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June 24th is rapidly approaching, so naturally it’s time for all of us armchair selectors to start picking our All Blacks squad. Number one on the list of likely bolters for (at least) the 23-man squad has to be Jordie Barrett. Having starred for Canterbury and the New Zealand Under 20s in 2016 and then carried the bags on the end of season tour, Jordie’s form in the Hurricanes backline has arguably been second only to his big brother Beauden.
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Only two questions really remain: will he get a start for the All Blacks? And, if so, which position will he play? It’s hard to imagine Ben Smith making way at full-back and Damian McKenzie sits consistently high in most of the competition stats tables. And at second-five, test incumbent Ryan Crotty has been rock steady in an unbeaten Crusaders outfit, although if Steve Hansen prefers spark to solidity, the younger Barrett could easily get the surprise nod.
Adding to the prospects of a Barrett-Barrett 10-12 or 10-15 combo is the All Blacks selectors’ long-standing penchant for familial selection; the Whitelocks, Franks’, Saveas, Brookes, Maugers, and many more will attest to that. Most ABs fans would agree that on current form we should be taking as many Barretts as we can get.
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