Deans 'can't lose' watching coaches he mentors in Super Rugby final

Almost 25 years ago, a young Scott Robertson and Leon MacDonald were embracing each other as Super Rugby teammates.

Tonight, they’ll be fierce rivals as the Blues and Crusaders clash for the Super Rugby Pacific title at Eden Park.

So with two guys who have such an interconnected tale, who better to ask about them than their mentor; former Crusaders coach Robbie Deans.

Deans coached the pair for nearly 10 years, through Canterbury's NPC team then title-winning Crusaders in the early to mid 2000s.

When asked what it was about that era that made a lot of those players good coaches, Deans believed that they enjoyed their experience and their time in the game and they want to replicate it and give the next generation the same.

Opposing coaches Leon MacDonald and Scott Robertson played together for the Crusaders in the Super Rugby final defeat to the Blues in 2003.

Now the two have helped relaunch a rivalry with how they were taught to play the game.

The Blues will host the Crusaders in the Super Rugby Pacific Final at 7.05 tonight.

[Source: TVNZ.]