Super 14 Team Talk.

By TOBY ROBSON - The Dominion Post
17/03/2010

OPINION: Dominion Post rugby writer Toby Robson's weekly Super 14 rundown.

CRUSADERS
In the news: Andy Ellis wins a gold medal at the Ellerslie International Flower Show and coach Todd Blackadder speaks of the "love" within the squad. All this a week after the Crusaders trained with the Royal New Zealand Ballet. Ellis, whose winning design, The Last Laugh, was a statement about the impact humans are having on the environment and its natural resources, is "injured" this week. But Teamtalk believes he is working on a new arrangement for player-of-the-day bouquets.

Physio's table: Andy Ellis concussion (day by day), Brad Thorn (sternum), should be OK.

The good: The Kieran Read-Richie McCaw double act and the Crusaders coaching staff. Why is it the Crusaders have cottoned on to the fact that opensides should be playing blindside, but other teams haven't. Second to the ball is more effective than first right now.

The bad: Crusaders v Lions. The Johannesburg team are borderline fit to play in the Super 14 and, if anyone's keen, Teamtalk's got a lazy fiver that a century will be posted in Christchurch this weekend. Unfortunately we aren't talking about the Black Caps.

For the other NZ teams : http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/opinion/3461285/Super-14-TeamTalk