Plenty of options for a post-2019 All Blacks midfield
OPINION: With the World Cup looming large in 2019, it’s only natural that most of the nation’s focus has been on who the All Blacks will take to the showcase tournament in Japan.
The midfield has been regularly highlighted as a massive area of contention. Between Sonny Bill Williams, Ryan Crotty, Anton Lienert-Brown, Jack Goodhue, Ngani Laumape and Ma’a Nonu, there’s a genuine lock jam of talent with all six players putting their hands up for selection.
Post-2019, however, the picture is a lot murkier.
Crotty has already confirmed he is heading overseas and Williams is coming to the end of his contract with the NZRU. Nonu appeals as an experienced operator for the World Cup but it’s unlikely he would be selected next year ahead of young players with high ceilings.
26-year-old Matt Proctor, who earned his first All Blacks cap last year, is also destined for foreign shores.
That only leaves Lienert-Brown, Goodhue and Laumape as experienced midfielders for 2020 and beyond. Whoever earns the coveted All Blacks coaching role will be in need of at least one or two more players to bring into the midfield. No doubt, aspiring coaches will be scouring the country now and keeping an eye on who might be worthy of a spot in the All Blacks.
Outside of the above seven, there have been a number of young centres going about their business in Super Rugby and, courtesy of the World Cup focus, somewhat flying under the radar.
The Blues have both Nonu and Williams on their books and, before the season commenced, many wondered if we would see the two pair up for the Auckland-based team. Instead, the two All Blacks have shared time at second-five, with TJ Faiane starting every match in the 13 jersey.
Faiane was earmarked for great things from the early stages of his career when he represented New Zealand at both the secondary school and Under 20s levels. Faiane was used at 12 in his second year with the U20 team and started in the final against England. Throughout the competition he was paired with both Jack Goodhue and Anton Lienert-Brown.
Were it not for a horrific run of injuries, it’s quite possible that Faiane would have already been competing with that pair for higher honours. He made his debut for Auckland in 2014 but then barely made an appearance on the rugby field for the 2015 and 2016 seasons.
It wasn’t until the 2017 year that Faiane was finally able to shrug off injuries and make his debut for the Blues. 2018 was the year that Faiane finally started delivering on his potential, captaining Auckland to a Mitre 10 Cup Premiership title.
He’s now one of the most reliable players taking the field on the weekly for the Blues and it’s no surprise that he’s been the cornerstone of the midfield.
Nonu and Williams, for all their experience and game-breaking abilities, have a tendency to push passes and try make miracle plays from time to time. Sometimes this approach yields dividends, but sometimes you simply need a steady hand in the midfield to hold onto the ball. Possession is key, particularly when you’re in the opposition half.
Faiane is conceding turnovers less than once every two games and is making, on average, the fewest handling errors of any of the regular midfielders in the competition with only three occurring in his 11 matches to date. He’s been one of the most reliable players in not just the New Zealand conference but in the whole of Super Rugby in terms of avoiding giving the ball away to the opposition.
When the Blues have needed a big play, they’ve often used the likes of Rieko Ioane, Nonu or Williams, but Faiane is the go-to man when the Blues just want to settle things down a bit. For a team that probably still too often chances their arm, Faiane is the glue that’s trying to hold everything together.
Faiane is finally starting to emerge as the player that he always promised to be and if he can maintain his form heading into next year, he could find himself resuming his old partnerships with his Under 20 teammates.
Down State Highway 1, Tumua Manu at the Chiefs has followed a completely different pathway. Manu represented Samoa in various age-grade sides before coming to New Zealand in 2015 as a 22-year-old. He earned a spot in the Auckland provincial side in 2017 and was called up to the Blues last year to cover for injuries. Manu was used exclusively on the wing for the Blues but partnered Faiane in the midfield in Auckland’s run to the Premiership in the latter half of last year.
The Blues weren’t able to find room for Manu in their 2019 squad which has seen him relocate to Hamilton for a stint with the Chiefs. Questions were rightly raised over why the Chiefs would sign a player from outside the region when local talent Quinn Tupaea were performing so ably for Waikato, but Manu has proven to be one of the best signings the Chiefs made.
