KEY POINTS:
It will be an ominous sign for the Brumbies tonight if the Crusaders and Wallaby-coach-in-waiting Robbie Deans is unruffled about the beginning of the Super 14.
It is unlikely, given the new shape of the competition, but if Deans is far more relaxed than he was at the
start of the week that shows he believes his side is on track to fire in the series start in Christchurch.
"You become calmer as you are able to tick off all the boxes about preparation," he says. "You are never totally sure you have got things sorted but you want to be able to say you have dealt with all the things you can influence."
Deans has been a massive influence in Super rugby, with sides under his tutelage winning four titles in eight campaigns while he also managed the franchise when they won two other titles.
The question is whether he can organise a victorious fairytale exit before crossing the Tasman to begin work as the Wallaby coach. While those sorts of ideas are swirling around about Deans' Last Crusade, he is low-key, for now, about that possibility.
"It is no different from any other campaign. Year by year I enjoy them more though I am conscious it will be my last campaign and that makes it unique and special.
"But each year on entry, you are not quite sure what the series will be remembered for."
The 42-year-old gives the impression he is unflappable. Spotting him with more than a wry grin or a shake of the head in the coach's box is a rarity, while he is rarely provoked into vocal outbursts about some perceived injustice.
He is in control but Deans says the flames inside him burn as fiercely as anyone who cares about rugby.
"I do feel anxiety but real stress is only present when you can't control things that you need to," he says.
If you had suggested to Deans 15 years ago that he would be a flourishing professional rugby coach he would have offered a quizzical look.
That was not really on his radar.
"It was a maybe, I wandered into it really and the deeper I got the more fulfilling I found it.
"I do not, though, look at myself as a successful coach because that is a day-to- day thing in this industry."
Enough of the self-effacement, it is time to move on.
But you can't move away from Deans who is at the hub of everything in Crusaderland.
He has some special talent available like Daniel Carter, Richie McCaw, Ali Williams and grafters like Reuben Thorne, the returned Brad Thorn, Ross Filipo, Greg Somerville, Mose Tuiali'i, Leon MacDonald and Corey Flynn to call on. Then there is the youthful passion of Kieran Read, Stephen Brett and Wyatt Crockett.
It is a balanced squad but one Deans accepts has its pressure points.
His job, though, is to cover those, to divert attention elsewhere, to play to his strengths.
"In many ways this competition is so even that enthusiasm and passion help you through games. How you look on paper is often irrelevant," he says. The Crusaders have been thoroughly conditioned, they have raised their fitness levels even further to cope with the aerobic demands which are expected to flow from the new laws.
"I guess the interest will be how the laws manifest themselves," Deans says. "They should allow teams to play to their strengths and then it will be a battle to see which team's profile prevails and that is the unknown."
More than ever the Super 14 would be like a game of chess with the greatest challenges in the contact areas and with the backlines set 5m behind any scrums. Refereeing interpretations would also be a crucial component.
Coaching the Crusaders meant Deans demanding certain fundamentals in techniques, core habits and attitudes from his players, principles which catered for about 80 per cent of each game.
"Then the critical part is the remaining 20 per cent where you are looking for the points of difference, where you are looking to get the edge, where your strategies come in."
Where once he may have been slightly autocratic, Deans has embraced a variety of coaching theories from a range of sporting codes. He is inquiring and often reads the thoughts of other coaches who have put their ideas and experiences down on paper.
"The one-dimensional approach does not work, It is all about finding solutions and I am not the owner of them all. I am open to suggestions and challenges."
So where does Deans get his inspiration from?
His richest source was the players. They were always looking for ways to improve their games, to "use" the laws, to outwit the opposition, to cope with the challenges of a tough competition.
