Rugby: Stable side for Super 8 opener

Rotorua Boys' High School will start as favourites at Tauranga Boys' College on Saturday. Photo/Ben Fraser

Chiefs Cup champions Rotorua Boys' High School will take a largely unchanged line-up into Saturday's rematch with Tauranga Boys' College in the opening round of the Super 8 rugby competition.

First five-eighth Ma'ake Taulahi is being rested after picking up some knocks in the 43-21 Chiefs Cup final win against the school's arch rivals, with centre-fullback Isaac Teaute to step into the driver's seat in his place.

Rotorua Boys' High School coach Bruce Buckton said his side could hardly have asked for better preparation ahead of their trip to Nicholson Field for the start of competition to determine the best boys' secondary school in the country.

"With Super 8, it's all about building slowly, so it was a perfect start to the season to see what Tauranga Boys' College has got," Buckton said.

"It's hard for schools to make great changes with a short turnaround."

A patient sliding defence, allowing Tauranga Boys' College to shuffle the ball to the outside, is likely to be employed again, with Rotorua Boys' likely to approach the game in a more direct fashion by attacking the inside channels.

Buckton praised the Tauranga Boys' programme, before revealing a link to the Tauranga school's coaching staff that adds a little extra spice to what has always been a grudge match between the two schools.

He played club rugby for University in the Waikato competition alongside Tauranga Boys' coach and former Blues and Hurricanes halfback Jason Spice, meaning bragging rights will be on the line in addition to the competition points on Saturday.

Buckton is expecting a sterner test away from home despite his side dominating last weekend's contest after a tight opening 20 minutes.

His side is relatively inexperienced at this level - Teaute accounted for more than half the squad's 79 first XV caps coming into the season - but the players have combinations that have been in place through the age groups.

"I think it comes down to the time the team has been together and the experience, especially in the backline," Buckton said, before recounting how many of the same players had finished in the top four in the country at the national under-15 tournament two years ago.

The coach was happy with the way many of his players dealt with the added pressure of playing in a televised game for the first time during the Chief Cup showpiece, saying the players had done an excellent job managing themselves considering the mixture of excitement and nerves.

"We've always got to remember that we are working with kids. It is what it is when they run out on to the park."