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After being a late arrival to the Western Force in 2008, Tamaiti Horua now feels he is a valuable member of the Super 14 team and will start this Saturday at No.8 against the Crusaders desperate to help the Force rebound from a disappointing loss to the Chiefs.
Coming off what he describes as one of the best wins of his career against the Brumbies in Canberra a fortnight ago, Horua and the rest of the Force squad are keen to make amends for the 31-13 loss in Hamilton last week against a Crusaders team they have never beaten.
Horua, who previously earned 37 caps with the Brumbies between 2002-05, joined the Force with the campaign virtually underway in 2008, but still made a contribution in his six appearances.
This year, Horua has already had a variety of roles from starting on the bench or at blindside flanker, and this Saturday in Canterbury he takes over the No.8 jersey.
Horua feels he plays his best football there and is hoping to help fill the void left by the injured Richard Brown.
"I probably play my best rugby at No.8 and it's good to be given the chance to start there. I was at six last game, but I really enjoy my time at eight as I can have a bigger impact on the game. While at six you are out of play a lot organising the defence, at eight you are in amongst it all the time and can get your hands on the ball more and make a lot of tackles," Horua said.
"Browny obviously adds a lot to our group when he's there and was in good form before he got injured. He's a really good No.8 and it will be good when he gets back and can play as well. The good thing with Mitch (coach John Mitchell) is that he knows he can slot me in at either six or eight and I'll give him everything I've got."
Horua isn't sure what led to the poor performance against the Chiefs after the win over the Brumbies, but is confident of a good performance against the defending champion Crusaders, who are yet to record a win in 2009.
"We can't put our finger on what went wrong last week. We were coming off such a high after beating the Brumbies, and to do it at Canberra Stadium made it one of the best wins of my career. But that turned into a real hollow feeling after the Chiefs game and we only have ourselves to blame for that performance," he said.
"We've heard a lot of talking about how desperate they are over here, but we are pretty desperate ourselves. We know they will be tough, though. They've never lost three in a row and the Force has never beaten them, but despite that and their hostile crowd we are confident of doing well."
Now that he's settled in Perth, Horua and his soon-to-be wife are enjoying the lifestyle and he has begun discussions to remain with the Force beyond this season.
"There are a few similarities to Canberra and Perth actually that I've found. When I was with the Brumbies, a lot of guys came down from the Reds or Waratahs to get more opportunities and would sacrifice anything for the team, and it's been similar with the guys that came over to the Force," he said.
"It's a bit different in that Canberra is a one spot town and in Perth nobody really knows a lot about the Force, and rugby's not the No.1 sport though. However, my fiance loves life in Perth with the weather, the beaches and everything about the city, I really enjoying playing and living there and I'm in talks at the moment about sticking around."
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Originally Posted by travelling_gerry
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