'Massive': Rennie on Anton Segner's MOTM performance against Bulls

All Blacks and Blues loose-forward Anton Segner has earned the man-of-the-match award against the Bulls in Pretoria, where Dave Rennie’s side overcame the 2026 URC runners-up, 50-19.

Segner, who made his All Blacks debut against Italy in Wellington, has ramped up pressure on the All Blacks selectors ahead of the first Test against the Springboks.

The 25-year-old added twelve carries and thirteen tackles in his dominant performance, while his breakdown turnovers will also please Rennie and the coaching staff.

One of Segner’s impressive moments was in the second half, when he held up a Bulls ball carrier from five meters out from the line, earning the All Blacks a line drop-out.

Rennie, who spoke to the media post-match at Loftus Versfeld, was full of praise for Segner while also pointing out other strong performers.

“Yeah, there was a lot of good performances. So yeah, I thought Pete Lakai was excellent too till we took him off, and Anton was massive,” Rennie said.

“So yeah, those guys are applying a lot of pressure, and obviously Josh Moorby started the last Test against Ireland and played the Italian game off the bench.

“So, oh look, he’s very good. I thought Leroy Carter was really strong out on the wing. I’d like him to dive a little earlier next time, maybe score just on the line rather than two meters over it.

“But yeah, I look at those guys work really hard, and that creates opportunities for us.”

Speaking to SuperSport after his performance, Segner said the conditions were “different” to what he’s used to in New Zealand.

“Yeah, it’s definitely different over here. I mean, it says on the tunnel on the way in that I think we’re at 1350 meters here, and that matters,” the loose-forward said.

“And I could definitely feel the difference, and I’m sure the rest of the boys could too. But yeah, credit to the Bulls. I don’t think the scoreboard reflects how hard of a game it was, especially there in that second half.

“They came out firing and really put us under the pump; we had to get together as a group and get back on the scoreboard. So it was definitely tough, and also physicality-wise, it didn’t disappoint.

“There’s some big boys there, and they only came one way, which is straight down the middle.”