The three key All Blacks selections as they take on the Springboks
With the All Blacks making 11 changes in their team and seamlessly forming combinations to beat the Pumas for the second week running, ex-ESPN producer and Sky TV commentator and director Mike Rehu ponders which way the selectors could go for this week’s mouth-watering match up against South Africa.
What a great headache for the All Black selection team, a squad of 35 athletes with all of them assertively stating their cases for the 23 positions in the match day squad against the world champion South Africans this coming Saturday.
Some positions are locked in stone, especially with the need for experience with some senior players missing the tour but for me there are three positions that will cause the most discussion. They are hooker, number 8 and centre.
Hooker
Samisoni Taukei’aho made the most of his start against Los Pumas with a performance that showcased his power and accuracy.
He kept popping up on the right wing and causing havoc but also manhandled people in centre-field. One try, 11 carries for 59 metres and top tackler for his team when he left the field is an overwhelming statement.
Furthermore, his core role of scrummaging and lineout throwing was error-free and that’s been an area of concern in the past. He is one player who looks bigger and more intimidating in a black jersey.
It seemed strange to learn that Asafo Aumua was making his starting debut in the round three game of the Rugby Championship, he has been around for almost four years in and out of the squad but living in the shadow of Dane Coles and Codie Taylor.
He didn’t disappoint with his opportunity, bravely rampaging to the line and showing his tenacity and toughness.
I was talking to a crafty ex-lock last week and he reckons Aumua has a “show” on his long throws and hence the reason Petti was able to grab some of his long darts to the back.
This meant New Zealand lived on a supply of ball from the front which curtailed some of their attacking potency.
Taylor made a tentative return on Saturday after a head knock, trying to solve the riddle of how to reach the peak again.
It certainly has been an interesting journey for him this year where he burst out of the blocks at the start of the year with some of the best performances by a hooker we’ve ever seen in Super Rugby and ending up the top try-scorer.
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The international season has seen him sustain a plateau but not the WOW! factor.
Prediction. The selectors will know big games bring out the best in veterans and this could be the match up to stir Taylor’s riiraa? (physical strength) and ihi (excitement and power). Codie to start, Samisoni to give it all in the last half hour.
No 8
Ex-All Black Ofisa Tonu’u remarked on social media that he hadn’t seen a try from the scrum move like TJ Perenara’s for some time.
The set up by Hoskins Sotutu drew comparisons back to when Zinzan Brooke operated at No 8 when he thrilled crowds with his skill, often combining with Tonu’u.
At times, Sotutu has shown similar attributes to the legend and certainly returned to some great fettle last weekend with two try assists and superb distribution from the base of a sturdy scrum.
The week before we saw Luke Jacobson selected at No 8 after Ardie Savea’s HIA encounter and his performance was what we have some to expect from him.
A great mix of toughness and puissance with his midfield running; two tries, 14 carries for 64 metres, second-highest tackles behind Retallick and a slew of clean breaks and defenders beaten. At pace!
Perhaps the biggest surprise in his contribution was seven of the 16 lineout balls taken by the team, providing a steady source of pill at the front.
That brings us to the skipper Ardie Savea and straight off his concussion break he was thrown in to the No 7 jersey and he relished the change.
He was the top ball carrier in the forwards and showed some flair with a lovely chip and chase just before halftime but sadly, that dramatic dummy has not been sold for some time!
After the All Blacks returned to world number one with a win over Argentina, we look at their much-anticipated clash with the world champion Springboks. #RugbyChampionship #NZLvRSA https://t.co/AFxJjS24D5
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Prediction. As Ardie and Akira are shoo-ins for two of the loose forward spots, the showdown in the selectors minds must be between Dalton Papalii and Luke Jacobson.
You can have Dalton’s industry and defensive prowess with Ardie at No 8 or Jacobson’s ball-carrying, lineout ability and concrete shoulders at No 8 and the skip at No 7.
I suggest they’ll go the way of Jacobson; this trio played the second test against Fiji and looked like a cohesive unit. That leaves Papalii with a showdown with Blackadder for a bench position, or dare we talk about a 6-2 bench split for the Kiwis?
Centre
Anton Lienert-Brown mentioned in a television interview he’s attempting to run and train with the hamstring injury but the All Blacks’ selectors have shown they won’t rush back players if there’re strong options available to them.
Braydon Ennor is percolating nicely in his return from a couple of debilitating setbacks in the last year. He came off the bench and looked the part and isn’t far away from being thrown a start. Always a handy bench option to cover centre, wing and fullback at a pinch.
Rieko Ioane’s form has been magnificent and his pairing with Havili has the “iron fist and velvet glove” look about it.
In statistical terms, his contribution has been immense; he’s leading the clean breaks count with his brother and has amassed almost 100 more metres than anyone else in the competition.
A match up against Damian de Allende and Lukhanyo Am will test his defensive nous, something that critics tend to spotlight as a frailty.
Prediction. The selectors know this is a long campaign beyond the Rugby Championship, so it would be logical for them to select Rieko at 13, leave ALB at least one more week to recover and look to change it up in the sixth round.
So a match day 23 could look something like this:
15. Jordie Barrett, 14. Will Jordan, 13. Rieko Ioane, 12. David Havili, 11. George Bridge, 10. Beauden Barrett, 9. TJ Perenara, 8. Luke Jacobson, 7. Ardie Savea, 6. Akira Ioane, 5. Scott Barrett, 4. Brodie Retallick, 3. Nepo Laulala, 2. Codie Taylor, 1. Joe Moody.
16. Samisoni Taukei’aho, 17. George Bower, 18. Angus Ta’avao, 19. Tupou Vaa’i, 20. Dalton Papalii, 21. Brad Weber, 22. Damian McKenzie, 23. Quinn Tupaea.
