The near common consensus before Super Rugby Pacific kicked off was that the Hurricanes would struggle without their talismanic loose forward Ardie Savea.
That they lead the table with a nine-victories-and-one-loss record ahead of their showdown with the second-placed Blues at Eden Park on Saturday afternoon is a testament to their development under new coach Clark Laidlaw - because they now have a depth in the position unmatched by any other team.
In a topsy-turvy season, this is perhaps the wildest twist.
Skipper Brad Shields will lead a loose trio at Eden Park that includes the standout Brayden Iose and Peter Lakai, with the dynamic Devan Flanders and DuPlessis Kirifi on the reserves bench.
Iose’s match-up with Blues No.8 Hoskins Sotutu alone will be worth the price of admission, and, even though Sotutu will start alongside Dalton Papalii and Akira Ioane, the visitors may have a slight edge in this area.
“It definitely hasn’t gone unnoticed,” Shields said of Savea’s absence after a move to Japan. “Regardless of how you look at it, someone like Ardie – they’re big shoes to fill.
“The way we’ve talked about it is to try not to put pressure on ourselves to try to be like Ardie and how he plays. He brings a special dynamic to any team he’s in. it’s about enhancing our strengths.
“It does leave a big hole but I think we’ve done really well in giving guys leadership roles and filling that space in terms of voice and communication.”
As Laidlaw said, Flanders and Kirifi would walk into most starting line-ups. That he can bring them off the bench to shake things up in the second half is a huge advantage.
“Having guys like DuPlessis and Devan come on, we think that really adds to our game… it’s about keeping performance and momentum for the full 80 minutes,” Laidlaw said.
The Hurricanes’ abundance of big, skilful and seriously quick loose forwards has been one of the defining characteristics of their season.
Another is the more ruthless edge they possess – and this applies to the Blues, too – and the enthusiasm with which they play. The contrast with the woeful defending champion Crusaders could hardly be more stark.
The Hurricanes have already beaten the Blues this season and another would go a long way to cementing their No.1 spot and home advantage throughout the playoffs.
“It feels like a big game and it is a big game,” Laidlaw said. “It’s one versus two. We’re well aware of the challenge ahead but we’re really excited to get out there and express ourselves.
“Someone said to me that 2019 was the last time we won up there so that would suggest it’s a hard place to go to. But I’m looking forward to that.
“I like going to tough places and testing ourselves. We failed against the Brumbies a couple of weeks ago. It was a big test so it will be interesting to see we’ve learned some lessons from that.”
What did they learn?
“If you don’t turn up physically you get beaten by a good team. It’s as simple as that, and the Blues are a big team. Look at the team they’ve picked. They’re a very direct side that cause you problems and compress your defence and then we all know they’ve got the X factor.”
Shields said: “It’s the biggest game for us this year by far and it’s probably the same for them. They probably want a bit of redemption for when they came down here.
“Part of our roles is to entertain and I guess we’re in the entertainment industry… it’s in our DNA as Hurricanes always been a big attacking focus.
“For us some of the thrills can come on defence these days. Like, how willing are you to put a shoulder into someone and get up and do it again? Off the back of that you get the flashy tries in the corner. I don’t think that will ever disappear from the Hurricanes.
“When you hear people say ‘you’ve got us back into rugby’, that’s really pleasing.”
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