Ioane may get chance to show he still has the style to be starter

The All Blacks are likely to change a few things around against Canada and I won’t be surprised if Rieko Ioane gets a chance to remind everyone what he is capable of on Wednesday.

The big wing faces an uphill battle getting back into the top All Blacks line-up.

George Bridge and Sevu Reece are playing so well.

When you’ve got two young wings who are just as fast, fit and physical, and who are playing well, it is going to be hard for Ioane to break back in.

But it will be interesting how Ioane responds to his demotion. He hasn’t played in the black jersey for a while.

Having to fight for that starting position and experiencing the pressure of someone starting in front of you can ignite a fire in the belly to train harder and be better.

He could be one of those players who uses this as a positive.

Ioane will be determined to prove that he is still a starting winger.

I’d also like to see Jack Goodhue get a shot in the backline.

As with Ioane, Goodhue faces a tough battle forcing his way back in.

I believe the All Blacks’ preferred midfield duo is Ryan Crotty and Anton Lienert-Brown, who started against South Africa.

I wouldn’t start with Sonny Bill Williams, because he is one of those players who can come off the bench and make a massive impact with his carries and defence.

We saw that when he came on and was used in the first receiver position against South Africa.

You can bring SBW on in the 60th minute and he thrashes out the last 20 and makes a massive difference.

You don’t quite get that with Crotty at second five-eighths — he is someone you start with, who creates the momentum which Williams can finish off.

But I think centre is still a tricky one for All Blacks head coach Steve Hansen. Goodhue can bust the line and Lienert-Brown also did that brilliantly against the Springboks and set up a try for Scott Barrett. It is still a tough battle between those two.

No Fijian holiday

I feel sorry for Fiji, who had only four days between their matches against Australia and Uruguay.

You don’t want to use that as an excuse for a defeat, but there is a big discrepancy when Fiji get only four days, while the All Blacks get 11 between their first two matches. That’s almost a holiday.

Fiji had to go from warming down to focusing straight away on Uruguay and ended up losing to a team which is not dominant at international level.

They barely had time to recover or prepare tactically and technically. Four days is not enough time at XVs level. It showed.

It makes you wonder how that was planned out, and who was in charge of the schedule.

Australia got a bit of a fright against Fiji in the first half, and if they start like that against Wales, they will be in big trouble tomorrow. Wales will be pretty confident having watched that match.

The big wing faces an uphill battle getting back into the top All Blacks lineup. George Bridge and Sevu Reece are playing so well.