Rugby: Kahui finds new self-belief with Tri-Nations role

Richard Kahui's confidence was so low when playing for the Chiefs there were times he did not want the ball. Photo / Getty Images

Halfway through the Super 14 season Richard Kahui did not give himself a prayer of playing in the June internationals or the Tri-Nations.

But the 25-year-old was yesterday named in the 28-man Tri-Nations squad after a fortnight with the All Blacks resurrected his season and - more importantly - his self-belief following a difficult campaign with the Chiefs.

Following Saturday's test against Wales, Kahui revealed he had played games for the Hamilton franchise where he was actively trying to avoid the ball for fear of dropping it.

"Six or seven weeks ago for the Chiefs I wasn't in a good place mentally, and my game was hurting the team, which was making it worse," Kahui admitted.

Kahui sought advice from All Blacks mental skills coach Gilbert Enoka when they went into camp for the June internationals.

"I told Gilbert I was having trouble letting go of bad things, and he just talked to me about a few different ways to handle situations and trying to put them into practice in training. It's been quite good and quite refreshing to get back to the old me and to start backing my ability again.

"If I do make a mistake, it's not the end of the world and I can bounce back from it."

Kahui's Super 14 was plagued by handling errors, and as the Chiefs' results headed south, so did his game and his frame of mind. It reached the point where he had stopped enjoying his footy.

A frank chat with Chiefs' coach Ian Foster confirmed for Kahui that he was hurting the team, an unpalatable fact to digest given he was a player looked upon to provide leadership.

"There was a space there where I was trying not to get the ball.

"If you're running around trying not to make mistakes, you're not trying to make anything happen at the same time.

"I talked to Fozzie [Foster] during the year, and he was honest with me. He said some of my stuff was hurting the team. It was fair."

If there was one positive to come out of the Super 14 season from hell, it is that he has "grown up a little bit" and that the key for him to perform was the ability to relax.

"It's easier said than done when you're in a pretty negative spot, but I feel pretty good at the moment."

Kahui shelled one ball in contact against Wales, but it was a rare blemish in a good outing.

"All I'm trying to do is focus on doing what's best for me to help the team. And what's best for me to help the team at the moment is to be relaxed and try to nail my job.

"You're going to make mistakes, that's the nature of the sport. It's [about being able to] move on from them."

Kahui appeals as a genuine utility, able to cover jerseys 11, 12, 13 and 14. Long term, his best position is centre - but there's a bloke in his way who is in decent nick.

"Conrad's [Smith] got a mortgage on the No 13 jersey at the moment, and that's fair enough," Kahui said.

"The way he's playing, he's consistent week-in, week-out. You know what you get with Conrad. He certainly deserves to be the starting 13.

"The better I can play and the more pressure I can put on him, it's good for both of us."