Canterbury put their franchise partners Tasman to the sword when beating them 48-10 in a one-sided Air New Zealand Cup quarter-final in Christchurch on Friday night.

From the first minute Canterbury never looked in danger of losing and the win now gives the remaining six sides in the competition a clear warning that the Red and Blacks mean business at this crucial time of the season.

Canterbury had the better of the early moments, playing the first 10 minutes mostly in the Tasman half. The home side looked good with the ball on attack, making the Tasman side do plenty of tackling.

After four minutes Tasman lock Will Crutchley was penalised for an illegality against Canterbury half-back Andy Ellis. The infringement gave birthday boy Colin Slade his first shot at goal and the talented first-five made no mistake to give his side a 3-0 lead.

In the eighth minute a turnover saw Canterbury score their first try of the night. Receiving quick ball, Andy Ellis fed Scott Hamilton who made the perfect pass to Casey Laulala to beat a couple of defenders to dot down. It was a well taken try by the home side and a reminder (if any was needed) about the attacking talents of Hamilton.

In the twelfth minute Tasman finally managed to get their collective hands on the ball. As a result, they settled as a side and managed to start putting some pressure on the home team. Canterbury did not appear rattled however, their desire to play a high-tempo game quite evident.

A constant problem in the first half was the scrums. They were continually being re-set, which was frustrating for both players and spectators alike. As a result, the game was somewhat jilted in the first half. It also made the awarding of free-kicks and penalties something of a lottery.

In the 25th minute Kieran Read extended Canterbury’s lead with a lovely off-the-back-of-the-scrum try. In effect the score came about after the Canterbury eight had raised the ante, forcing the Tasman opensider Jonathan Poff to remain attached and give Read an almost open run to the line. Colin Slade kicked the conversion to make it 17-0.

Tasman got themselves on the board in the 30th minute after Corey Flynn was penalised for a head-high tackle. Miah Nikora made no mistake with the shot at goal.

Hamilton went close to scoring in the 37th minute, only a well-positioned Tasman arm preventing him from crossing and extending Canterbury’s lead. Again though the Red and Blacks showed that they had the capacity to play the game at pace and put their opposition under great pressure.

Canterbury led 17-3 at half-time and perhaps should have been further ahead such was their dominance. They were much stronger up front, while their ability in defence (they have the best defence in the competition) ensured that Tasman simply had no room to move when they actually managed to get their hands on the ball.

Slade began the second half with a birthday celebration; a try after he received the ball from broken play and ran through some average Tasman defence. For good measure he converted his own try.

Now 24-3 behind, Tasman threw caution to the wind. As a result, a clean break by the outstanding Kade Poki saw left winger Afeeleke Pelenise cross in the corner to get the visitors back into the match. Nikora made no mistake with the conversion.

Canterbury came straight back however with a try to Paul Williams. After the Red and Blacks had moved the ball across the park, Slade kicked cross-field and it was Williams who latched on to the kick to cross for a wonderfully skillful try. The conversion missed, although Canterbury was out to a commanding 29-10 lead. 

The biggest cheer of the night was in the 15th minute of the second half when the All Blacks captain Richie McCaw came on. Such is the man’s mana in the game that it automatically lifted the home side. 

Williams was in again soon after. This time the try was set-up by some strong running by Tim Bateman and Laulala, the latter feeding Williams who crossed after some good work for another excellent try. Slade kicked the conversion.

The try effectively killed the game as a contest. Although that may have disappointed some, there was no denying that the fans at the game were getting great value for money thanks to the way Canterbury was playing. 

Hamilton (one of Canterbury’s best) then scored the try that he was denied in the first half after some more average Tasman defence. Hamilton was passed the ball by McCaw and again showed his class. Replacement Hamish Gard kicked the conversion to make it 43-10.

Canterbury continued to attack and soon after James Paterson scored. From broken play, good passing by Hamilton and Williams gave Paterson room down the left flank and the speedster did extremely well to dot down.

The match ended with Canterbury 48-10 ahead. They were significantly better than Tasman on the night, dominating in most phases of the match. Their scrum and defence, however, was particularly outstanding.

Captain Kieran Read, Scott Hamilton, Michael Paterson, Wyatt Crockett and Colin Slade stood out for Canterbury, although there were no Red and Black players who did not stand up. It was in most respects exactly what the Canterbury coaching staff would have wanted. In this sort of form Canterbury will be eagerly awaiting their semi-final in Christchurch next weekend.
 
Canterbury 48: Tries: Paul Williams (2) Casey Laulala, Kieran Read, Colin Slade, Scott Hamilton, James Paterson. Conversions: Colin Slade (4), Hamish Gard. Penalties: Colin Slade

Tasman 10: Try: Afeeleke Pelenise. Conversion: Miah Nikora. Penalty: Miah Nikora