The best piece of news Todd Blackadder received this week, after Sam Whitelock's return to fitness from a calf problem, must have been the withdrawal from tomorrow's match of Highlanders fullback Ben Smith.
It will be the first time in two years Smith has not been available for the Highlanders. A leg infection, apparently suffered during the team's defeat to the Waratahs in Sydney at the weekend, kept him in hospital across the Ditch for three nights, coach Jamie Joseph saying he couldn't consider the 28-year-old for selection after that.
There is no underestimating the blow this is to the Highlanders, who have relied time and again on their evasive man at the back, nicknamed The Ghost for his ability to drift through defences.
He, along with Malakai Fekitoa, kept the Highlanders in their first match against the Crusaders this season, a cliffhanger under the Dunedin roof which would have quickly slipped away from the home side after halftime but for the urgent interventions of the All Blacks centre and fullback. Now, there will be more pressure on Fekitoa to provide the momentum for the Highlanders, and he showed against the Waratahs that he can be susceptible to a rushing defence which takes away his space.
Blackadder, who has told his team to focus on a win, rather than worry about a bonus point which will strengthen their claim for second place on the table ahead of the Sharks, will want that pressure to continue.
