Super Rugby Final: Lions v Crusaders

Super Rugby came to its conclusion as the Crusaders secured a 25-17 away victory over the Lions in the championship final. The Crusaders started fast with two early tries to take a 12-0 lead, but the Lions hit back with a penalty to get on the board. Two minutes before halftime the Lions picked up a red card for a dangerous take out of the man in the air, with the Crusaders capitalizing with a penalty to stretch their lead to 15-3 at the break. The Crusaders started the second half as they did the first, crossing for an early try and then adding a penalty to lead 25-3. The Lions crossed for their first try with just over 15 minutes to play to give themselves a sniff. The Lions would not go down without a fight and were in again with 8 minutes left on the clock to cut the gap to just eight points. However, it was too little too late as the Crusaders managed to grind out the remaining time unscathed to secure their 8th Super Rugby Title.