Rugby: Hurricanes coach works around resting rules

Versatile midfielder Rey Lee-Lo will start for the Hurricanes tonight. Photo / Getty Images

Chris Boyd has a problem looming.

The Hurricanes coach needs to find a way to rest his All Blacks as the Super Rugby campaign rolls on and, problematically for him, that is most of his backline.

Frontline All Blacks need to take two games off this season, on top of the two bye rounds, to help keep them in top condition ahead of the World Cup.

Centre Conrad Smith will miss tonight's game against the Western Force in Perth, while second-five Ma'a Nonu skipped the round one win over the Lions. Boyd is lucky to have versatile midfielder Rey Lee-Lo who can slide straight in for either Nonu or Smith and he will do so again tonight.

There is cover on the wing for Cory Jane and Julian Savea in Matt Proctor and Jason Woodward but they don't bring the flash of the internationals.

Boyd's problems will begin when he has to rest first-five Beauden Barrett and hooker Dane Coles. Barrett hasn't missed a game in the past three seasons and has worn the No 10 jersey in nearly every game he's played.

Barrett's likely replacement is James Marshall, who will play at fullback tonight, but Boyd said the plan was to find a spot for Marshall to get a run at first-five, perhaps late in a game, so he would be ready to run the cutter as a starter in the future.

Finding an adequate backup to Coles will be harder.

Fourth-string option Brayden Mitchell has been used on the bench recently for the Hurricanes as regular reserve rake Motu Matu'u struggles with injury. Wider training group member Leni Apisai showed little in pre-season.

"There's a bit of a juggling act, there's no doubt about that," Boyd said.

The importance of Coles can't be understated and he will skipper the Hurricanes in Smith's absence tonight. It will mark the first captaincy assignment of the 28-year-old's career.

Following their wins over the Lions and the Bulls during their trip to South Africa, the Hurricanes have a tricky contest on their hands against the Force. It's the game which has proven a slippery spot for New Zealand teams in the past as they clock out on their trip home from the Republic.

"Regardless of what we did in Africa, we always talked about this game being the potential banana-skin game, so to speak," No8 Victor Vito said.

"So we've been trying to keep ourselves on our toes for this game and the reality is they're going to be a team that's putting everything on the line and we can't be coming here thinking: 'We've won two in Africa, it's just going to happen'."

Vito will make his first start of the campaign tonight having spent the past two games coming off the bench.

Hurricanes v Force, Perth, midnight tonight
15 James Marshall
14 Cory Jane
13 Rey Lee-Lo
12 Ma'a Nonu
11 Julian Savea
10 Beauden Barrett
9 Chris Smylie
8 Victor Vito
7 Ardie Savea
6 Brad Shields
5 James Broadhurst
4 Blade Thomson
3 Ben Franks
2 Dane Coles (c)
1 Reg Goodes.

Reserves : Brayden Mitchell, Jeffery Toomaga-Allen, Chris Eves, Mark Abbott, Callum Gibbins, TJ Perenara, Matt Proctor, Nehe Milner-Skudder.