Whowillwear the black jersey?
It’s never too early to start thinking about All Blacks teams. So, Stuff’s rugby scribes, Mark Hinton, Robert van Royen and Richard Knowler, have come up with varied XVs as the July test window edges closer.
It’s never too early to start thinking about All Blacks squads. Will there be bolters? Who is on the outer? Who is in white-hot form? There’s certainly plenty to ponder after nine rounds of Super Rugby, which featured no shortage of bruising Kiwi derbies.
As the three-match test series against Ireland in July creeps closer, Stuff’s rugby scribes mix both form and availability and name varied All Blacks XVs.
Marc Hinton’s All Blacks XV:
Will Jordan, Sevu Reece, Rieko Ioane, Jordie Barrett, Caleb Clarke, Beauden Barrett, Aaron Smith; Ardie Savea, Dalton Papalii, Luke Jacobson, Tupou Vaa’i, Brodie Retallick, Ofa Tuungafasi, Codie Taylor, Ethan de Groot.
Ian Foster has some melon scratching to do ahead of the three tests against Ireland, with big decisions to make for phase one of his pre-World Cup year.
Does he stick with the tried and trusted who have got the job done over the years, but whose abilities are on the wane? Or is this the juncture – essentially a year out from the Cup – to make key changes?
Men such as Sam Whitelock, Sam Cane, Joe Moody (injured), Nepo Laulala, Dane Coles and TJ Perenara come into that category. All have been fine All Blacks. But do they have two more test seasons in them?
For the purposes of this exercise, I’ve come up with a potential starting XV based on form and availability, on instituting the change Foster needs to make, and on looking for players who might serve him best in 2023.
Up front Moody is the incumbent loosehead, but I like Ethan de Groot as an emerging type with plenty of upside, and the skills now required from top props. On the tighthead side, Ofa Tuungafasi’s power and work rate appeal, providing he can stay injury-free.
The second row is interesting. Whitelock isn’t the player he once was, though still a handy type who could be kept on hand. I like Brodie Retallick and the emerging (and athletic) Tupou Vaa’i as starters, with Scott Barrett next cab.
Ardie Savea, New Zealand’s best rugby player, is a laydown in the loose (probably at 8, where he’s playing all his footy) and I can’t leave out Dalton Papalii on form at 7.
The temptation could be to put Cane in as well, or Ethan Blackadder, but against Ireland I’d go for a meatier 6, either Shannon Frizell (injured) or Luke Jacobson.
Aaron Smith is still the best 9, even if he needs to provide more threat with ball in hand, and Beauden Barrett has 10 sewn up. Easy.
Rieko Ioane must be persevered with at centre, but 12 is problematic. Jack Goodhue is just back from a year out, David Havili’s form line is flat and Roger Tuivasa-Sheck has appeal, but will be seen as a project.
Maybe it’s time to roll the dice with Jordie Barrett, assess, and let Will Jordan play in his best position. I’ve got Caleb Clake as the power man on the left wing and Sevu Reece on the other side, though Jordan could find himself there if Foster sticks with the younger Barrett at fullback.
Robert van Royen’s All Blacks XV:
Will Jordan, Sevu Reece, Rieko Ioane, Quinn Tupaea, Caleb Clarke, Beauden Barrett, Finlay Christie, Ardie Savea, Dalton Papalii, Ethan Blackadder, Scott Barrett, Tupou Vaa’i, Ofa Tuungafasi, Samisoni Taukei’aho, Ethan de Groot.
Missing out on this team, selected on current form, isn’t necessarily a bad thing. After all, Ian Foster doesn’t want, or need, his All Blacks playing their best code in April.
Think Codie Taylor last year, when he burst out of the gates and put a heck of a Super Rugby campaign together, only for the tank to run dry at the back end of the international season.
Make no mistake, this isn’t the team I’d pick to play Ireland, this is a XV for the blokes standing out now, which means there’s no shortage of notable names missing due to injuries limiting some big guns during the first half of Super Rugby Pacific, including Whitelock and Retallick.
Highlander Shannon Frizell would have featured at No 6 had he not been banged up, but the good news is he is set to be back from his knee injury at the back end of Super Rugby.
Another blindside flanker worth keeping an eye on is Akira Ioane, who is set to play his first game for the Blues this season in the coming weeks. He started nine tests in the No 6 jersey last year.
Back to those who made it. Yes, Scott Barrett is suspended, but he was producing his best rugby in sometime before copping a four-week suspension.
Captain Cane barely misses out to Papalii, who is undoubtedly the form No 7 in the country right now, while other key All Blacks such as Taylor, Smith and Moody are yet to hit their straps.
As for Jordie Barrett, his move to the midfield works against him, while brother Beauden pips Richie Mo’unga for the No 10 jersey by a nose.
Richard Knowler’s All Blacks XV:
Jordie Barrett, Sevu Reece, Rieko Ioane, Jack Goodhue, Will Jordan, Beauden Barrett, Aaron Smith, Ardie Savea, Sam Cane (c), Shannon Frizell, Sam Whitelock, Brodie Retallick, Nepo Laulala, Codie Taylor, Joe Moody.
All coaches have their favourite players and if All Blacks boss Ian Foster is reluctant to swing the scalpel in the domestic series against Ireland in July, that’s fine by me.
Let’s start with the obvious – the locks. The experienced Whitelock and Retallick don’t deserve to be ditched.
This isn’t about being blind to their faults. Neither hit top form in the crunch tests against France and Ireland in Paris and Dublin in November, but to cast them aside ahead of the three-test series against the Irish would be like retiring a trusty Caterpillar D10 bulldozer when all it really required was an oil change.
Think long and hard before jettisoning those warriors. Retallick, when he returns to the Chiefs from his broken thumb in late May, should be fresh for the tests and Whitelock, given he has been on the sidelines with his own issues with a digit, have hardly been overworked.
Props Nepo Laulala and Moody, like the locks, were overshadowed by their French and Irish counterparts, who impressed with their ball skills and carries.
The pair, at the end of a long season, looked jaded in 2021. This is their chance to silence their detractors. And there were more than a few.
If Frizell gets his body right, a knee injury is expected to prevent him rejoining the Highlanders until the Super Rugby Pacific playoffs (assuming they qualify, that is), he could own the No 6 jersey.
Frizell’s form before getting hurt was hot, and he has all the physical attributes to be a menace at blindside flanker. Tall, athletic and powerful. The key is to be consistent. Give him that chance.
In the backline, go with Jordie Barrett at fullback. Yes, he has been going OK at No 12 for the Hurricanes, but his form in back-field last year shouldn’t be lost on anyone.
You have to get Will Jordan onto the field, he won’t get the chance to rip open the Irish if not on the park, so plonk him on the wing. Rieko Ioane is too destructive not to start at centre. The maturity of Goodhue, who returns from a long-term knee injury for the Crusaders on Sunday, should benefit the big Blues man.