Anderson-Heather to lead side

Sam Anderson-Heather
Sam Anderson-Heather
He may have some big holes to fill, but Otago coach Cory Brown is happy with his squad for the Mitre 10 Cup.

Indeed, key forwards Tom Franklin and Paul Grant, as well an injured Liam Coltman, were never going to be easy to replace.

However, a strong mixture of youth and experience is evident in this year's side, something Brown liked.

The team will be captained by experienced hooker Sam Anderson-Heather, who acted as a stand-in captain last season.

It had been planned for him to co-captain the side alongside 2016 skipper Liam Coltman, before an ankle injury ruled Coltman out of the campaign.

''Sam's an awesome leader and really well respected by his peers and all of his coaches and captained the team last year,'' Brown said.

''I was actually hoping for Liam [Coltman] and Sam to be co-captains, but with Liam being ruled out of the Mitre 10 Cup, Sam's just taken over the captaincy.

''But it's well-deserved. He's a top man and one of our most experienced players.''

Coltman was not the only injury concern.

Fullback Michael Collins was nursing a stress fracture in his lower leg and would miss the first half of the season.

Brown said the side would look to newcomers Vilimoni Koroi, Jona Nareki and Josh Ioane to cover fullback in his absence.

He later mentioned Matt Faddes as a fullback option, as well as Sio Tomkinson, who has played both in the midfield and on the wing.

Meanwhile, it was hoped first five-eighth Hayden Parker would be back in the mix towards the middle to end of September.

The 26-year-old has been recovering from a knee operation for the past five months and was back into training.

With plenty of experience at a high level, Parker would be a valuable addition to the team.

''He's looking really strong. He's really confident in it [the knee] and in his straight-line running the last few weeks,'' Brown said.

''So now he's starting to get into some diagonal and sideways movement, so it's not too far off.''

Lock Franklin and No 8 Grant were arguably the team's two biggest departures from last year.

Brown said the No 8 position was open for Sione Teu and Pat Sio to fight for, with Dillon Hunt also an option.

He acknowledged it was a shame to lose Franklin, although hoped Italian international Josh Furno would bolster the set-piece.

Hunt had impressed at openside flanker for the Highlanders this year, as had James Lentjes.

However, Hunt had the ability to play all three loose forward positions and the two would likely play together.

The team's front row has a settled look, although the loss of Coltman is a major blow.

In the locks, youngster Josh Dickson and Blair Tweed return, while Furno and local basketball convert Tom Rowe join the team.

In the backs, Josh Renton and Jono Ruru return at halfback, while Fletcher Smith and Ioane are the first five-eighths, with Parker likely to join them.

The midfield has a stable look to it, while there is plenty of pace in the outside backs.

The team went into camp yesterday and would remain so until Friday night, before preparing for its first game against North Harbour on August 17.

 

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