Auckland fullback a bit flush with shield fever

By WYNNE GRAY

Much is made of the atmosphere of a Ranfurly Shield challenge.

Some sides choke in the setting, others are spurred by the passionate parochialism which underpins the famous trophy.

Auckland fullback Mils Muliaina does not quite know how he will react and what he will make of today's ambience when Auckland challenge Canterbury.

The 21-year-old has never been to a Ranfurly Shield game.

As a youngster growing up in Southland, that union never had a whiff of the shield and his provincial career has only just started.

But he has packed plenty of big-game experience into his professional career. There have been matches for the national under-19 side, for the New Zealand sevens team in the Hong Kong cauldron, NPC and Super 12 sides and his trip with NZ A to Europe last year.

He's a versatile bloke, too, having played centre for the under-19s, wing for NZ A and fullback for Auckland in place of Japan-based Adrian Cashmore.

Muliaina has contributed solidly from his new position, and a comparison with All Black Leon MacDonald today will be one of the key interests.

Muliaina admitted to nerves in the lead-up to the game.

"I have had butterflies thinking about this match," he said. "It is not normal, but the shield is so prestigious and such a different game.

"It will be very noisy, but I have got more used to that sort of thing. When the hairs go up on the back of your neck, it is exciting."

At fullback, Muliaina has to make a lot more decisions than he did as a wing on the end of the backline.

"It is more challenging because you tend to get a lot more ball and then have to decide what you are going to do with it," he said.

"You are always looking for space or not getting isolated.

"So it is a matter of choosing whether to run and have a go, run and link, or kick."

There may also be a fair bit of catch if Canterbury get the sort of possession which encourages Andrew Mehrtens, Aaron Mauger or MacDonald to kick.

At night that would be much more difficult for Muliaina and his mates, but this day game should help in that department.

The real inquisition will come in the pack, where Auckland have to stand up to the corrosive Canterbury eight, and on defence, where Auckland have been erratic this year.

They have conceded a number of soft tries and missed man-on-man tackles. Against Canterbury, that will be terminal.

The halfbacks will come under close scrutiny, too, after Justin Marshall and Steve Devine felt the public heat this week. Marshall was admonished by the NZRFU after claiming that the All Blacks' end-of-year tour was just a sponsor's arrangement. Devine felt like an outcast in Auckland as talk circulated about the merits of the incoming Byron Kelleher and Mark Robinson.

On form, Canterbury must be favoured, but the impact of playing their third tough challenge in succession must be a factor.

Auckland have attacked the whole week. They are concentrating on the shield not the NPC points, and if they play with that attitude throughout, they might surprise.