The Crusaders have continued their winning ways in Super Rugby, beating the Brumbies 21-8 in Canberra on Saturday (NZT).
Brumbies winger Henry Speight opened the scoring after halfback Joe Powell unintentionally found the winger surging down the side-line.
Brumbies vs Crusaders - as it happened
The Crusaders hit back through Tim Bateman after a brilliant piece of play by Seta Tamanivalu, before the Brumbies found themselves a man down after Chance Peni went high on Israel Dagg.
The reigning champions made the one-man advantage count almost immediately, as Manasa Mataele crossed over for the try.
Mataele would go over for his second just five minutes later after Todd found the replacement winger with a wide pass, before stepping inside multiple defenders to dot down.
Wharenui Hawera closed the gap with a penalty shortly before halftime, as the Crusaders took the 21-8 halftime lead.
The Brumbies piled the pressure on the visitors' try line in the second half, forcing numerous penalties before both Scott Barrett and Ryan Crotty were shown yellow cards.
Despite the numerical advantage, they were unable to convert their many opportunities into points, as the Crusaders held on to take the spoils.
It was the Crusaders' eighth win in a row over the Brumbies, and it sees them leapfrog the Hurricanes into top spot of the New Zealand conference and on the overall log.
Newshub.
