Rugby: Crusaders run riot in Durban

Crusaders halfback Andy Ellis dives over the line to score a try against the Sharks in Durban. Photo / Getty Images

The Crusaders ran riot with eight tries in a 52-10 hammering of the Sharks in South Africa this morning (NZT) to lay down the biggest marker in round eight of Super Rugby.

The Crusaders scored two tries in the first five minutes at Kings Park in Durban, had four by halftime, and didn't even flinch when they had three players yellow-carded in quick succession at the end of the first half.

The Sharks also lost captain Jean Deysel to a red card for kneeing opposite flanker Matt Todd in the head just before the break, but by then the Crusaders had established an unassailable lead and secured a four-try bonus point at 28-3.

The Crusaders moved into the top six and the playoff places. Fellow New Zealand side the Hurricanes remain the only unbeaten team after a seventh win from seven on Friday.

The Chiefs are second in the New Zealand conference and fourth overall, followed by the Highlanders and Crusaders. Four of the top six are from New Zealand.

Australia's ACT Brumbies sit second in the standings and seven points behind the Hurricanes after an 11th straight win at home in Canberra, where they beat South Africa's Cheetahs 20-3.

The Bulls edged above the Sharks in the South African conference and into third overall despite a last-minute 22-18 loss at the Lions in South Africa's Pretoria-Johannesburg derby in the late game on Saturday. Replacement hooker Armand van der Merwe scored the match-winning and only try in the final seconds for the Lions, straight after the Bulls took an 18-15 lead at Ellis Park.

In Durban, halfback Andy Ellis and fullback Israel Dagg raced in for tries in the opening minutes for the unstoppable Crusaders, who were without star first five-eighths Dan Carter, and put Richie McCaw on the bench.

Centres Kieron Fonotia and Ryan Crotty, first-five Colin Slade, wing David Havili, Todd, and replacement Tom Taylor also went over, with Taylor's length-of-the-field breakaway in the last minute after a Sharks error capping one of the most comprehensive wins in recent seasons in South Africa for the Crusaders.

In other news, the Queensland Reds said Wallabies first five-eighths Quade Cooper will be sidelined for up to eight weeks after breaking his left collarbone while making a tackle in the team's 23-15 loss to the Melbourne Rebels on Friday.

Cooper missed four months last year due to a shoulder injury, and the fracture occurred around the previous operation site. He will undergo surgery on Tuesday.

Crusaders 52 (Andy Ellis, Israel Dagg, Kieron Fonotia, Ryan Crotty, Colin Slade, David Havili, Matt Todd, Tom Taylor tries; Slade 5 conversions, Taylor conversion), Sharks 10 (Odwa Ndungane try; Fred Zeilinga conversion, Pat Lambie penalty). HT: 28-3.

-AP