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Crusaders 52 Rebels 26
Crusaders - Drummond, Jordan, Fainga'anuku, 3 Reece, Ennor, Jager tries; Mo'unga 6 conversions
Rebels - Hosea, Powell, Vaihu, Lomani tries; Gordon 3 conversions
Live updates have finished. Click here for a full match wrap and highlights.
Full time
80 mins
The Crusaders attack straight from the lineout but the Rebels strip the ball to win possession back. Gordon grubbers in behind but Ennor is back there to clean up and is forced to back into his own in-goal area. That will give the Rebels a scrm but there isn't time and that will be full time.
The Highlanders are in the final and now the Crusaders are relying on the Blues losing to the Western Force to book themselves a spot in the final.
79 mins
After six phases of Rebels attack the Crusaders win a breakdown penalty and they will have a lineout just short of halfway. They will have just under a minute to score seven points to put themselves in the final.
78 mins - Yellow Card Crusaders to Bryn Hall
The Crusaders have conceded back-to-back penalties and the referee has sent Hall to the sin bin.
77 mins
From the lineout, the Rebels attack through Lomani who gets over halfway before offloading to Kellaway. He is brought down inside the 22 but at the breakdown, the Crusaders win the ball back and clear through Mo'unga. Koroibete cleans up and builds their attack. After five phases, the Rebels win a penalty and have a lineout 10-metres out.
75 mins
From the scrum, the Crusaders attack through Vella who gets down to the 22. The visitors are throwing everything at the Rebels as they hunt the seven-points to claim their spot in the final.
After 12-phases, Leicester Fainga'anuku looks like he's over but the TMO has ruled a double movement to rule out the try. Big moment. the Crusaders have five minutes to get 7 points to get in the final.
73 mins
The Rebels make a meal of restart and kick it straight out of play. The Crusaders will have a scrum on halfway.
72 mins - Try Crusaders to Braydon Ennor
The Crusaders steal the lineout and build their attack. The visitors get fast-ball and Hall fires a pass to Ennor who sprints into a huge hole to score under the cross bar.
Mo'unga converts the try. (CRU 52-26)
71 mins
The Crusaders win a free-kick from the scrum and take a quick tap. They come wide straight away and Mataele looks like he has scored but a try-saving tackle forces him into touch.
70 mins
The Crusaders tap and go and after two phases, Tamati Williams reaches out to score but he can't quite get it down. At the scrum, the Rebels dominate to win the penalty.
The home side looks to attack from the lineout but as they come wide to Kellaway he has knocked the ball on to invite more Crusaders pressure. The visitors will have a scrum on the 10-metre line.
69 mins - Yellow Card Rebels to Steve Cummins
The Crusaders attack straight from the kickoff as Jordan breaks downfield. He gets over halfways and passes to Blackadder. He is brought down just short of the 22 before offloading to Fainga'anuku who goes close. At the breakdown, Steve Cummins gives away a penalty and the referee has sent him to the sin bin.
68 mins - Try Crusaders to Oliver Jager
The Crusaders are over. After they win a penalty they take a quick tap and after they go close, Hall fires a pass to Jager who smashes his way over.
Mo'unga converts the try. (CRU 45-26)
66 mins
The rebels make another mistake when trying to clear their lines from the restart as they knock the ball on. The Crusaders will have a scrum on the 22. Remember the Crusaders need to win by 33 to overtake the Highlanders and book themselves a spot in the final. Can they do it?
64 mins - Try Rebels to Frank Lomani
The Crusaders look to attack from the scrum and come wide to Jordan but his pass goes behind Rece. Koroibete, cleans up and fires inside to Frank Lomani who has too much pace to score in the corner.
Gordon converts the try. (CRU 38-26)
62 mins
The restart has got messy as both sides compete for the ball. Kellaway has knocked the ball on and the Crusaders will have a scrum on their own 22.
61 mins - Try Crusaders to Sevu Reece
The Crusaders set the lineout aul but the Rebels defend it well and force the visitors to go wide to the backs. After two phases, they make a mistake but the referee was playing advantage and awards a penalty.
Reece sprints across and taps a quick tap and catches the Rebels napping to smash his way over.
Mo'unga converts the try. (CRU 38-19)
59 mins
The Rebels have made a meal of clearing their lines from the restart as they give away a breakdown penalty and the Crusaders will have a lineout just five metres out.
57 mins - Try Rebels to Glenn Vaihu
The Rebels dominate at the scrum to win the penalty and Powell taps and goes quickly to start the attack. After two consecutive penalties, the Rebels finally make all the pressure count when Powell fires a wide pass to Glenn Vaihu who is in a huge hole to score.
