Francis cleared to start for Blues
Piers Francis has no concerns taking the field five days after being knocked unconscious but the Blues playmaker does have grievances after South African officials failed to properly punishing the man who clocked him high.
Francis will start at first fiveeighth for the Blues against the Chiefs on Friday night at Eden Park, despite a flush blow to his chin leaving him knocked out for a short period in the Blues’ controversial 30-22 loss to the Stormers in Cape Town last week.
Blues medical staff are confident Francis has no symptoms and passed all concussion protocols, declaring him ready to go for the Chiefs.
‘‘The precautions were taken on the field and post game. It’s been a few days now and there were protocols I had to adhere to and I’ve passed them. That’s the process we’ve had and I feel good,’’ Francis said.
‘‘I thought I was conscious the whole time. The physio and doctor might have thought otherwise at certain periods but I felt good the whole time. From the outside it probably looks worse because they’ve got to go through their protocols of getting the neck in place and that sort of thing.’’
South African referee Jaco van Heerden and TMO Shaun
Veldsman deemed Stormers second-five Shaun Treeby deserved a penalty for his swinging arm that left Francis prone and saw him leave the field seven minutes into the second spell. Treeby was later suspended for three weeks; little comfort to the Blues who rightly believe the failure to award a yellow or red card had a major bearing on the result at Newlands.
‘‘I understand I was hit and the judiciary saw the same thing and we got the right result there. It’s just a shame where we can’t get these decisions during 80 minutes when it means the most. It doesn’t mean much to us now after the game,’’ Francis said.
‘‘It was 19-10 at that point and we had a good hold of the game. Our combinations were working and it changed the tide. I went off, and Bryn [Gatland] did a great job when he came on, but on the flipside of that [Matt] Duffie gets another yellow and we’re down to 14 and it’s a completely different story, especially at Newlands.
‘‘It’s a pretty hostile environment and with the officials doing what they are doing it does make it a tough task.’’
Given Francis has been called into Eddie Jones’ England squad for two tests in Argentina next month, there was a thought he may be cautious to protect his chances of making his international debut.
Instead, he sees the chance to pit himself against All Blacks playmaker Aaron Cruden and attempt to guide the Blues to their first win over Kiwi opposition this season - having loss all five games to date - as the perfect preparation for taking the next step.
‘‘I think we’ve come a long way. People don’t think so from the outside but we think we have. We owe these boys one. They’re coming up to our house for our last home game so we’re fizzing to go and we believe we’ve prepared pretty well on the short turnaround.
‘‘I owe a lot to the Blues. Eden Park has been a really special place for me - even being an Englishman. I really enjoy playing there and we tend to put on good performances there. I believe Friday will be no different. I’ve got to contain the excitement and emotion but looking forward to it.’’
Stephen Perofeta, the highlytouted Taranaki and New Zealand under-20s talent, will back up Francis and could make his longawaited debut from the bench. All Blacks lock Patrick Tuipulotu has been promoted to the starting side, along with fullback Michael Collins who pushes Melani Nanai out of the squad.