Crusaders’ Todd Blackadder wants victory against Reds in Super Rugby Final
Anticipation for the Super Rugby Championship final in Brisbane on Saturday is high as both the Crusaders-Canterbury and the Queensland Reds face each other in the match.
Todd Blackadder, the coach of the Crusaders is convinced of his team's victory against the Reds.
The Blackadder, although under pressure, is confident that he is hopeful of winning the match against the Reds. This win will earn the Crusaders the Championship for the eighth time.
Despite facing many difficulties, the Crusaders, with seven Super Rugby Championship wins already under their belt, have had a successful run. Such obstacles as injuries to players like flanker Matt Todd and Richie McCaw, and the fact that they have been
on the road for at least 100,000km since the Christchurch earthquake, all make their victories in the season excellent factors for Blackadder to predict victory for the Crusaders.
Blackadder himself is an asset for the team, since he joined in 2009, and has helped the Crusaders sweep through the semi-final against the Stormers by a win of 29-10 in Cape Town. This victory was realised under the brilliant show by the Crusaders scrum,
especially from the players Corey Flynn, Wyatt Crockett, Brad Thorn ,Owen Franks and Sam Whitelock. This victory made the Crusaders the first team in over 11 years to win a game, the semi-final, on foreign soil.
As the player Thorn puts it, “I think they really love the fact we've been on the road the whole time, that we've had injuries and we're still here. When we came third we had to go to Africa [the Cape Town semi-final] and back and stuff. We've had obstacles
but we've never complained or carried on.”
The Reds on the other hand have also come out victorious in the semi-final by 30-13 against the Blues in Brisbane. Previously, in this year, when the Reds and the Crusaders sparred together, the Reds succeeded by a tight win of 17-16.
Blackadder considers the game very competitive and tells his team to not let emotions over rule their performance by saying, “There's a lot of emotion and these games aren't won purely on emotion.”
The win is more crucial for the Crusaders for their fans back home as well. Both the coach and the players are willing to succeed in the game so that their win is a special accomplishment for themselves and their people, especially in lieu of the environmental
conditions in Christchurch after the earthquake.
The Crusaders have soldiered on despite there being pressures, both man-made and natural. Blackadder encourages his team, keeps them in line, and supports them, at the same time being insistent and confident about of their victory against the Reds in the
Super Rugby Championship final.
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