KEY POINTS:
Daniel Braid's first experience of Super 14 rugby for the year took him four days to get over.
But the flanker says being able to last all 80 minutes of the Blues' 17-14 win over the Stormers last weekend had done his confidence a world of good.
His
right shoulder, on which he underwent surgery in the off-season, had given him no problems.
What Braid did find himself suffering from was a lack of match fitness.
Last season's New Zealand player of the year had expected to be given 50 to 60 minutes to ease him back into action after a long rehabilitation.
But when No 8 Nick Williams had to go off midway through the second half with the shoulder niggle, it meant Braid had to stay put.
"I was saying, `I've got nothing left in the tank'," he recalled.
"The doctor asked me if I could keep on going so I just had to guts it out. I was sore for four days afterwards."
The flipside was that his shoulder survived the amount of contact it got during the match without giving cause for concern.
And with a full match under his belt, he was confident he could go another 80 minutes if needed against struggling defending champions the Bulls in Auckland tomorrow night.
The Bulls are languishing in 11th spot with just two wins from six matches and their prospects of a second successive title are looking bleak.
However, they welcome back speedster Bryan Habana from injury and have included fellow-Springbok Pierre Spies at No 8 after eight months out recovering from a lung problem.
Braid said the Bulls had probably not adapted as well to the experimental laws as other teams, but the Blues had to make sure they didn't concede too many penalties.
Under the old rules, where a greater number of infringements attracted penalties rather than free kicks, the Bulls could kick for touch and drive from the possession they got from their own throw into the lineout.
Or they could accumulate points through long range goals from the boot of first five-eighth Derick Hougaard.
"That's all changed and I think that's where they're struggling," Braid said.
"The things for us to watch out for are giving away too many penalties and they get those lineout drives close to the line where they're very hard to stop and their kicks go into areas for their opportunist wingers."
The Blues, who are sitting third on the table, will have Nick Evans back at first five-eighth after his late withdrawal against the Stormers because he was still recovering from a head knock.
Coach David Nucifora said fellow All Black Isaia Toeava had done a reasonable job standing in for Evans, but the backline was a lot stronger with the pair restored to their usual positions.
He described Toeava as a first-class centre who added a lot in midfield with his speed and ability to break tackles.
He said what the Blues missed with Evans sidelined was greater direction around the park, something that happened when a regular No 10 was absent.
Nucifora expected Evans' return to give more understanding and sharpness to the Blues' attack.
- NZPA
