Colin Mansbridge: Crusaders CEO on the Super Rugby Pacific playoff between the Crusaders and the Blues

The Crusaders’ 27-year perfect home playoff record is on the line again as they size up the Blues for a place in the Super Rugby Pacific final. 

It’s week two of the playoffs and the two teams will be facing off in tonight in Christchurch.  

After that, the ‘lucky losers’, the Chiefs, will take on the Brumbies in Hamilton. 

Crusaders CEO Colin Mansbridge told Mike Hosking that Super Rugby Pacific CEO Jack Mesley keeps banging on about wanting jeopardy in every match, and last week’s clash between the Blues and the Chiefs was a good example. 

He says the Blues’ win surprised most of them, but that’s the nature of the game – you don’t know who’s going to win, and that’s what you want.  

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Now good times though for christ this weekend. Not only
those census stats we gave you this week, but they
got the Super Rugby playoffs. Of course, Crusaders, Blues, Chiefs
and Brumbies have to go at it in the tron.
But Colin Mainsbridge is the Crusader CEO, of course, and
he's back with us. Is Friday morning, Colin Morning Modern
of Mike.

Speaker 2 (00:17):
How are you making very well?

Speaker 1 (00:18):
Indeed? Is there a vibe about town? We got a
bit of a build up to.

Speaker 2 (00:21):
This, there's a bit of a build up. I think
Mayor Wayne Brown's pop down to banter off with Phil
Major and I've had Andrew Hohr in my all week
chirping away. He's worse than Rico and so yeah, there's
plenty of tension around town, no doubt about it.

Speaker 1 (00:39):
What's your view of Super Rugby. Did the Australians come
to the party. I mean, I know the Brumbi's are
there and all that, but the Australians sort of hold
up their end of the bargain this year or not?

Speaker 2 (00:48):
I think they did the challenges. You've got to stick
with these things for a wee while it's very you know,
minor PACIFICA is sort of the exception where you put
a bunch of athletes together and then they performed, you know,
within a couple of years, they're performing at the top
of the game. Generally, you have to build these things
over a longer period of time, and I think the

(01:10):
likes of the Reds and the Brumbies in particular and
the Force have been quietly chipping away at it for
a while that these things don't happen quickly. They take
a little bit of time.

Speaker 1 (01:20):
What do you make of the lucky loser idea?

Speaker 2 (01:25):
I think it's a bit unfeatical. The Chiefs are lucky loser.
I mean they've been pretty outstanding all year, so and
that game, I mean that's especially isn't it When you
go to that extra extra period in another format, they
you know they'd have qualified one and potentially got through
and not had to play that week. So so I

(01:48):
think it's sort of had you never knew what was
going to happen until the very end, despite everyone suggesting
it was because we're going to be We've had no
dead rubbis. So yeah, I'd have to have a wee
look at it, but I still think it's made plenty
of chatter and that's probably not bad things.

Speaker 1 (02:06):
Yeah, I think overall either of that game, and there's
plenty of you guys have played, so I mean it's
been very high quality rugby, hasn't it.

Speaker 2 (02:12):
It has. I think Jack Messli, the super CEO, he
keeps banging on about how he wants to see jeopard
in every match, and I think last weekend was a classic,
you know, to see Blues and Chiefs, and I think
that did surprise us. It didn't surprise the Blues obviously,
but surprised most of us. So I think that's been
the nature of the competition this year. You don't know

(02:33):
who's going to win, and that's really that's what you want,
isn't it. Really?

Speaker 1 (02:36):
Well, I do know who's going to win, as it
turns out, Colin and I see Crusaders winning against the Blues,
and then they'll play the Chiefs and then they'll beat
them and then there'll be that, won't it.

Speaker 2 (02:47):
That would be nice? Nice, That would be nice. Probably
a little bit harder than just saying it, that would
be nice. But yeah, plenty, Look, I think these guys
are going to turn up. It's interesting that mind games
that have been played this week vern, great man.

Speaker 1 (03:03):
You know you're not falling for that stuff, though, are
you calling?

Speaker 2 (03:06):
No? No, no, it's funny, but it's fun. Actually it
is fun and it's funny, but it is interesting to see,
you know, every tactic that is being brought to bear,
which is what makes it such a great content.

Speaker 1 (03:19):
Now it's good stuff. Now this job at the Rugby Union, well,
well where are we going with that? If you put
your application in, is that going? Well, what's happening?

Speaker 2 (03:28):
Oh? Absolutely yes, CV being does is off thrown And
no it's a It's a tough gig, isn't it. It's
one of those jobs. If you're the All Blacks head coach,
you can you win a World Cup and you're a hero.
You don't and you're not, of course, but you win
a World Cup in your hero I don't think many
people hero the poor old ended rs. They've just got

(03:49):
to bag away at this thing for months and months
and months, all the hard yards, get none of the
credit and and get all of the criticism. So and
it's a tough you know, it's a toast get given
where the game's at and where we want to be.

Speaker 1 (04:06):
But you're the men to the job.

Speaker 2 (04:07):
Colum, thank you. It's three to kind of you to
say so. But I think this place here, it's hard
to suck somebody out of some Crusaders HQ. It's a
pretty special place.

Speaker 1 (04:18):
I reckon that's true. All right, Well, nicely dodged. If
you're dodging. I don't know Colin Mainsbroog, who is the
CEO of the Crusaders. They also had Greg foran lined up,
which I thought was not It was that struck me
as one of those articles where we just picked a
few random names of people who might be looking for works.
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(04:39):
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