Manu has played the most matches of any Chiefs back in 2019 and, like Faiane, has made fewer handling errors than most players in the competition. With eight line-break assists to his name, he’s also been productive on attack, creating opportunities for the likes of Lienert-Brown, Alex Nankivell and Damian McKenzie.
Manu, in his first full season of Super Rugby, is making all the right plays. He’s certainly too green for international rugby now but with more game time could find himself thrust into the spotlight come 2020.
The biggest roadblock for Manu in the future will be ensuring that he gets reasonable game-time. With Lienert-Brown and Nankivell locked up at the Chiefs and young guns Bailyn Sullivan and Tupaea all likely to be in the mix, Manu may find a homecoming to Auckland is the best option on the cards. Williams will likely be off the Blues’ books and there are rumblings that Nonu could also be gone, so a partnership with his Auckland teammate Faiane could be the way forward for Manu.
It’s impossible to talk about New Zealand’s upcoming midfielders without re-affirming how strong Quinn Tupaea looked for Waikato in their Championship run last season. Tupaea was a key cog in the team in his debut season – likely one of the first names on the team sheet each week. At just 19 years of age, Tupaea has plenty of time to prove his worth at Super Rugby level and will likely be elevated to the Chiefs squad for 2020. At present, he’s biding his time with the New Zealand Under 20 squad who are shortly due to travel to Argentina for the 2019 World Cup.
One player who has certainly not flown under the radar is Crusaders utility back Braydon Ennor. Ennor, like Faine, was schooled at St. Kentigern College in Auckland – a school that has produced players such as Joe Rokocoko, Jerome Kaino and Suliasi Vunivalu (who was top try scorer in the NRL in 2016).
After spending time in the Blues age-grade setup, Ennor relocated to Canterbury for university and was quickly picked up by the Crusaders Academy. He was selected in the 2017 New Zealand Under 20 side which won the World Cup and was subsequently named in the Canterbury Mitre 10 Cup team. In his debut season with the team, Ennor had six tries to his name by the end of round 2, showing off his prodigious finishing talent on the wing.
Ennor played a handy role in the Crusaders’ 2018 title run, primarily used off the bench, but on the back of a starring role in the midfield for Canterbury in their 2018 provincial season and some great early-season form, he looks to have all but cemented a spot in the Crusaders starting side moving forward.
The Auckland-born speedster has again been used mainly on the wing for the Crusaders side due to the presence of Crotty and Goodhue but is firmly entrenched as the third-choice midfielder – starting matches when either All Black is required to sit out a match. For the Crusaders’ game with the Sharks, Goodhue and Ennor were paired together in what could be the future midfield for the team, with Ennor lining up at centre. Unfortunately, the experiment lasted only 32 minutes with a shuffle to the backline required after an injury to Will Jordan.
Still, with Crotty heading to Japan after the World Cup, it would be a huge surprise for Braydon Ennor and Jack Goodhue to not resume their partnership in 2020. Ennor possesses all the skills necessary to play in the midfield and spent much of his early career there, but he also has genuine pace and could be a great utility option for the All Blacks – not dissimilar to how Richard Kahui was once used.
For the 2019 season, there’s no question that the All Blacks are well covered in the midfield. They have six genuine world class options that they could roll out, depending on the need. 2020 will require a rebuild, however, and there are plenty of young players sticking their hands up for selection.
Comments on RugbyPass
Wasnt late. Ref 2 assistants andTMO all saw it so who are you to say it was?
3 Go to commentsAre the Brumbies playing the Blues twice in a row?
3 Go to commentsBig difference from the Saders. Forwards really muscled up and laid a solid platform. Scooter brought some steel and I liked the loosie combination. Newell has been rather disappointing this season but stepped up big time - happy also to see Franks dot down. He should do that more often! Reihana had a good game and there seems to be more flair and invention with him in the saddle. McNicoll plays well from the back and is reliable plus inventive when he joins the line. Keep it up chaps!
