Robertson gets all he wants from trial

Crusaders' in-house game ends in draw

Super Rugby powerhouse, the Crusaders, may have to wait a week longer than other sides to start their Super Rugby Aotearoa season, but coach Scott Robertson was delighted with an in-house warm-up game in Christchurch on Saturday afternoon.

The three-time defending champions in the traditional Super Rugby competition played out a 21-21 draw that provided something of everything for the side.

Robertson said team management was looking for a clean bill of health and some football from their in-squad game.

And when he and his selectors ponder their side for their opening game, they will have a full squad to choose from and that delighted Robertson.

Super Rugby Aotearoa was going to be a short, sharp but demanding competition and having everyone available was a boost for the side, he said.

The opportunity to play against each other was quite difficult for the sides when they trained a lot together.

They also had the advantage of playing their game on their home ground with the golden point applying in the final stages.

"We got the good running we needed and a couple of good shoulders into it, and the intensity," he said.

There had been uncontested balls in the lineouts because they knew each other's throws but it had been a chance to apply what they had been training in preparation for their opening game next weekend.

The game had also given them a chance to assess the law interpretations being used in the series.

"There was some classy play. [Wing] Leicester Faingaanuku was superb when he got the ball into his hands, some great scrummaging performances and special mention for [utility] Dave Havili to come in, especially after what he has been through from the health point of view, not only to be playing rugby but just to be out there again and to put in a performance," he said.

His level of training had been immense and by coming back so well and so quickly it had shown his character once again.

Another to take advantage of an opportunity he hardly expected in the traditional Super Rugby season, loose forward Ethan Blackadder demonstrated the value of the rehabilitation he had put in after having major shoulder surgery and he had been as physical as ever, Robertson said.

"His mindset is there, and his work-rate that he always gives us," he said.