Afoa’s comeback put on hold
John Afoa will keep his phone handy just in case, but the reality is his short-lived return to Super Rugby is more than likely to conclude tonight.
The 39-year-old will hang on to his Crusaders’ kit after they face the Hurricanes in the capital, though. After all, he will at least need some of it if the red-and-blacks and the Blues clash in the semifinals.
That’s a very real possibility. Raising the question: Who will the Blues centurion root for if the collision course the two rivals are on comes to fruition? ‘‘Lucky I’m getting kicked out and can’t play those [playoff] games, because it would be a bit of a conflict,’’ Afoa said.
‘‘I’m just a pure supporter, you know what I mean? I’ll maybe wear my Blues top and my Crusaders shorts and just sit on halfway and see what happens.’’
A week after returning from France and making a shock debut for the Crusaders in his first game on New Zealand soil in more than a decade, the World Cup winning All Black isn’t eligible to feature in the playoffs, as it stands.
While the Crusaders could apply for an exemption if their already grim injury crisis worsens, rules state only athletes who have played in New Zealand by April 1 are eligible to feature in the playoffs.
Afoa, who will play for Bay of Plenty in this year’s NPC, was disap
pointed he was likely finished, although the silver lining was he could return home to Auckland and family. ‘‘I’ll be happy to go back and watch both of my teams now, the Blues and the Crusaders, the next couple of weeks,’’ he said.
Before he prepared for his last media requirements in Super Rugby, he joked with 23-year-old uncapped halfback Louie Chapman, who was set for his first stand-up with reporters.
It was a sample of the banter and energy head coach Scott Robertson, speaking the previous day, said he’d brought to Rugby Park in his short time in Christchurch.
Indeed, he’s not afraid to have a laugh and offer a bit of cheek,
although Afoa said he did refrain from giving veteran hooker Codie Taylor a hard time for dropping a pass against the Waratahs last weekend, one Afoa threw him after he found himself in acres of space.
‘‘Nah, because I don’t know him that well. If it was [Sam] Whitelock, I would have ripped him and I would have ripped him all week.’’