Face it, people: there is no escaping history today. Even that opening sentence is now in the past and you're still in the same paragraph. So, really history is always just behind you. History is time's version of stalking.

The description of a developing Blues first-five as a player with "X-factor" should probably start alarm bells following the Benji Marshall experiment.

After ten rounds of Dream Team Fantasy Super Rugby, it seems like the perfect time to point out which players are trending upward and which aren’t worth your precious millions in the game.

Benji Marshall's rugby union experiment is likely to cost him $2 million, with the player set to return to Australia as soon as tomorrow to finalise a budget conscious NRL comeback.

Simon Hickey's experience running the cutter at the ailing Blues should stand him in good stead as the skipper of the New Zealand Under-20s in June's Junior World Championship.

Benji Marshall saved his best performance for the Blues until the end. There were smiles and laughter yesterday at Eden Park in what became a eulogy for his failed rugby experiment.

Hookers are usually a gnarly benchmark for Super Rugby sides. Some of the younger brigade have not collected the creased faces or disfigured ears which often signify combat in the scrummaging trenches and close-quarter combat.

The self-congratulatory "I told you so's" have been ringing loudly on both sides of the Tasman as Benji Marshall pulls the pin on his rugby experiment.

In reaching a mutual agreement with Benji Marshall to let him leave the Blues a few months into his two-year contract, New Zealand's rugby bosses made their best decision.

Blues investor Murray Bolton has no hard feelings towards Benji Marshall and his looming exit.

Footballing freak Israel Folau is setting impossibly high standards that no other rugby convert - including Benji Marshall - should expect to match.

Benji Marshall will not be a Warrior, with coach Andrew McFadden saying today the failed rugby convert is "not what they need right now".

Wales coach Warren Gatland said to be increasingly keen on luring Chiefs player Gareth Anscombe from Hamilton with the potential prize of a World Cup spot.

Benji Marshall says he is an "average'' rugby union player but insists he is better for his failed experiment at the Blues.

Amid the Benji Marshall saga and a listing ship sporting a spotty 3-5 record, John Kirwan is happy to seize on anything positive surrounding his beleaguered Blues.

The Waratahs are sweating on Kurtley Beale being fit as they look to break the shackles in key clashes with the Blues and Hurricanes.

Something has clicked for the Crusaders, coach Todd Blackadder reckons.

Benji Marshall's inclusion in the Blues match-day squad is now hanging by a thread.

The clock is ticking on the Chiefs' efforts to fix their malfunctioning lineout after their mauling at the hands of the Crus-aders.

Halfway through the competition and three Australian teams are positioned to qualify for the Super Rugby finals for the first time in history.

What a game of stunning intensity and brutality in Hamilton on Saturday, a game that was comparable to most test matches.

The significance of Kieran Read leaving the field after 30 minutes on Saturday night was easy to understand in the context of the match.

Recovering Blues halfback Piri Weepu has warned his underperforming teammates they need to work out whether they want to be at the franchise or not.

Super Rugby has reached the halfway point. Gregor Paul reviews the action so far and suggests what needs to happen in the next six weeks.

Hurricanes prop John Schwalger could be out for the season after missing Friday's win over the Blues.