Jordan had the final say, frustratingly for the home team when they were looking to finish with a flourish. Instead, an in-pass was intercepted by second five-eighths Jack Goodhue. He fed back out to Jordan who chipped ahead and found the ball conveniently touched in the air, to fall into his hands with ease and allow him to run in from 40m out to secure the try bonus point.
Scorers: Highlanders 20 (Shannon Frizell, Ngatungane Punivai tries; Mitchell Hunt 2 con, 2 pen) Crusaders 40 (Will Jordan 2, Tom Christie 2, Sevu Reece tries; Richie Mo'unga 4 con, 3 pen). HT: 17-14
The teams were:
Highlanders: 1.Daniel Lienert-Brown (replaced by Ayden Johnstone 41min), 2.Liam Coltman (replaced by Ash Dixon 52min), 3.Jeff Thwaites (replaced by Siate Tokolahi 41min) , 4.Paripari Parkinson, 5.Josh Dickson (replaced by Jack Whetton 17min), 6.Shannon Frizell, 7.Dillon Hunt, 8.Marino Mikaele Tu'u (replaced by Teariki Ben-Nicholas 74min), 9.Aaron Smith (replaced by Kayne Hammington 71min), 10.Mitch Hunt (replaced by Bryn Gatland 74min), 11.Jona Nareki, 12.Patelesio Tomkinson, 13.Rob Thompson, 14.Ngatungane Punivai (replaced 35min by Vilimoni Koroi), 15.Michael Collins.
Crusaders: 1.Joe Moody (replaced by George Bower 57min), 2.Codie Taylor (captain – replaced by Andrew Makalio 78min), 3.Michael Alaalatoa (replaced by Oli Jager 57min), 4.Sam Whitelock, 5.Mitchell Dunshea (replaced by Quinten Strange 68min), 6.Sione Havili (replaced by Tom Sanders 57min), 7.Tom Christie, 8.Whetukamokamo Douglas, 9.Mitchell Drummond (replaced by
Ereatara Enari 78min), 10.Richie Mo'unga, 11.Leicester Faingaanuku (replaced by Fetuli Paea 68min), 12.Jack Goodhue, 13.Braydon Ennor, 14.Will Jordan, 15.David Havili (replaced by Sevu Reece 51min).
Referee: Mike Fraser