KEY POINTS:
A reluctant move to switch Ma'a Nonu back to his old position at second five-eighths from wing gives the Wellington midfield a menacing look for tomorrow's final against Auckland.
Though forced on coach Aussie McLean because of injury to captain Tamati Ellison, Nonu's switch adds muscle to an already powerful backline.
Second five-eighths Ellison is out of the Air New Zealand Cup final at Eden Park with a fractured eye socket and Nonu has been moved there, with Hosea Gear coming off the bench to play on the wing.
McLean has, like Auckland coach Pat Lam, included two World Cup players, midfielder Conrad Smith and loose forward Rodney So'oialo, on his bench.
Though he was not intending to alter his squad too much, injuries to Ellison and flanker Serge Lilo changed that and McLean was forced to include Smith and So'oialo in the playing squad.
Nonu's switch to midfield is far from a desperate move, even though the powerful runner has been more effective at wing late this season.
He played most of his rugby for Wellington and the Hurricanes in the midfield, but shifted to wing in recent weeks after Smith (World Cup) and Tana Umaga (off to France) were no longer available and McLean tried to utilise the talent on his bench.
That led to reserve Tane Tu'ipulotu being paired with Ellison in midfield and Nonu moving to wing, where his strong game has yielded plenty of tries for the team.
"It wasn't too difficult in terms of re-thinking it because we didn't really have too many options," McLean said about bringing in Smith and So'oialo.
Both players are expected to have significant game time tomorrow.
"At the start of the year we had five midfield backs and now with Tamati going down we're reduced to two," McLean explained. "We can't go into a big match like this with just two - you've got to cover for injury."
In Cory Jane, Gear, Shannon Paku, Tu'ipulotu and Nonu outside halfback and stand-in captain Piri Weepu and first five-eighths Jimmy Gopperth, Wellington have a backline capable of cutting up any opponent in the competition.
Daniel Kirkpatrick is the only Wellington squad member from last week to miss the final this week, his place taken by Smith on the bench.