3 Go to comments🤦♂️🤣 who cares who’s the best . All I know is the All Blacks have the star coach but have few star players now …
30 Go to commentsJe suis sûr que Farrell est impatient de jouer avec Lopez et Machenaud et d’être entraîné par Collazo… 🤭
1 Go to commentsAn on field red (aka a full red) in SRP must surely carry a bigger suspension than a red card given by the bunker as that carries a 20 minute team punishment. Had Damon Murphy abdicated his responsibility as a ref and issued both Drua players a yellow, which would have been upgraded to a 20 minute red by the bunker, that would have killed Australia and New Zealand’s push for the 20 minute red to be trialled globally from July this year.
11 Go to commentsEver so often you all post a Danny Care story that isn’t the announcement that he has finally re-signed for one more, victory tour season at Quins and I’m just like, “well you fooled me again!” My absolute favorite player ever, we need to make his final year at the Stoop (and Twickers) official already. I know he supposedly snubbed France but I won’t feel better until he signs.
1 Go to commentslate hit what late hit it wasn’t at all late and can clearly see he was committed before the tackle
3 Go to commentsChristian Lio -Willies 2 try perfomance was a standout. As was captain Scott Barrett. Up front was where the boys won it.They are a great team and players. Fantastic Crusaders , you can keep going.
3 Go to commentsI don't know how the locals feel about that? I guess if you call yourselves the Worcester Wasps that might be appease. But really we need more teams in the Premiership in my view so they are not padding it out as they are at the moment. It might curtail so many players going abroad as well
5 Go to commentsNZ 😭😭😭is certainly rivaling England for best whingers cup!😭😭😭 !!!
30 Go to commentsYup. New Zealand won 3 out of 10 world cups played. SA 4 out of 8 attempts 30 Vs 50 per cent.🤔🤔
30 Go to commentsShould've done this years ago. Change Saturday kick off times to around 11am. Up and off and back home before 3pm, limit travel time too. Allows players to actually do something else with their Saturday that's family oriented or being rugby fans they could ‘watch’ pro rugby. Increases crowds etc. How can anyone that enjoys grassroots and pro rugby have to choose between the two on Saturdays?
9 Go to commentsI bet he inspired those supporters just as much.
1 Go to commentsBen Smith Springboks living rent free in his head 😊😂
67 Go to commentsGood to hear he would like to play the game at the highest level, I hadn’t been to sure how much of a motivator that was before now. Sadly he’s probably chosen the rugby club to go to. Try not to worry about all the input about how you should play rugby Joey and just try to emulate what you do on the league field and have fun. You’ll limit your game too much (well not really because he’s a standard athlete like SBW and he’ll still have enough) if you’re trying to make sure you can recycle the ball back etc. On the other hard, you can totally just try and recycle by looking to offload any and everywhere if you’re going to ground 😋
1 Go to commentsThis just proves that theres always a stat and a metric to use to justify your abilities and your success. Ben did it last week by creating an imaginary competition and now you did the same to counter his argument and espouse a new yardstick for success. Why not just use the current one and lets say the Boks have won 4 world cups making them the most successful world cup team. Outside of the world cup the All Blacks are the most successful team winning countless rugby championships and dominating the rankings with high win percentages. Over the last 4 years statistically the Irish are the best having the highest win rate and also having positive records against every tier 1 side. The most successful Northern team in the game has been England with a world cup title and the most six nations titles in history. The AB’s are the most dominant team in history with the highest win rate and 3 world cups. Lets not try to reinvent the wheel. Just be honest about the actual stats and what each team has been good at doing and that will be enough to define their level of success.
30 Go to commentsHow is 7’s played there? I’m surprised 10 or 11 man rugby hasn’t taken off. 7 just doesn’t fit the 15s dynamics (rules n field etc) but these other versions do.
9 Go to commentsPick Swinton at your peril A liability just like JWH from the Roosters Skelton ??? went missing at RWC
14 Go to commentsLike tennis, who have a ranking system, and I believe rugby too, just measure over each period preceding a world cup event who was the longest number one and that would be it. In tennis the number one player frequently is not the grand slam winner. I love and adore the All Blacks since the days of Ian Kirkpatrick when I was a kid in SA. And still do because they are the masters of running rugby and are gentleman on and off the field - in general. And in my opinion they have been the majority of the time the best rugby team in the world.
30 Go to comments