Luke de Villiers/LDV Photography/Stuff
Heiden Bedwell-Curtis will start in the unfamiliar position of lock when Taranaki host Counties Manukau in the opening round of the NPC.
Veteran forward Heiden Bedwell-Curtis is looking forward to passing his experience on to younger Taranaki players this year.
The 32-year-old will play for Taranaki in the National Provincial Championship having returned from Japanese club Mitsubishi Dynaboars, where he spent five years.
While he hoped to continue with the club, his contract was not renewed, so he returned to his home province where he got to pull on the Inglewood club jersey just once before he tore his groin.
“I haven’t played a lot of rugby over the last couple of years,” he said.
“It will be nice to get some minutes under the belt.”
The former Hurricanes and Crusaders loose forward featured in Taranaki’s pre-season campaign, and he scored a runaway try against Wellington at Manaia on Saturday.
For Taranaki’s opening NPC match against Counties Manukau at Yarrow Stadium on Friday night, Bedwell-Curtis has been selected in the unfamiliar position of lock.
It will be his first game for Taranaki since 2019, a season when he notched up seven of his nine games for the province.
He had earlier got a heads-up from coach Neil Barnes about the prospect of playing lock and that was confirmed when Scott Jury was ruled out for the season because of a pectoral muscle injury.
Phil Walter/Getty Images
Josh Lord remains with the All Blacks in Dunedin ahead of the second Bledisloe Cup test.
It’s a position that has given Barnes some headaches trying to fill with the unknown availability of All Black Josh Lord and the knee injury to former Canterbury second rower Fiti Sa.
That left only Bedwell-Curtis and Jesse Parete to pack down in the second row against Counties Manukau.
While Bedwell-Curtis had covered lock previously in his career, he had never started in the position.
“The front row said I have to change my footwear and get bigger sprigs,” he said.
Returning to the Taranaki squad after several years away had been a strange feeling for him, mainly because he was now one of the older players.
“The group and dynamic have changed a lot,” he said, pointing out that only former Ireland international Michael Bent (37) was older.
He still knew a lot of players in the squad but had not played alongside the majority.
“It’s been great for me to come in, share my experience, try and help those young guys come through and give back to the team,” he said.
The rest of the Taranaki side looks promising with the backline near full strength, despite the absence of Daniel Rona through injury.
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Stephen Perofeta will start at fullback for Taranaki against Counties Manukau.
Jayson Potroz had been preferred at first-five eighth, with Stephen Perofeta at fullback.
Pita Gus Sowakula was unavailable as he had not yetfinished the annual leave he was granted following the New Zealand XV tour of Japan.
Kick-off at Yarrow Stadium was scheduled for 7.35pm.
Taranaki: Stephen Perofeta, Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens, Meihana Grindlay, Teihorangi Walden, Kini Naholo, Jayson Potroz, Logan Crowley, Kaylum Boshier, Tom Florence, Hemopo Cunningham, Heiden Bedwell-Curtis, Jesse Parete, Michael Bent, Bradley Slater, Jared Proffit. Reserves, Ricky Riccitelli, Kyle Stewart, Reuben O’Neill, Millennium Sanerivi, Michael Loft, Adam Lennox, Matty McKenzie, Vereniki Tikoisolomne.
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