Don’t write us off says Foster

Fullback Sitiveni Sivivatu will form a Pacific Islands back three with wings Sosene Anesi and Sailosi Tagicakibau. Picture / Paul Escourt

Time is fast running out for the Chiefs if they want to repeat last year's semifinal effort. They sit bottom of the table going into tonight's match against the third-placed Hurricanes in Wellington. They have seven games left, and history suggests they will need to win at least five of them to make the semis.

It's a tough call and in racing parlance it requires a big rails run.

The Chiefs have had a week off to lick their wounds and do some hard thinking after the dispiriting loss to the Reds. Coach Ian Foster has made a clutch of changes, to the pack and out back, where the most interesting move is Sitiveni Sivivatu's inclusion at fullback.

It's his first game back since shoulder surgery late last year and he will form a Pacific Islands back three with wings Sosene Anesi and Sailosi Tagicakibau.

"I'm pretty confident with Siti back there," Foster said. "It's a big ask for him in some ways coming back from a long period off and I'm expecting a bit of rustiness, but he's excited and he's ready for it.

"He's played quite a bit there at schoolboy level, which was only a few years ago for him, so it's not a new experience."

Sivivatu will certainly bring fresh enthusiasm and extra pace to the backline, but the Chiefs pack needs to stand tall and lay the appropriate platform.

Bernie Upton joins captain Jono Gibbes at lock and Aleki Lutui and Michael Collins come into the front row as Foster looks for greater aggression. "We are determined to show a lot more than what we have in the competition. A lot of people are writing us off, and that's fine," Foster added, hinting at a steeling of resolve.

First five-eighths David Hill admitted the players were devastated at their performance against the Reds - "someone said it was as if our shoelaces had been tied together and we couldn't untie them.

"We went from one extreme to the other. We have addressed a couple of issues, done a bit of analysing and it's pretty clear each person hasn't performed as well as they should. So everyone is looking to do a bit more."

Hill will be up against livewire Jimmy Gopperth tonight. His last-gasp drop goal won the game against the Stormers in Palmerston North last Friday, but he's mixed some lovely pieces of play with the odd clanger.

Hurricanes coach Colin Cooper likened Gopperth's rise to that of Ma'a Nonu in 2003 and Piri Weepu last year, plucked from next to nowhere and who made strong impacts.

"Jimmy is probably more in the hot seat that Nonu or Weepu, and he's going to make mistakes. He's got a running game, he's courageous on defence and hungry to learn. We're pretty delighted."

Cooper respects the Chiefs, labelling tonight as "a huge game". "They have been a bit unlucky with injuries and they will be desperate."