Codie Taylor marked his 150th appearance for the Crusaders in historic fashion on Saturday, scoring four tries as the team farewelled their Addington home ground with a dominant 69-26 victory over the Fijian Drua in Round 8 of Super Rugby Pacific.
Taylor, the All Blacks hooker, crossed four times in just 51 minutes before being replaced by George Bell, departing to a standing ovation from the Christchurch crowd. The performance lifted his career Super Rugby try tally to 53 — the most ever scored by a forward in Super Rugby history.
The win was also the Crusaders’ 100th victory at Addington’s Apollo Projects Stadium, the temporary ground the team moved into after the 2011 Christchurch earthquakes damaged their original home. The franchise will shift to the new Te Kaha Stadium later this month.
Taylor crossed twice from lineout drives and once from close range, before gathering a miss pass from Leicester Fainga’anuku for his fourth. He was greeted pre-match by his wife and three children, and players from his local club Sydenham performed a haka in his honour before kick-off.
“What a special moment,” Taylor said after the match. “To go out like that on this stadium, to get the job done and to pull this jersey on for the 150th time. I’m just so grateful. I love this team, love this club.”
Fullback Will Jordan praised the veteran hooker’s performance. “He’s special. It was an awesome way for him to bring it up, four tries. It’s a great night for him and his family, you saw him run out, you know how much of a family man he is.”
“He’s someone who just goes to the well every week; nothing flashy, just rolls his sleeves up and cares really deeply for this team, and you see that in his performances,” Jordan added. “He’s someone who goes out there and leads from the front and we try and follow it.”
The Crusaders ran in 11 tries in total, with Sevu Reece and Chay Fihaki each scoring twice. Taha Kemara kicked seven conversions. The Fijian Drua’s Elia Canakaivata scored twice in a consolation effort for the visitors.
The result moves the Crusaders to four wins and three losses for the season, sitting fourth on the Super Rugby Pacific standings.
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This article was written by AI, briefed to report the facts, hopefully without some of the bias people bring to the job 🙂
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