Waikato defence draws praise from McLean

This time next season beware the destructive influence of Waikato's defence.

So predicts Canterbury coach Aussie McLean, who believes that far from being a fad, the rush defence is set to become a feature of the New Zealand rugby landscape.

That Waikato are still struggling to execute the umbrella system brought in by new coach Warren Gatland is entirely understandable according to McLean.

"I understand what they are trying to do but I don't think they are getting it quite right yet. However, next year, I think they will be very effective and it will be a real challenge for all teams to work out how to break Waikato down.

"Gats [Gatland] was pretty effective with that system when he was at Wasps and also when he coached Ireland. I think we have also seen the South Africans win a number of games on the back of their rush defence. I think a lot of teams will give it a try, because it means you can do a lot of good work without the ball.

"The thing is, though, Warren had 35 games a season with Wasps to get it right. Here, he has only nine, so you have to be patient and understand that it takes a bit of time to get used to it."

Gatland, clearly a big believer in the system, hardly needs to be convinced of its merits, but he did at least get a confidence boost of sorts last night with the defensive improvement his side showed.

"I think we are going in the right direction. We are defending quite a bit different. It is a system that takes a little bit of time to learn.

"At certain times you get caught out. It is about learning from the mistakes you make each week and adjusting. I thought we showed a lot of improvement last night."

Probably the major benefactor of Waikato's occasional defensive slip-ups was fullback Ben Blair.

With the defence rushing up there was plenty of space for Blair to exploit when his insides managed to get the ball wide. He still has electrifying pace and impressed with the way he motored into the line with such purpose.

Nothing impressed as much, however, as the way he struck what was effectively the match-winning penalty in the dying minutes.

"I knew it was a tough kick but I knew straight away off the foot it was pretty good," said Blair. "It didn't move at all and it went straight down the centre so I was happy with that. I knew we were down by one, so yeah I knew it was a big kick.

"We had a good feeling during the week. We played well against Northland, so we were quietly confident. I'm pretty happy with the way I played. I didn't have a very good start but after that things opened up for me. The way they defend you probably get a few more opportunities than normal."

- HERALD ON SUNDAY