Beauden Barrett is all confidence and it shows. Photo / Getty Images
Direction was the difference in a pivotal game for the Hurricanes and Blues on Friday night.
The Blues appeared to lack a clear strategy whereas the Hurricanes seemed to benefit from having things explained well and drilled into them. That's where it would help having someone like captain Conrad Smith
on hand. It doesn't matter who the coach is, if the players aren't performing, you're not going to succeed.
The Hurricanes gave the impression they've started to believe in their own ability. Conversely, when things didn't go right for the Blues, their heads flicked around quickly as if to say: "What are we going to do now?" Despite a number of excellent players, there's limited collective or individual leadership. On their day they should beat the Hurricanes but the hosts took more responsibility.
A lot of it comes down to confidence, particularly at first-five. Look at Beauden Barrett, he's all confidence. Compare that to the Blues where you don't know who's going to be in the 10 jersey. It's paper-scissors-rock week to week. That doesn't breed confidence. I'm sorry, but while front-rowers are important, first-five is the link between everyone, whether it's your local club side or international. If he's hopeless or has no confidence, you're struggling. He's your link between forwards and backs, and, more often than not, he's your goalkicker. So, if his general play is rubbish and his goal-kicking isn't much better then everyone looks at him. A confident first-five means a lot to a team.
