Trading places
TRADING places has never been much of an issue for the Highlanders’ two happy hookers.
For Liam Coltman and Ash Dixon, it has been a case of moving between the bench and the field for the past five seasons.
Coltman made his debut for the Highlanders in 2013 and, two years later, Dixon came to the franchise after stints with the Blues and Hurricanes.
Since then, the duo have been the main men in the hooking role.
Coltman has been in the XV for the majority of matches, having started 66 games since 2015, while Dixon has been more of a super substitute, coming off the bench more than 50 times to replace Coltman.
But it is a 23man game these days so for the player it does not matter whether he is starting or riding the pine as each role is just as important.
Coltman (30) said coming off the bench was a vital role in the game these days.
‘‘It doesn’t worry me. Either way it goes, it is all good. Ash and I have been doing this since 2015 and we don’t mind,’’ he said.
‘‘The boys have been nailing their roles, doing a fantastic job in the lineout and it is great to come out and do.’’
It was about the team performance for any player and Coltman also acknowledged playing well will hopefully give those watch
ing a smile on their face.
‘‘For us it is a massive honour to get back out on the field . . . I think when your livelihood all of a sudden stops dead it is pretty crazy. And for many people that is still going. So whatever chance we get we want to bring a bit of joy and fun to people out there.’’
In 2015, the year the Highlanders won the title, both hookers played every match in the 19game season.
Coltman started 15 of them while Dixon started the other four and came off the bench in the other 15 games.
This season, Coltman started off by taking to the field initially but, after the Covidenforced break, Dixon has started the first two games of the Highlanders Super Rugby Aotearoa campaign and looked in good form.
Getting the body right and finding renewed enthusiasm for the game has been a bonus for the 31yearold who was tossing up whether to come back to the Highlanders this season.
Captaincy appears to sit well with Dixon and he has brought some dash back into his game.
He will be on the bench in what is an intriguing match for the Highlanders.
The side is coming off two good performances but the Crusaders are the benchmark.
The red and blacks are utterly ruthless and know how to squeeze sides.
The home team simply has to take every possible chance which comes along and be accurate in everything it does.
SYDNEY: Kodi Nikorima has felt the NRL furnace in both Brisbane and Auckland and can testify that any crisis reaches boiling point faster at the Broncos.
The Warriors fiveeighth has copped his share of criticism since shifting to Auckland midway through last season, most barbs directed at his tendency to switch on and off.
It was a similar story through much of his four and ahalf seasons at Red Hill, particularly during the latter stages, when he and halves partner
Anthony Milford were derided routinely.
Both teams share the secondlowest rung on the ladder before tonight’s clash in Gosford but Nikorima believes the pressure on the Brisbane players and coaching staff will be at another level, particularly after five straight losses.
‘‘I’ve spoken to Milf. He was one of my closest mates there. I checked in on him two weeks ago to see how he was going,’’ Nikorima said yesterday.
‘‘I’ve been there before and I know how much pressure there is on that side.
‘‘Obviously we’re in the same situation as the Broncos at the moment.
‘‘They just seem to cop it a lot more than us — being a team that has such high expectations.’’
Nikorima was squeezed out of Brisbane by salary cap pressure in April 2019.
Meanwhile, Broncos forward Pat Carrigan says an underfire Brisbane is ready to make a stand against the Warriors to revitalise its season.
Carrigan said the Broncos were hurting after hitting a new low last round after being booed off the field at halftime by their own fans before slumping to their fifth straight loss.
But lock Carrigan said the secondlast Broncos were not ready to wave the white flag just yet.
‘‘Looking back we were 25 last year and we still made the playoffs,’’ he said.
‘‘The white flag is definitely not up and will never go up from this group.
‘‘But we know as a group it is time we make a stand for each other. We know the only way to turn your critics away is to start winning and it needs to start this week for us.’’
Carrigan said it was time the Broncos finally showed what they could do on the field.
‘‘There’s no hiding behind it; we are obviously up against it at the moment but it’s all of our doing.
‘‘As a group we concede we have been a bit conservative, just one offtheruck boring footy. We are just looking at playing a bit of footy [against the Warriors].’’ — AAP