KEY POINTS:
There have been two Conrad Smiths in Marseille in the past week.
The first cut a shattered figure late last week after failing a fitness test on his left leg, which had again succumbed to an old nemesis, the hamstring.
For a time things looked grim. Smith has
been here before. This has been a wretched year and just when he felt he was due a bit of luck he felt his hamstring twinge again.
"It happened on Thursday and I didn't think it was too bad," the 26-year-old Wellington centre said yesterday.
"But I had a fitness test on Friday and didn't come through too well. That was when I got worried."
But medical voices gave him confidence. Physio Peter Gallagher and doctor Deb Robinson were optimistic it was not a major problem.
"I probably didn't share their confidence but a couple of days later they were proved right."
Smith had to make the call to withdraw from the opening Pool C game against Italy in Marseille's Stade Velodrome last Saturday.
Counting yourself out of a game is a difficult proposition. That was no different in Smith's case.
The medical staff advised caution. It was not an easy call but there was the knowledge that he wouldn't be doing himself any favours, and certainly wouldn't be helping the team if he played and things went wrong. Smith has had to face bad news all year.
Early in the Super 14 he broke an eye socket, which took him out of action for several weeks.
Then upon returning from South Africa his leg was causing problems. Eventually it was diagnosed as having several strains in the hamstring.
He did not return until making a three-minute reappearance for the All Blacks in Christchurch during the Tri-Nations on the back of a warmup run with Wellington ahead of the Air New Zealand Cup.
Now he's in Marseille on the cusp of fulfilling his World Cup dream when things go pear-shaped again. But a few days rest and repair work have him confident he will run out against Portugal in Lyon tomorrow night. So step forward the second Smith, the one feeling far happier about life yesterday than a few days ago. "Although it was the hammy, I knew it was not what I'd had in the past. It feels really good, the strength is all there, now I've got to give it a whirl," he said. "There's no reason to be worried, I'll just let the excitement of the occasion take over." Smith was asked whether he'd have preferred to be returning against one of the stronger teams. Right now, it wouldn't matter if he was playing Upper Hutt reserve B as long as he's got a black jersey.
In Smith's case, the calibre of his opponents does not really matter. His issue is with his body and it's ability to hold together, not a concern about what Portugal might throw at him.
Smith has played nine tests since his tryscoring debut against Italy in Rome in 2004. It's a meagre return for a class player, but injury has invariably been lurking nearby. Yet Smith remains admirably upbeat about what lies ahead.
"It's been a tough year, but there's always opportunities round the corner - and there's really big ones round this corner.
"So you just have to keep looking forward. It's worked for me in the past. I'll just keep sticking to that."
