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The Crusaders began and finished their Super 14 rugby match in a different class to the Cheetahs tonight.
The result was widely tipped well before the competition leaders took on the bottom equal team from South Africa.
But the Crusaders had cause to be cheered by their emphatic 55-7 success in Christchurch on the back of nine tries.
They outgunned the Cheetahs in all departments, securing the bulk of possession and putting it to telling effect to lead 33-0 by halftime.
They scored a bonus point fourth try as early as the 26th minute although the touchdown by Leon MacDonald came at some cost because the man who sparked it, second five-eighth Stephen Brett, hurt his shoulder when tackled after a jinking run.
Brett left the field favouring the shoulder and coach Robbie Deans later said he was in some pain and it was feared Brett had injured his AC joint.
That aside, the Cheetahs did little to stall the home side’s progress and with the result signed, sealed and effectively delivered by halftime, Deans took the opportunity to rest captain Richie McCaw, halfback Andrew Ellis and prop Ben Franks for the second spell.
It was clear the Cheetahs were in for a busy night as early as the first minute when Crusaders centre Casey Laulala was denied a try only after television replays showed he was tipped into touch while diving for the line.
Eight minutes later the Crusaders opened their account with young winger Sean Maitland crossing after a beautifully floated pass from MacDonald gave him space down the left-hand touchline.
Laulala scored the second in the 18th minute when regathering a precisely placed chip ahead from Brett, then Dan Carter benefited when the Cheetahs failed to control a kick through from Ellis.
MacDonald’s five-pointer was followed on the stroke of fulltime by another from Scott Hamilton when the winger was on the end of some neat interplay between the outside backs.
A familiar pattern followed after the interval, the Crusaders refusing to drop their standards as Hamilton crossed again in the 47th minute after accurate work from his insides.
Winger Jongi Nokwe poached an intercept try three minutes later for the Cheetahs but it represented only a brief blip as the Crusaders added further tries to hooker Ti’i Paulo, replacement back Caleb Ralph and a second for Laulala.
McCaw later acknowledged his side set their stall out in the first half.
“We wanted to get stuck in early and those first 40 minutes were fairly pleasing,” McCaw said.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.