Rival coaches progress slowly

The curiosity at North Harbour Stadium on Friday night was never going to be about the result. An easy Blues win was the only outcome.

No, the curiosity was in trying to assess whether a New Zealand coach is having a positive impact on the Force and whether an Australian coach is having a positive impact on the Blues.

Focus solely on the result, a 39-8 win for the Blues, and the crude answer would be that David Nucifora is adding more to the Blues than John Mitchell is to the Force. But focus on the performance and there is reason to believe that both Mitchell and Nucifora are making cases for more cross-Tasman pollination.

The Blues have tuned in to what Nucifora is trying to do - that is give the instinctive football a more solid foundation. He's been criticised for stifling the creative juices. It's unfair. He's pretty much done what Graham Henry did when he first took over the All Blacks and placed the emphasis on solidity at set piece and aggression in the loose forward exchanges.

His reasons are sound. He's not doing it to be pragmatic or usher in conservative rugby.

He's doing it because he knows the Blues don't scare anyone when they don't do the hard yards. They are predictable when they simply look to get the ball wide and hope one of the magic fairies will wave their magic wand and disappear through some invisible hole.

Nucifora, like Henry, reasons that the flair and ambition are at their most effective when there is that little bit more space. The holes open up more easily when the forwards have bulldozed a few of the opposition sluggers out of the way.

The Blues didn't immediately tune in to Nucifora's system, hence the early problems. The forwards were too loose in the early rounds, their inaccuracy at the set piece putting pressure on an inexperienced inside pairing. But the cohesion, control and aggression of the forwards improved against the Bulls, got stronger against the Stormers last week and then on Friday night it really looked as if the players had seen the light.

Nucifora is winning his battle to have the team front up each week. He's persuaded them that to win at this level, you have to forget what has gone before and plug away again from the first kick-off. As an Australian he has that mentality ingrained in him.

Against the Force the forwards delivered quick ball from the loose; tidy ball from the set piece; and drove to good effect.

It meant the backs finally got the width they desired and that the confidence - best illustrated by Luke McAlister's outrageously skilful banana kick to Isa Nacewa midway through the second half - is back.

"We are getting better each week," is Nucifora's assessment. "If we can turn our 60-minute performance into an 80-minute performance next week I'll be even happier.

"Confidence is getting better each week. You get on a roll and get that momentum. You get a bit more confidence to try things and passes stick."

For the Force, that momentum won't come. They can't get that elusive first win. Not that it's supposedly bothering Mitchell too much. He's confident a win will come some time. Maybe not this year but it will come. And perhaps he's right to be confident.

The Force have competed well enough at set piece and in the loose. They have defensive structure and comprehension of a game plan. Their problems stem largely from their inexperience. Against the Blues, the covering defence was slow to react to an inside ball that led to Rua Tipoki's second try. Too many individuals don't yet have that speed of thought, that instinctive ability to read the game. The execution of basic skills is a major, too. As Mitchell said: "We are supplying plenty of ball, our set piece is good. It is just little elements, lapses of concentration. Some players are making choices for themselves rather than what is best for the team. Some of the choices in kick receipt against the Blues were pretty average."

If Mitchell is to cop any flak it should be for some of his recruitment choices. Matt Henjak always had the look of a never-will-be at the Brumbies and is proving that now.

The Force need a saviour not a savoury at halfback while Cameron Shepherd hasn't fulfilled the little potential he showed while at the Waratahs.

The biggest problem was the failure to attract a high quality first-five to give direction. But it would be unfair to give Mitchell too hard a time on this front. Australia doesn't not have the riches New Zealand boasts.

There is enough structure and energy within the Force to believe they might grab a few wins next year and to believe that Mitchell is heading in the right direction.