IF there is one thing the Queensland Reds did not need, it is Sonny Bill Williams coming to Brisbane all fired up by the thought his designs on the All Blacks No 12 jersey could be thwarted by, of all people, Dan Carter.
New Zealand coach Steve Hansen, in answering fans' questions on a video released by the NZRU, admitted that five-eighth remains Carter's best position but did not rule out the possibility of the All Blacks playmaker switching to inside centre this year, especially if his ongoing groin problem
restricts his kicking.
If he is not able to fill the goalkicking role in next month's three-Test series against Ireland, Chiefs goalkicker Aaron Cruden almost certainly would slot in at five-eighth, forcing Carter to move out one position.
None of that would represent good news for Williams, who has been mounting an impressive case to play 12 for the All Blacks.
That position was filled in the World Cup final by Ma'a Nonu but he has been caught up in the Blues' seven-match losing streak and it is not inconceivable he could miss out on the All Blacks' 22-man Test squad entirely.
Williams admitted this week he was trying to trim some of the flashier elements from his game and to stick more closely to the team structures.
"I've been trying to simplify it a bit more, not try and do a special play every time I touch the ball," he told the NZ media.
"I think that's probably where I've improved this year."
Of all the teams that Williams has come up against, the Reds have dealt with him more effectively than just about any other. Right from the moment Ben Lucas cut Williams's legs out from under him the first time the All Blacks juggernaut touched the ball for the Crusaders at Suncorp Stadium last year, the Reds refused to allow him to dictate terms.
The other secret of Queensland's success was that it flooded the tackle area so that when Williams threw the offload, as invariably he did last season, it more often worked to the advantage of the Reds, not the Crusaders.
Certainly the Reds intend treating him as no more than one of many Chiefs threats.
"There was a big deal made about Sonny when we played the Crusaders last year but all you have to do is tackle low and make sure you do your best to stop the offload and I guess you nullify that threat," Reds general Will Genia said. Indeed, Genia rates Cruden who, like Williams, has made a successful inter-provincial switch to the Chiefs this season, as the greater danger.
"He's their playmaker. He's the one that controls the game and pulls the strings," Genia said.
"We just have to make sure we watch him and do our homework on him.
"He's obviously taken a lot of confidence from the World Cup last year and now he's playing exceptionally well. He's got the luxury of having guys like Sonny Bill and (Richard) Kahui and (Lelia) Masaga outside him, which would make any team's job a lot easier. That's not to take any credit away from him."
The Reds, who need to start a six-match winning streak at Suncorp Stadium on Sunday against the Chiefs if they are to make certain of qualifying for the Super Rugby finals, will not have forgotten how Cruden derailed their seven-match winning streak last May.
Playing then for the Hurricanes, Cruden ignored some vigorous sledging from the Queenslanders to land a pressure penalty goal right on full-time to earn his side a 28-26 win over the eventual champions and then celebrated by rushing up to Reds captain James Horwill and tousling his hair
