The NZ Barbarians will try to adhere to the club's philosophy of open rugby as much as possible, despite an unpromising weather forecast for tonight's match against the Maori All Blacks at Eden Park.
"It might be more of a close contact type of game, but guys have got the skills, so hopefully we can still use it," said captain Brad Shields at yesterday's captain's run.
This is the sort of fixture that warrants an Eden Park crowd of at least 10,000, There are six All Blacks in the Barbarians' 23, as against four in the Maori match-day squad. Will it be the extra cohesion of the Maori, driven by their proud, unbeaten home record since 2003, not to mention 20 wins on the bounce against full international sides, or the individual aspirations of a very good Barbarians roster?
Possible crowd numbers are not occupying the thoughts of the Barbarians as they prepare for their first big game on Eden Park since playing Auckland in 1985. Their absence from the biggest rugby stadium in the country is an anomaly when you consider they are based there. There was a time when the Barbarians were a regular fixture on Eden Park. They also played the Maori All Blacks several times through the 1960s and in fact the Barbarians drew 20-all in 1981 at Eden Park against a Maori Invitation XV.
