Mealamu to do job for the 100th time
Wed, 17 Mar 2010 11:42
Champagne on ice: Blues and All Black hooker Keven Mealamu
As milestones go, Keven Mealamu's 100th game for the Blues rates right up there with the best. However, the veteran All Black is not popping the champagne corks just yet.
The trans-Tasman Super 14 showdown with the Brumbies at Eden Park on Friday will see the veteran All Black hooker extend his Blues record for most games into three figures - with Doug Howlett (now with Munster in Ireland, on 97 games) and Carlos Spencer (now with the South African-based Lions, 96 games) having previously held the mark for the Auckland outfit.
However, Mealamu is focussing on helping the three-time champion Blues secure a crucial win over their Australian rivals and will only think about celebrations once the game is over on Friday.
"It hasn't sunk in yet, but it would be nice to celebrate after we've got the job done," he told NZPA.
"We've got a big task in front of us and making sure we do that well is very important."
Mealamu's Super Rugby debut came against the Brumbies 10 years ago and his total number of appearances stands at 110, the balance coming from a season he spent with the Chiefs in 2002.
His favourite memory from all those matches comes as little surprise - the Blues' 21-17 win over the Crusaders in the 2003 Final.
"That's my only championship," he told NZPA.
"It stands out because it was at Eden Park as well, in front of our home crowd. It was a special moment for me."
The upcoming Blues-Brumbies clash comes on the eve of Mealamu's 31st birthday. He was born in Tokoroa on 20 March 1979.
It will also be the first Super 14 fixture of the season at Eden Park, where the capacity has been reduced to 17,500 because of redevelopment work ahead of the 2011 World Cup.
The Blues, who are coming off their bye, head into the contest back in 10th spot on the points table with a 2-2 win-loss record.
The Brumbies are fifth, with four wins and a solitary loss to the competition leaders and defending champions the Bulls.
One of the feature match-ups will be in the front row, where the Blues' all-All Black combination of Tony Woodcock, Mealamu and John Afoa will be up against the Brumbies' all-Wallaby trio of Ben Alexander, Stephen Moore and Salesi Ma'afu.
"Definitely there'll be a bit of banter up the front there," Mealamu said.
"That's the awesome thing about this competition. You're playing against quality opposition all the time."
Mealamu said the Blues wouldn't be lacking motivation after having had the week off.
"It's hard having to sit back and watch everyone get points the board," he said.
"The boys are definitely excited. I know they'll be up for it."
He said a key lesson from their last-up 33-20 defeat to the Crusaders was the need to eradicate mistakes.
"It's about making sure we can nail our game and we can limit the errors."
The season so far had shown that the difference between the good teams and the others was the number of errors made, he said.
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