All Blacks fullback Damian McKenzie has played a straight bat to reports of interest from UK Premiership club Leicester Tigers post-2018.
The 22-year-old livewire is off contract at the end of 2018 and may be heading to England, having been overlooked for the Lions Test series.
When questioned on a proposed move, the fullback said his immediate focus was on Saturday night’s Super Rugby semi-final clash against the Crusaders in Christchurch, but he didn’t rule anything out, somewhat avoiding the question.
“It’s just about playing consistent footy and controlling what you can control, which is your performance in the weekend,” McKenzie said.
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The Chiefs were encouraged by their last clash with the New Zealand Conference winners in May, when they lost 31-24.
“That was a tight game and now it’s the play-offs, which is one match at a time, and obviously they’ve been the benchmark,” the two-Test McKenzie said.
“This game will be another step up.
“We need to do the simple things right by exploiting the opportunities they present to us, so we just need to adapt to their line speed.”