Gordon converts the try. (CRU 31-19)
53 mins
From the scrum, the Rebels build their attack just inside the Crusaders half. After two phases win an offside penalty and Gordon will give his side a lineout just 10-metres out.
The Rebels attack from the lineout and after four phases, Blackadder goes for the turnover but has knocked the ball on and the home side will have a scrum just five metres out.
50 mins
The home side's scrum is under huge pressure and forces Powell to scramble a kick off downfield. The Crusaders clean up and at the breakdown win a penalty. Mo'unga goes for touch but he has missed and it has gone dead to give the Rebels a scrum on halfway.
49 mins
After both sides trade kicks the restart, the Crusaders find space down the lefthand side through Mataele but he has knocked the ball on in contact on the Rebels 10-metre line.
The home side will have a scrum.
47 mins - Try Crusaders to Sevu Reece
The Crusaders set the lineout maul and it's stopped inches short before Drummond fires a wide cut-out pass to Reece to score in the corner.
Mo'unga can't convert the try. (CRU 31-12)
44 mins
The Rebels are building their attack just short of halfway but after six phases, the Crusaders win a breakdown penalty and they will have a lineout just five metres out.
Kickoff - The Rebels get the second half underway. The Crusaders set to clear but Mo'unga has his clearance charged down. He goes back to clean up and fires a wide pass to Reece and clears off downfield.
The Rebels build their attack just short of the 22 but the visitors win the ball back and as Mo'unga goes to clear it's charged down. The Crusaders clean up and end up attacking through Bower who sprints into a huge hole. He gets down to halfway and offloads to Jordon who sprint clear and looks like scoring but a try-saving tackle from Kellaway stops a certain try and forces him into touch.
40 mins
The Rebels will have one final chance before halftime as they build their attack just inside the 22. After seven phases, the Crusaders win a breakdown turnover and look to counter-attack.
Fainga'anuku makes a mini-break before offloading to McLeod who quickly dishes it off for Mataele who sprints down to halfway. He turns it inside to McLeod who beats one tackler and all he needs to do is sprint to the line but with no one around him he has somehow dropped the ball and that will be halftime.
How big a moment will that be.
38 mins
The Crusaders are attacking straight from the kickoff again with Mo'unga making a mini-break before offloading to Barrett. He quickly dishes it off to Blackadder who gets smashed by Rebels halfback Powell to force the knock on.
The Rebls produce another huge scrum to win a penalty and they will have a lineout just short of the 22.
36 mins - Try Rebels to Joe Powell
The Crusaders have produced a huge scrum on their own line to win a penalty but Mo'unga hasn't found touch and the Rebels are straight back on the attack. After two phases, Powell dummies and sprints through a huge hole and he has too much pace and slides over for the Rebels second try.
Gordon can't convert the try. (CRU 26-12)
33 mins
The Rebels win the lineout against the throw are attacking inside the Crusaders 22. After eight phases the attack comes to nothing but the referee was playing advantage. The Rebels tap and go to continue the pressure.
After seven phases, Powell knocks the ball on at the ruck to ease the pressure.
31 mins
The Crusaders are looking to counter-attack with Reece breaking clear. He chips over the top and runs into Worth and the ball is cleaned up by the Rebels. At the next phase, Frank Lomani kicks in behind and it goes into touch inside the Crusaders 22.
29 mins
The Rebels are attacking right on the Crusaders line. After six phases, Cabous Eloff tries to slam the ball down but he has lost it in contact and it's no try.
Crusaders will have a scrum just five metres from their own line.
28 mins
From the lineout, the Rebels make a meal of it and fail to throw it straight to ease the pressure. Crusaders will have a defensive scrum just five metres from their line.
From the scrum, Rece clears but goes out 10-metres from his own line.
26 mins - Yellow Card Crusaders to Will Jordan
The Rebels dominate at scrum time to win another penalty at the set-piece and after a long kick will have a lineout on the visitors 10-meter line.
From the lineout, the Rebels come wide and Gordon fires a wide pass but Jordan goes for an intercept but can't bring it in.
The referee has ruled that Jordan had no chance at claiming the intercept and has sent him to the sin bin.
25 mins
The Rebels are building their attack but after five passes Fainga'anuku rips the ball off the ball carrier and kicks downfield. Powell is back there to clean up but knocks the ball on to give more possession to the Crusaders.
