Rugby: Troubled Blues still tracking strongly

Pat Lam puts his side through its paces at training yesterday. Photo / Brett Phibbs

Some might say the troubles have been hovering for the Blues, that the problems have not been too far from the surface.

Perhaps, but they still lead the New Zealand section of the Super 15 and on that basis the Blues are tracking strongly.

They are also aware they dropped two games before their bye and need to vault back into the winner's circle to boost their kick for the playoffs.

Video: Blues coach on teamwork

The Chiefs are the immediate hurdle tomorrow at Eden Park. They are a team who made life awkward in the Blues' round-six meeting in slippery conditions in Hamilton.

The Super 15 is an awkward competition spread across three nations with the difficulties of dealing with travel, referees and unfamiliar surroundings. Only the Crusaders down the years - and the Blues, Bulls, Brumbies and Sharks in pockets - have been able to make a sustained mark on the competition.

The Blues now face a serious test of their resolve when they resume combat tomorrow against a Chiefs side looking to blast into their remaining slimline Super 15 itinerary.

At the start of May, the Blues were showing out but they were dealing with a playing roster struggling with injury at lock and midfield. They still head the New Zealand section, but some of the buoyancy has dipped and there are a few more frowns around the camp.

An unbeaten nine-game streak through March, April and into May has slipped into successive defeats against the Reds and Stormers. A slow start to the match against the Reds killed off that expectant visit to Brisbane and a wilting finish delivered the same outcome with the Stormers.

With the bye week came the bonus of four points, but the worries will be about the impact tomorrow in a return to Eden Park.

Captain Keven Mealamu is benched, acknowledging the obligation to give some of the senior All Blacks a spell before the World Cup, and that will denude the Blues of his drive and demands.

Loosehead prop Tony Woodcock remains out of action, Kurtis Haiu and Daniel Braid are also missing from the pack and Isaia Toeava's absence from fullback has left a void in the side's ability and organisation.

The bye week will have given the players and coaching staff time for introspection and assessment.

The Blues struggled early in the season, as coach Pat Lam took a cautionary approach, believing he could not get too tough too early in the expanded series.

After an indifferent start with two wins, a draw and a loss, the message came to Lam about extracting more from his group, being more demanding. Getting harder. Changes had to be made, players had to be judged harshly, ultimatums had to mean something, otherwise Lam would be heading out the exit door at the end of three undistinguished years.

Some blokes got an immediate tap on the shoulder. Joe Rokocoko for one, a senior All Black and longtime Blues stalwart got a spell and words about his input. Luke McAlister was shifted to midfield, Stephen Brett reinstalled at first five-eighths, Alby Mathewson at halfback, Peter Saili went to No 8 and John Afoa's time out was cancelled.

There was an immediate lift with victory against the Hurricanes in round five. There have been further selection tweaks since, caused by injury, and some form shifts as the results continued to favour the Blues.

Some of the margins were not flash, but the Blues were checking off results in the W column, instead of the erratic win-loss routines of their previous two seasons.

A three-point win followed against the Chiefs, seven points with the Cheetahs, then comfortable margins against the Waratahs and Rebels. Then the squeeze returned. There were struggling wins against the Highlanders and Hurricanes in round 11 and round 12, victories without much conviction.

The Blues won admiration for displaying plenty of grit and hard work, the sort of roll-your-sleeves-up results which Blues teams had flunked in recent seasons. But there was a sense some of the snap was evaporating, that the Blues were becoming an easier team to compete against.

Two rollercoaster defeats have offered uncertainty about the Blues' sense of themselves. A sloppy start against the Reds then a lax finish against the Stormers demands a broadbrush remedial solution from the coaches. Eden Park tomorrow begins phase three for Lam and his cohorts. This game demands impact from the coaches and their troops.

They face a crusty finish to the round-robin against the Chiefs, Crusaders and Highlanders where momentum but most of all results will be the target.