KEY POINTS:
Hurricanes rugby coach Colin Cooper has every confidence that transplanted halfback Piri Weepu will prove a revelation at first five-eighths.
He would have to say that, of course, because he has selected the All Blacks halfback to start in the No 10 jersey for the Super 14 match against the Bulls at Westpac Stadium in Wellington tomorrow.
Weepu's mid-season conversion to first five-eighths reflects Cooper's dissatisfaction with his two No 10s, Jimmy Gopperth and Blair Stewart.
He tired of Gopperth's inconsistencies before using the inexperienced Stewart to start the previous three matches, then pulled him off during last weekend's 30-7 loss to the Lions in Johannesburg to have a look at Weepu in that role.
Cooper saw enough to feel justified in promoting Weepu to start at No 10, when he will also undertake the goalkicking duties as the Hurricanes look to stem the bleeding.
They have lost their last four matches to slip to 11th on the standings, an alarming fall from grace after contesting the 2006 final, and now confront the prospect of dropping five successive matches for the first time in Super 14 history.
Cooper will cross his fingers that Weepu comes up trumps against the fourth-placed Bulls because his options will be few and far between should the combative Wellingtonian struggle.
"He's going to fit the pattern of play we want to play against the Bulls," was Cooper's succinct justification for making such a significant switch.
"We liked what we saw from him last week. He has a very high skill set, and I think he fancies himself as a 10 also.
"It's a good opportunity for him to expand his skill set."
Cooper produced a neat side-step when asked whether he viewed Weepu's changed role as a short- or medium-term fix.
"I'm not sure about that. We will make that judgment after we see him start and see how he controls the pattern of play we want to use against the Bulls."
Weepu has been practising at 10 all week, and Cooper is convinced he's his man to help arrest the team's slide.
"He has a good tactical kick, he reads the opposition well, and that's why we want to see him start."
- NZPA
