Harry Plummer: Blues player on Highlanders match tonight, lessons from last weeks loss, players to watch

The Blues will take on the Highlanders tonight in the second week of Super Rugby, after loosing by 11 points to the Chiefs last week.

Blues player Harry Plumer told D'Arcy Waldegrave the team welcomes the challenge. 

"The base of this competition is that you have to take your learnings and move forward pretty quickly because the next opponents just as tough." 

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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 SEDB.

Speaker 2 (00:11):
Let's get very close to Harry Plumber pivot for the Blues.
The Blues are up and racing versus the Highlanders and
Harry joins us. Now, good morning, Harry. Hey, how are
you do? I'm pretty well? What about yourself? I reckon
Vern would have thrashed you all this week after what
happened last week at Eden Park? What a cut deep?

Speaker 3 (00:35):
Yeah, yeah, probably warranted as you can imagine. But yeah, listen,
we've we've we've done, you know a lot of prep
for this week and it's another challenge.

Speaker 4 (00:44):
And I suppose the beast of this competition.

Speaker 3 (00:46):
Is that you have to take your learnings and move
forward pretty quickly because the next opponent's you know, just
as tough. So we took some really good learnings from
the Chiefs where we know we weren't good enough, and
looking to try and apply that to a really you know,
really powerful Hildingdess team.

Speaker 2 (01:00):
You spent the whole time on the park directing traffic.
Where do you think you could do better? Media? Being negative?
But what are your lessons around that?

Speaker 4 (01:10):
Yeah?

Speaker 3 (01:10):
I suppose it's it's a balance of control. I guess,
you know, it felt like we're patches where we lost
momentum against the Chiefs and you know, whether that was
through collisions or poor decision making, that's probably whereas as pivots,
we need to step off a bit better and you know,
tactically potentially you know, kick a bit better and direct
traffic a little bit better. So, like I said, we've

(01:31):
had a really good Prick week this week leading into
you know, Hidland, this team that put out a really
good performance and quite frankly, we're unlucky against the war Tars.

Speaker 2 (01:39):
Yeah they got burnt, didn't they right at the end,
which is not unusual. That was the story of Round
one of Super Rugby. You just cannot relax even well
into injury time, just to ask mona Pussyfiker.

Speaker 3 (01:50):
Yeah, I suppose it's credit to the competition really that
you know, we know that this competition is getting stronger
and stronger each year, and Round one was was paid
homage to that, you know, So like I said earlier,
it's you know, it's definitely you.

Speaker 4 (02:04):
Know, you've got to move on pretty quickly again.

Speaker 3 (02:06):
A game and take your opponents as they come, and
there's no easy games, and you know we're really looking
forward to, you know, being being down south and trying
to get a job done in Highland the country.

Speaker 2 (02:17):
You've been all looking forward to the roof as well,
like I was there on Saturday night until you win.
That thunder and that dark cloud of it over got
it a bit interesting for the pivot handling wise, did
didn't see that coming?

Speaker 3 (02:30):
Yeah, yeah, I suppose a little bit slipper, you're not
really expecting that, and you know started the super comp
with February Rugby. But I mean, as we say, you've
got to adapt to conditions and that's just where we've
got to be better.

Speaker 4 (02:40):
So yeah, I suppose moving forward.

Speaker 3 (02:44):
Obviously we're under the roof tonight, but you know, moving forward,
you just take it as it comes and trying adapt
as best possible.

Speaker 2 (02:50):
And as far as the positives tell me about that
because we leaned on the bad stuff. But you can't
come out of eighty minutes and think there was nothing
to be gained out of that. I mean, your first
half was a bit of a messy old half from
a fan point of view, but you went in you
established to lead, so you look at that what worked
for you guys, Harry.

Speaker 3 (03:09):
Yeah, I suppose we're a dangerous team. We know we're
a dangerous team when things click, and.

Speaker 4 (03:15):
You know, I suppose a J.

Speaker 3 (03:16):
Lamb's tribe laid in the piece of the first half
was credit to that. And we feel like we can
beck our defense and you know, try and spark things
from from turnover ball and I mean, you're right last
week we created a few things, but but just think
capitalize on that. And rugby is all about momentum and
trying to you know, build on that momentum and score
points when you're when you're in control.

