Title would be perfect present for Tana

Tana Umaga salutes the crowd after Friday night's win. Ross Land / Getty Images

Hurricanes 16 Waratahs 14

Tana Umaga will celebrate his 33rd birthday this Saturday and play in his first Super 14 final. But the former All Black skipper will not be hyping up either event during the next six days.

It's easy to understand why he might not want to make a big fuss about edging further away from 30. There are too many young fellas in Super rugby who would fancy their chances playing against a man more than halfway towards collecting his pension.

Making a Super 14 final, though, is surely one of those special occasions when you allow yourself to be swept up in the moment? Especially since Umaga has waited 11 long years to make it there having been part of a Hurricanes team that has suffered more meltdowns than a Russian nuclear reactor.

But Umaga's understated stance reflects the mood of this current Hurricanes squad that has developed enormous self-belief and confidence in the last three seasons.

In 2003 the Hurricanes made the semifinal when they were outplayed and out-thought by the Crusaders. In 2005 they made the semifinal when they were again blown away by the Crusaders.

Back then, they didn't quite have the mental fortitude or density of leadership to cope with the enormity of the occasion.

Umaga reckons that, at last, the Hurricanes have come of age and he says there is no prospect of his side getting stage fright this Saturday.

"We have to take the occasion for what it is - the pinnacle of a very long season. A season that has been very long for some players. But I don't think we need to hype it up.

"I think we have that maturity now. A lot of the guys are talking during training and when we are out there playing. It used to be the same old voices heard all the time - mainly mine, Colin Cooper's and Rodney's [So'oialo]. But now a lot of the younger guys feel confident to speak up.

"Jerry [Collins] has become a good talker and Lome Fa'atau is talking a lot now. These guys have been around for a while and they have that experience to feel confident. That is great for us to have so many leaders in the team."

Exactly how far the Hurricanes have come will become clear on Saturday night. Certainly, in their back-to-back wins against the Waratahs they showed enormous mental strength to close out tight contests that were in danger of slipping away from them.

On Friday, with five minutes remaining and holding a lead of just two points, coach Cooper was willing his side to kick a penalty just outside Jimmy Gopperth's and Piri Weepu's range into touch.

The players debated taking a scrum and then finally chose to tap and turn the ball back to the forwards who picked and drove until the hooter blasted.

"We have a lot of options and I think that is where we have grown," said Cooper. "I was very proud to see the maturity in the group. We always tell the players what we think but leave it to them to decide out on the field. I think, in the end, Rodney, Tana and JC [Jerry Collins] made the correct decision when they tapped."

While the Hurricanes can feel confident they are mentally equipped to cope with the intensity of a Super 14 final, they have to accept their lineout needs radical improvement if they are not to capitulate this week.

The execution was poor in Sydney and not much better in Wellington.

"The Waratahs had done their homework again," So'oialo said. "It's not easy winning your own ball these days when teams compete so well."

So'oialo is right but it still needs to happen and the Hurricanes appeared to have a breakdown in communication between thrower and jumpers.

If they can fix it, they will be a handful in the final as Umaga and Ma'a Nonu are starting to combine well in midfield and the back row has lifted its game to yet another level.

So while Umaga won't be making a lot of noise in the build-up to the game, that will all change after the final whistle.

"All you want is success for the team that you play in. You can't always play for yourself and it is great to be able to make that sacrifice."

Hurricanes 16 (L. Fa'atau try; P. Weepu pen; D Holwell pen, con; J. Gopperth pen).
Waratahs 14 (P. Hewat try; Hewat 3 pens).

Time to shine

The Hurricanes have arguably been Super rugby's great underachievers, which makes their appearance in this week's final all the more special for their amazingly faithful fans who have stuck with the team through thin and thin. With the exception of 1997, those fans had it really tough in the early years. Things gradually got a bit brighter when Colin Cooper took over the coaching reigns in 2003, but still, they always seemed destined to be the nearly men. Until now.

1996: 9th
1997: Lost 33-20 to Brumbies in semifinal (Canberra).
1998: 8th
1999: 10th
2000: 8th
2001: 9th
2002: 9th
2003: Lost 39-16 to Crusaders in semifinal (Christchurch).
2004: 11th
2005: Lost 47-7 to Crusaders in semifinal (Christchurch).
2006: Reach final for first time.