The promising young hooker took off from a Josh Dickson offload, put in the perfect little grubber and bolted after it, beat two Crusaders backs and dotted down for the match-winning try.
As incoming Highlanders bombarded their saviour, a rambunctious 4000-strong Farmlands Cup crowd at Weston, near Oamaru, went wild and kept the noise going as Sam Gilbert converted to win the game 35-33.
It was the dream debut for Taylor, who had scored two tries earlier in the game.
He was part of a much better second-half pre-season performance from the Highlanders after trailing 26-7 at the break.
Both teams opted to name different teams for each half, with the Crusaders arguably sporting a better line-up in the first, with All Blacks Jack Goodhue and Joe Moody in the mix.
The Highlanders held most of the ball in the first 10 minutes, but then the Crusaders clicked into gear and pinched it for the rest of the half.
Crusaders winger Pepesana Patafilo opened proceedings and the visitors led 5-0.
The backline showed its class five minutes later when Goodhue sliced through the the Highlanders defence off a nice ball and scored under the posts, giving the Crusaders a 12-0 lead.
The visitors again looked slick from the kickoff, but fullback Finn Hurley pounced over the ball at the breakdown to win a turnover on debut.
Moments later, Jona Nareki was back to his electrifying best with silky smooth footwork, darting one way and then the other, and Scott Gregory ran on to a lovely ball to score the home team’s first points of the day.
Cam Millar converted and Otago trailed 12-7.
Max Hicks put in a big shift at flanker and had some good carries, and halfback James Arscott came on mid-way through the half and made a real impact.
It was a messy and error-ridden first half — typical of pre-season games — but the Crusaders were still a cut above.
Former Highlander Christian Lio-Willie scored, making a statement in the process, and a Corey Kellow try and the accurate boot of Fergus Burke gave the Crusaders a 26-7 lead at halftime.
The Highlanders came out of the sheds rejuvenated and with fresh legs on the field, they looked to bring the game back.
Locks Josh Dickson and Pari Pari Parkinson were huge at set-piece, Sam Gilbert was accurate at fullback, and Jonah Lowe looked like he could be dangerous on the wing.
The Highlanders had opportunities to score early, but they went begging after an obstruction call and a forward pass.
The chance finally came in the 56th minute when the backline recycled the ball quickly and Mitch Hunt put Lowe into space to score in the corner.
Taylor scored his first 10 minutes later before the Crusaders hit back when Ioan Moananu made a blistering run, off-loading to Louie Chapman to score.
It was converted and gave the Crusaders a handy buffer, 33-21.
Enter Taylor. He riposted in the 71st minute with a good team try, before flying away with his match-winner in the 79th minute.
Farmlands Cup
The scores
Highlanders 35
Jack Taylor 3, Scott Gregory, Jonah Lowe tries; Cam Millar con, Sam Gilbert 4 con.
Crusaders 33
Pepesana Patafilo, Jack Goodhue, Christian Lio-Willie, Corey Kellow, Louie Chapman tries; Fergus Burke 3 con, Taha Kemara con
Halftime: 27-6 Crusaders
Keep an eye out
Kayla Hodge identifies three Highlanders to watch following the Farmlands Cup.
- Jack Taylor: Three tries on debut and showed a lot of fight to get the Highlanders back in to the match. One to watch in the future.
- Max Hicks Standout from the first half. Had some really strong carries and put in some big hits on defence
- Jona Nareki Back to his best. Dazzling footwork, set up a lot of the attacking opportunities and even made a try-saving tackle.
