THE LONG SHOT
Last year auditions began to fill the All Blacks’ chasm left by the retiring Ma’a Nonu and Conrad Smith. Of all the hopeful candidates in 2016, Anton Lienert-Brown was the unlikely star that stole the show.
They say not to let a sucker get an even break and number seven in the queue would turn out to be the least stage frightened. Breaking through in his Westpac Stadium debut against the Wallabies Lienert-Brown put in a performance that firstly, surprised and secondly led to a stirring string of world class showings that have all but cemented a long-term berth in the All Blacks midfield.
Still only 22, there is very good reason to be optimistic about life with the man everyone knows as Alby.
An autumn pastime that is woven into the nation’s fabric is selecting new blood for the All Blacks and maternally fretting over the retirement of legends.
The general elections of rugby, for a fleeting moment, are more important than who sits in the Beehive and All Blacks coach Steve Hansen has the power to silence even Winston Peters.
After the 2015 World Cup triumph, the gaping hole left by Nonu and Smith was a source of insomnia especially when the next cabs off the rank had so many detractors and doubters.
The departures of Richie McCaw and Dan Carter were met with less pessimism but the world famous contingency planning of the coaches had potentially missed a trick with the midfield.
Ryan Crotty was seen by many as a solid journeyman, Sonny Bill Williams was an unknown quantity with his Olympic Sevens obligations and resident band of naysayers, Malakai Fekitoa had solid claims and George Moala at that stage was a talented possibility for the future.
Concussion pending, Charlie Ngatai was a fan favourite with the leading Super Rugby form and Ben Smith, sacrilegious as it had become, was touted by some for a centre moving forward.
Seta Tamanivalu had a devastating case for a first test selection and Lienert-Brown wasn’t even a blip on the public radar. Even at Super Rugby level, he was fortunate SBW had chosen Sevens glory as, early on in the 2016 season, Ngatai and Tamanivalu had Dave Rennie’s tick of approval.
Lienert-Brown remained in the pair’s shadows until he made a few chances count, notably in a rare start in Buenos Aires with an outstanding defensive display. Ngatai’s misfortune with concussion opened the door and Lienert-Brown wouldn’t look back for the remaining seven games of the season, including two playoff fixtures.
Eventual All Blacks selection had similar undertones for Lienert-Brown and he had to wait for his screen test – finding his way from the back to the front of a lengthy queue as injury struck again.
With Ngatai still dealing with his concussion side effects, Crotty and Fekitoa got the nod for the June tests with Wales. They underwhelmed as a duo, Crotty solid as ever, Fekitoa not taking his opportunity and suffering a ghastly head wound in the second test.
Tamanivalu was found out of his depth with a fumbling performance in that second test and all of a sudden, Moala, midfielder number five, who had been patchy in Super Rugby, was brought in to cover injury and inadequacy then became crocked himself.
In a darkly comical way, the demise of the midfield stock was like Australian speed-skater Steven Bradbury and his calamitous 2002 Winter Olympics gold medal when the entire field skidded out on the last bend. Lienert-Brown was now a chance, lacing his boots up for the All Blacks pick-up games against Counties Manukau and Northland in the lead up to the Rugby Championship.
The All Blacks were still winning but there was dire luck and dysfunction in the midfield. With the centre-pairing picture to take the All Blacks into the future as clear as mud, SBW then ripped his Achilles in Rio and Crotty took a shot to the head in the Sydney Bledisloe Cup fixture.
It was time to roll the next one out. Who was contestant number seven? Rather than being a left-field selection, Lienert-Brown was the only one left on the field and his elevation and path to international rugby was as fraught as Stephen Donald’s in the 2011 World Cup.
RATHER THAN BEING A LEFTFIELD SELECTION, LIENERTBROWN WAS THE ONLY ONE LEFT ON THE FIELD AND HIS ELEVATION AND PATH TO INTERNATIONAL RUGBY WAS AS FRAUGHT AS STEPHEN DONALD’S IN THE 2011 WORLD CUP.’
What followed the reserved expectation for the rookie was an instant impact, the new boy introducing himself proper with a slick assist for Israel Dagg. His first golden touch was duplicated throughout the Wellington test and his poise, surety on defence and subtle touches with ball in hand was all of a quality way beyond a young man on debut
His strength in the tackle to effect an offload, his timing and choices to retain continuity fitted the All Blacks’ blueprint, and within 40 minutes there was little doubt he was made for test rugby.
