Visitors focused on Eden Park clash
TURNING around a 16-31 loss to the Blues in their opening game of Sky Super Rugby Aotearoa this year will be the Hurricanes goal in today’s game at Eden Park.
The Blues are back at home after last week’s loss to the Chiefs that came on the back of their defeat by the Crusaders a week earlier.
By comparison, the Hurricanes had their first win of the year when beating the Highlanders last week.
That resulted in a more upbeat mood at training when the side arrived on Monday but coach Jason
Holland said there was still an understanding that there was a lot to be learnt from the game, and they had to continue to be honest and understand how they won games and what happened to lose them.
“It’s been a good week but there’s still a bit of tension on the line because we know we’re nowhere a wrap on this competition,” he said.
The Hurricanes wanted to keep their hopes of a final berth within their grasp, so it was a case of what they did that mattered in achieving that. The big picture was in their sights, but the more important view concerned the Blues this week.
“We know we’ve got to take it week by week,” he said.
Looking at the Blues’ defeats of the past two weeks, he said there wasn’t a lot different to when they played them in round one, but they hadn’t been able to execute on that occasion.
“They’re still a quality side that has got some pretty big names all through that side, and especially through their pack,” he said.