Damian McKenzie has done it again.
For a third Super Rugby Aotearoa match in succession, the star Chiefs playmaker has mustered the crucial late play for his side to claim a thrilling win.
After a last-gasp try against the Blues, a golden-point penalty against the Highlanders, this time it was the Crusaders on the receiving end, with McKenzie nailing a penalty with three minutes to play for his team to close out a nailbiting 26-25 victory in Hamilton.
The 18,500 at FMG Stadium Waikato were left on the edge of their seats, as a late Crusaders attack threatened to steal it, before lock Naitoa Ah Kuoi came up with the huge penalty-relieving play at the ruck.
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The visitors, out of pure desperation, challenged the call, but there was no evidence the young locks hands were past the ball, and the hosts were able to see out the final moments and celebrate a fourth victory on the trot which has them up to second on the table.
The Crusaders came to town with a couple of All Blacks injured and opted to rest some others in their pack, and in the end Mitchell Drummonds 100th match for the franchise ended in disappointment, despite the visitors outscoring the hosts three tries to two.
They had a handy buffer to build from, but Richie Moungas missed conversion from near in front in the end turned very costly, and instead it was his opposite, McKenzie starting in the Chiefs No 10 jersey for the first time since the heavy defeat to the Crusaders in March 2019 who came up trumps.
Andrew Cornaga/Photosport
Damian McKenzie again came up trumps for the Chiefs, who defeated the Crusaders in Hamilton on Saturday night.
Needing to be the first ones to strike in the second stanza, the Chiefs looked like theyd butchered their golden chance when Alex Nankivell ran into Brad Weber in an accidental offside after a promising buildup.
But just minutes later Nankivell made good when his strong burst through the line set the hosts going again, and while the backs screamed for ball out wide on a huge overlap, the forwards eventually did their thing, Lachlan Boshier the beneficiary, burrowing over in the 47th minute in what was a strong first outing of the competition following a foot injury.
It took the Crusaders all of five minutes to hit back, though, with the injection of All Blacks hooker Codie Taylor seeing him grab instant rewards, rumbling over on the back of a lineout drive to extend his lead at the top of the tryscoring ladder.
Mounga hit the posts from near in front, leaving the margin at six, and what do you know, the Chiefs snapped up that invitation smartly, McKenzie snappily feeding Lienert-Brown, who sent a lovely long ball for Jonah Lowe to produce a fine finish in the right corner on the hour-mark.
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Richie Mounga fires a pass for the Crusaders in the match at FMG Stadium Waikato.
McKenzie then kicked a pressure conversion to put them in front, however their lead lasted all of three minutes, when Mounga made up for his earlier blunder by popping a penalty over to make it 25-23 and make it look like the Crusaders night.
They had taken all of five minutes to stamp their mark, with Leicester Fainga’anuku proving a more than capable fill-in for Jack Goodhue in midfield, barging over from close range to open the scoring.
The hosts worked their way back into the contest well, though, capitalising on a rising Crusaders penalty count 6-1 against them at one point to build in threes off the boot of McKenzie.
He landed three from in front as the visitors at times looked frantic deep in their own half.
However, in the blink of an eye, the Crusaders went from 9-7 down to 17-9 up, as Mounga slotted a gift from the tee, then put his boots to work on the dancefloor, sparking an attack which then had captain Scott Barrett running off his shoulder and feeding Will Jordan to race away on the half hour.
It wasnt the last piece of Jordan goodness in the first 40, either, as, after several waves of Chiefs attack, the silky fullback got his lean frame over the ball to win a turnover penalty and and ensure the champs eight-point lead was intact at the break.
AT A GLANCE
Chiefs 26 (Lachlan Boshier, Jonah Lowe tries; Damian McKenzie 2 con, 4 pen) Crusaders 25 (Leicester Fainga’anuku, Will Jordan, Codie Taylor tries; Richie Mounga 2 con, 2 pen). HT: 9-17.
