Mauger : Crusaders know fans are hurting

Christchurch based Super Rugby franchise the Crusaders are apologising to their fans for their lackluster form in Super Rugby.

Crusaders Super Rugby fans poured out of AMI Stadium last week before the end of the match in their loss to the Chiefs.

The loss was their second this season to the Chiefs and their fifth this season in nine matches.

Crusaders assistant coach Aaron Mauger says that this was not missed by the players and this coupled with some angry posts on social media sites has really affected the team.

“We love the people that we represent and we know that they love our team, ” Mauger told Radio Sport.

“That’s probably why they walked out – they were disappointed and it hurt them to see that. “

The seven time champions are down in fourth place in the New Zealand Conference and in tenth place overall. They are however just six points outside of the play off places.

The Crusaders attack has been below par in all of their matches with the exception of their match against the Sharks but Mauger says that they know their systems work.

“We’re not in a great position at the moment but we truly believe we can get ourselves out of it. If we take that game-by-game approach and just nail each performance we’ll give ourselves a chance to do that. “

Mauger said that Ryan Crotty will be available to play against the Blues but that Israel Dagg is still a week away from returning.