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.
The Leicester Tigers man in the dock #RugbyChampionshiphttps://t.co/gC5Eh1jRw5
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) September 20, 2021
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
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) September 20, 2021
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.
Listen to the latest episode of the Aotearoa Rugby Pod below:
Comments on RugbyPass
Lets compare apples with apples. Lyon sent weak team the week before, but nobody raised an eyebrow. Give the South African teams a few years to build their depth, then you will be moaning that the teams are too strong.
41 Go to commentsDid footballs agents also perform the scout role at some time? I’m surprised more high profile players haven’t taken up the occupation, great way to remain in the game and use all that experience without really requiring a lot of specific expertise?
1 Go to commentsSuper rugby is struggling but that has little to do with sabbaticals. 1. Too many teams from Aust and NZ - should be 3 and 4 respectively, add in 2 from Japan, 1 possibly 2 from Argentina. 2. Inconsistent and poor refereeing, admittedly not restricted to Super rugby. Only one team was reffed at the breakdown in Reds v H’Landers match. Scrum penalty awarded in Canes v Drua when No 8 had the ball in the open with little defence nearby - ideal opportunity to play advantage. Coming back to Reds match - same scrum situation but ref played advantage - Landers made 10 yards and were penalised at the breakdown when the ref should have returned to scrum penalty. 3. Marketing is weak and losing ground to AFL and NRL. Playing 2 days compared with 4. 4. Scheduling is unattractive to family attendance. Have any franchises heard of Sundays 2pm?
10 Go to commentsAbsolutely..all they need is a chance in yhe playoffs and I bet all the other teams will be nervous…THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN IM THE PLAYOFFS..
2 Go to commentsI really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.
1 Go to commentsI think we are all just hoping that the Olympic 7s doesn’t suffer the same sad fate as the last RWC with the officials ruining the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsPersonally, I’ve lost the will to even be bothered about the RFU, the structure, the participants. It’s all a sham. I now simply enjoy getting a group of friends together to go and watch a few games a year in different locations (including Europe, the championship, etc). I feel extremely sorry for the real fans of these clubs who are constantly ignored by the RFU and other administrators. I feel especially sorry for the fans of clubs in the Championship who have had considerable central funding stripped away and are then expected to just take whatever the RFU put to them. Its all a sham, especially if the failed clubs are allowed to return.
9 Go to commentsI’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
10 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
4 Go to comments“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
22 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
4 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
9 Go to commentsWell that’s the contracts for RG and Jordie bought and paid for. Now, what are the chances we can persuade Antoine to hop over with all the extra dosh we’ll have from living at the Aviva & Croke next season…??? 🤑🤑🤑
34 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
34 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
14 Go to commentsIf someone like Leo Cullen was in O’Gara’s place I don’t hear Boo-ing. It’s not just that La Rochelle has hurt Leinster and O’Gara is their Irish boss. It’s the needle that he brings and the pantomime activity before the game around pretending that Munster were supporting LaRochelle just because O’Gara is from Cork. That’s dividing Irish provinces just to get an advantage for his French Team. He can F*ck right off with that. BOOOOO! (but not while someone is lying injured)
4 Go to commentsDid the highlanders party too hard before the game? They were the pits.
1 Go to commentsWhat a player! Not long until he’s in the England side, surely?
5 Go to commentsHe seems to have the same aura as Marcus Smith - by which I mean he’s consistently judged as if he’s several years younger than he actually is. Mngomezulu has played 24 times for the Stormers. When Pollard was his age he had played 24 times for South Africa! He has more time to develop, but he has also had time to do some developing already, and he hasn’t demonstrated nearly as much talent in that time as one would expect. If he is a generational talent, then it must be a pretty poor generation.
6 Go to commentsThe greatest Springbok coach of all time is entirely on the money. Rassie and Jacques have given the south african public a great few years, but the success of the springbok selection policy will need to be judged in light of what comes next. The poor condition that the provincial system is currently in doesn’t bode well for the next few years of international rugby, and the insane 2026 schedule that the Boks have lined up could also really harm both provincial and international consistency.
22 Go to comments