The Crusaders have seldom been made to look as ordinary as they were by a Vodacom Stormers team that thumped them 42-14 in a crucial Super 14 match at Newlands on Friday night.

The match was billed as a mini final as the loser was going to face a massive task to remain on the mainline heading to the semi-finals, and a near full house turned up to cheer the Stormers on.

The fans were not disappointed. From the moment Peter Grant struck a penalty after Crusaders infringed in fielding the kick-off, you could sense it would be the Stormers night, with a Dan Carter charge-down of a Grant clearance in the seventh minute being the only real departure from the general script.
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