Highlanders bank on Marty
The Highlanders have named Marty Banks to start at No 10 against the Blues in Auckland tomorrow night.
Banks gets his first start of the campaign ahead of Josh Ioane, who takes his place on a stronglooking bench.
Pari Pari Parkinson and Thomas Umaga-Jensen have both recovered from head knocks to return to the starting XV, while lock Tom Franklin has been elevated from the bench to the run-on side
All Black Jackson Hemopo, who was due to sit out the cancelled Crusaders match, is on the bench with lock Josh Dickson.
The Highlanders are still without the services of Liam Squire and Rob Thompson but are otherwise in good shape as they head to Auckland in search of a win before their first bye of the season.
After the Highlanders and Crusaders were handed two competition each points following the cancellation of the South Island derby last weekend, the Highlanders sit third in the New Zealand conference on 12 points.
The Blues have six competition points but have played one game less.
The Highlanders have a strong recent record against the Blues, winning the past four encounters and six out of the last seven.
Astonishingly, the Blues have not won a Kiwi derby since beating the Highlanders in round one in 2016, a losing streak that now stands at 20 games.
Blues midfielder Sonny Bill Williams will miss the game to travel to Christchurch to support those affected by the shootings in that city.
Meanwhile, the Highlanders will visit Dunedin’s Al Huda mosque today as a sign of support for the Muslim community in the wake of the shootings.
‘‘We’re going along to the mosque, once again to show our continued support for the Muslim community and also the community of Dunedin,’’ coach Aaron Mauger said yesterday.
The Highlanders are determined to use their profile in a positive way.
The franchise ‘‘reached out’’ to the mosque earlier in the week and today’s visit will be its way of providing comfort to the Muslim community that has been traumatised by the attacks.
A city-wide vigil for the victims will be held in Dunedin today, with 20,000 expected to attend an event at Forsyth Barr Stadium.
However, the Highlanders have to travel to Auckland for their game against the Blues and will be unable to attend.
New Zealand’s rugby players have reacted strongly to the terrorist attack.
The Chiefs and Hurricanes linked arms before their match last Friday and afterwards Hurricanes halfback TJ Perenara spoke of how little the game meant in the context of the shootings.
On Monday, Mauger said his ‘‘heart sunk for the Muslim community, for New Zealand and the world’’ after Friday’s atrocity in his home city.
Fellow Highlanders coach Mark Hammett also has strong links to the city.
‘‘Obviously it’s pretty devastating and scary for the people involved around the area at the time,’’ Mauger said.
‘‘It’s something that you just don’t imagine happening in New Zealand.’’