The reigning Super Rugby Pacific champions, the Blues, have yet to win a game this season, after two defeats at the hands of the high-flying Chiefs and the Highlanders in Dunedin.
Vern Cotter and his side haven’t put together an 80-minute performance, sitting at the bottom of the Super Rugby Pacific ladder after two rounds with zero points.
The Blues led both the Chiefs and the Highlanders at halftime in their respective fixtures, but Cotter will be disappointed with the second-half performances of his side, especially in Dunedin as the Highlanders were down to 13 players at one point.
Former All Black Stephen Donald believes that the game style used by Cotter in 2024, hasn’t worked in the first two games of the season.
“I think the fact that the forward pack has lost a couple of big boys, and Sam Darry is not there, Akira Ioane is not there. Hoskins went back last week, but those boys suited how Vern had them playing, and that was get to the 22-meter line,” Donald said on The Breakdown for Sky Sport.
“Last year they went up the middle with Caleb Clarke off the first phase, and then they swung around and beat you down until you there’s nothing left.
“This year nothing’s changed, apart from a couple of personnel not being there as far as that forward pack goes.
“Suddenly, teams are able to withstand that onslaught or lack of and they’re not getting the momentum around the corner like they were.”
60-Test former All Black Jeff Wilson is interested to see what Cotter does with All Black first-five Beauden Barrett, who has played both games to start the season at fullback.
Barrett, who was on a sabbatical last year in Japan when the Blues won the 2024 title, played for the All Blacks at first five for parts of the end-of-year Northern Tour and now is at fullback for the Blues.
“They had Cole Forbes playing at fullback last year. Beauden Barrett is an All Black first five, he’s the guy that can run the ship and at the moment, I feel as though he’s a little bit mixed about how he wants to play and how they want to play because they are so dangerous,” Wilson told the Breakdown.
“They need to play a little bit more creatively, I think they need to actually work out a style of football.”
Sky Sports rugby commentator Joey Wheeler questions Wilson’s point, saying that more time in the jersey for Harry Plummer and Beauden Barrett, should iron out the cracks that have shown in the first couple of weeks in Super Rugby Pacific.
“I just want to go back to your point around bringing Beauden Barrett back into 10 for the Blues, we talk about continuity and time in the saddle.
“This team looks underdone in terms of how they want to play the game with Harry Plummer and Beauden Barrett.
“You want to make a change in the most pivotal position in that team and bring back Beauden Barrett, who was on sabbatical last year, Harry Plummer led this team.
“They’re struggling to find the game as it is, is that the right time to be making that decision?”
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