The opening game of Super 14 is in the books and already certain experiments seem doomed to failure. More on those a bit later. The Blues beat the Crusaders 34-25 and looked the sharper of the two teams right from the start - including the four minutes before the first stoppage.

Their forward pack dominated from the outset with several big breaks and captain Troy Flavell was on hand to give the final pass for the first try scored by Isaia Toeava.

The Crusaders, who traditionally start Super Rugby slowly, looked like a team a week short in preparation. The backline struggled for continuity and the whole team missed too many tackles. When the back line did gel they were impressive, but these breaks were few and far between. Captain Corey Flynn scored their opening try after a botched David Gibson clearance which bounced off one of his own players.

The second half provided some entertainment as the Blues stretched their lead with a try by Doug Howlett. And despite a valiant Crusaders’ comeback, the Blues came away with a good win.

Some of the failed experiments I mentioned earlier on.

1. Casey Laulala at second five: Laulala was a defensive liability for most of the game, stuggled to distribute ball and provides nothing in a kicking game. Coach Robbie Deans is likely to continue with this experiment for another couple of weeks before giving up on it, but the sooner the better. Laulala is an excellent centre, but paired with Rua Tipoki he adds very little. My theory on midfield backs is that one should be able to beat the line with skill, the other with power. Laulala and Tipoki both play very similar games and should be separated.

2. The new scrum engagement laws: While the new engagement process worked well for the first hour of the game, once the players became fatigued the addition of two commands from the referee (”crouch and hold” was only ever one command) served only to confuse players and make the engagement sequence more difficult. The IRB claim the reasoning behind the change was to depower the engagement and in this respect the change in a success. However, it tilts the balance too far in favour of the attacking team and makes defending at the scrum far more difficult.

3. Troy Flavell as captain:  While Flavell’s sin-binning was debatable; a captain should never put himself in that position. Steve Devine’s stomp at the same ruck was worse, but Flavell’s well-earned reputation as a dirty player means referees keep a close eye on him - and it was Flavell who saw yellow, not Devine.

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