Romano not on an All Black crusade
It may be a World Cup year, but Luke Romano is not about to 'dishonour' the Crusaders jersey by putting his own personal ambitions first.
Speaking to rugby365 during the Crusaders' pre-season preparations, the 28-year-old said World Cup aspirations will not be the driving force when the seven-time champions' Super Rugby campaign gets underway on February 13.
Having made his Test debut only in 2012, against Ireland in Hamilton, the consummate lock has made 17 Test appearances and is a very good bet for a spot in the All Black team that will defend their World Cup crown later this year.
Having overcome a freak injury he suffered in May last year – which required a metal plate and nine screws – the second rower earned his 17th Test cap as a replacement against Scotland on the year-end tour.
That appearance – which came on the back of special clearance from the New Zealand Rugby Union to allow him to go as an additional member of the All Black tour squad in November – shows just how highly he is rated by All Black coach Steve Hansen.
However, Romano was quick to dismiss talk of World Cup selection and deflected the attention back to the Crusaders.
"Obviously there will be a lot of talk about it being a World Cup year, but we are playing for the Crusaders and the whole All Black thing is at the back of the mind,"he told rugby365.
"We must do the best we can for this team and make this team successful.
"As an individual, if you are doing your bit for the team then the whole All Black thing will take care of itself.
"If you look too far ahead, this team here will suffer the consequences.
"That is something all these players and all the All Blacks within the Crusaders don't want to happen – we always put the Crusaders first, ahead of personal goals."
The powerful second row forward, who is qualified as a builder, said the Crusaders' pre-season focus has been on the rugby content – running through their "structures and patterns".
"The goals would be to execute our structures and patterns well,"he said, adding: "For a lot of the players it is about getting some quality footy under the belt to ensure that come February 13 we hit the ground running."
The Crusaders, who play the Rebels in the tournament's opening match on February 13, lost their first pre-season hit-out (26-29) to the Highlanders in Timaru last Saturday.
They take on the Hurricanes in Eketahuna – a small rural service town, the most southerly in the Tararua District in the Manawatu-Wanganui region of New Zealand's North Island.
While last week's loss does not sit comfortably with the Crusaders, they certainly have other goals that they are focused on.
"You always want to win," Romano said, adding: "In saying that, in previous years we've won all three pre-season games an then lost the first two competition games.
"Maybe now we get the losing out the way in the pre-season.
"I definitely think it is about laying a good platform and cementing our structures and patterns.
"We need to make sure that those [structures] work and if there's any tinkering to be done we do that in the pre-season. Then, when we get to the competition, everything must be fine-tuned and we are ready to go."
By Jan de Koning
@King365ed
@rugby365com