23 mins - Try Crusaders to Sevu Reece
The Crusaders are attacking straight from the kickoff with Barrett sprinting through a huge hole to get down to halfway before offloading Mo'unga who gets down to the 22. After three phases, Mo'unga fires a long 20-metre pass over the top to Sevu Reece to score in the corner.
Mo'unga converts the try. (CRU 26-7)
20 mins - Try Crusaders to Leicester Fainga'anuku
Razzell-dazzle from the Crusaders and they are over for their third try. The visitors come wide to Jordan who shows quick hands to offload to Manasa Mataele. He breaks clear and flicks a pass over his head to Drummond who quickly flicks it inside to Leicester Fainga'anuku to score in the corner.
Mo'unga can't convert the try. (CRU 19-7)
18 mins
The Crusaders are building their attack just short of the 22 with Fainga'anuku making a strong run. After six phases, the Rebels have given away a penalty for a high tackle and the visitors will have a lineout 20-metres out.
17 mins
The Rebels have made a mistake as they set up to clear from the restart as they knock the ball on. The Crusaders will have a scrum just outside the 22.
16 mins - Try Rebels to Trevor Hosea
The Rebels have hit back. After going close on two occasions, the home side gets fast-ball and Trevor Hosea runs onto a Powell short ball to muscle his way over.
Carter Gordon converts the try. (CRU 14-7)
Dallas McLeod has stayed down after a tackle in the lead up to the Rebels try and has been carried off.
14 mins
The Rebels are building their attack just short of the Crusaders 22 and after eight phases, Gordan goes for the chip kick in behind but Jordan is there to clean up. The referee was playing advantage and goes back for the penalty and the home side will have a lineout just eight metres out.
12 mins
The Rebels are building their attack just inside the visitors half but after three phases, the Crusaders counter-ruck to win the ball back. The visitors are building their attack but McAlister makes another mistake to knock the ball on.
10 mins
The Crusaders are setting their attack just inside the Rebels half but hooker Brodie McAlister has knocked the ball in contact and the home side will have a scrum on their 10-metre line.
The Rebels fightback at scrum time to win the penalty and they will have a lineout on the Crusaders 10-metre line.
8 mins
The Crusaders attack straight from the lineout with Drummond putting a grubber in behind but it rolls dead to give the Rebels a 22-metre dropout.
7 mins
The visitors have smashed the Rebels at scrum time to win a penalty and they will have a lineout just inside the 22.
6 mins
The Rebels have made a meal of the kickoff with Gordon sending the restart out on the full and the Crusaders will have a scrum on halfway.
5 mins - Try Crusaders to Will Jordan
The Crusaders have gone back-to-back. From the kickoff, Mo'unga breaks through a massive hole in the Rebels defensive line. He draws and passes to Jordan who steps outside the final defender and burns him for speed to score the second try.
Mo'unga converts the try. (CRU 14-0)
4 mins - Try Crusaders to Mitchell Drummond
Sam Whitelock steals the Rebels defensive lineout and are straight back onto the attack. They come wide to Jordan who goes a metre short. At the next phase, Drummond sneaks from the ruck and burros his way over.
Mo'unga converts the try. (CRU 7-0)
3 mins
The visitors go close before Dallas McLeod puts his head through the line and offloads but it goes behind Reece and rolls into touch. That's a big let-off for the Rebels but the Crusaders look here to play.
2 mins
The Crusaders make a strong start as Joe Powell's kick is charged down by Scott Barrett. The visitors come wide to Mo'unga who beats one defender and brought down 10-metres short. After six phases, the referee awards a penalty and the Crusaders tap and go.
Kickoff - The Crusaders get us underway through Richie Mo'unga.
4:33pm - Scott Barrett has led out his Crusaders side and we are just moments away from kickoff.
A late change for the Crusaders with David Havili - who was meant to start at No.12 - ruled out with Dallas McLeod taking his spot.
4:30pm - We are just five minutes away from kickoff on a beautiful Sydney day. It's 18 degrees and a slight breeze in the air, which should see attacking rugby.
Nic Berry will be the man in the middle.
******
Kia ora and welcome to Newshub's live coverage of the Super Rugby Trans-Tasman clash between the Melbourne Rebels and Crusaders at Sydney's Leichhardt Oval.
The Crusaders have a tricky task if they're to book themselves a spot in the final as they hunt for a sixth consecutive title.
The 'red and blacks' have won their four matches in the trans-Tasman competition that includes tight wins over the Brumbies and Force while thrashing the Reds and Waratahs.
The Super Rugby Aotearoa champions threw away a bonus point with the final play last time out against the Force, and that moment could prove crucial in the final makeup of the points table.
