Super Rugby Pacific preview: Time for buoyant Blues to match Crusaders consistency stuff.co.nz - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from stuff.co.nz Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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The Blues will have to find a new captain and lock with Patrick Tuipulotu heading for a sabbatical in 2022. Hore said the club supported Tuipulotu’s plan to play in Japan. “It will be a tremendous experience for him. We recognise that the recompense to play overseas is significant and a key opportunity for Patrick and his family,” he said. “As we did with Beauden [Barrett] this year, we will plan for it, fill the gap as best we can, and look forward to his return in 2023 for a further three years. “Patrick is a cornerstone of our playing group and I am sure the boys will want to do the job for him while he is away.”
“Being a leader of this team, you just want to stay in the moment, stay present, and I think for me my mindset has just been to get the boys ready for this week and I haven’t really thought too far ahead. “But probably after this week or next I will start to think about that stuff.”
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A costly defeat against the Brumbies last weekend is likely to deny the Hurricanes a place in the Trans-Tasman final. The fourth-place Hurricanes look set to miss out on a place in the Trans-Tasman final, needing to beat the Reds and for other results to fall their way, after suffering a costly 12-10 defeat to the Brumbies in Canberra last weekend.