Foster hints at younger players
The All Blacks’ door to younger players appears to be open after the success of Fletcher Newell, Ethan de Groot and Samisoni Taukei’aho against the Springboks.
The inexperienced trio delivered for the All Blacks against South Africa in Johannesburg last weekend, prompting questions about their sparing use against Ireland last month, but coach Ian Foster has qualified his selection approach against the Irish while dropping a distinct hint that more new players will get their opportunities soon.
‘‘It’s easy to look at selection in hindsight,’’ Foster said after he received renewed backing from New Zealand Rugby to carry on as coach.
‘‘Some of the decisions we made in July were based on niggles and injuries, and you get a lot of players in a different state when they come in post Super Rugby.
‘‘It’s always been like that. We’ve always struggled to get a lot of fluency in the July series.
‘‘We had a couple of athletes – I’ll use Ethan [de Groot], I’m sure he doesn’t mind – we felt he wasn’t in the shape he needed to be in, so we put programmes around players like that.
‘‘So, when they come back in and play well ... I’m really satisfied with the decisions we made in that space. We’ve now got good competition, we’ve got some younger players who’ve put their hand up and there might be a few more coming in.
‘‘We need to make sure this team has the energy and drive it needs to go and win a World Cup.’’
Those remarks clearly signal that the All Blacks are in the process of reinvention, with the influence of new coach Joe Schmidt already evident.
Schmidt was initially brought in as a selector/analyst to challenge Foster’s thinking around selection, and his ability to do just that will clearly grow now that he has, in Foster’s words, being moved from ‘‘the computer room’’ to the training ground.
There are several younger players worthy of genuine consideration, with No 8 Cullen Grace the most obvious contender, but Schmidt’s arrival may bring a new range of contenders into play.
For example, Otago midfielder Thomas Umaga-jensen has carried his Highlanders form into the NPC, proving a handful with running game and a turnover threat on defence due to his power over the ball.
The opportunities for new players could come during the Rugby Championship if injuries occur, or on the end-of-season tour that begins with a test against Japan in Tokyo on October 29.
In the meantime, Foster is simply relieved the focus will soon return to the playing field, with the All Blacks hosting Argentina in Christchurch on Saturday week.
‘‘I can’t wait,’’ Foster said. ‘‘I’ve got Joe and ‘Stormy’ [Scott Mcleod] and ‘Straws’ [Andrew Strawbridge] coming around tomorrow and we’re going to start talking about the attack side of the game and some of the defence stuff.
‘‘It’s going to be nice getting back into rugby. It’s been an emotive few days. But how good is that?
‘‘Through all of this we’ve seen a team respond and I think get excited about the direction we’re going in.
‘‘Argentina has done us a favour by beating Aussie so if we do start talking about rugby soon it’s going to be awesome, because we’ve got a Rugby Championship that’s pretty even at the moment and we’ve got a big game.’’