But he’d have to restrain himself. As Hansen is famous for doing, he honourably gave a healthy Crotty a right of reply for the next two assignments against Argentina and South Africa and, most likely by intricate design, a return flight to earth for Lienert-Brown.
Some handy cameos pocketed, he returned for the reciprocal fixture with the Pumas, replacing Fekitoa who was granted a breather and, like months earlier for the Chiefs, he never looked back, his man-of-the-match performance confirmation he was in the right jersey.
His first test try was overshadowed by his three try assists and regular touches of magic. Starting at centre, Hansen may have hinted at the immediate future, stating he was more comfortable at 13.
Crotty, for all his recent misfortune could probably rest a little easier, his game complemented and improving with Lienert-Brown beside him.
The stand out form continued for the remainder of the Southern Hemisphere tests and was only interrupted by his resting for the infamous Chicago Test; Ireland’s first ever win over the All Blacks.
He was soon restored and returned in Rome, finishing with a tackling clean sheet and two more try assists.
Most poignantly, it was his defence that was the most impressive aspect of his Northern Tour. In the return Dublin test with the perceived weight of the world on the All Blacks’ shoulders, he crucially made 15 of 17 tackles.
A week later in Paris, he was the senior midfielder with debutante Rieko Ioane in the second half, nailing all nine tackles. In a tight affair that the French could’ve won, Lienert-Brown was a rock.
In a flash, Lienert-Brown was the incumbent and best performing All Blacks midfielder of 2016, but where on earth did he come from to piece together so many assured test match performances?
The short answer: off the long run and seven back in the pecking order. The longer answer starts back at Christchurch Boys’ High School and starring in the South Island finals in 2012 where his precocious talents, both physical and mental, were evident.
Hansen saw something special then too. His work ethic, calmness, decision-making and ability to see what lay ahead were obvious and only a shoulder injury it seemed would stop him from earning NZ Schoolboy honours. Across town at traditional rivals Christ’s College, Damian McKenzie was also turning heads and the pair would eventually follow a similar path, albeit a year apart.
On the back of their First XV feats, both eventually picked up contracts for Waikato and also joined each other in the 2014 New Zealand Under 20s Junior World Cup squad.
While he didn’t make NZ Schools, Lienert-Brown [only five days older than McKenzie] was due to debut for the Waikato NPC side in 2013 before another shoulder issue sidelined him.
He would then go on to beat McKenzie to the punch for the Chiefs, getting a call-up at age 18 to play against the Bulls on the wing, before a game of NPC or senior club rugby had even been played.
It was a rapid rise and only came out of necessity as Rennie and Wayne Smith had made a point of keeping him on ice, his frame not yet ready. McKenzie – with his goalkicking prowess – would ultimately cement a place in Rennie’s side sooner but, to be fair, Lienert-Brown had a lot of midfield cattle in front of him.
Being able to own a Chiefs midfield spot would invariably take two more seasons of learning his craft.
Present day, there’s an argument that Lienert-Brown is showing signs of the sophomore slump but perhaps more accurately, the cat is out of the bag and he doesn’t fully suit the scavenging, guerilla ambush style of the current Chiefs side, which hasn’t laid the best platform.
Breaking down teams through organised and stifling defensive patterns was a signature of his nine test appearances. Shades of Walter Little’s dancing feet to get across the advantage line and beyond were extra dangerous on a 100kg, 187cm frame that could now fully cope with the role.
With his timeless skillset and proven head for the game at the highest level, the All Blacks may well have found their continuity plan at centre. Job security and incumbency for players are two of Hansen’s hallmarks of success and odds are Lienert-Brown will feature to some degree in the 2017 plans and he has shown that, long-term, the raw ingredients are there for a lengthy All Blacks career.
In recent history, the centre position hasn’t been mastered by youngsters and in the case of Smith and Bunce, mental ability was on a par with their physical gifts and in some cases, it outweighed.
Smith’s almost bullet-proof outside channel bootlace tackling is already a clear strength of Lienert-Brown’s and the same can be said of his decision-making; subtle choices under duress that make or break an opportunity. Still only 22 and using Bunce and Smith as precedents, it seems like a scary case of how much better Lienert-Brown can get.