Hansen’s midfield 1-2-3 punch
If Steve Hansen is as good as his word, all three of his in-form midfield contenders to face the British and Irish Lions will be suited up for Saturday’s opening test at Eden Park.
And that might be bad news for either Rieko Ioane or Julian Savea, depending on what he decides for a wing contingent equally overflowing with viable options.
After nailing their first week of preparation for the Lions with a 12-try, 78-0 dismantling of Samoa on Eden Park on Friday night, the All Blacks have one, possibly two tight calls to make for the 23 to run out on Eden Park and put that 23-year, 38-test unbeaten streak at their Auckland fortress on the line.
With Jerome Kaino coming through 57 quality minutes against the Samoans, and skipper Kieran Read being cotton-woolled for the opening test, the loose trio seems set. Canes fans won’t like this, but that seems certain to result in a bench role for Ardie Savea.
Hansen confirmed as much yesterday, when he said: ‘‘He’s an outstanding rugby player and such a good athlete with it. I don’t think he’s a natural No 8 but his athleticism and ability allows him to do it. Is that good for us? You bet it is because now we can sit him on the bench and slot him in at 8, or at 6 . . . so there’s a bit of versatility there.’’
Translation: Read, Kaino and Sam Cane will start; Savea lurks with intent on the bench.
With the tight five set in stone, and Aaron Smith resurrecting his halves partnership with the world’s best player, Beauden Barrett, that just leaves midfield and back three where there are decisions to make.
Sonny Bill Williams and Anton Lienert-Brown were outstanding, after a couple of early defensive lapses, against the Samoans. That is Williams’ second straight strong display and should nail down the No 12 jersey to face the Lions.
But Lienert-Brown was back to his very best on Friday night after an at-times sluggish Super Rugby season, and that’s where things get tight. It would be a big call not to pick him now after the work-rate, support lines, distribution and running game he unleashed.
And with the ultra-reliable Ryan Crotty due back off his rib problem, and playing as well as ever, it’s now a case of three into two won’t go.
Which leaves Hansen reaching for his World Cup solution when he had Conrad Smith, Ma’a Nonu and Williams available, and used all three in his match 23.
‘‘It’s going to be tough,’’ Hansen said. ‘‘There are three quality players there. Sonny again was pleasing. A couple of little things he did he won’t be happy with, but you could say the same thing for Alby (Lienert-Brown). As the game wore on both got better and better.’’
Then Hansen got really interesting with his analogies.
‘‘Sonny is like an old meat pie; he gets all the flies and everyone else is OK. As they started to try get on top of him, that opens it up for other people, and Anton was good enough to take that space allowed for him.’’
Although Hansen termed the SBW-ALB midfield a ‘‘good combination’’, he admitted Crotty appealed as a ‘‘heady player and a good talker, and when you’re under immense pressure you need somebody like that’’.
‘‘We used a 1-2-3 punch in the World Cup because we had three really good midfielders, and I’m picking all three of them will probably be involved at some stage in the [first test]. Which order we do it in, you’ll have to wait and see.’’
That leaves the back three. The eternally classy Ben Smith is a lock. Israel Dagg showed the sharpness he needed to on Friday night to secure the ring wing spot (with his high ball game and kick option crucial) and Julian Savea must be favourite to hold off the challenges of Ioane and Waisake Naholo, despite a rather luke-warm endorsement from Hansen.
‘‘I thought Israel was really good. He showed good pace at times which will be a confidence-booster for him,’’ Hansen said. ‘‘Julian was busy but didn’t get much reward for it. As for what I want from Rieko [for NZ Maori], it’s more of what I saw for the Blues. He’s got an opportunity to show us that wasn’t a oncer.’’