With one week to go until the start of the season, Highlanders coach Jamie Joseph is hoping for a some good news on the injury front.
Without five of his All Blacks for last night's game against the Blues, though one - Andrew Hore - was suspended, he will be hoping for some reinforcements by next Friday night when the Chiefs come to town for his side's opening game of the Super 15 season.
The injury toll mounted last night with young flanker Hugh Blake popping an AC joint, lock Josh Bekhuis rolling an ankle and loose forward Joe Wheeler damaging a knee.
With the likes of Brad Thorn, Ben Smith and Colin Slade all missing last night's game because of injury, Joseph will want to get his key men fit and on the park next week.
"We did not rest them on purpose. We rested them because they were injured . . . That I suppose is why you have a squad of 30 players," Joseph said.
The Highlanders were slow to start last night and Joseph struggled to put a finger on why.
"For the first 40-50 minutes I think they taught us a lesson at the breakdown and in the forwards. It is only going to get harder.
"It is hard to say why it happened like that. In saying that, you do not normally prepare for a game by spending a week in Wanaka and then drive over a hill and play a game. But that is the nature of the pre-season.
"Next week we've got our stadium. We'll be sleeping in our own beds. So you would hope to think we'll be better"
He said some players had put their hands up for selection after their performances, especially in the second half.
Blues coach John Kirwan was happy with the match and the way his side responded in the second half, especially as the men from the north struggled for ball.
It was a great pre-season hit-out. It was tough and exactly what we needed, he said.
I thought we did some really good things right across the whole 80 minutes. The boys really toughed it out in the second half and we got no injuries.
''Once we got behind we started to tough it out and sort things out on the run, which is not always easy to do.
