ACT Brumbies fullback Aidan Toua is confident his eye-catching performance against the Western Force can help launch him into his Super Rugby finals debut almost seven years after playing his first game.
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Toua was at his menacing best in the last regular-season game and stepped up in attack to take the pressure off Matt Toomua and Christian Lealiifano.
But the former Queensland Red faces a stiff challenge against one of the best fullbacks in the world – Ben Smith – when the Brumbies play the Otago Highlanders on Friday night.
Injury ruined Toua's involvement in the Reds' title-winning season in 2011, limiting him to just two games.
The 26-year-old has left his injury-riddled days behind, playing every game for the Brumbies this year and cementing his place at fullback.
But he raised the bar against the Force and found a way to inject himself into the contest when the Brumbies were struggling to break the line.
"There's still a lot of improvement there, especially with finals coming up," Toua said.
"[Brumbies coach Stephen Larkham] and I spoke about stepping up when Christian and Matty are caught up, and taking the line on a bit more.
"I have to be dominant with my decisions ... and it worked a couple of times against the Force."
Smith is one of the most dangerous players in the competition and can tear teams apart in broken play.
He was a massive factor in the Highlanders' win against the Brumbies at the end of April in Invercargill and looms as a danger man again.
The Brumbies want Toua to have the same impact and throw himself into the attacking line at every opportunity.
Australian teams have won just three of 25 games against New Zealand opponents this year and many are tipping the Highlanders to continue that trend.
The Brumbies have lost their past four games against New Zealand teams, but have lost just one of nine finals at Canberra Stadium since the start of Super Rugby in 1996.
"The Kiwi teams are full of confidence and are playing a really good brand of rugby," Toua said.
"But with finals footy comes a different kind of pressure so we'll nut out a plan and we'll look to stick to that.
"The Highlanders are full of All Blacks so we're going to have to be on our game because they're class across the park."
SUPER RUGBY QUALIFYING FINAL
Friday: ACT Brumbies v Otago Highlanders at Canberra Stadium, 6pm. Tickets available from Ticketek. Tickets go on sale to general public on Wednesday at 9am. Fans day at Garema Place at 12.30pm on Thursday.
