“that took guts” - me dio coraje “tough crowd” - gente difícil

For ''task at hand'' you could say ''la tarea que nos ocupa'' (''the task we are busy with'', more or less) ''That took guts'' would be something like ''le puso agallas/coraje'' And ''público difícil'' o ''exigente'' is perfect for ''tpugh crowd'' Hope I helped you!