DOMINANT: Chiefs co-captain Sam Cane leads a strong Bay of Plenty presence in the Chiefs forward pack. PHOTO: photosport
DOMINANT: Chiefs co-captain Sam Cane leads a strong Bay of Plenty presence in the Chiefs forward pack. PHOTO: photosport
The Chiefs may no longer play any games in Bay of Plenty but there is still a strong fan base in the province and good player representation in the new-look squad for 2017.
The Steamers have a strong impact in the forward pack with prop Siegfried Fisi'ihoi, hookers Liam Polwart and Nathan Harris, and openside flankers Sam Cane and Mitchell Karpik.
Add to the mix prop Kane Hames, who grew up in Whakatane and made his mark with Bay of Plenty before moving to Tasman.
Winger/fullback Chase Tiatia had a wretched Mitre 10 Cup for Bay of Plenty, succumbing to the Steamers injury curse twice in the season, but is highly regarded by Chiefs head coach Dave Rennie.
This will be the sixth and final season in charge for Rennie before he takes up the reigns as head coach at Glasgow Warriors.
The Chiefs begin with a trip to Dunedin to face the Highlanders on February 24 before a home local derby clash with the Blues that is always eagerly anticipated.
Rennie was keen to finish on a high with another title after the Chiefs were tipped over by eventual champions the Hurricanes in last year's semifinals.
"We had a pretty young squad last year with 15 new Chiefs so there was a hell of a lot of learning for all of us," Rennie said.
"I know those boys coming back have a far better idea of the intensity of Super Rugby and their knowledge and skill sets will be a lot better. So it is pretty exciting from our point of view but every side wants to win it."
Rennie said they also learned a lot about dealing with the travel factor ahead of the semifinal loss to the Hurricanes.
"We have looked at how we dealt with the travel coming back from Africa and whether we got our week right in preparation and whether we tried to do too much. There were little things around our game dealing with the line speed that the Hurricanes brought that day we need to do better.
"But we are incredibly proud of what the group did last year."
COMEBACK: All Blacks hooker Nathan Harris is hoping to stay injury-free in 2017. PHOTO: FILE
Rennie has put together a typically strong squad for this campaign, with the major bonus in getting the experienced Liam Messam and Tim Nanai-Williams back in the fold.
"It is awesome. It is great to have those guys back and they are both really excited about wearing the Chiefs jersey again. Liam has played 140-odd games and Tim 80-odd so that sort of experience and their passion for the jersey is really important to us."
Last season the Chiefs trialled dual captains in Sam Cane and Aaron Cruden. Rennie said it was successful and would be used again this season.
"People wonder about co-captains but 40-plus players played for us last year. It is a massive job for one guy so having co-captains they share responsibility, they feed off each other and I think they did a fantastic job."
This year is extra special because the Chiefs play the British and Irish Lions in Hamilton on June 20 in a one-off occasion for most players.
"A lot of our guys may never play international footy so this is a great opportunity and a chance to measure yourself. The Lions will be incredibly strong and we are all excited to be part of that," Rennie said.
