All Blacks: Donald not ducking for cover

Stephen Donald is expected to start from the bench against Scotland on Sunday. Photo / Getty Images

After surviving the gloomiest week of his rugby career, Stephen Donald returns to a stadium where he has fond memories of plunging headlong into darkness.

The Grand Slam-opening international against Scotland at Murrayfield two years ago remains one of the highlights of Donald's test career - from the Scottish Rugby Union's eerie post-match entertainment and his contribution to a 32-6 victory that was trickier than it looked.

"I remember the lights going out when we ran out. It was pretty awesome with the old spotlight going round the place," Donald recalled as he contemplated a 21st test cap - and one where the glare of a suspicious rugby public back home will inevitably fall upon him.

The Waikato and Chiefs pivot realises the scrutiny of his performance - however long it may last on Sunday (NZT) - will be intense as he strives to atone for the disastrous 20-minute Bledisloe Cup cameo in Hong Kong, a catalyst for the Wallabies record-breaking comeback.

The 26-year-old finally revisited the nadir of his career as Daniel Carter's understudy, and in a certain sense of symmetry his explanation was issued in a city where tours tracing ghosts and ghouls are a popular tourist attraction in the old town.

Donald, predictably, never looked totally at ease today as he visualised that final quarter at Hong Kong Stadium, flawed moments forever etched in his subconscious thanks to James O'Connor's converted try after the siren signalled a 26-24 triumph for Australia.

The missed short-range penalty from a handy enough angle, the skewed clearance with 90 seconds to play - they occurred on October 30 but for Donald's critics it still seems like yesterday.

Donald put on a brave face for his detractors, insisting his conscience was clear last Tuesday, when the team returned to training for the first time in London ahead of last weekend's 26-16 defeat of England at Twickenham.

Donald sat on the bench throughout as Carter ran the All Blacks plays and booted 16 crucial points; his penance for Hong Kong is expected to be made against the Scots, possibly as a reserve.

Braced for an inevitable line of inquiry Donald made no attempt to mask his deficiencies against the Wallabies.

"Obviously we've reviewed it and there's a couple of decisions I'd love to have again.

"I've learned from it, parked and moved on.

"It was pretty much done by Tuesday last week and I started looking forward to England. Obviously I didn't get on but I've moved on and ready for my next crack."

A post-mortem with assistant coach Wayne Smith did not need to be extensive as the pair appraised Donald's performance.

"We talked about what I could have done differently and the decisions I made. There were a couple of decisions I'd have made differently as far where I'd have put a couple of kicks - that was probably the guts of it."

Donald said the support of teammates and Smith's public endorsement in London alleviated his despair and he doubted the setback would affect his performance against an improving Scotland side.

"It's certainly not easy to recover, it's a loss in the All Blacks jersey," he said.

"You just can't afford to get that down that it affects your next performance."

Donald has had off nights at provincial and Super 14 level though clearly the repercussions were more serious in the fourth Bledisloe.

"There's always games where you come off and you think 'I'd loved to have done things a little bit differently' - the consequences are probably greater when you're playing for this team," he said.

Once the floodlights were reactivated at Murrayfield two years ago, Donald enjoyed a successful evening highlighted by a precise cross grabbed by Anthony Tuitavake to initiate the only try of the North Harbour wing's six-test career.

"It was an extremely quick game, I remember Scotland throwing a lot at us," said Donald, glossing over the try he orchestrated.

"They were unlucky they didn't get more points. They played a lot of footy that day."

- NZPA