Marty Bourke: Canterbury rugby coach discusses semi-final against Hawke's Bay Magpies

Canterbury rugby coach Marty Bourke is taking it one game at a time as his team face Hawkes Bay in the second of the semi finals of the NPC in Christchurch on Saturday night.

Bourke who has announce this will be his last season in charge of the Red and Blacks spoke with Lesley about his teams recovery following an extra time win last weekend and the fact it has been a short turnaround and what to expect from Hawkes Bay as he looks to extend his time here by another week.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Oh big semi final time for our Canterbury NPC. They
are up against Hawks Bay and it's been a pretty
phenomenal season in terms of the way that the Canterbury
team has played, and no more so than that quarter
final last weekend against County's Manucar and what a game
Marty Burke, head coach. Was there anything left in the

(00:20):
tanks after that game? Playing extra time?

Speaker 2 (00:24):
Well you probably don't want it that way as a coach,
but it was awesome for the guys that they could
go that deep and get the result and the way
they did it was something we were really proud of.
But the boys have bounced back really good this week,
really revitalized and refreshed and raring to go.

Speaker 1 (00:42):
And so how much work do you give them given
that you've got the semi final match to play. I mean,
do you just go normally as hard or do you
relent a bit?

Speaker 2 (00:52):
It's probably trying to get a balance right between the two.
So we semi finals. The finals for is a little
bit different in regards to being physically ready the back
end of the season, so ensuring the group is fresh
enough but also well equipped. I know what's coming for
us that meant to having a pretty light we're on
a short week this week or sharp week this week,
having a light day one and then ramping it up

(01:15):
through the back end of the week.

Speaker 1 (01:17):
And when you think about that first period of extra
time that you went into, it was fifteen all. Then
that was probably the best minutes of the game for Canterbury.

Speaker 2 (01:26):
It was it was the plan at the start of
the game where we meant to start that way. So
it's good to see they actually got it right in
the end part. That was the plan how we intended
to start for the first twenty minutes of the game.
So yeah, the beautyless team is they don't really make
the same mistake twice. So once you sort of highlight
to them, they go back and now they're us.

Speaker 1 (01:44):
Tough game. I mean, didn't Counties play well.

Speaker 2 (01:46):
We knew they were going to. We knew that they
played with a lot of passion and heart and it's
not very often you get to put on a you know,
have a one sided quarterfinal, but when you're not going
to come and play and stay in and hang it
into the piece. If they had their nose in the game,
they would just be the whole game, which they did
and testamentary on and his group and they're well led. Yeah,

(02:10):
we were lucky to get out on top of that one.

Speaker 1 (02:11):
Well testament to your group as well that they hung
in there every game ever since the Rensley Shield has
been involved in players. It's ragged. It's tough, you know,
the collisions, the number of tackles your teams had to make,
it's phenomenal.

Speaker 2 (02:24):
Yeah, that's probe another thing that they were providing themselves
on actually around their collision readiness and the deep Q
they show around wearing the red and black Jusey. That's
one of those things that was synonymous with the teams
the past was the ability to find a way to
win and imback their skill sets, which they did really well.
But we are defending a lot playing smart sometimes and

(02:48):
we just we can get the balance to their game right,
hopefully we can make things a little bit easier for ourselves.

Speaker 1 (02:53):
What Hawks Bay, you know what challenge they bring.

Speaker 2 (02:56):
Yeah, they're a good site, they are. We have now
a team that can score for many They've got players
in their group of the performing at the back end
of the season and they can hurt you from anywhere.
Fucker Tarbat's playing pretty awesome, pretty and Devin Flanners at eight. Yeah,
they got a pretty good trio. The real balance side.
They know their game and they seem to when they
get it right, and they're really hard to stop. We

(03:17):
were lucky enough to go to Hawks Bay earlier in
the year and get a result there, but that we
had to grind that one out and this would be
no different.

Speaker 1 (03:23):
Talking about your team. Great to have Sam Dowry and
George boll elevated back into the All Blacks.

Speaker 2 (03:30):
Yeah, yeah, we love seeing how our men go through
and wear the black jersey and having Samuel and Bally
back in there. It's a real testament to their work
through the year. Darry obviously started really well at start
and sort of earned his place to be called in
and Bally sort of worked his way back into it
for both the pretty Awesome stories and along with the
All Black fifteen boys where we celebrated that through the

(03:52):
week around. But the team helps them get there and
they can't do it by themselves all the time. So
having a team around them that's performing and then he
sets them up.

Speaker 1 (04:01):
And of course that the guys that made the New
Zealand fifteen. I mean, it's just great to see people
like Brandon in All back in the It's.

Speaker 2 (04:08):
Awesome for Braids. Even in open individual conversations, he's playing
like in All Black, and he's commanding that. He's doing
that within our group. He's leading the young guys and
teaching the young guys jealous as Aul the same Brods
when Brods has come back, and he's contributing really well.
We've got a lot of young guys in there that
he's growing. And that's the beauty of having these guys

(04:29):
in and around the groups. And these they all are aspirational,
but they're all awesome humans as well.

Speaker 1 (04:34):
I'll tell you who I was really impressed with last
week is when Tourrian Barnes came on and he made
a mess of difference, didn't he.

Speaker 2 (04:42):
Yeah, I love Tori and he's a unique human. That one.
He's he's a powerhouse and he's proven that's one of
his strengths of superpowers. He's carrying his collision area. He's
really physical. I think when I spoke to him, he
is a bit passed off that he dropped the first spat,
so he's trying to make up for it after that.
So now he's just got to their mindset has made
a mistakes, so you can carry like that every time.

Speaker 1 (05:02):
I loved it getting over that advantage line. It was
amazing to see the team is joyful to be together.
They just love being around each other.

Speaker 2 (05:09):
Yeah, they do enjoy it. They probably get all the
all they want to feedback early in the weeks and
at the end of it they're really happy wearing to go,
So you've got a time it right. But they generally
enjoy each other's company. And I think you're going on
any day off or any other time they're in around
hanging out with each other, having dinner with the guys,
So creating that sort of culture. I can't take credit

(05:31):
of that. That's all I meant. I've driven in themselves.
So it's it's a pretty special group to be around.

Speaker 1 (05:36):
Last week it was mister Whippie. I think training on
Thursday it was gone and jammed.

Speaker 2 (05:41):
Yeah, how good that was our lovely nutritionness. Bella made
the scone, so it's good. I think I've enjoyed about
six of them and of mister Whippies, but they've got
the better of me, so I think they only had
one of those, which is great. So these are the
things at the end of the year, I think the
little little connection opportunities you have to celebrate there for
that's gone and everyone to be and play finals foe.

(06:02):
But it's zerflous next few which you have to enjoy.

Speaker 1 (06:06):
Well. I'll tell you what. We wish you all the best.
How it will be thumping again as it was last weekend,
But that's all part of sport, isn't it.

Speaker 2 (06:12):
I heard be a coach who would.

Speaker 1 (06:15):
Marty Burke, thank you so much. Always enjoy the interviews
are great.

Speaker 2 (06:18):
Thank you Jef. For more from News Talks ed B
listen live on air or online, and

Speaker 1 (06:24):
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