I was always going to be No 9, insists Marshall

Apr 5 2008 by Andy Howell, Western Mail

JUSTIN MARSHALL has revealed he was going to wear No 9 for the Ospreys against Saracens in their Heineken Cup shoot-out at Vicarage Road tomorrow – even before Mike Phillips was injured!

The New Zealand great didn’t mince his words as he insisted the plan of action was decided before the Ospreys ran away from Saracens a fortnight ago to win their EDF Cup semi-final 30-3 at the Millennium Stadium.

Phillips fresh from Six Nations Grand Slam heroics with Wales, was at No 9 that day, but suffered a serious knee injury late on which will keep him out for six months after surgery.

“My role was to analyse Saracens from the sidelines. People may think Mike was going to play in the Heineken Cup quarter-final with Saracens, but that was never the case. I was always going to start,” said Marshall.

The 81-times capped All Black insisted the recruitment of Phillips from the Blues in a big-money deal last summer hadn’t had any effect on him.

“Some people have told me that the rivalry has spurred me on, but personally I disagree,” he said, with typical honesty.

The ultra-competitive 34-year-old’s comments were valid because he was one of Ospreys’ best players last season, at times hauling them up by their bootlaces.

Marshall pointed out, “Throughout my career I’ve always had people snapping at my heels so there's been nothing different this season.

“I’ve always had to be aware I needed to be at the top of my game. Mike Phillips’ arrival didn’t send any new warning signals.

“The rivalry with Mike has always had an edge to it, but that’s because of elements within my personality.”

Marshall has more respect for Phillips, right, after the pair’s on-field dispute boiled over into the players’ tunnel after the Ospreys smashed the Blues in last season’s EDF semi-final than he has for his New Zealand No 9 rival Byron Kelleher, now with Toulouse.

“I never had a great relationship with Kelleher within the All Blacks squad. He would really get on my wick,” rapped Marshall.

“He was forever telling me he was going to take my shirt and he deserved to have it. I always felt he should stop talking about it and go out and prove it.”

Saracens captain Neil de Kock – the vibes coming out of Watford suggest they are fired right up for tomorrow’s European quarter-final – is ready to “get it on” with his old adversary.

The classy South African said, of Marshall, “He’s not a bad replacement for Phillips. In fact, he’s a world-class player.

“I’ve faced him many times and, from a personal perspective, you look to get the better of your opposite number.

“He’s a pretty similar player to Phillips, but is often not quite so direct around the fringes. He likes to really control the play and is sometimes like a second fly-half – so he’s one to look out for.

“But you have to focus on what the whole team is doing. We did that against Leeds last weekend and got the result we wanted. We have to look to do the same on Sunday.”

And he revealed, “The buzz around training this week has been fantastic. This is what it is all about as a player; performing in front of sold-out crowds in what is the biggest club cup rugby tournament in the world.

“But it’s been controlled excitement and the coaches have been very good at keeping those feelings in check.

“Yes, you look forward to a big game, but you cannot get carried away with it otherwise you could end up running around in circles on the day.

“We will give it everything. We have to get on the front foot against the Ospreys – that’s what we’ve been talking about all week.

“When we played them two weeks ago, we never attacked them or put them under any pressure at all. But, if you look at the video of that game, we did have opportunities. Our back three all made incisive breaks, but we didn’t follow them up as a team.

“Let’s not forget that it was still 8-3 after 50 minutes and we weren’t playing well. The pattern of that game was us soaking up a lot of pressure before we eventually cracked and saw them take their chances well. If we do the same again, we will get the same results.

“So that has to change on Sunday. That doesn’t mean throwing the ball around from the first minute, it means imposing our game on them, getting better set-piece ball and setting up the platform to attack.”

Ospreys will be without Scotland winger Nikki Walker, a scan revealed a stress fracture of the fibia in his right leg, Johnny Vaughton coming in.

Coach Lyn Jones has also left arguably their player of the season, Filo Tiatia, out of their starting line-up with Jonathan Thomas’ form for Wales earning him selection in the back row.

“Back-to-back matches can be completely different affairs as our own experiences against Ulster in this tournament in December show,” pointed out Jones.

“We recorded a comfortable win here at the Liberty Stadium, but it was a much tighter affair at Ravenhill the following week.

“The message that we’ve been getting across to our players all week is that they must stay focused, keep their confidence in check to avoid any complacency, and forget what has happened in the past, they can only think about the 80 minutes on Sunday afternoon.

“We haven’t needed to say much to the players this week, as they are hugely respectful of the Saracens attacking threats and how good they are as individuals.

“Sunday’s game is sure to be a cracker, with two good sides fully aware of what is at stake – a Heineken Cup semi-final.”