After the Highlanders' convincing victory over the Brumbies in Canberra on Friday night, the Christchurch side will need to grab a bonus point victory and win by 33 points or more to overtake the southerners to grab themselves a spot in the decider.
If they fail to do that, they will need the Blues to lose to the Western Force at Eden Park to hand them a spot in the final.
The Rebels have struggled in the trans-Tasman competition, starting with three losses to the Blues, Hurricanes and Highlanders before putting in an improved display against the Chiefs.
The Rebels won't have fond memories of the last time these two sides met either, with the Crusaders thumping them 66-0 in 2019 - the biggest win by any team not to concede a point on the day in Super Rugby history.
Crusaders have won their last four games on the bounce against the Rebels, scoring an average of 62 points per game and hold the wood over their Australian rivals winning six of the eight meetings.
The Rebels last tasted victory against the Crusaders back in 2015, when they won in Christchurch 20-10.
This contest was scheduled to be played in Melbourne, but with Victoria still in a COVID-19 lockdown the fixture has been moved to Leichhardt Oval in Sydney.
TAB odds:
Crusaders $1.001 Rebels $31.00
Crusaders: 1-George Bower, 2-Brodie McAlister, 3-Michael Alaalatoa, 4-Scott Barrett (c), 5-Sam Whitelock, 6-Ethan Blackadder, 7-Sione Havili, 8-Whetukamokamo Douglas, 9-Mitchell Drummond, 10-Richie Mo'unga, 11-Leicester Fainga'anuku, 12-David Havili, 13-Braydon Ennor, 14-Sevu Reece, 15-Will Jordan
Reserves: 16-Nathan Vella, 17-Tamati Williams, 18-Oliver Jager, 19-Mitchell Dunshea, 20-Tom Sanders, 21-Bryn Hall, 22-Dallas McLeod, 23-Manasa Mataele
Rebels: 1-Cameron Orr, 2-Jordan Uelese, 3-Cabous Eloff, 4-Robert Leota, 5-Trevor Hosea, 6-Michael Wells ©, 7-Richard Hardwick, 8-Isi Naisarani, 9-Joe Powell, 10-Carter Gordon, 11-Marika Koroibete, 12-Glenn Vaihu, 13-Andrew Kellaway, 14-Frank Lomani, 15-George Worth
Reserves: 16-James Hanson, 17-Matt Gibbon, 18-Rhys Van Nek, 19-Steve Cummins, 20-Ross Haylett-Petty, 21-James Tuttle, 22-Young Tonumaipea, 23-Illi Vudogo
Pre-match banter:
Hurricanes coach farewells France-bound Laumape
Hurricanes coach Jason Holland has paid tribute to the departing Ngani Laumape, after finishing his New Zealand playing career on a high against the Reds on Friday.
Laumape, 28, is due to depart New Zealand for French club Stade Francais. And barring an unlikely string of results that would see his side reach the Super Rugby Trans-Tasman final, has played his last game as a Hurricane.
In his farewell to Wellington, Laumape shone in the 43-14 victory over the Australian champion Reds, scoring the opening try of the night and setting up youngster Ruben Love for another in the Hurricanes' convincing win.
What's more, Laumape could have - and on another night should have - had a hat-trick, denied by a brilliant try-saving tackle from Reds winger Filipo Daugunu in the first half and earned a penalty try in the second after an infringement from Bryce Heggarty.
When he was substituted after 75 minutes, Laumape was given a standing ovation by the Hurricanes faithful, having played six seasons in the capital since switching from rugby league and NZ Warriors in 2016.
Like the fans, Hurricanes coach Holland also made his appreciation known for Laumape.
"He was really motivated to play tonight, it's been a pretty special five years for him with us," Holland said.
"I was there when he first came to the Hurricanes, we came to the Hurricanes at the same time and I sort of watched him progress from a strong player to be a bit of a beast with the ball but also a smart footy player.
"I'm pleased for a lot of the boys and I'm pleased for him that he finished that way."
Replacing a departing All Black is never easy, but Holland is confident that the Hurricanes' midfield stocks are healthy enough to thrive in 2022.
"Whenever you lose someone like Ngans they're hard to replace, but we've got a few good options there," he said.
"Obviously Peter Umaga-Jensen, who was injured tonight, Billy's [Proctor] gone really well and Danny [Toala] is still there.
"It's obviously a loss but you always replace people, that's just the way the game goes."
But, should the Blues and Crusaders both lose their final Super Rugby Trans-Tasman round robin games, then the Hurricanes would sneak into the inaugural final and see Laumape finish his New Zealand career against the Highlanders in Dunedin.
