The fight to 50 for Stags captain Brayden Mitchell
‘‘One of the best memories would be playing alongside my brother for the first time. I also can’t forget the shield defences l played in. The atmosphere was awesome with so many people backing us.’’ Stags captain Brayden Mitchell.
Stags captain Brayden Mitchell will most likely bring up his 50th Stags game against Manawatu this Saturday. He has been with the squad since 2009, playing through the shield era, and experiencing the highs and lows of the game through wins, losses, injuries and recently major neck surgery.
‘‘It (his game) has changed as the game has changed a lot. New rules have been introduced so you have to make some tweaks due to that,’’ says Brayden.
‘‘I myself have had to work hard on my leadership skills, due to being the captain of the team and I feel I have developed these a lot more from when I first started out as captain.’’
A popular Gore local, Brayden has spent the bulk of his rugby career at hooker, however since returning from surgery, he has been playing at No 6 (blindside flanker) for both the Stags and Southland B team.
Brayden played in the same position back in 2012 at Mitre 10 Cup level when the team suffered a number of injuries and played his club season there this year, so is more than comfortable on the blindside flank.
‘‘I have only played in the first game of the season and with my usual position of hooker putting a lot of strain on my neck, I’m lucky enough to get a go on the side of the scrum, which I’m very thankful for,’’ he says.
The 30-year-old started the
Mitre 10 Cup season from the bench against Northland, but a re-occurrence of his old neck injury meant he missed Southland’s next three games, a situation he has become used to over the years, having faced a number of injuries.
‘‘My family is a big help for that, they have been by my side through good and all the bad times, and my mother always tells me to stay positive. I also love playing rugby,’’ says
Brayden.
Along with his love of the game, he has some great memories too.
‘‘One of the best memories would be playing alongside my brother for the first time. I also can’t forget the shield defences l played in. The atmosphere was awesome with so many people backing us,’’ he says.
All going to plan, Brayden will be celebrating his 50th game playing for Southland against Manawatu, a milestone he is keen to reach.
‘‘It was a big goal of mine this year. l spent two years away playing for Waikato and I have had a lot of time on the sidelines due to injuries,’’ says Brayden.
‘‘The milestone has definitely come a lot later than most players, but if you had of said when l was 20 that I’ll play 50 games for Southland, l would have looked at you sideways and it’s something I’ll be very very proud of as l love playing for this province.’’
Although the Stags have had a bit of a hard time lately, Brayden is staying positive about the rest of the season.
‘‘It has been hard and we have such loyal fans and would love to be able to get a win for them,’’ he says.
‘‘I myself stay positive by telling myself at the end of the day, it’s just a game of rugby and there are a lot worse things going on out there. There are a lot of guys in this team who haven’t had a win in a Southland jersey, I’d love for those boys to enjoy a good win.’’