North Harbour will have a stack to work on over the coming week after their 43-0 pummelling at the hands of Wellington, and one of those areas will be the passing and penetration of the backline.
It is true that they fell off tackles, conceded turnovers, and were beaten upat the breakdown by the likes of Ardie Savea, but they have scored just one try in two games and are desperate for an injection of spark from what is, at least on paper, a useful backline.
Assistant coach Alex O'Dowd, who runs the backs, emphasised the turnovers and some porous defence, rather than the passing, as the principal areas of concern.
"It's just getting the timing right with the pass, everyone's running onto the ball and moving forward. I think we moved the ball to space quite well, on the outsides, that's where we wanted to attack them. If those passes stick and we're stronger in contact, the game will open up for us," said O'Dowd.
Too often, though, in their desire to get the ball to wings Tevita Li and Nafi Tuitavake, the passing was slovenly and laboured. There was not enough change of angle. Michael Little is a fine distributor and busy player in the midfield, but North Harbour needed some direct running, as Shaun Treeby provides for Wellington and the Highlanders, and Ma'a Nonu for the All Blacks, to get them over the tackle line. The injured Pita Ahki normally brings that, and O'Dowd was hopeful he would be fit for the trip to Southland on Sunday week. "The endeavour was there, they just have to execute better," said O'Dowd.
First five Daniel Halangahu said Wellington are expert at converting turnover opportunities.
"Our structures were pretty good and we created a lot of space, but we never took that space. They (Wellington) just manned up in the middle of the pack and gave us a touch-up there, a lot of turnovers. We gave a dangerous team like Wellington too much ball," he said, after his 52 minute stint before replaced by Matt McGahan.
Halangahu says the team is also acutely aware that they have switched off in the crucial periods just before and just after halftime. In general, though, they need more urgency to match some solid work at the set-piece, where the likes of loose forward Chris Vui is pulling down good lineout ball.
