Zac mania takes hold

Yours truly needed cheering up while watching the Hurricanes fumble their way to a 32-16 loss to the Waratahs on Friday night.
A phone call from successful Hawke's Bay age group rugby coach Jeff Franklin did the trick. He had just finished watching the Crusaders beat the Brumbies 40-22 in Christchurch and was watching one of his former players, All Black and Magpies winger Zac Guildford, deal with the Crusaders supporters.
"It's Zac mania down here," Mr Franklin said. "It was an incredible experience. It made one appreciate the pressure these players are under well after the final whistle.
"Zac had just finished giving 110 per cent in a man-of-the-match performance and he spent 40 minutes out on the field signing autographs.
"All I could hear people saying was 'there's Zac'. Everyone was gravitating towards him. "Brad Thorn had a big crowd around him but Zac had the biggest ... he's the new Dan Carter in terms of being everyone's hero.
"Zac could have been out there for another 20 minutes had a security guard not taken him away.
"Some players fake that after-match stuff but Zac was his honest, giving self ... the Crusaders fans and players have embraced him and Zac has impressed the Crusaders and is part of their family."
Mr Franklin, who coached Guildford in national title-winning Napier Boys' High School under-15 teams and Hurricanes competition-winning Hawke's Bay age group teams, described Guildford's performance as "his best of the season - 9/10".
 "His kicking game really impressed me. That area of his game wasn't that strong in the past."