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KEY POINTS:
Back in October when the Chiefs' squad was named, coach Ian Foster did his best to dampen expectations.
The Chiefs, he indicated without ever quite saying so, were in a rebuilding mode. With his entire starting front row and veteran lock Jono Gibbes having departed, the core of that retooling project was the tight five.
Now, with hostilities about to resume with a first up match against the defending-champion Crusaders in Christchurch, the time for talking down his team's prospects has passed.
Foster was happy to give his team the thumbs-up for the way they had gelled during a pre-season that included wins in both warm-up matches against the Blues and Hurricanes. And he was also happy with the way his rookie tight five had performed in those early season exchanges.
But, while he may have swapped cautiousness for cautious optimism, Foster knows that what he felt in October still stands: How a Chiefs team with a useful loose forward division and a truly exciting backline will fare will still turn on how well the tight five stands up.
Pre-season is one thing, the real deal quite another.
"We have taken a bit of confidence from our pre-season performances, particularly from our forwards," Foster said.
"They seemed to be learning every game and I think they are ready to go. But the ultimate litmus test is obviously playing in the competition proper. And playing two packs like the Crusaders and the Waratahs in the first two weeks is going to give us a real strong indicator of our progress."
Last year's big mover Ben May has the job of anchoring the scrum from tighthead, while Sona (Arizona) Taumalolo will pack down on the other side of hooker Hikawira Elliot.
On paper it is a promising - if untested - combination. Taumalolo has been a rock for Hawkes Bay during the extended absences of Clint Newland, while Elliot is very much the coming man at hooker. But the trio will be sorely tested by Crusaders opposites Ben Franks, Corey Flynn and Wyatt Crockett.
The Crusaders should have an edge in the second row, where Brad Thorn and Ross Filipo match-up against Craig Clarke and Kevin O'Neil, and the champions' loose forward trio of Richie McCaw, Kieran Read and Thomas Waldrom should, as usual, be the dominant force in the competition.
But if the Chiefs can get somewhere near parity up front they will fancy their chances of crucifying the Crusaders out wide.
They will also look to exert pressure on rookie five-eighths Colin Slade, preferred by coach Todd Blackadder to Stephen Brett in the playmaker role vacated by Dan Carter.
With Carter absent and Blackadder embarking on a new post-Robbie Deans era, some perceive the Crusaders as vulnerable.
But history has shown the southern giant seldom drops its level, regardless of circumstances, and Foster doesn't buy into the belief they are there for the taking.
"Historically they have started their campaigns really well and they haven't really had Dan Carter play a lot of those early games," he said. "And when you look at the depth they have in the inside backs with [Stephen] Brett and [Colin] Slade, I don't think too much has changed."
As for the Chiefs' style, Foster will be hoping his charges can replicate what they produced in the middle stages of last season, when they successfully blended a territorial kicking game with their naturally attacking approach.
With the ELVs no longer quite so experimental, Foster certainly isn't expecting a repeat of last year's chaotic opening rounds.
"Last year it wasn't just the players new to the ELVs but also the referees ...
Later on when it settled down we started to see a lot more penalties for cynical play and we started to get a better-balanced game.
"We have generally been an up-tempo team and we like to play with the ball. And I guess through [Steven] Donald and [Brendon] Leonard we are also pretty confident in our kicking game."
With the Crusaders also unlikely to change their metronomic, defence-oriented approach, the match promises to be a classic clash of styles. Both sides will certainly find out where they stand.
AMI Stadium, Christchurch, 5.30 tonight
CRUSADERS
Leon MacDonald
Jared Payne
Casey Laulala
Tim Bateman
Kade Poki
Colin Slade
Andy Ellis
Thomas Waldrom
Richie McCaw (c)
Kieran Read
Ross Filipo
Brad Thorn
Ben Franks
Corey Flynn
Wyatt Crockett.
Reserves: Jason Macdonald, Bronson Murray, Isaac Ross, George Whitelock, Kahn Fotuali'i/Steve Alfeld, Stephen Brett, Adam Whitelock.
CHIEFS
Mils Muliaina (c)
Lelia Masaga
Richard Kahui
Dwayne Sweeney
Sitiveni Sivivatu
Stephen Donald
Brendon Leonard
Sione Lauaki
Tanerau Latimer
Liam Messam
Kevin O'Neill
Craig Clarke
Ben May
Hika Elliot
Sona Taumalolo.
Reserves: Aled de Malmanche, James McGougan, Toby Lynn, Colin Bourke, Toby Morland, Mike Delany, Callum Bruce.
