Time for the All Blacks to fast-track their exciting youngsters
18 months out from the 2023 Rugby World Cup, New Zealand could be set for a changing of the guard.
Typically, a slew of star All Blacks call time on their international careers following the four-yearly tournament. After 2011, John Afoa, Brad Thorn and Mils Muliaina all departed the shores of Aotearoa while Tony Woodcock, Ben Franks, Keven Mealamu, Richie McCaw, Dan Carter, Colin Slade, Ma’a Nonu and Conrad did the same four years later.
Following the last World Cup in Japan, however, the departures were minimal: Matt Todd, Kieran Read, Sonny Bill Williams and Ben Smith. While the decision to leave the latter two out of the semi-final clash with England was widely questioned, the fact of the matter is Read was the only one of the four to feature in the All Blacks’ top side at the time.
The fact that so few All Blacks left New Zealand following the 2019 tournament, coupled with the impacts of Covid allowing for extended squads over the past two seasons has seen the squad selections remain relatively consistent since Ian Foster took charge following the era of Steve Hansen.
Having had to select ‘just’ 36 players for the upcoming series with Ireland, however, Foster has seemingly swung the guillotine over a number of test careers.
While men like Luke Jacobson, Braydon Ennor and Asafo Aumua still have plenty of time to bounce back from their disappointment of missing the cut and push for spots at the 2023 and 2017 World Cups, the future is a bit grimmer for other more senior players.
Shannon Frizell, Brad Weber, TJ Perenara, George Bridge all featured at the 2019 Rugby World Cup but have missed selection for the tests with Ireland.
While none of those players were first-choice options for the All Blacks last year, they have all add ample opportunities over the past few years to press for starting spots and come up short. That’s not a criticism – there’s certainly nothing wrong with being only the second-best player in your position in New Zealand, but the fact of the matter is they’ve struggled to push their positional rivals to take their games to the next level, and now they’ve paid the price.
Foster and his fellow selectors will now be hoping that some of the new talent in the squad can – at the very minimum – snap at the heels of the senior operators ahead of them in the queue. In the best-case scenario for the All Blacks, however, they wouldn’t just be forcing the proven performers to up their games, they’d be forcing their way into the match-day 23 and starting line-up.
With both Weber and Perenara out of the squad, Folau Faktava and Finlay Christie only have an ageing Aaron Smith ahead of them in the pecking order. While Christie is technically the more senior of the young halfbacks, Fakatava is the man who could be pressing Smith hard for game time as the international campaign progresses and, if his form at Super Rugby level over the past few years is anything to go by, should have an all but permanent hold on the All Blacks No 21 jersey by season’s end.
It’s a similar story on the wings. With Jordie Barrett likely to stay at fullback, despite spending some time in the midfield for the Hurricanes throughout the season, that leaves Will Jordan, Sevu Reece, Caleb Clarke and Leicester Fainga’anuku competing for spots in the No 11 and No 14 jerseys. Jordan and Reece may be the more experienced figures, but Clarke and Fainga’anuku boast power that can’t be replicated by the current incumbents – and that power may be too hard for Foster and co to ignore.
Already we know that a number of players who featured for the All Blacks against Ireland last year won’t be present for July’s clashes but, perhaps more importantly, New Zealand are finally moving away from some of the older players who haven’t quite cut the mustard in the past.
Even in roles where senior figures have been retained, there will be opportunities for youngsters to prove their worth. After two years effectively serving as an apprentice in the squad, Tupou Vaa’i is now very much at the point where he’s ready to be tried in the big matches – and there’s a massive upside to getting him up to speed, given his age. Samisoni Taukei’aho is in a similar boat and it wouldn’t surprise to also see Quinn Tupaea given more minutes in 2022 after a solid debut season last year.
By the end of the year, players such as Fakatava, Fainga’anuku and Vaa’i could be well entrenched in the All Blacks’ top line-up – whether that’s as starters or in bench roles. For New Zealand’s sake, it’s important that these young players are given ample chances to step up in 2022 as next year will be too late, and the performance of some of the more senior figures over the past two years doesn’t necessarily bode well for the World Cup – especially if they’re expected to be the top performers in the squad.
It would be a crying shame if, by the time the All Blacks take on England in their final match of the year, the same old crowd that have been struggling to keep up with the standards required of international rugby are being marched out at Twickenham – and that means succession planning must get under way next month.
Comments on RugbyPass
The game was changing too much with teams trying to role the dice drawing fouls. Would be better if scrums and the adjudicating problems were resolved but this is a good immediate fix.
37 Go to commentsLike many here I am encouraged by this post. Our forwards are where the real rewards and improvements must come from. With a 50/50 pack against any opposition, our backs could ensure more than 50% of the games will be won. We need Valetini at 6 and Cale at 8 to make the most or a good tight 5, McWright will add to the effectiveness of the pack BUT must get a very good tight 5 out there first.
