By WYNNE GRAY
As a youngster Ron Cribb worried about his recurring sporting dreams.
He would imagine tackling his brother or setting up a try in his rugby league days, playing a backhand passing shot in tennis or blasting round the curve during his time pursuing athletics.
Cribb was concerned enough to seek
the advice of a sports psychologist about the mental images. It was a visit which did the specialist out of some work.
"He said they tried to teach people those sorts of visualisation techniques, to use those methods to prepare them for their sports," Cribb said, "and here I was doing it naturally.
"I thought I must have been doing something strange because none of my mates did the same thing, but he just told me I should never change."
Cribb has not tried to alter his Walter Mitty-style dreams and believes it has kept him on the level in what has been an extraordinary rugby season for the No 8.
"I might be out shopping, for instance, with the guys, or just walking through Wellington before this test, and I will have a flash or two about some things. I go off into my own little world, it gets me relaxed and certainly works for me," he said.
"I am learning so much, and one of the things everyone tries to do is keep calm, composed and not get over-anxious before a game. This technique allows me to do that and then I can really switch on about an hour before a match."
The way this season has gone for Cribb you would expect he would be in a constant fantasyland.
From being a draft Super 12 player with the Crusaders at the start of the year to test No 8 a few months later was a quantum leap for the 24-year-old.
He agrees that he has not had much time to assess his progress. His rugby career has been in a whirl this season.
"I probably won't be able to digest what has happened until the summer and this year is over," he said. "Everything has just gone so quickly.
"Last year I was a reserve in Super 12 and for the New Zealand Maori and now I am about 10 steps forward. I haven't had a chance to sit back and regroup because I am trying to learn as much as I can all the time.
"But it just makes me hungry, because once you are up there you want to keep climbing."
Cribb accepts that at times he has been guilty of trying too much, but says that is all part of his enthusiasm for his professional sporting life.
There have been mistakes, but each time he reviews his errors and works on eliminating them.
He is a rookie rugby player, learning test football on the hoof. His rawness and ability both show through.
Many who have found Zinzan Brooke-like touches about Cribb's play forget that Brooke was inconsistent until late in his 20s and after a huge amount of experience.
The All Black family have embraced Cribb. He has felt very comfortable under the tutelage of coach Wayne Smith and assistant coach Tony Gilbert. It is an environment which has helped his rugby expression.
"They have supported me because I am the sort of guy who takes a little while to get my confidence to play the way I want to," he said. "They have encouraged me all the way."
After the frantic opening Bledisloe Cup and Tri-Nations win against the Wallabies, Cribb sat down and wondered what he had struck. It was nothing like his previous two tests against Scotland.
"As much as we hit [Australia] hard they came back, and that will stick in my mind," he said. "They never lie down and I guess that is why they are a great team. That is what we are trying to be as well."
Meanwhile, tomorrow's test will be played under the existing laws of the game.
The International Rugby Board has granted the Southern Hemisphere Sanzar committee a dispensation to complete the Tri-Nations competition under the current laws.
South African Jonathan Kaplan, who will referee the test, welcomed the IRB's decision, saying it made sense to continue with the laws as half the Tri-Nations had already been played under the former laws.
New Zealander Rob Fisher, who is the IRB deputy chairman, said the new rules would be introduced in New Zealand when the NPC kicks off next week.
The main changes are:
* Scrums and lineouts cannot be set within 5m of the goal-line.
* Kickers take no more one minute to have a shot at goal.
* The 10m circle from a kick will be replaced by a 10m zone across the field.
* Players must bind when entering a ruck or maul.
Some adjustments to the obstruction rules will also be made.
By WYNNE GRAY
As a youngster Ron Cribb worried about his recurring sporting dreams.
He would imagine tackling his brother or setting up a try in his rugby league days, playing a backhand passing shot in tennis or blasting round the curve during his time pursuing athletics.
Cribb was concerned enough to seek
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