Stench of death hovers over Super Rugby legends…

Stench of death hovers over Super Rugby legends Crusaders

Richie McCaw of the Crusaders lays injured during the round 11 Super Rugby match between the Crusaders and the Blues. Photograph: Martin Hunter/Getty Images

There’s a whiff of death to this weekend’s round 12 of Super Rugby; in fact, we could be bearing witness to the end of a great Crusaders era.

Certainly, most Australian fans will be focused squarely on Friday’s local derby between the Brumbies and Waratahs in Canberra, but the potentially more momentous event could be the Hurricanes v Crusaders clash at Westpac Stadium in Wellington.

It’s difficult to see how the Crusaders can make the play-offs if they lose. And that’s a very big deal for a team who have won the title seven times and made the finals every year since 2002. A loss against the Hurricanes will make the Crusaders’ run home very difficult indeed.

But more on the NZ games in a moment … back to the Brumbies v Waratahs.

This ought to be a cracker, a Wallabies Test trial in disguise with key match-ups in just about every position. Dual Waratahs/Wallabies coach Michael Cheika is a winner even before kick-off. Clearly, he needs the Tahs to win to keep in touch with the Australian conference-leading Brumbies, and stay ahead of the Rebels who are running strong in third. However, the Tahs do have breathing space with a seven-point buffer over the Rebels.

Most of the pre-game chat has been on opposing flakers - the Tahs incumbent Test skipper Michael Hooper against Brumbies’ David Pocock. It’s a bogus debate: Pocock has all but locked in the openside. He’s the player Australia has been waiting for and has sorely missed during his wretched two-year run with injury. In fact, Hooper, a fine player with ball in hand but substandard over the ball, might as well not play on Friday. He’ll play at the World Cup but only off the bench unless Pocock is injured or rested. Which brings us to the question of who will captain the Wallabies if Hooper is not in the starting Test line-up? The word in the lockeroom is that it’s Stephen Moore. His likely back-up, Tatafu Polota-Nau, would have to lord it over Moore to force a selection rethink. It’s hard to see that happening though - Moore is too consistent, and a heck of a leader to boot.

The duel on the wings will be intriguing. Brumbies Joe Tomane and Henry Speight, both Test wingers, have performed well. But Tahs winger Rob Horne has been more impressive for overall impact - and, more importantly, the timing of his impact. Horne, hugely underrated, has that special knack of coming up trumps when his team needs it most - a bit like Rob Egerton during the 1991 Bledisloe Cup who always seemed to be at the right time at the right place to get that lucky bounce. Just ask John Kirwan. Horne is a big match special.

Back to the Crusaders. This looks like the end of the road for them. To be fair, it has looked like that for several seasons now. Sitting second-last in the NZ conference, and 9th overall, the Crusaders quite simply have to win every game from here on in to snare a finals berth. And that’s a tall order given their run home - the Hurricanes twice, the Waratahs and Brumbies in their remaining six games. With Daniel Carter’s departure for France next year and Richie McCaw’s likely retirement, it’s fair to say the great Crusaders era is at end. The only question is the appropriate game for rugby historians to shut the book on the era. A loss this weekend to the Hurricanes, and a win for the Highlanders against the Sharks is as good a weekend as any for closure. An SOS to Robbie Deans to replace Todd Blackadder for either 2015 or the year after wouldn’t surprise.