Green jerseys
Just to put it out there, green jerseys still are not a good idea. Not only does it seem so un-Highlanders like to see them wearing them, they seem to lose nearly every time they wear them. You cannot deny that they have been a common denominator in some of the not-so-good performances of recent times. Bring back the maroon one, or the white one at least.
Breakdown problems
An area where the Highlanders are inconsistent. While some weeks there seems to be an urgency to get there and provide good ball, others they are quite simply a mess.
This was the major source of their problems in this game, as they were too slow, too inaccurate and not committing enough players. Too many times they were pushed off their own ball from not having enough players protecting it. Nine times the Highlanders took the ball into a ruck and did not get it back. That means nine of their possessions ended without the team really being able to fire an attacking shot. You are not going to win games by not securing your own ball like this.
The other issue was players going off their feet, or taking too long to roll away. Inevitably, these are just going to end up as penalties to the opposition. When you are already on the back foot you are more than likely going to end up on the wrong end of the penalty count anyway, so giving up penalties like this was fairly dumb.
In the end, it deprived the Highlanders of possession and meant they had precious few chances to unleash in the second half. This was the most significant reason for the loss.
Lack of creativity and punch in backs
This team has a handful of attacking threats: Ben Smith, Malakai Fekitoa and Patrick Osborne are all capable of cutting any team to bits. Not that you would have known it from this performance.
Smith looked threatening every time he touched the ball, but this was mainly only on the counter, while Fekitoa and Osborne hardly saw the ball, although Fekitoa was good when he did get it. And further to the point, how many times do you remember Richard Buckman seeing ball, period?
The Highlanders have to look to get these players involved. In this game they were under-utilised and the back line consequently did not look threatening. When they did get the ball it was either on the counter or not in space, which the team needs to create for them.
A lot of the time this came from errors before they were able to get it wide, further emphasising the point surrounding the breakdown.
Faded after first 20 minutes
The Highlanders actually did look pretty good for the first 20 minutes. Ben Smith was coming into the line, they tried a couple of set-moves and they were getting the better of the ball. The result was that they were the better of the two teams for this time. Other than a lucky try, the Blues did not really fire a shot, whereas the Highlanders threatened the line and managed to accumulate three penalty goals to give themselves a 9-7 lead.
Unfortunately this form disappeared and they lost the rest of the game 23-3. The forwards started to get pushed off the ball, the backs consequently were seeing less ball and the team seemed to be tackling for most of the time.
It has been a theme of this season, for the Highlanders to fall off as the game goes on. This time they fell off far earlier though and really should have managed more than three points in the second half.
Eden Park
You have to ask why it is that Dunedin-based teams struggle so much at Eden Park. While for many of the past 40 years Auckland have had very strong teams, there have been other instances where Otago or the Highlanders seem to find a way to lose.
There was the all-conquering 1998 Otago team, who were smashed by an average Auckland side the week after beating a handy Counties-Manukau team by 20 points and the week before consecutive 80 point games against Northland and Wellington. Then there was the 2004 match, where they managed to lose after leading by eight points heading into the last two minutes. And there have been others, but these two illustrate the extremity of the situation.
When you watch an Otago or Highlanders team at Eden Park there is that familiar feeling that the team is not going to perform. They lack spark and almost find a way to lose at times.
This week was a classic example. The Blues did not even play that well. Other than a lucky try, they did not look great in the first half and their second half dominance was more a result of the lack of intensity from the Highlanders.
The question is, why? It cannot just be a coincidence. Is it the environment? Or the stadium itself or the build-up to the game? You can understand the losses when Auckland and the Blues were strong, and even the odd away loss when they are not. But consistently losing like this is something that really needs to addressed.