Malakai Fekitoa has been a revelation for the Highlanders in 2014 © Getty Images

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Malakai Fekitoa has a point to prove when he plays for the Highlanders against the Blues at Eden Park in Auckland on Saturday, as the barnstorming centre was part of the Auckland-based squad last year but did not get on the field in what became a frustrating experience.

"It came to the stage where I became very disheartened," Fekitoa said. "It wasn't a waste. I learnt from some good coaches. I would like to prove a point, but I don't want to get away from our game plan."

Fekitoa has been a revelation with his powerful running and crunching defence for the Highlanders this season, and he will start his fifth consecutive game against the Blues' midfield pairing of Ma'a Nonu and Jackson Willison.

"It's very important for us," Fekitoa said of the match. "We're testing ourselves against some of the best. We need to win to show the win against them in Dunedin was not a one-off. I'm looking forward to running at Ma'a as I've always looked up to him. It's going to be amazing."

The Highlanders beat the Blues 29-21 in Dunedin on February 22, but they went close to squandering a 24-0 half-time lead. They also had to survive a late scare against the Hurricanes last week, edging a 35-31 victory with a performance that had coach Jamie Joseph demanding an 80-minute effort this week.

"We have to squeeze every drop out of every player," he said. "We did that last week for 62 minutes and then put ourselves under pressure. Players like Beauden Barrett can turn nothing into seven points.

"The Hurricanes and Blues are the most dangerous teams to play in that respect. We have to be more ruthless in closing out games and in not letting the opposition back into matches."

Highlanders: Ben Smith (co-captain); Richard Buckman, Malakai Fekitoa, Phil Burleigh, Patrick Osborne; Lima Sopoaga, Aaron Smith; Nasi Manu (co-captain), Shane Christie, Elliot Dixon; Jarrad Hoeata, Brad Thorn; Chris King, Ged Robinson, Kane Hames. Replacements: Liam Coltman, Craig Millar, Ma'afu Fia, Joe Wheeler, TJ Ioane, Fumiaki Tanaka, Hayden Parker.