The Crusaders have further dented the Blues' title defence aspirations with a 42-19 win at Eden Park.
Outside of the first few minutes, it was one-way traffic as the Crusaders sent a message to the rest of the competition.
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Both teams found themselves changing their teams, with hookers Codie Taylor and Kurt Eklund ruled out after Wednesday’s team naming.
Eklund’s replacement, James Mullan, found himself in the thick of the action early when he broke the line in the third minute, handing off to skipper Dalton Papali’i for the opener.
This woke up the Crusaders, who responded through try-scoring halfback Kyle Preston from close.
The Crusaders surprised plenty with the dropping of five-try hero Macca Springer to the bench but it paid dividends when returning winger Chay Fihaki split the defence and sprinted through the hole to give the visitors the lead.
Rob Penney’s side kept the pressure on and were rewarded when prop Tamaiti Williams barged over from close for a 17-7 lead after 25 minutes.
Taha Kemara’s boot extended the advantage by three more at the break, with Fihaki’s second adding to the Blues’ punishment.
The hosts were stuck in a spiral as second-rower Laghlan McWhannell went to the bin for a cynical foul.
The Crusaders pounced and their rolling maul drove over the top of the Blues, Tom Christie the man to dot it down.
The Blues eventually found something for the Eden Park crowd to cheer when Marcel Renata dived over under the posts.
But it was the Crusaders’ night as Springer got in on the attack off the bench, with Will Jordan crossing to seal the win in the final play of the game.
