Highlanders unfazed by the great distance they've travelled to get to Ellis Park

28 July 2016 - 20:44 By Chumani Bambani

The close to 47,000 kilometers of travelling by the Highlanders over the past week have not affected morale in the New Zealand side ahead of their Super Rugby semifinal clash against the Lions this weekend.The Super Rugby defending champions have had an arduous period of travel in their build up to the penultimate week of action in the competition.Last week the side travelled to Australia‚ where they faced the Brumbies in the quarterfinal‚ and then returned home to Dunedin. They then took a flight to Johannesburg where they will face the in-form Lions at Ellis Park on Saturday.Covering such a lengthy distance would take its toll on most teams in a similar position‚ but the Kiwis seem unflustered.“I think we travel pretty well as a team‚” a confident Highlanders captain Ben Smith said on Thursday.“Our trainers are always good at finding new ways to ensure that we recover very well.”All that is on the team’s mind is taking to the field at 3pm on Saturday.The visitors have adjusted well to the Highveld after what they deem to have been a good week of preparation for the semi.“The team has really been excited about the week ahead‚ against a good Lions team that has had a great season‚” said Smith.“We are looking forward to the challenge this weekend.”The Lions' influential captain will miss the game after he tweaked a calf muscle last week‚ but the Highlanders do not see his absence as an advantage.“For the Lions he is a big loss. He is their leader and he leads by example. He has played some outstanding footie over the last two to three years‚ so for them he is a massive loss‚” said Highlanders assistant coach Tony Brown.“For us‚ they’ll just throw in someone else. They have outstanding loose-forwards. Whoever they put in will do just as good a job. But for us it’s neither here nor there when it comes to [his absence] being a weakness or strength.”The Highlanders team for the clash is:Ben Smith‚ Waisake Naholo‚ Matt Faddes‚ Malakai Fekitoa‚ Patrick Osborne‚ Lima Sopoaga‚ Aaron Smith‚ Luke Whitelock‚ James Lentjes‚ Elliot Dixon‚ Tom Franklin‚ Alex Ainley‚ Josh Hohneck‚ Ash Dixon‚ Daniel Lienert-Brown. Replacements: Greg Pleasants-Tate‚Aki Seiuli‚ Ross Geldenhuys‚ Joe Wheeler‚ Liam Squire‚ Dan Pryor‚ Te Aihe Toma‚ Marty Banks...

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