Rugby: Sparks promised at the park tonight

Luke McAlister. Photo / Getty Images

Fancy a decent game of footy? No promises but there might be a whiff of the Baby Blacks about tonight's match at Eden Park as the Chiefs arrive to challenge their Blues hosts.

Both teams have been duds in this final year of the Super 14. The reasons and excuses are many and various.

On paper the Blues should romp this last game because of the quality on show. The Chiefs have been blunted heavily by injury throughout while the Blues have escaped those traumas for the bulk of this year. They lost Ali Williams pre-season, Luke McAlister for most of the programme, Anthony Boric and Isaia Toeava at stages. Nothing they should not have been able to cover.

Forget all those bits in between early February and now as both sides arrive for the season showdown before their franchise administrators and national selectors pick over the carcasses and sometime later deliver us verdicts.

Prediction? Ian Foster will see out his last year as Chiefs coach and Pat Lam will do the same for the Blues. They will be retained because of contract and financial issues, a lack of perceived alternatives and the trickle-down demands of the All Blacks coaches in World Cup year.

The spotlight will be trained on players tonight as the national panel dissects the claims of those pressing for inclusion in their squad for the June test series.

There are the main men like Tony Woodcock, Keven Mealamu, Boric, Jerome Kaino and those banging on the door asking questions like Aled de Malmanche, Liam Messam, Tanerau Latimer, Brendon Leonard, John Afoa, Alby Mathewson, Stephen Brett, Benson Stanley, Rene Ranger, Joe Rokocoko and Rudi Wulf. Way too many for the initial 26-man squad especially with the list of contenders from the Crusaders, Hurricanes and Highlanders to consider as well.

Even though the Blues have managed just one serious training this week after returning from South Africa, you figure they will continue their free-wheeling style tonight if conditions and their concentration allows.

They have shown a reluctance to play percentage rugby all season and there seems little reason why they would alter that strategy in their last appearance.

It has left the Blues open to critiques about their exciting but suicidal approach, the wisdom of their high-risk rugby when they examine the competition results. Those debates will proliferate after tonight.

But there should be plenty of spark in this local derby, a sign of things to come next season when the competition moves into its next phase.

For the players this is all about bragging rights and the chance to push their names deeper into the All Black selectors' consciousness. When those men sit round picking through their final lists, players like Mathewson, Latimer and Rokocoko will want to make this game count for a great deal.

Ranger has recovered from a niggling knee problem and will start tonight with McAlister dropping on to the subs bench in place of Daniel Kirkpatrick.

BLUES V CHIEFS
Eden Park, 7.35pm Saturday

BLUES
Paul Williams
Joe Rokocoko
Ranger/McAlister
Benson Stanley
Rudi Wulf
Stephen Brett
Alby Mathewson
Viliami Ma'afu
Serge Lilo
J. Kaino/P. Saili
Anthony Boric
Kurtis Haiu
John Afoa
K. Mealamu (c)
T.Woodcock

CHIEFS
T. Nanai-Williams
Save Tokula
Jackson Willison
Phil Burleigh
Jason Hona
Trent Renata
Brendon Leonard
Colin Bourke
Tanerau Latimer
Liam Messam (c)
Culum Retallick
Craig Clarke
Ben Afeaki
A. de Malmanche
Tony Smith

RESERVES
Blues: Tom McCartney, Charlie Faumuina, Filo Paulo, Tom Chamberlain, Chris Smylie, Daniel Kirkpatrick, George Pisi.

Chiefs: Hika Elliot, Tristan Moran, Kevin O'Neill, Luke Braid, Junior Poluleuligaga, Siale Piutau, Tim Mikkelson.