Battle of the Super 14 underachievers

The similarities are evident. The Blues and Stormers are neighbours in the underachieving section of the Super 14, two sides full of name players who have misfired.

Quite how the TAB has separated them by such a wide margin is known only to bookmakers or someone writing the next mystery manuscript.

Both sides have tried to grab the low ground all week, gesticulating about lack of form while filling conversations with talk of hope and wishes.

They don't have many alternatives with the Blues showing three wins and the Stormers just two from seven games.

"We have not performed to our potential," Blues loosie Troy Flavell said. "We are probably 30 per cent below where we could be. We are getting there but if we are going to win this competition we have to be at the top of our game."

Meeting the Bulls last week was important as it set the physical tone needed for meeting four other sides from South Africa.

"We gritted our teeth in that game and got through it even though our lineout was not too flash. It is a key area as we generate a lot of phase play from there.

"One week our lineout is good and scrums average and the next week the other way round. We can't work it out but hopefully it will come against the Stormers. They have been a bit up and down but they are physical."

The Stormers would look to attack the Blues at setpiece and come up hard and fast on the defence line.

"Guys like Schalk Burger and Luke Watson have no respect for their bodies and they will really fly into the breakdowns as well."

Burger will play the Blues for the first time after falling to leg injuries in the past two years. He agreed the Stormers had struggled but was optimistic because the Blues were also battling to discover any rhythm.

It was a sentiment shared by midfield back Jean de Villiers who will test the Blues' defensive screens, unlike the attacking stodge delivered by the Bulls last week.

De Villiers is a rarity in South African rugby, a playmaker who prefers to beat defences with stealth, deception and artifice rather than by battering them.

He was also the victim of a Rua Tipoki punch last year which needed 20 stitches and earned Tipoki a three-week holiday.

The scar has almost disappeared and the animosity has gone with the pair set for another lively duel.

"It was spur of the moment thing and he apologised afterwards. We were behind and struggling and I pulled him back by the jersey ... it was a good punch."

De Villiers has much larger scars on both knees and his shoulder from operations to repair his 25-year-old body, surgery which has restricted his rugby career. Those who watch him consistently say his range of skills is crucial to the Springboks' future success.

"I like playing at 12. I like that position because that is where you can make play and distribute possession," he said.

"We are criticised in South Africa for not doing enough in the backs but that is the way we are, the way we were brought up," he explained.

South African midfield greats John Gainsford and Danie Gerber had been family friends and influenced his career from an early stage.

"The stuff they told me has just stuck with me," he said.

This match has more questions than a Larry King show because both sides have been so inconsistent, both have rollercoaster form graphs. It is almost a case of who can get more of their game repaired than the other.


* Eden Park, 7.35 tonight

BLUES

Brent Ward
V. Waqaseduadua
Anthony Tuitavake
Rua Tipoki
Joe Rokocoko
Isa Nacewa
John Senio
Nick Williams
O. Tololima-Auva'a
Troy Flavell
Ali Williams
Greg Rawlinson
John Afoa
Keven Mealamu (c)
Tony Woodcock

Reserves: Tim Dow, Saimone Taumoepeau, Kurtis Haiu, Regan Tamihere, Junior Poluleuligaga, Luke McAlister, Ben Atiga.

STORMERS

Joe Pietersen
T. Chavhanga
De Wet Barry (c)
Jean de Villiers
Marius Joubert
Naas Olivier
Bolla Conradie
Adri Badenhorst
Schalk Burger
Luke Watson
Gerrie Britz
Andries Bekker
Eddie Andrews
H. Shimange
J. D. Moller

Reserves: Schalk Brits, Neil Fullard, Henk Eksteen, Joe van Niekerk, Neil de Kock, Peter Grant, Jongikhaya Nokwe.