Highlanders out to prove a point

Fresh from winning a Commonwealth Games gold medal, inspirational flanker Josh Blackie will be firing on all cylinders on Saturday when his Highlanders side take on the Cats in a Super 14 round seven rugby match in Invercargill.

Blackie was one of the linchpins in the New Zealand rugby sevens side who stormed to victory at the Melbourne Commonwealth Games, beating Australia 21-19 in the semifinals and outplaying fancied England on all fronts to win the final 29-21.

"It was fantastic at the Games - the atmosphere and being part of the New Zealand games team was pretty special," Blackie said.

But for Blackie, who scored two tries in the final, one a fine solo effort, it's back to the real world of Super 14 rugby this week.

"The Games were a different kettle of fish, playing sevens is a totally different game so I have to readjust to the fifteens game plan and do my best for the Highlanders this weekend," he told NZPA.

The Highlanders, on three wins and three losses, have a band aid look to their backline after the loss of playmaker Nick Evans, and are teetering on the brink of another failed campaign.

The big hole created by Evans' shoulder injury and Blackie's absence was clear to see in last week's 11-26 defeat by the Sharks.

Blackie says the team are hurting and will be looking to rebound against the Cats with a vengeance.

"The Cats are not going to be easy and we really have to be on our games if we want to succeed this weekend," said the rangy 1.93m flanker who was unlucky to miss out on All Blacks selection last year.

"We will be training hard this week and doing our best to avenge that result (against the Sharks)."

The Highlanders narrowly beat the Cats 16-12 at Ellis Park last season and Blackie, 26, is expecting another hard grind.

"It'll be guaranteed, with any South African team, to be pretty physical.

"They have some big players in their team -- that's a strength of theirs but playing in Invercargill, we'll have good crowd support so that'll be a strength of ours."

After the Cats, the Highlanders have the Chiefs, Force and Hurricanes before getting to their bye weekend which is followed by a tough round-robin closeout schedule of the Waratahs, Brumbies and Reds.

Blackie says the team are not looking that far down the track.

" We'll keep playing game by game at this stage, look at the four points every week.

"If we can do those little steps, then the bigger goal will start coming into the picture as we get through the competition."

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Meanwhile, a 19-year-old debutant in the Waikato NPC team last year, Willie Ripia, has been called into the Highlanders as replacement for Nick Evans for the remainder of the Super 14.

Evans broke a collar bone in the match against the Bulls a fortnight ago.

Ripia, who plays at first five-eighth or fullback, made his debut for Waikato last year against North Harbour when he stood in for Richard Kahui – ironically, another replacement who has joined the Highlanders this season.

Coach Greg Cooper said Ripia joined the Highlanders at training in Dunedin this week. The team to play the Cats in Invercargill on Saturday will be named tomorrow.

- NZPA