It is easy to imagine Malcolm Marx staring down the haka — stoic, steely-eyed, a piercing gaze, his stubbled jaw set with intent as he stands shoulder-to-shoulder with his Springbok teammates, respectful but entirely unfazed as they accept the gauntlet thrown down by the All Blacks.
Hooker Marx has played against the All Blacks on 17 occasions, and on Saturday is set to play another titanic encounter against the visitors when the first Test of Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry kicks off at Ellis Park (kick-off 5pm).
“Obviously, you respect it firstly,” Marx said of the haka, on Tuesday, from the Boks’ base in Johannesburg, “but also think about what's going to happen after that, you know?
“There's going to be a kick-off either way, and you think about your first job at hand after the haka is done. I look at one specific player, and I think you can probably guess who it is. But after that, I'm focusing on the next job that I've got.”
World Rugby’s Player of the Year, Marx is expected to form part of a pack that must subdue a confident and improved New Zealand forwards unit. Over the course of three tour matches against the Stormers, Sharks and Bulls during this tour, the All Blacks’ first eight have only improved, and many see it as their biggest area of growth under new coach Dave Rennie thus far.
The All Blacks mentor has selected Samisoni Taukei’aho, Asafo Aumua and Bradley Slater in the No 2 jumper, but it is arguably the familiar figure of Codie Taylor, who played recently against the Bulls, who will be handed the starting berth this weekend. The 35-year-old was the preferred hooker, after all, on Rennie’s team sheet in recent matches against Italy and Ireland.
Said Marx: “I've obviously played against (Taylor) for a good number of years now when he played for the Crusaders and the All Blacks.
“I've got the utmost respect for him. He's a great, great rugby player and I like the way that he plays the game. He's extremely physical and good at set-piece. We have a bit of a laugh and a beer after the game, but we obviously both know on the day, we've both got a job to do.”
“All are explosive players,” Marx continued, now considering the likes of Taukei’aho, who is likely to play off the bench, Aumua and Slater.
“They are good with the ball in hand, good on defence, and obviously great at set-piece. So, I think it's going to be a great challenge for our hookers on the weekend. All three of them are extremely good, and obviously, if given the shot, I'm looking forward to the opportunity to play against them.”
Beyond his set-piece duties, Marx’s defining trait remains his ability to dominate the contact area. His skill at contesting and jackalling possession have repeatedly killed opposition momentum, and it will be a crucial weapon this weekend.
Sticking to the subterfuge that has thus far been presented by both teams in the build-up to the four-match Test series, Marx was mum on revealing his trade secrets come ruck time, but did indicate that the Boks have been concentrating on that area of play.
“We're working really hard at it,” Marx said. “We're obviously doing a lot of analysis and seeing where we can be better from previous games, and obviously seeing the threats that they bring in that aspect of the game.
“Obviously, we are bearing in mind the small things that they do around the breakdown, while looking where there's opportunity for us as well. But, yeah, we've worked really hard this past week and last week,” the 32-year-old concluded.