The Hurricanes have beaten the Crusaders 29-26 in a cracking Friday night game in Christchurch.
A scintillating first half saw the Hurricanes lead the Crusaders 17-3 before a sterling comeback saw the Crusaders lead 18-17 at half-time.
The second half was less open but not less dramatic with the Hurricanes taking the lead early on before the Crusaders kicked their way to a 26-24 lead.
Then up stepped Alapati Leiua - the Hurricanes back who has been in hot form this season - ran around the outside and stepped two players before scoring the winner.
If it weren't for Beauden Barrett not having his kicking boots on tonight, the Hurricanes' win would have been a bit more comfortable.
As it was, it was a sweet win for Mark Hammett back in his hometown and up against the team he featured so prominently during those years when the Crusaders were the number 1 team in Super Rugby.
This result certainly casts a bit of doubt over the Crusaders' Super Rugby credentials and really evens out the New Zealand conference which looks a bit of a dogfight at the moment.
Crusaders v Hurricanes games in recent times has witnessed some rivalry between the two - think Neemia Tialata on Richie McCaw in 2006, the fogged-out Final, etc. - and this game was probably one of the top 3 games ever played between these two sides.
It is usually the Crusaders who come up on top of the team from the Capital particularly in Christchurch. However, the Canes were definitely on par with their rivals and thanks to some magic from their backs, and finally got one on their Southern rivals.
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