ROB IDOL BOAST
Henshaw vow to tame star
® from PETE SAMSON in Auckland
ROBBIE HENSHAW will see Sonny Bill Williams as his rival and not his idol on his British Lions debut.
The Ireland centre reckons cross-code star Williams is his most dangerous opponent ahead of facing Auckland Blues at Eden Park today.
Williams, 31, (right) has taken turns as a star in rugby league and boxing as well as shining in the All Blacks’ consecutive World Cup triumphs.
Henshaw said: “I was a big fan of his when I was a kid, whether that was performing in league or for the All Blacks.
“To be coming up against him is pretty surreal. I’m looking forward to playing against him and having a go.
“We definitely tweak our defensive technique for someone like that – just not too much.” The Lions know stopping Williams could also mean stopping the Blues, with the game kicking off at 8.35am. His powerful running bisects the best of defences, while his offloading ability often turns half-chances into scores. Henshaw, 23, said: “If he’s a one-out runner and there’s no one with him, obviously I’ll look to come in and make a double hit on him and try and stop his offload threat.
“But you have to look at the guys who are flooding through as well.
“Often you need a double-man tackle on him, one high and one low, and try and stop the offloads around it.
“It’s going to be a tough challenge but we have the right men in place to execute a good defensive system.
“They’re a quality outfit and we know they can pull something out of nothing. They’ve got highly skilled players across the board.”
The Lions huffed and puffed before beating Provincial Barbarians 13-7 in Saturday’s tour opener.
Henshaw, who is partnered by fellow countryman Jared Payne in midfield, added: “We have to look at ourselves and our own performance and get our own stuff right first before we overly focus on them.
“We know what’s coming and we’ll deal with it. We’ve trained well so we just need to execute properly.” O New Zealand hooker Dane Coles could miss the three-Test series as he struggles with concussion.
Coles, 30, has been sidelined since March and his Hurricanes coach John Plumtree said: “It’s hard to say whether he’ll be available for any of the Tests.”