KEY POINTS:
No prizes for guessing where much of the blame will be foisted if the Blues Super 14 season goes belly-up in the same manner as its member unions' Air NZ Cup aspirations.
Chances are the man, or men, wearing it in the neck will be the one with
a big No 10 on his back.
Tasesa Lavea, a man not unfamiliar with the slings and arrows, looms as the most likely owner of that particular guernsey with another favourite whipping boy, Jimmy Gopperth, as his back-up.
But there's an even more intriguing name in the Blues squad who could find himself handed the chalice should Lavea and Gopperth prove everybody's fears right _ Michael Hobbs.
The Wellingtonian is the only player Pat Lam and Shane Howarth have taken from the draft and he has a decent pedigree.
The son of former All Black flanker and current New Zealand Rugby Union chairman Jock Hobbs, Michael was a star on the New Zealand Secondary Schools and Under-19 teams. Hobbs, who last month celebrated his 21st birthday, could just as easily have been suiting up for the Queensland Reds.
After leaving Wellington College he went to the University of Queensland in Brisbane and was part of the 2007 Queensland Academy side as first five-eighths first five-eighth. He returned to Wellington this year in an attempt to crack their Air NZ Cup squad and generally made the most of his chances, usually at second-five, though he got his first start at No 10 against Manawatu.
Hobbs will be expected to cover 10 and 12 and gave an indication as to how he saw that adjustment when speaking before that Manawatu match.
"Ten and 12 are pretty similar positions these days so for me, it's just organising the forwards around the field," he said.
At present Hobbs is organising himself around the United States on a holiday and returns next week before joining the Blues.
Undoubtedly Lam sees Hobbs as cover for Lavea and Gopperth, with Isaia Toeava another capable of playing first-five if needed. It is more evidence that the Auckland region, and New Zealand in general, is thin on the ground in the playmaker stakes.
Howarth and Lam have more faith in Lavea than the average man in the stand. Howarth was quick to point out they had won a national championship with Lavea at the helm. He believed the former Melbourne Storm prospect was unfairly maligned.
In fairness to Lavea, he operates more effectively than most in a flat backline and therefore creates more headaches for defences than guys who might look better but in fact are just sitting comfortably in the pocket. Lavea also has a languid style that looks wonderful when it's working but can easily be mistaken for lackadaisical when it comes unstuck.
Gopperth, like Lavea, finds himself a target. There was a feeling he did not do enough to maximise the talent in the Hurricanes backline when he was pivot there and his first season with North Harbour was always going to be difficult, given the situation at that labouring union.
With Daniel Carter chasing euros in Perpignan _ somehow given the misnomer of `sabbatical' _ the Super 14 stage is set for somebody to stake a claim as his heir apparent.
PLAYMAKERS UNDER PRESSURE
BLUES
Tasesa Lavea: Mercurial talent who drifts out of form as easily as he drifts through defences.
Jimmy Gopperth: Journeyman talent from the capital who has not capitalised on early promise.
Michael Hobbs: Son of Jock has obvious organisational qualities but is unproven at this level.
CHIEFS
Stephen Donald: Proven performer started in Hong Kong last night; solid rather than spectacular.
Mike Delany: Bay of Plenty stalwart drafted by the Highlanders last year
who enjoyed a good Air New Zealand Cup.
HURRICANES
Piri Weepu: One of the more valuable players in New Zealand rugby but probably wasted at No 10.
Willie Ripia: Not a top-drawer playmaker yet but showed flashes of brilliance for Taranaki.
Dan Kirkpatrick: Promising youngster who Wellington envisage driving them around the paddock for years.
CRUSADERS
Stephen Brett: Awesome talent but injury-ravaged; off-season surgery should help dodgy shanks.
Colin Slade: The rest of the country might struggle but Canterbury have little problem churning out promising first-fives.
HIGHLANDERS
Daniel Bowden: Has impressed but is still largely unproven at this level.
Matt Berquist: Chicken and egg question: do Hawke's Bay make Berquist look good, or the other way around?
