Aisle Be Back: Hurricanes v Highlanders (pre-match)

Let's call this one the Curious Case of Beauden Barrett, as we contemplate the pivot game of the season this Friday against the Highlanders

Now this isn't an exercise in bagging the guy. He's done some typically good things this season, especially if you remember that he's no longer got the best midfield in world rugby sitting outside him.

He's still got lethal pace, an eye for the chance, and that great knack most times of making things happen.

But let's face it, it feels like his goal-kicking issues are now a real concern. Sure, he can have good nights, and bad nights. Even Don Clarke had those (days).  Beaudy's best goal-kicking days seem somewhere way back last season or earlier, before that serious injury last year which clearly was a battle to recover from.

When your first choice kicker is knocking over to date, 52 per cent of penalty kicks, then you're looking at a few consequences.

Firstly, it feels like the team is deciding to not take all the points potentially on offer, instead trusting to field position to then score through tries. Works at times, and we've scored plenty of tries this year.

But we're now in virtual finals footy territory. Tries will dry up usually.

Secondly, we're not turning the screw on the scoreboard. Look at how much harder it isfor the opposition when they're chasing the game. But the Canes don't feel like they're able to suffocate when they do get on a roll, It's a bit death or glory. And how much of a downer is it for the team to see kickable goals going astray.

Now we've all heard the narrative that Beaudy wants to show he can boss all aspects of the big show at test level, that he wants to be the best. Great, but for whatever reason, he's not doing that this year and there's no time to turn that around.

No All Black side could risk a kicker knocking over only half their kicks. Conversely, no All Black side would want to leave out Beaudy's supreme talents as the last 20-minute closer, either.  It's not the end of the world to be scoring the clinching try in a world cup final, I imagine.

So let's just posit what probably won't happen. Give the goal-kicking to James Marshall, who seems a fair bet to be fulllbacking from here. He can't do any worse, and maybe quite a bit better. And let Beaudy just run that backline like we know he can.

But supposedly, according to a newspaper report a couple of weeks ago, the three potential kickers - Woodward the third - sort of toss it around as to who should be kicking. Human nature being what it is, everyone agrees it should be Beaudy.

I'm not sure I buy that one. I just hope we're not now stubbornly set on a course because that's what we've done to date.

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So where do the Highlanders sit in this argument. They're one place above us on the table. 
Well, their first-five Lima Sopoaga is kicking at 80 per cent for penalties. Admittedly that's half the time happening under the glasshouse of his home stadium, rather than amid the gentle zephyrs of the Cake Tin.

Just over 42 per cent of Highlanders points come from penalties or conversions. The comparable number for the Canes is just over 30 per cent.

If you look at the epic Landers win against the Brumbies (in the open air) Sopoaga just kept taking the wind out of their sails with penalties. It's an important weapon.

So come Friday night, which is a game the Canes both have to, and can win, you get the feeling that either the goal-kicking has to come right - and hey, wouldn't that be great - or we're
going to be rolling the dice with scoring tries.

That's setting aside the battle up front, and the respective defences.

It's going to be a terrific derby of what after all are last year's finalists, and worthy of a big, big crowd.  Fingers crossed the weather forecast holds, and let's get the Cane train back on the tracks.

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One last word on Beaudy. A normally very good rugby writer recently suggested he could only reach the heights by moving to the Blues next season.

Whatever the problem, there is one certainty in life.

The Blues are not the solution.

Kev has followed the Hurricanes since they began. He has a season pass. Every year he predicts the Canes will win Super Rugby. He refuses to be called a long-suffering fan.