They first won the competition in 1997 or 1998, beating the then dominant Auckland Blues and made every semi final since, except for 2001 where they finished in the very uncharacteristic tenth position.  Other teams have floated up and down the log over the years but the Crusaders have always been a constant at the top underlining the quality of their structures and their ability to plan ahead.

Their success was engineered in part by the calm and astute coaching of Robbie Deans and was built around a solid foundation of doing all the basics of the game well and discipline of the highest order.  It also helps that they’ve been privileged enough to have some of the greatest players in New Zealand’s history.  Two that come to mind are Andrew Mehrtens and Justin Marshall.  They dominated for both The Crusaders and the All Blacks for more than a decade.

When Deans departed to coach the Australians some might have thought it was the beginning of the end for the Crusaders, that they would so miss his magic coaching skills that they would slowly but surely drift to mid-table mediocrity, but it wasn’t, and they didn’t…

His boots were filled by former All Black captain and Crusaders stalwart Todd Blackadder, and filled well.  They kept continuity and although there were a few growing pains, with the Crusaders only making the semi-finals in the 2009 and 2010 seasons, they look set to be back to their destructive best in the new year.

2011 will be another big year for the team from Canterbury.  They are captained by Richie McCaw, a man who, in my opinion anyway, is one of the greatest players and captains of all time.  Some might whine about the fact that he gets away with things that other people don’t and others may even call him a cheat.  They’re wrong, he isn’t a cheat, he’s a clever player who knows the laws and pushes them to their limits and that’s what makes him better than everyone else.

Joining him in the pack are All Blacks Corey Flynn at hooker, Ali Williams at lock, Kieren Reid at blindside flank or number 8 and a plethora of Whitelocks who play in an equally diverse number of positions.  There are so many Whitelocks in fact, that the only one whose first name I remember is George.  At scrumhalf the Crusaders have the solid Andy Ellis and Kahn Fortualii.

Say what you like, Dan Carter is the benchmark for number 10 play and looks set to continue growing his legend in 2011.  Outside Dan the Crusaders have plenty of talent.  Sonny Bill Williams has come into the squad but I think enough has been written about him already.  He is joined by Robbie Fruean, Ryan Crotty, Israel Dagg, who last year shone in a struggling Highlanders side, and Zac Guildford and Sean Maitland on the wings.

I think the Crusaders will win the New Zealand conference and go on to the lottery of the knock-out stages, where anything could happen.  They will want to win the competition this year after missing out to the Bulls in 2009 and 2010, and it would be a brave man to bet against them.  Their biggest strength though, could also prove their biggest weakness.  McCaw and Carter are both such iconic figures that the impact of them both potentially getting injured at the same time could be nothing short of catastrophic…

Visit the author Ryan Quirk at :  http://blogs.sport24.co.za/RyanQ/