Analysing Aaron Cruden’s return to Super Rugby

This season saw numerous returns of old stars to their former clubs, but none of these returning greats were more prominent than Aaron Cruden.

He was a general on the Chiefs’ back line and managed to command the game play on several occasions.

His best game would probably be coming off the pine in the first game against the Blues. As the former All Black jogged onto the pitch in the number 22 jersey, he had confidence.

He takes a pass of a line break by a teammate, before switch-popping back to another open back, setting his teammate free.

A second bit of brilliance would be Cruden spotting space in between two players, splitting the defenders, and flicking away the ball with one hand.

He later came back with a drop goal from close to the line. He managed a scintillating step at one point, foot-working his way past two defenders.

(Photo by Hannah Peters/Getty Images)

Here is another one. He took the ball fast, splitting defenders, and passing out in the tackle to a teammate. A second draw and pass got Solomon Alaimalo sprinting away to the whitewash.

He made two big tackles on TJ Faiane and Dalton Papali’i.

Against the Crusaders, he was solid in attack and defence. He made one brave tackle on a Crusaders flanker, making good collision impact, being bumped off but stopping the momentum of the forward as a teammate dragged the man down.

He made one half break off a step, doing a bit of a hand-off to get his hands free to flick it away to a teammate, who raced off to the line to score, fending off Crusaders tacklers.

Also, he was involved in another try. The Chiefs had him hitting the line fast, throwing the long pass to a Damian McKenzie out wide for the fullback to draw the defender and pass the ball away.

Against the Brumbies, he scored a try by taking the ball fast and bowling over. Against the Waratahs, he took the ball off a teammate’s line break and passed back to the playmaker, and he threw a beautiful last pass to the winger, who later crossed the whitewash.

When they kicked off Super Rugby Aotearoa against the Highlanders, Warren Gatland brought him off the pine, and he set up Anton Lienert-Brown’s try. He found McKenzie with good hands in between two defenders with a pass, splitting the defenders to open up space for Lienert-Brown, who crossed with a second pass from McKenzie.

He may not have had the same impact in Super Rugby Aotearoa, but the other sides had better honed defences, and Cruden always remained a solid playmaker. He had a 68 per cent kicking record, which was solid since he did not have many attempts at the posts to redeem his miskicks. However, he never got a second chance at the tee as McKenzie took over goal-kicking duties.

(Photo by Renee McKay/Getty Images)

Here’s how Cruden shapes up on the cards.

Defence
He made 84 tackles with 23 missed, having a total tackle rate of 79 per cent. That is a pretty solid record, but it is not the best and is lower than Richie Mo’unga, the current All Blacks run-on flyhalf. He won two turnovers and conceded 11. Conceding turnovers does not point to the player being bad, as there are the world’s best jackals in Super Rugby.

Attack
His all-round attacking influence shows up in the stats very evidently. He had a very strong running record, making a high count of 71 carries and 152 running metres, with 18 defenders beaten.

He has influenced the Chiefs’ attacking game play with 123 passes and 15 try assists. He has scored one try.

Kicking
He has kicked 13 from 19 attempts at the posts, not counting drop goals, and made a total of 39 kicks from hand.

His impact was limited in Super Rugby Aotearoa as Gatland did not grant him as much game time, and also the dominance of the Chiefs was compromised by the strength of all other teams. He is certainly a solid playmaker, and his presence at the Chiefs has allowed McKenzie to shift out to fullback and realise his potential there.

Sadly, he would not be an All Blacks option, as he is going to play for Kobelco Steelers in 2021. Also, if he were to give his all for the ten shirt, it is just unlucky for Cruden that he is in New Zealand, and Richie Mo’unga and Beauden Barrett are just too hard to displace.

It has been a solid season for Cruden, and any Chiefs fan will miss him.