Wynne Gray: Efficient Brumbies will test Blues

David Pocock of the Brumbies. Photo / Getty Images

Winning rugby for the Brumbies was not always synonymous with an attractive style.

They claimed a couple of Super Rugby crowns yet always seemed in a struggle to grab the nation's embrace. Maybe it was their isolation, perhaps it was a throwback to their formative years when they were Australia's rejects.

From the outside it seemed there was a tolerance for their work, which rose to nodding admiration when it delivered greats of the game like George Smith, Owen Finegan, Patricio Noriega, George Gregan, Stephen Larkham, Stirling Mortlock and Joe Roff to the green and gold of the Wallabies.

The Brumbies were efficient and professional as they worked through their moves from piles of recycled possession in the Rod Macqueen/Eddie Jones/David Nucifora eras. More success came with their switch to Jake-ball kick-and-chase tactics when they fed on others' mistakes.

Now they have meshed those styles under the guidance of coach Larkham and introduced more layers of interaction which they can adapt to each rival.

They have a pack with enough sting to stay in any Super Rugby battle and a backline which has a crisp flow and bags of Wallaby talent Larkham will be honing for his role later in the year with the test squad.

Those methods have pushed the Brumbies to the top of the Wallaby conference where they are locked in a shootout with the Waratahs for an automatic finals berth. If that is to continue, the Brumbies must win games like tonight's Eden Park square-off against the Blues.

They have to work on the Blues' discomfort and compound their anxiety.

If they deliver their set-piece and defensive accuracy, kick their goals and use their backline judiciously, the pressure will ramp up for the hosts.

The Blues have lost all seven games this season and their final two matches in 2014, which is the longest losing streak in the franchise history. This season's failures match the seven in a row in 2012.

It's been a tough watch while the rhetoric from Blues HQ settles on the positive work among the fitful performances. In most games, the forwards have done their bit while the backs have rarely gelled.

Not that the Brumbies are immune. They began with a swagger last round against the Cheetahs but then tailed off when they should have had more backline bite.

Are we good enough, do we have what it takes to stay in this competition, can we play the rugby we are capable of? They are questions both teams will take into this contest.