The Crusaders have kept alive their stunning Super Rugby Pacific finals record, the defending champions steamrolling the Blues in their qualifying final, with fullback Johnny McNicholl bagging a hat-trick.
The Crusaders have never lost a final at home, banking their 33rd win in Christchurch with a 52-31 scoreline in Saturday's clash to secure a semi-final berth.
They joined the table-topping Hurricanes, who thrashed the Brumbies 66-12 in Friday's qualifying final in Wellington, while the Blues also advanced as the highest-ranked losers.
Skipper David Havili, who scored a 29th minute try, said his team drilled down on the rich Crusaders history that includes 13 titles in a full competition outside of COVID.
"Yeah, it's pretty special. We spoke about it this week, and we know how good we are at finals football, and we just backed our history in that," the centre said.
