Smith vows to keep a clear head
Aaron Smith doesn’t want his lofty reputation to weigh him down.
Few could dispute Smith deserves to be recognised as the planet’s top halfback, but he is also aware he cannot allow that title to blur his focus ahead of the World Cup in Britain.
The 26-year-old wasn’t perfect during the recent Rugby Championship – a couple of ropey performances in the away tests against the Springboks and Wallabies were testament to that – but few would dare to be bold enough to question his class.
Smith played a major role in the Highlanders’ Super Rugby title win this year, with his virtuoso performance in the quarterfinal victory against the Chiefs in Dunedin, when he exploited the blindside to create two tries for Waisake Naholo, being particularly memorable.
The 83kg man dubbed ‘‘Nugget’’ is now limbering-up for his first global tournament and if the All Blacks are to become the only team to win consecutive world titles they must hope he stays fit.
Smith, though, says his major priority is to keep a level head and tell himself he doesn’t need to prove himself to anyone but his coaches and team-mates.
‘‘Firstly, you have to earn the right to start,’’ Smith said. ‘‘I think if you go out there trying to prove why you are good or whatever, you are in trouble; then you would probably go away from your game.
‘‘I am just looking to get play as much as you can. This is the pinnacle for a rugby player. I just want to play my game and as hard as I can.’’
TJ Perenara and Tawera KerrBarlow complete the troika of halfbacks in the All Blacks’ 31-man squad, but their chances of appearing in the major fixtures during the tournament are slim unless Smith suffers a loss of confidence or is injured.
Smith is expected to start the All Blacks’ first, and toughest, pool game against Argentina in London’s Wembley Stadium on September 21, while Perenara will probably appear against Namibia in the Olympic Stadium four days later.
Given Smith’s durability and ability to stay injury-free, coach Steve Hansen may be tempted to start him in the remaining games against Georgia and Tonga to ensure he is battle-hardened for the quarterfinal in Cardiff.
Asked what he believed was his biggest challenge of the tournament, Smith said: ‘‘I don’t know, mate. You tell me. I am new to this. If you can’t get motivated for a World Cup, then you are in trouble.’’
The New Zealanders have been meticulous with their preparation, practising with the Gilbert balls in Auckland and completing a con- tested training which involved playing in bursts of 20 minutes and then completing some fitness sessions.
‘‘That was the hardest sort of thing we had done in a while,’’ Smith noted. ‘‘It was a good blowout, probably just what we needed.’’
Being accustomed to playing with the adidas balls in their own competitions means the New Zealanders must quickly adjust to passing and kicking the new oval nut.
‘‘Every ball is different,’’ Smith added. ‘‘Going from the adidas to the Gilberts is always a bit of a tricky thing but me, TJ (Perenara) and Tawera (Kerr-Barlow) have been working pretty hard on getting used to them.
‘‘But it is the same for everyone, it is not as if the opposition get a different ball from what we do.’’