The club has secured a playoff berth and form would suggest it is on track to reach the final again.
There are still three round-robin games and a semifinal to get through before that.
But if it does return to the final, chances are Clutha will be waiting. Its nemesis is chasing a fifth consecutive title.
Clutha has had the odd hiccup this season but is the only team to beat Crescent this year and leads the competition standings.
It has won both encounters but the games could have gone either way. The most recent fixture was on the weekend and Clutha grabbed an intercept in the final 10 minutes to secure a 24-19 victory.
Crescent coach Robbie Owen chuckled when asked what went wrong. They are a little bit over it in Kaitangata.
"It was probably just one or two mistakes at crucial times," he said.
"That would be about it.
"They are two evenly matched teams and it went down to the wire. One wayward pass and it cost us. If it would have stuck we would have been over in the corner."
Nobody likes the bridesmaid tag and Crescent is desperate to go one better.
"That is why we are striving. But the way things are sitting on the table, even though we got beaten, we are still only two points behind them."
And the latest loss has not dented the confidence too much.
"They are probably more determined now than what they were."
Crescent has a tough finish to the round-robin with games against Owaka, Heriot and Toko.
The team will look to busy hooker Brendan Irwin and loose forward Andrew Carruthers to set the tone up front, while first five-eighth Harley McHardy is another key player.
He is a hard runner and has good tactical awareness.