Crusaders pair ready to
George Bridge is trying to think of tomorrow’s high-stakes Bledisloe Cup decider at Eden Park as more an opportunity than a responsibility.
His young Crusaders mate Sevu Reece is probably taking the same approach. It’s their best chance of success, and they know it.
The inexperienced Crusaders duo were the two shock selections on the wing in Steve Hansen’s rejigged All Blacks lineup to face the Wallabies, replacing two accomplished, if out of sorts, performers in Ben Smith and Rieko Ioane.
The coach has also ratcheted up the pressure by making it clear they’ve been given the chance because he wants to see how they handle the white-hot environment of a Bledisloe series decider off the back of the humiliation the week before in Perth.
‘‘We’ve got to find out more about these other people in pressure-cooker situations, and you don’t get much bigger than this one,’’ Hansen said yesterday on his triple selection shock. He also brought Nepo Laulala in at tighthead prop in place of the 108-cap Owen Franks.
‘‘We wouldn’t be doing it if we didn’t think the guys we’ve put in are good enough to do the job,’’ he added. ‘‘I don’t think it’s a risk and there’s lots of rewards in it.’’
The 24-year-old Bridge, who has featured in just three tests until now and started none, presented as a fairly measured individual when he spoke to the media soon after his coach. Everyone talks about his maturity and calmness, and those qualities were evident in a packed press room.
‘‘It’s exciting for me and my family,’’ he said of the opportunity he’s been handed.
‘‘I’ve had a bit of a taste of test footy. We all know it’s a pretty massive test to be a part of, so to get a start, I’m bloody excited about it.
‘‘There’s always going to be a few nerves – it would be silly if there wasn’t. But I’m looking forward to it and it’s been a good week so far.’’
Bridge may well be auditioning for a spot at the World Cup. But, frankly, he dare not even think about that at this stage.
‘‘I’m just preparing for this weekend and performing as best as I can. The preparation hasn’t been any different for me. I’ve got the mindset going in of just playing my own game and hopefully I’ll give it a good go.’’
He said he and Reece would both approach it as ‘‘just another game’’ because they had to.
‘‘There’s obviously a lot of pressure on us but we just want to bring the energy, get our hands on the ball and nail our roles within the team, and we’re really clear on what that is.’’
Bridge said the 22-year-old Reece, with just a single test appearance under his belt against Argentina this year, would also