Having safely packed his debut All Blacks test jersey, and even scored a replica for his Otago club, Ben Smith might allow himself some souvenir hunting against Bryan Habana at Twickenham on Sunday (NZT).
Smith will join fellow tour debutants Zac Guildford, Tamati Ellison and benchman Mike Delany in a fresh-faced All Blacks side to tackle the Barbarians, largely an Australia-South Africa allstars lineup.
The Highlanders wing/fullback was the bolter in the 33-man squad for this tour and made an impressive debut in his only test against Italy in Milan, after a horror dropped ball with his first touch.
He observed the tradition of wearing his school-style All Blacks cap as the team celebrated their win - "it stayed on all night, I wasn't going to lose that".
And he wasn't parting with the black No 14 jersey he wore, saying his Green Island club would benefit from the All Blacks' tradition of handing players two identical jerseys on debut.
"Yeah, I thought I'd give it to the club because they've done a lot for me. They're embroidered, they have Ben Smith, first cap, your opponent, the date..."
So, Smith might be persuaded to part with Sunday's jersey if Habana is willing to swap.
It's his first matchup with the Springboks' flying machine after he was absent when the Highlanders met the Bulls in this year's Super 14.
"I know he likes to shoot out of the line and go for intercepts and stuff like that so I just have to be aware of that. He's a good player, he's pretty quick so I have to mark up accordingly I suppose."
Smith, who reckons his speed increased a notch this year after intense pre-season strength work, wouldn't back himself in a foot race with Habana but was confident of keeping him in check.
"If you D up (defend) in the right way and don't give a player too much room you're fine. I just have to back those things, get in the right place at the right time.
"He's definitely a speed merchant, but I back myself to get in there and take him on."
Smith impressed his All Blacks attack coach Steve Hansen with his debut, and along with Guildford showed the wing stocks were healthy behind Sitiveni Sivivatu and Cory Jane, who switches to fullback on Sunday.
The 23-year-old, who'll take an American holiday with his partner Katie Menzies next week, learned plenty from the senior players on his debut tour and felt he was a better player for it.
"You go to training, give it 100 per cent and try to do your best. We had our chance against Italy, so this is another chance to push and show we're here," he said.
"Two games, just getting on the paddock was really good for me, so I'm really looking forward to it."
NZPA