97 Go to commentsThe key point I think that is missing is that if Joseph wants to guarantee a Lions spot, he really has to play wing in his first year. He is easily going to nail down whatever he wants to do, but with just half a season, how much of a factor he proves to be in the Lions series could be dictated by this initial choice of playing position.
8 Go to commentsthe game was 2 weeks before the challenge cup final. I really don’t believe they needed to rest that many players.
1 Go to commentsI really feel like neither of the Vunipolas is given the respect they deserve. I would have liked to see both of them get a few more caps than they have gotten in the past couple of years, but unfortunately the fact that they both peaked young has meant that for a number of years they have been perceived as disappointments. When they are both retired, in the cold light of day they will be recognised as two of the best players of their generation of any nation.
2 Go to commentsthis generation of saracens players could produce some really incredible coaches. When Farrell retires he could walk into any premiership team as a defence, attack, or kicking coach. Itoje could make it as a defence or a lineout coach, and Jamie George as a lineout or scrum coach. The problem the Vunipolas are going to have is that its not clear what their coaching speciality would be. Neither are great in the set piece, and while they were good in attack and defence, they were never tactical masterminds. Perhaps contact skills would be their ideal brief? Mako perhaps could work in strength & conditioning, but Billy has a bit of a reputation for not taking that side of the game seriously.
2 Go to commentsA very good player.We are finally getting some balance in our team. Plummer..Heem ..Lam a solid..experienced combo who take the sensible options consistently. Clarke was a grt impact of the bench option until Lam moved to 13 to replace an injured Reiko. Cotter is doing a grt job building his team. .
1 Go to commentsSaturday was last straw. Terrible record in Premiership since Jan 23. Capitulation against Bath at home. There are 3 conclusions. Players aren't good enough. Coaching team aren't good enough or combination of both.
2 Go to commentsAs you say in your article Brett, the point was Hamish and his vanity - plain and simple. The crazy bit is that sua’ali’i has to be probably twice the player of mark N, no easy feat, just for RA to get their money's worth!?! And as you say, tahs aren't short of wingers, props on the other hand id like to see $1.6m spent on. I still shake my head at the absolute carry on in the media and comments section around the boon of getting sua’ali’i and the revenue it'd generate. It was all such hogwash imo and short sighted, real sugar hit stuff. And wasnt Waugh (and others) on the board at the time this money was spent? You say silver bullet, I'd say sugar hit but without the flavour.
8 Go to commentsNZR should play hard all a bit with some of these players and make them sign up to the next world cup. If they won’t, offer it to someone who will. Because what happens is the NH (especially France) swoop on a bunch of nz players coming off contract, weakening their depth, and nz scrambles less than 2 years out trying to get replacements up to speed.
1 Go to commentsNo thanks. Savea almost always leaves easy points out there and goes for the corner, no matter how many times it’s not working. He claimed he took “the learnings” from this when he kept making the same mistake against the Boks a few years ago. Then went out the very next week and did the same thing and SA snatched victory because of it. Years later he still does it, right up to and including the world cup final. Great player, not so great rugby nous.
10 Go to commentsIt certainly wasn't a rhetorical masterpiece coming from big E …. (just as a side remark: Eben is the better player, Siya by far the better talker - maybe that's why they don't seem to like each other very much) …. but could we please move on?
66 Go to commentsMan who wasn't there and hasn't held a conversation with those who were present weighs in on dead rubber debate and is presented as representative of the Irish Rugby Union’s spokesperson on subject he has no apparent knowledge of whatsoever.
66 Go to commentsanybody who bends at the waist when they tackle
4 Go to commentsThe evidence is not strong that this is necessary. Mounga choked on clutch kicks in the WRC final and lost the match by not performing his core goal kicking role to the level required. He also choked in the Semi final against England and was targeted as the weak point in the defence allowing them to score. Not a test great frankly. Why bend the rules for a player that is competent but not brilliant at test level?
11 Go to commentsDear Robbie, Please return to the Crusaders next season. Sincerely, Scott
1 Go to commentsDid the big E call the Irish the ‘White Can’ts’? That would’ve been good
66 Go to commentsDalton Papalii will be lucky to be selected on the Matchday 23. Ardie Savea, Ethan Blackadder, Luke Jacobson, and Peter Lauki are all as good or better openside flankers
10 Go to commentsScott Barrett is a lock and they have a much longer shelf life than a loose forward. Far more likely that Barrett will still demand a starting position based on performance at age 33 at RWC 2027 than Savea, whose explosive athleticism will have declined and he will in all likelihood have been surpassed by Hoskins Sotutu, Wallace Siti, Peter Lauki and Brayden Iose.
10 Go to commentsExtremely frustrating to get yet more speculation over whether or not Eben actually counted 12 players or not, but honestly big respect to McCloskey for keeping it classy and not pointing out Etzebeth’s hypocrisy. The Irish are a popular team outside of Ireland because they do their talking on the pitch, and its honestly a PR masterclass that they’re keeping it that way following Etzebeth’s provocation.
66 Go to comments