Scott Robertson talks potential return of Rieko Ioane to wing

Just two specialist wingers were named in the first All Blacks squad of the year, something that came as a shock to all fans, given the breadth of talent New Zealand possesses. The call undoubtedly left the Kiwi faithful wondering: who’s the next man up, should the All Blacks need cover out wide?

Attention naturally fell to former winger Rieko Ioane. The 28-year-old’s shift to the midfield has been ripe with contention, with fans and pundits alike desperate to see Ioane’s game-breaking athleticism in the open field, where he’s been seldom seen since his shift to 13.

In his first season as All Blacks boss, Scott Robertson kept Ioane in place at 13, but was willing to move the speedster to the wide channels later in games with midfield cover coming off the bench.

Ioane isn’t the only former winger to be named in the midfield, with uncapped Highlanders bruiser Timoci Tavatavanawai also an option on the edge if need be.

Just how likely it is that we see one of those two running out or moving out to the wing is yet to be seen.

“I reckon you’ll likely know when the team’s named,” the coach joked when prodded by SportNation for an insight into his thinking around selections.

“The good thing about it is they both can play midfield or wing, Rieko and Timoci. That’s great.

“The utility factor of Beauden (Barrett) to play fullback or 10, or D-Mac (Damian McKenzie) doing it, as well as Ruben (Love). You’ve got to have that ability to pick a squad that can start on the wing, start at fullback, finish (elsewhere). All of those things come into play.”

Ioane has dedicated his rugby future to the No. 13 jersey out of a desire to play there, but with six midfielders selected in the squad, and all in powerful form, it’s likely the 81-cap All Black will have to take a backseat so Robertson can see how some new faces perform at the next level.

“You’ve got to build depth. This is one of the squads that we wanted to do that with, to give them exposure, find out what an All Black environment is like, get them ready for Test footy and then go and see them perform.

“They’ve all done it through consistency and done their core roles really well. Especially under a lot of pressure.

“Their bodies are in good condition, and that’s the good thing about it; 10 debutants last year, five this year, over the period of time we’re talking about, you’re starting to get a few less in the next two or three years as you start to hone in your squad.

“It just gives us the depth in positions that we need to see. It’s a game of brutality, there’s fine margins, and it can change quite quickly. You’ve got to build depth and lock it in.”

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Sure to start on the left edge in the first instance is Caleb Clarke, who joins Sevu Reece as the specialist wingers in the team. Unlike Reece, who scored eight tries in Super Rugby Pacific to elevate himself as the top try-scorer in competition history, Clarke didn’t score a single point in his 1178 minutes of action for the Blues this season.

That hasn’t deterred selectors, with Robertson confident Clarke will be a damaging force on the field once more when his number is called.

“Caleb’s a Test footballer, we’ll get the best out of him. We trust ourselves to get him back to that top form. Last year, he was good for us. A big body, great aerially, good left foot, run-kick, so we’ll get the best out of Caleb.”