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Comments on RugbyPass
I do not really get why put Ollivon at 6 when he’s a 7, while Cros was the best Frenchman of the tournament, playing at…6. His only game replacing Aldritt at 8 doesn’t change much in terms of his impact. Lamaro was also outstanding in that brilliant Italian side, probably better than Reffell. So putting 2 Welsh players from the wooden spoon holders, and none of the 4th nation (Scotland) is also strange. Is it about showing that in this harsh transition Wales is, there were some standouts…?
6 Go to commentsThe events at this year’s six nations should undermine many of the arguments made against promotion and relegation between the six nations and the REC. If Italy had been allowed to yo-yo between divisions it conceivably could have really hurt their development, but if Italy, Wales, and Scotland are all at risk of relegation, with none of them being relegated more often than once every 3 or 4 years, you’d have to back all of them to muddle on through it, especially when you factor in the likelihood they’ll still be guaranteed world league matches against tier 1 opponents. Another way of looking at italys resurgence would be to say that the development model of adding an extra team to the six nations has worked, and now must be done again. Georgia could join to make it a 7 team round robin, and if and when Georgia demonstrate an ability to consistently win games, Portugal can also be added to make it an 8 team 2 conference competition. Frankly at this point I think it falls to world rugby to demand that the 6N act in the interests of the game. If the 6N won’t commit to expansion then the 6N teams should be handicapped in world cup draws (i.e. world cup seedings would not be based on their ranking points, but on their ranking points minus a 5 point penalty).
5 Go to commentsSteve Borthwick deserves credit for releasing the shackles on his England side and letting them play in a manner that somewhat resembles the top sides in the Gallagher Premiership. Will they revert to type in New Zealand in July.?
27 Go to commentsJames Lowe wouldn't get in any other 6N team. He's a great example of Farrell’s brilliance, and the Irish system. He is slow. His footwork is poor. But he fits perfectly in that Irish system, and has a superb impact. But put him in another team, and he'll look bang average.
6 Go to commentsCrusaders reached their heights through recruitment of North Island players, often leaving those NI teams bereft of key players. Example: Scott Barrett and Sam Whitelock robbed the Canes of their lineout and AB locks. For years the Canes have struggled at lock. This rabid recruitment was iniated by rule changes by a Crusader dominated NZR Head Office. Now this aggressive recruitment has back-fired, going after young inside back Hamilton Boys stars. They now have 4 Chiefs region 10s and not one with the requisite experience at Super level. Problems of their own making!
2 Go to commentsOver rated for a long time…exposed at scrum time too.
3 Go to comments“Firing me” should have been Gatland’s answer.
2 Go to commentsFinn Russell logic: “World” = 4 countries. Ireland may be at or near the top. FR’s bigger concern should be he and his fellow Scots (incl. the Bloemfontein ones) sliding back down to below top 10
42 Go to commentsMind games have begun. Ireland learned their lesson after saying they could beat England with 13 players or whatever. Still, if they win at Loftus, that would be impressive - final frontier etc.
58 Go to comments$950k for a Prop that isn’t fit enough to play 10 mins of rugby? Surely there is someone better to replace Big Mike with
3 Go to commentsFour Kiwis in that backline. A solid statement on the lack of invention, risk-taking and joy in the NH game; game of attrition and head- banging tedium. Longterm medical problems aplenty in the future!
6 Go to commentsGood article, I learnt quite a lot. A big sliding door moment was in the mid 00s when they rejected Steve Anderson's long term transformation and he wrote Ireland's strategy instead.
2 Go to commentsHi Dr Nick! I'm worried that I've started to enjoy watching England and have actually wanted them to win their last two games. What would you prescribe? On a more serious note, I've noticed that the standard of play in March is often better than early February. Do you think this is because of the weather or because the players have been together for longer?
27 Go to commentsMy question in all this brett is who is going to wear the consequences of these actions? Surely just getting the sack isn’t sufficient? A teenager working the till at woolies would probably get taken to court if they took $20 out of the till. You mean to tell me that someone can spend $2.6 million and get away with it? Where was it spent? What companies/people were the beneficiaries etc? How is it just being talked about as an ‘oopsie’ and we all just move on and not a matter of the court for gross negligence, fraud, take your pick…
21 Go to commentslove Manu too but England have relied on him coming back from injury for far too long and not sorted the position with someone else long term . It will be a blessing he has gone . Huge shame he was so injury prone . God speed Manu .
3 Go to commentsI agree with Ben Smith about Brett Cameron. The No. 6 position has to be a monster and a genuine lineout option, like Ollivon, Lawes (now Chessum), Du Toit, etc. The only player who fits that bill right now is Scott Barrett. A fit and fizzing Tuipolotu together with one of the young towers, Sam Darry or Josh Lord, would give Razor the freedom to play Barret at 6.
16 Go to commentsOutstanding article, Graham. Agree with all of it. And enjoy the style of writing too (particularly Grand Slap!).
3 Go to commentsI wouldn't pay a cent for that loafer. He just stands around, waiting for play to come his way. He won't make the Wallabies.
3 Go to commentsGood bit of te reo maori Nic. Or is that Niko or Nikora? On the theme of trees the Oaks v Totara. Game plan would be key. I have one but it would cost you.
27 Go to comments> Shaun Edwards’ You should not have to score 30 points to win a game, as exciting as it is. This statement was surprising to me. It is nonsensical .I guess it is a defence coach speaking. But head coach, defence and attacking coaches all work together. They are inseparable. You score more than the opposition to win. It only needs to be one score. You score whatever the game demands, whatever the opposition demand. You defend whatever it takes. The attack coach needs to be able to clock up 30pts if need be.
27 Go to comments