Narrow... Matt Hodgson prepares to be tackled by a Crusaders defender. Source: Daniel Wilkins / News Limited
Crusaders centre Ryan Crotty tackled a pitch invader in the dying minutes of the Western Force's 16-14 Super Rugby triumph in Perth on Saturday night.
With the Force leading the seven-time champion Crusaders by two points and the visitors making their way out of defence, a series of pitch invaders halted play in the 75th minute.
| 1 Tries 1 | |
|---|---|
| Sam Norton-Knight 3' | Luke Romano 21' |
| 1 Conversions0 | |
| Jayden Hayward 4' | |
| 3 Penalties3 | |
| Jayden Hayward 12' | Tyler Bleyendaal 19' |
| Jayden Hayward 25' | Tyler Bleyendaal 49' |
| Jayden Hayward 32' | Tyler Bleyendaal 58' |
A single invader made his way onto the pitch before three more followed him out.
Crotty was clearly frustrated given the crucial stage of the match and tackled one to the ground.
A medical officer tackled one of the others.
The Force produced their best defensive effort of the season to jump off the bottom of the Australian conference just one week after being humbled at home by the lowly Rebels.
Apart from the first 12 minutes, the Crusaders dominated proceedings, with the visitors producing wave after wave of attack in an attempt to breach the Force's defence.
Their second-half onslaught was particularly brutal as they tried to overcome a 16-8 deficit.
But the Force stood firm under the constant fire, pulling off a series of try-saving tackles.
In a revamped backline, former Wallaby Sam Norton-Knight made his run-on debut at flyhalf in place of Sias Ebersohn while Ed Stubbs was promoted to the wing, Junior Rasolea to outside centre and Jayden Hayward to fullback.
The changes paid early dividends, with Norton-Knight slipping between two opponents to score the opener in the third minute.
Re-live the amazing finish as the Force hold out the Crusaders in our Super Rugby Match Centre, featuring video highlights.
The Crusaders looked frazzled early and a successful penalty to Hayward made it 10-0 after 12 minutes.
But the visitors regained their composure to work their way back into the match, with a try to lock Luke Romano easing the early pressure.
Romano thought he had scored a second just before half-time, but the try was denied by the TMO due to a forward pass from Israel Dagg.
Hayward's accurate kicking gave the Force a 16-8 advantage at half-time, and Romano was again denied a try early in the second half when scrumhalf Alby Mathewson held him up over the line.
Moments earlier, Stubbs produced a crunching tackle on Dagg to again thwart the Crusaders.
Side to side the Crusaders went, but each time they thought they had breached the Force defence, a desperate tackle would halt their bid for the line.
It seemed just a matter of time before the Crusaders would sneak through a gap.
But the moment never came.
The only gap being exposed was the lack security at nib Stadium, with five invaders all up making their way onto the pitch.
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