Bradley Slater: Blues hooker on their loss to the Crusaders, tonight's clash against the Hurricanes

Last week saw the Blues fall flat in their battle with the Crusaders at One NZ Stadium. 

The home team claimed a comfortable victory, 36-20, with the Blues’ performance falling short. 

But there’s no time to rest, as tonight they take on the high-flying, table-topping Hurricanes – a must-win match if they want a chance at a top two finish. 

Blues hooker Bradley Slater joined D’Arcy to preview the clash. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the All Sport Breakfast podcast with Darcy
Waldgrave from News Talk s'b.

Speaker 2 (00:11):
The Blues Ruined producer Corbyn the Grasshopper Boyds weekend. Last
weekend they went to the one New Zealand Stadium, so
did Corbyn and they got smashed by the Crusaders thirty
six twenty. However, they've got to turn around and get
it done again. The high flying at table topping Hurricanes
visit Eden Park tonight. I must when match if they

(00:32):
want to chance at the top two finish. Bradley Slater
hooker the rake for the team he joins us now
Modena Bradley Hurricanes are coming and they're ripe for the picking, right.

Speaker 3 (00:46):
Yeah, the last three rounds of Super Rugby I'm pretty
much going to determine the determine the top of the table.
So every game is important for every team. I think
the way that the table situated at the moment. So
a very important game for us this weekend and one
that we're looking forward to.

Speaker 2 (01:07):
Hey, they realed to be rolled though from what you've
seen in them. Is this a hurricane steam that you
think is app for for a beating tonight at home?

Speaker 3 (01:16):
Well, I've got to give credit with credits Stews. They
are They're a bloody good side and they have been
a year. They're gonna be pretty hard to to to
come up against. But yeah, we've had a pretty good
week of training and we've got a few key focus
series that we're going to try and go at them,
and yeah, hopefully we can do a job.

Speaker 2 (01:35):
I love it when you players help me out with
my question. So what are you key focus here in
is Bradley?

Speaker 3 (01:42):
I think the game this year, well it always as
one in one of the breakdown. So yeah, we're looking.
We're we're looking for looking to go back go at
them with our with our car and clean. It's probably
something that we haven't been totally great at the last
few weeks. It's an year that we've been working on

(02:02):
a lot of training and so we're going to really
try and things and get back to the basics and
trying to them. Well, what did you pick up.

Speaker 2 (02:10):
Out of last week's lost to the kids down south?
Is there good stuff out of that even though you
did get beaten.

Speaker 3 (02:19):
Yeah, I mean it was a pretty disappointing, prett disappointing
game for us, to be honest, especially where we were
at halftime. I felt like we were scramming a lot
of the first half, and then to get to two
tries late in the first half and go up ahead
was like, we're in a pretty good spot. And then
we came out and they just blew us off the
part really late in the second half. So we've had

(02:42):
a lot of honest conversations around around that game, and yeah,
they probably just beat us up at the breakdown, got
some turnovers. The carry and clean is really good. We've
got some real good go forward on us, and then
their cps late in the game, they're the malls. They've
got some good meters and some penny advantages off those.
So yeah, we've got a tidy up a few years

(03:04):
there to be competitive as we Well, you.

Speaker 2 (03:06):
Said almost conversations. Do you spend the rest of the
time lying to each other or something?

Speaker 1 (03:11):
Do you?

Speaker 2 (03:13):
No?

Speaker 3 (03:13):
No, I think it's just yeah, just yeah, really digging
deep into the areas of why we're not going as
well as what we are, spending a bit of time
there and getting on the same page. I guess.

Speaker 2 (03:27):
Is it tough to do that and then to talk
about it the fact that you haven't been playing the
way you should. You've got to look to yourself and go, right,
what can I do? What can I help? But being
confrontational of that space and standing up that's I presume
quite important for the team and for you.

Speaker 3 (03:46):
Yeah, yeah, it's not. Yeah, when you're not playing the
way that you want to be, it's tough, and especially
when you get a result that we do on the weekend,
and it's pretty hard to watch back on the it's
pretty hard to watch back on the video, you know,
when you're when you're reviewing the game, and then obviously
we have to go through to reviews as a team,
and when we get shown showing clips of things that

(04:07):
we've been focusing on and pride ourselves on for the
year of us not doing them, well, you know, it
does it hurt. So yeah, I mean we'll just keep
keep working on those things at training and hopefully we
get a shift this weekend on the pedics.

Speaker 2 (04:20):
One aspect of your game you would like to improve in,
just one where would be the primary focus.

Speaker 3 (04:26):
Probably just probably just our carry clean, just our clean out,
the breakdown, just being a bit more brutal there. I
think we've been we haven't been getting as much go
forward as what we would like, so keeping it simple
there and just really focusing on getting some go forward
back for for our best playoff.

Speaker 2 (04:45):
You got me there. I thought you were going to
say my core roles because that's normally the answer you get.
That's your primary focus, right.

Speaker 3 (04:54):
Well, that's that's just a given, I think, you know,
especially for you know all myself as a set piece
and I've got to be really good there every week.
So yeah, that obviously the given, and then the other
stuff comes after that.

Speaker 2 (05:06):
I guess you're a very considered character, Bradley Slater. I
really enjoyed talking to you, and I've got to say,
for a man in the front row at the start
of this conversation, you're far too polite.

Speaker 3 (05:18):
Come on, mate, That's how I was raised. There you go.

Speaker 2 (05:23):
I cannot and I will not argue with that. Wishing
you the best for this evening. It's going to be
a huge game. The Hurricanes are visiting Eden Park. Get
in there and give it what for Bradley and thanks
for your time.

Speaker 3 (05:35):
Thank you very much.

Speaker 1 (05:36):
Appreciate you having me on For more from the All
Sport Breakfast with Darcy Watergrave, listen live to news Talk
said be on Saturday mornings, or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.