1
New Highlanders pre-season winning over young players
By Ned Lester
New Highlanders coach Clarke Dermody is implementing his own take on the Super Rugby Pacific preseason, his tactics have received glowing reviews from one of the team's youngsters as a number of promising talents begin their professional rugby journey in the unfamiliar deep south.
Dermody assumes the head coach role at a time of rebuilding for the Highlanders club, bringing in seven rookies for the 2023 campaign as the team builds around future stars like Falou Fakatava, Ethan de Groot, Marino Mikaele-Tu'u and Thomas Umaga-Jensen.
Aaron Smith's veteran presence will help steer the ship for 2023, but the All Blacks' all-time most-capped back has hinted that the 2023 Rugby World Cup campaign will be his last outing in a black jersey, which often coincides with players of his calibre taking up a higher paying contract overseas.
Nikora Broughton is one of the rookies getting his first taste of life as a Super Rugby player. Earlier in the week, he and the team were in the pool for a stress and pressure training session with Dave Wood. During the session, the players were put through a number of exercises underwater, Wood said the purpose was to better the players' understanding of stress and pressure.
"When you're under the water," Wood explained. "The stress and the pressure comes in really fast and it's what you do with that stress and that pressure in that moment, in that dynamic situation that they can then take and apply to the field.
"All that we're trying to get them to do, is to get them to be able to do more with less, so to be able to prolong what we call the easy phase of the breath hold, and that's all about their ability to shift into a calm state in dynamic situations."
Having learnt how to better deal with the agitation of the body's fear response, the team headed for Te Anau, specifically Burwood Station, where they tried their hand at sheep shearing.
“All that stuff is new to me," Broughton told Stuff. "I’m definitely out of my comfort zone giving stuff like that a crack but I’m a southern man now.
“I even got to go hunting the other night. I shot my first deer, which was bloody amazing.”
The unorthodox training methods were dreamt up with the goal of bringing the team together and promoting trust within the relationships being built in the team. Staff were also included in the activities.
Coming off a strong season with Bay of Plenty in the NPC, the 21-year-old Broughton was lapping up the experience of being in the Super Rugby environment.
“It’s definitely a step up,” Broughton said of Highlanders training. “It's definitely harder.
“But it's been good getting around the boys and learning all this new stuff and new trainings and pushing my body. It’s been bloody awesome.”
Trending on RugbyPass
2
Leinster player ratings vs Sharks | 2024/25 URC
3
Fissler Confidential: Leicester Tigers set sights on Orlando Bailey
4
Wales given hands off message on rising star Kane James
5
Latest Comments
I live in an unstable region, so I'm always ready for surprise curfews or my aunt dropping by uninvited to borrow some cooking oil. To protect my future from both, I swept $530,000 under the floor in Bitcoin- my emergency parachute.Well, things went downhill. Protesters filled the streets like a rowdy rave, with pepper spray in place of glow sticks. In the chaos, security personnel took my laptop and everything that wasn't bolted down. That's where I store the keys to my Bitcoin wallet. When I say I swallowed a brick, I am not kidding.I pictured myself telling my future self, who lived under a tarp, how I used to have half a million dollars but lost it since I had forgotten to encrypt my drive. "Great job, Past Me," I would be saying while heating canned beans over a candle.But fate, or possibly my guardian angel who was finally done laughing at me, intervened. During a hushed meeting with a journalist friend (we whispered like we were plotting an espionage thriller), he mentioned Tech Cyber Force Recovery. These folks were not just tech geniuses; they practically wore digital capes.I phoned, and the reassuring voice I received was so reassuring, I almost asked them to fix my love life too. They labored in their homes with the frenzy of an explosives specialist defusing a bomb. They constructed my wallet information from recovery fragments I barely remember creating. It was like magic shows where magicians extract bills from a hat, except the hat has been confiscated by the authorities.Thirteen days passed, and I received the call. My money had been returned. I was so relieved that I hugged my aunt, who naturally took the chance to request additional cooking oil.Tech Cyber Force Recovery did not just save my Bitcoin; they saved my future. And they gave me a newfound respect for proper backups and encryption. If you are in a tricky spot or just want to avoid awkward family requests during every political crisis, call them. They are the real deal and possibly part wizard, part therapist.CALL OR WHATSAPP THEM THOUGH+.1.5.6.1.7.2.6.3.6.9.7
Go to commentsI am a business woman living in the diaspora, and my desire for affection and care mirrored that of anyone else. My search for love commenced with me signing up for an online dating app, where I encountered an Asian man. Following a period of communication, he introduced me to what she described as a popular investment platform in Asia, I trusted him so much that I failed to carry out an investigation. According to him, substantial profits were being earned there, and her presentation was so compelling that it piqued my curiosity. Unbeknownst to me, I was being catfished. he provided evidence of his earnings and even sent me a watch as a token of her affection. Consequently, he gained my trust and affection, which marked the beginning of my financial losses in Bitcoin. I had complete faith in him and invested over a million US dollars. Upon recognizing the extent of my investment in this fraudulent scheme, I attempted to withdraw my profits from the investment program, as I had utilized my business capital. My requests were disregarded, and they continually requested additional funds. Frustration mounted, and my supposed partner became hostile after I ceased sending money. Seeking assistance, I discovered RUDER CYBER TECH SLEUTHS. They assessed my circumstances and confirmed my worst fear: I had become a victim of a pig-butchering romance scam. I was disheartened, as I genuinely believed I had found love again following a difficult divorce. Fortunately, RUDER CYBER TECH SLEUTHS specializes in recovering Bitcoin sent to fraudulent or scam wallets. After collaborating with RUDER CYBER TECH SLEUTHS, they successfully recovered my scammed Bitcoin. They are my permanent solution for cybersecurity. I strongly endorse RUDER CYBER TECH SLEUTHS for crypto tracing and recovery. If you find yourself in a similar situation or involved in a suspicious investment platform, contact RUDER CYBER TECH SLEUTHS
Go to comments