Speaker 4 (03:37):
And hold on when you're not. So yeah, we need
to be better in that sense moving forward.

Speaker 3 (03:42):
But you know, there are some positives that we took
out of it, but definitely a lot to work on
that we have put into this week.

Speaker 2 (03:48):
Got on Insta after that Aj try I said, the
storm is coming and his name is Aj because that's
just when the cloud started getting really thick and the
atmosphere then I was stuck amongst a hold of the
Blues fans plainly was lifted. It's like, okay, we can
do this in the second half. So when you went
into the shed. What are the messages because the Chiefs
looked like they just dropped a whole lot of experience

(04:10):
and tough guys right at the front. And what were
you expecting?

Speaker 3 (04:14):
Yeah, I suppose we knew that they were going to
play the exact Sam style and we just we had
a few things that we need to fix up. We
were giving away a lot of penalties, which was hurting
us and giving them chances.

Speaker 4 (04:23):
And you know, I.

Speaker 3 (04:24):
Suppose far the two penalties we were able to hold
out in that first half to keep them scoreless try wise,
I mean, but you know, they just kept applying pressure
with our ill discipline and errors and allowed them to
get into the game. And when you got someone like
like d Mate running the cut of there, you know,
it's hard to hold a team out like that when
they're always on the front foot. So we've looked at that,

(04:46):
you know, pretty deeply this week and taking a hard
look in the mirror in terms of their disciplined side
of things. And we can't be giving teams, and no
more so than the Highlanders.

Speaker 2 (04:56):
You'd expect that that sideline security at forceythe will be
a little better. I don't think i've seen so many
streakers in my life with Oh, a couple didn't even
take the so it was a bit of a lame effort.

Speaker 4 (05:08):
Yeah, probably more heard stories.

Speaker 3 (05:10):
I only saw one of them, but but yeah, I
guess the Eden Park staff had had their work cut
out for them.

Speaker 4 (05:17):
And I don't know. It's it's the zoos, so you
never know what's going to go on. But I mean
one thing that we did take out of it was
that it was called atmosphere.

Speaker 3 (05:26):
Is awesome to be back playing Super Rugby and see
crowds be to convolved. So obviously not ideal and not
not not encouraging anyoneund the street, but it was awesome
to see the fans getting involved with you know, the
festivities a Super Rugby being back.

Speaker 2 (05:38):
Yeah, and finally, Harry Plumber, when you look toward the
Highlanders and you're very very close, they've got weapons all
over this show. What is there a premium point of concern?
You'll be focused on yourself plainly, but when you look
at the Highlanders, is there anyone that has a light
above them? Going watch that guy, guy like Calm Tangato
for example, Well.

Speaker 3 (05:57):
I think the whole team is full of it and
their game against the Warrita showed that they scored tri
from everywhere, and yes, you know, Caleb's obviously had a
really good debut and scored some awesome tries, but there was,
you know, off the beck of some really good work
from the rest of their team as well, and their
floors were very physical and you know, some of their
becks are pretty dynamic, as we know with Toniellu and

(06:18):
Jim Tavitavanawai. So yeah, it's it's you know, it's like
you said, us, it's definitely more about us tonight and
trying to, you know, rectify some of the things.

Speaker 4 (06:30):
That we want to get better.

Speaker 3 (06:31):
But we know that there are a team full of
threats that will play the whole eighty eighty five minutes.

Speaker 2 (06:35):
Highlander is hosting the Blues tonight, five minutes after Seeve
and Take and listen on Gold Sports. It's going to
be a forsyth Bart Harry Plummer looking forward to you
guys rectifying the wrongs that in your mind came up.
I suppose the Highlanders will be rectifying the same wrongs
from last week and two beaten teams. It should be
a fire cracker, mate, You enjoy it.

Speaker 4 (06:55):
Cheers Darcy appreciate It.

Speaker 1 (06:57):
For more from the Your Sport Breakfast with Darcy Watergrave,
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