Raft of injuries disrupt All Blacks’ plans
The feedback David Havili received from the All Blacks selectors was pretty simple.
‘‘It’s pretty much just sticking to what I know, enjoying my footy and putting good performances in week in and week out,’’ he said.
And he is sure doing that with Tasman.
Although Havili was naturally disappointed to miss out on selection for the Rugby World Cup, having also been left out of the squad for the Rugby Championship, the responsibility of captaining the Mako in the Mitre 10 Cup is helping the 24-year-old get over his omission.
‘‘For sure. You’re always disappointed [to miss out] but the thing is I can’t really control the selection, all I can do is control the way I’m playing and I’m really enjoying my footy at Tasman at the moment, especially down at the Crusaders too I was really enjoying it.
‘‘I wasn’t really thinking about it too much but of course it was in the back of my mind and I would love to be there, but there’s a lot of experienced players in the team this year so I wish them all the best.
‘‘It’s good to be home and I’m looking forward to the rest of the season with the Mako.
‘‘It’s good to have Tasman here, it’s awesome and I love coming back and playing and Five minor injuries have forced the All Blacks into a mix and match of selections for their preWorld Cup hitout against Tonga in Hamilton.
While Steve Hansen and the rest of the coaching staff won’t exactly be waking in cold sweats that a quintet of their 31 Japanbound troops have presented as unavailable tomorrow, it does at least present as nuisance value in the meantime.
Richie Mo’unga (shoulder), Jack Goodhue (hamstring) and to a lesser extent Sonny Bill Williams (calf) had been flagged earlier in the week as potential omissions from the match at FMG Stadium Waikato, but Sam Cane (hamstring) and Rieko Ioane (calf) were then also added to that list when the team was announced yesterday.
A vital opening pool game looms against the Springboks on
although I’m disappointed at not making the squad that’s just another bump in the road and we’ve got something special at Tasman. Although there’s downsides in rugby, there’s always an upside.’’
The battle with Will Jordan for the No 15 jersey and the added responsibility of captaining Tasman seem to be getting the best out of Havili, who has continued September 21, and this last gallop before then presented an opportunity to get minutes under the belt of certain players, although the exclusions of prop Atu Moli and halfback Brad Weber from the 23 illustrate Hansen’s desire to narrow his focus to those in the plans for their World Cup opener.
‘‘The key for this game is that we want to give as many people as we think we’re going to use against South Africa, game time,’’ Hansen said.
‘‘And obviously there’s some guys we didn’t want to use, because they’ve got slight niggles.’’
Going off Hansen’s rationale, it’s rather surprising then that first-choice hooker Dane Coles isn’t in the mix, with Codie Taylor given a start and Liam Coltman a chance at rare minutes, from the bench.
The other feature of the pack is that Cane’s absence means a start for Matt Todd, while on the bench Scott Barrett returns from suspension and Luke Jacobson is set the strong form he showed for the Crusaders during the Super Rugby season by guiding Tasman to four wins in as many matches.
‘‘It’s great. That competition makes you better, having a competitive environment makes the team better too. You can’t get comfortable in the jersey and that makes you work harder and it makes the team go better as well. Will is a classy player and he’s going to go a long way in New Zealand, so the more he can push for his second test appearance.
In the backline, Rieko Ioane’s tight calf has robbed him of a chance at redemption, with Hansen confirming he was going to play the 22-year-old, who was dropped for Bledisloe Cup II a fortnight ago, when George Bridge shone in his place in the 36-0 drubbing of the Wallabies in Auckland.
The niggles to Goodhue and me the more he is going to get out of me and the more I’m going to get out of him so it works both ways.’’
Although he was caught off guard when he was appointed captain last season, he took pride in the fact he was able to lead his province.
‘‘I never thought it would ever happen and then it sort of got sprung on me but I was definitely keen to lead the boys, and it’s pretty surreal,’’ he said. Williams are offset by the return from a broken thumb of Ryan Crotty, but it means yet another chop-and-change combination in midfield, with Goodhue having injured his hamstring early in the loss to the Wallabies in Perth last month, and Williams feeling calf tightness at training this week after a good showing on return at Eden Park.
With Mo’unga’s shoulder still not right after the knock he took in Bledisloe II, it means Beauden Barrett returns to first five-eighth and Ben Smith gets a chance back at fullback.
After seemingly losing his mojo on the wing, Smith was, like Ioane, overlooked for the team’s last test, when Sevu Reece pressed his claims in style.
Hansen acknowledged the 33-year-old, 79-test veteran had to rediscover the belief in himself, and was confident in seeing that happen.
‘‘We’ve stripped the paint right back,’’ he said.
‘‘I want to see Bender just