Ian Foster praises Cam Roigard after ‘impressive’ start to All Blacks career

When the full-time siren sounded at Twickenham on Friday night, the All Blacks didn’t have a lot to smile about. They’d lost, badly, to their arch-rivals South Africa.

Playing in front of more than 80,000 people in London, the Springboks made a statement ahead of next month’s Rugby World Cup with a 35-7 win.

But there was one shining light for the New Zealanders on one of the darkest days in the history of the All Blacks. Cam Roigard was simply sensational off the bench.

The two-Test All Black made his debut in front of almost 84,000 people at the world-famous MCG in Australia last month, but hasn’t been called upon by coach Foster since.

But back in black to play the Boks, Roigard didn’t look out of place. The rising star appears more than ready to shine at the upcoming Rugby World Cup.

Roigard is made for the big stage.

The All Blacks were beaten in all facets of the Test on Friday, but the replacement helped breathe new life into an underperforming side late in the piece.

Roigard, 22, helped the All Blacks avoid the dreaded ‘naught’ by scoring a brilliant solo try. The electric No. 22 created something special out of nothing.

The rising star made another half-break or two before the Test was done, and was both reliable and quick with his passing game as well.

Roigard is certainly a player to watch at the World Cup.

“I think he’s been impressive the way he’s trained and we said we just really wanted to get him on the park again,” coach Ian Foster told reporters on Saturday.

“We’re impressed with him at the MCG and enjoyed his training and I thought he came in really calm.

“There was a lot of young players on the park in that second half and it wasn’t easy for them to get the cohesion that they wanted but I thought he looked really calm and did what he does well.”