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100 days out from the Rugby World Cup: What All Blacks hopefuls are thinking

By Online Editors
The All Blacks won't be playing anyone in a Nations Championship after the proposed tournament ent was scrapped by World Rugby (Photo by Phil Walter/Getty Images)

By NZ Herald

With 100 days out from the Rugby World Cup, All Blacks great Mils Muliaina says it’s about this time of year that players start to worry about whether they’ve done enough to make the squad for the tournament.

Hopeful All Blacks have potentially one more round of Super Rugby games to impress Steve Hansen and selectors before the playoffs begin next weekend.

Muliaina, who played 100 tests for the All Blacks, took part in three World Cup campaigns. His first two featured early exits including the 2007 shock loss to France in Cardiff, before he was part of the successful 2011 squad.

Muliaina reflected on the Radio Sport Breakfast what goes through your mind as a player at this stage of the year with the World Cup looming.

“In a World Cup year during Super Rugby you’re thinking ‘I hope I make that cut at the end of the year’ and I know they’re about to name the team next month…there’s excitement but there’s also that sort of feeling especially if you’re an incumbent that hopefully if you haven’t hit some good form that the selectors still feel a need to pick you.

“Certainly in my case there was a period in 2011 I had a few injuries and I was sort of hoping that leadership role would come to fruition and thankfully enough it did.”

The former Chiefs and Blues fullback/utility said of the current crop of All Blacks, the pressure was probably most on winger Waisake Naholo who only just returned from a serious knee injury for the Highlanders weekend.

“The obvious one probably because he’s been out with injury for a very long time is probably Waisake Naholo. He came back last week and scored two tries. Shows just how good he is.”

“There’s uncontrollables. The fact you’re injured. Sometimes you put yourself under so much pressure, you get yourself out there way too early and then all of a sudden you do something again like Kevin Durant did in the NBA finals. So those are the worrying things that guys have on their mind – ‘perhaps haven’t shown enough during the year to get myself picked’,” Muliaina said.

The All Blacks’ 31-man squad for the Rugby World Cup in Japan will be revealed in August. The side’s first test of the tournament is against rivals South Africa on September 21, a day after the tournament opener between Japan and Russia.

Muliaina picked one bolter for the squad – Crusaders winger Sevu Reece who leads Super Rugby with 13 tries this season.

“It’s hard not to go past a bolter like Sevu Reece and what he’s done. He brings x-factor. It’s really down to do they want to take two specialist wingers opposed to one specialist winger who is definitely on the list who is Rieko Ioane. Then you have someone who can cover the other positions. The makeup is huge. Sevu Reece for me has been spectacular this season.”

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This article first appeared on nzherald.co.nz and is republished with permission.

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Jon 1 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

This is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?

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j
john 3 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

But here in Australia we were told Penney was another gun kiwi coach, for the Tahs…….and yet again it turned out the kiwi coach was completely useless. Another con job on Australian rugby. As was Robbie Deans, as was Dave Rennie. Both coaches dumped from NZ and promoted to Australia as our saviour. And the Tahs lap them up knowing they are second rate and knowing that under pressure when their short comings are exposed in Australia as well, that they will fall in below the largest most powerful province and choose second rate Tah players to save their jobs. As they do and exactly as Joe Schmidt will do. Gauranteed. Schmidt was dumped by NZ too. That’s why he went overseas. That why kiwi coaches take jobs in Australia, to try and prove they are not as bad as NZ thought they were. Then when they get found out they try and ingratiate themselves to NZ again by dragging Australian teams down with ridiculous selections and game plans. NZ rugby’s biggest problem is that it can’t yet transition from MCaw Cheatism. They just don’t know how to try and win on your merits. It is still always a contest to see how much cheating you can get away with. Without a cheating genius like McCaw, they are struggling. This I think is why my wise old mate in NZ thinks Robertson will struggle. The Crusaders are the nursery of McCaw Cheatism. Sean Fitzpatrick was probably the father of it. Robertson doesn’t know anything else but other countries have worked it out.

15 Go to comments
A
Adrian 5 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

Thanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause

15 Go to comments
T
Trevor 8 hours ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

21 Go to comments
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