Battle to keep

OPINION: If Steve Hansen has a Christmas wish-list, one request is likely to be near the top with the names Waisake Naholo, Matt Todd and Seta Tamanivalu prominent.

All three are off contract with NZ Rugby at the end of 2018, and in a perfect world Hansen would love to keep all of them around heading into World Cup year. Given that he operates in an environment a long way from a rugby Utopia, the All Blacks coach would probably settle for two out of three.

Hansen hates to lose any contenders for his squad. It’s just the way he is. He is a highly successful international rugby coach and adopts very much a best-case scenario type mindset. The more quality players he has at his disposal, the better the All Blacks will be.

Sure, he understands the world in which he operates and empathises with players who put guaranteed big-money deals ahead of non-guaranteed, highly contestable opportunities with their national team.

But it hurts him every time a player he figures he might need at some stage announces he’s off to ply his trade in France, or the UK, or Japan. Charles Piutau very much came into that category. So did Steven Luatua and Tawera Kerr-Barlow.

You could add Brad Shields to that list, too. Even though the rugged Hurricanes loose forward had not been required for national duty prior to agreeing to join Wasps after next year’s Super Rugby season, he has been on their radar, and was possibly poised to enter the reckoning with the imminent departure of Jerome Kaino (also heading north, to Toulon, we’re told).

Blues midfielder George Moala is the latest to confirm his