Aaron Cruden has admitted to his surprise at being named as starting first-five against England on Sunday, adding that it gives him the perfect opportunity to win back the respect of his teammates and New Zealand rugby fans after his high-profile mistake saw him miss the All Blacks' trip to Argentina and South Africa.
Not required in the final Bledisloe Cup encounter of the year at Brisbane three weeks ago either, he made his return with a good 50-minute performance against the USA Eagles at Soldier Field last weekend, but starting at Twickenham ahead of Beauden Barrett and Dan Carter is something else entirely.
Cruden gets nod for All Blacks
Asked if he was nervous about his test rugby future following his time-keeping lapse in Auckland before the squad's flight to Buenos Aires, Cruden said: "Yeah, absolutely, I think you'd be silly not to and that certainly was the case. It probably alludes to [my comment at] not expecting to be named in the starting XV for this weekend so I guess you never know, putting yourself in a little bit of jeopardy like that what you could potentially lose, and that was definitely at the forefront of my mind."
Asked how the team reacted to his return, Cruden once again replied with candour, saying: "They were really good. We dealt with it as a team. The boys have been great, the management have been great for me, but obviously I was pretty nervous and apprehensive coming back in after what I'd done, but the boys, as Shag [coach Steve Hansen] has often said in the media, are family.
