Raising the bar: How Blinder helped the Crusaders set a new standard
By Caley Wilson | Nov 27, 2025
Here’s how the current Super Rugby champions identified an emerging issue and turned it into an opportunity to raise their already world-class standards.
In elite sport, talent is one key ingredient. But real success comes from the invisible systems that develop it, challenge it, protect it, and align it toward a shared purpose - making excellence repeatable.
Few teams in world rugby have lived this approach as relentlessly as the Crusaders. With a record 15 Super Rugby titles, they stand as the benchmark for sustained dominance in rugby’s professional era.
From their headquarters in Christchurch, New Zealand, the Crusaders have produced some of rugby’s finest players, such as Richie McCaw, Dan Carter and Sam Whitelock. And they’ve been guided by visionary coaches like Wayne Smith, Robbie Deans and Scott Robertson.
An organisation this advanced knows high-performance demands constant evolution. And after a tough 2024 season, the Crusaders (led by their CEO Colin Mansbridge and coach Rob Penney) recognised that their communications systems were no longer keeping pace with modern demands.
We asked Maddy Lloyd, the Crusaders’ Communications and Media Manager, to unpack how the issue surfaced, what it meant for performance, and why Blinder ultimately became the solution they turned to.
What challenges did you face before using Blinder?
We didn't have a streamlined process to arrange player and coach phone interviews.
Players would often have to use my phone to conduct interviews in media windows, as I didn't want to give their personal numbers out. This proved challenging, as I'd often need my phone to film media sessions.
If I wasn't with the players, phone interviews couldn't be conducted as we didn't have a method for them to do this without handing out their numbers.
There was also no efficient way to record phone calls, which from a media management perspective wasn't ideal. And because I didn't have oversight over what was being said, I wouldn't know if a coach or player was being misquoted or what messages they were sharing with the media.
What hesitations did you have about changing how you did things?
Less is better when it comes to liaising with our players: they don't want
to be overloaded with information, and a key part of my role from a high-performance perspective is keeping changes to a minimum so I don’t distract
from what the team is trying to achieve.
Given this, I was a bit hesitant about introducing a new way of scheduling
their interviews and I wasn't sure how this was going to be received by the
coaching group and the players.
What was the initial reaction from your athletes and coaches once you started using Blinder?
As soon as we started using Blinder, it took a huge weight off.
The players and coaches found it really easy to use. I did all the scheduling for them, they would conveniently get a text and an email reminder about the interview, and then their phone would ring. And it was good knowing their privacy was being protected at the same time.
How has using Blinder impacted your business and life?
Blinder has been such a worthwhile investment, and I couldn't imagine doing my job without it now.
It's made setting up phone interviews so streamlined - I can do it from my laptop in no time at all, or even my phone if I'm away from the office and need to quickly set something up.
It gives players and coaches a reminder of the interview and ensures I don't physically need to be with them.
It keeps a detailed record of all interviews, which means I can still listen to them even though I'm not present physically. That’s helpful if I need to go back and check something that was said - and it’s also useful for season reporting.
Blinder saves me time, gives me peace of mind that my players’ personal contact details are protected, and it gives the media more access to our players as interviews can easily be set up at a time that suits both the player/coach and the reporter.
Who is Blinder perfect for?
Blinder is perfect for any business or organisation who are in the media regularly and want to streamline their media interview scheduling. It doesn't just have to be for organisations that want to protect the contact details of their staff, although this is a really useful feature of Blinder.
It can also be useful for any organisation who wants a thorough record of interviews conducted, and recordings of those interviews for risk management or oversight of external messaging.
Anything surprise you about Blinder?
It's great to get email updates when an interview has been completed, or if it never began, so I can chase it up.
Want high-performance tools for your high-performance job?
Get started
More info
