Middlemen take a step up
It was Quinn Tupaea and Braydon Ennor’s turn to make the All Blacks selectors’ midfield migraines subside when they punched in for work yesterday.
By the time they had clocked off in Washington DC, the All Blacks had logged 16 tries in a record 104-14 rout over the United States and coach Ian Foster had additional reasons to be optimistic about his options in the No 12 and 13 jerseys.
At the start of the international season some fans feared the longterm knee injury to Jack Goodhue, combined with Ngani Laumape’s decision to play in France, would leave the All Blacks vulnerable in the midfield.
Building depth still requires close attention, but Tupaea and Ennor, in their first starts alongside each other, proved capable as a combination that may be re-formed against Italy in Rome on November 6.
The outing at Fedex Field marked Ennor’s first appearance in a starter’s jersey, and only his third test appearance since 2019 after a season disrupted by illness and injury.
‘‘Really delighted for him, actually,’’ Foster said of Ennor. ‘‘He’s trained well lately, and was desperate for an opportunity. ‘‘He played well at centre. He probably played even a little bit better when he went on the wing.’’
Ennor, who moved out a position after Anton Lienert-brown came on midway through the second half, was sound in defence and his distribution was clinical.
For second five-eighth Tupaea, who was uncapped at the start of the year, this was his fifth test outing and although the pressure from the US defence was light years away from that presented by tier-one international sides he was clear-headed, impressing Foster with his short passing game.
‘‘I thought Quinn tidied up a lot of situations,’’ Foster noted. ‘‘He knows his game very well, and he doesn’t try to overplay his hand. But he sticks to what he does really, really well. And he’s quite creative in that space.’’
While their performances are unlikely to result in them being elevated to start against Wales in Cardiff this weekend, Foster will be taking a long-term view with their pair ahead of the 2023 World Cup in France.
David Havili and Anton Lienert-brown may be preferred in the midfield at a sold-out Principality Stadium, unless Rieko Ioane is asked to add a bigger physical presence in the No 13 jersey instead of playing on the wing. Foster, while pleased with what Tupaea and Ennor achieved, will also keep things in perspective by noting the US were under-powered and hopelessly outgunned.
Rarely do the All Blacks backs get chances to crack defensive lines as easily as they did against the US.
‘‘Both those two, I thought, should have been pretty proud with their effort,’’ Foster said.
All told, a positive day out for Ian Foster’s All Blacks in Washington.
The brand got a valuable polish in front of the influential American audience and the coach settled on a few important selections for the serious stuff ahead.
Foster wore a largely contented visage in the aftermath of the All Blacks’ record 104-14 annihilation of the US at Fedex Field yesterday. His team flexed its muscle and showcased its hustle in mostly impressive fashion as it ran in 16 tries (and forced a monster 52 missed tackles) to lay bare the enormous gulf between the Americans and the level of rugby they aspire to. That box was ticked.
And individually Foster saw what he needed to from ‘‘three or four’’ contenders on show, pushing for places in the top lineup to face Wales in Cardiff in a week’s time.
However, he wasn’t keen to reveal their names, but you wouldn’t be a million miles off if you pondered the cases of the likes of Richie Mo’unga, Dalton Papalii, Luke Jacobson and Will Jordan, as well as multi-faceted hooker Dane Coles. You can take it as read that restored tour skipper Sam Whitelock will be ushered straight back into the first-choice second row alongside his old mate Brodie Retallick.
‘‘It’s immense use to us,’’ said Foster of a match in which his team had 1164 running metres to 214, beat 52 defenders, mustered 23 clean breaks and flicked out 17 offloads. ‘‘This game was vital in terms of a number of players who hadn’t played for 3-4 weeks. It was a great chance for a really good hitout, and to do it in a special stadium and on a special occasion is pretty valuable.
‘‘We go to Wales next week, we’ve had a bit of contact under our belt, we’re delighted with some of the skill stuff we were able to put on the park and it gives us a good launching pad for what is going to be a big month.
‘‘As selectors we went into this game looking at three or four positions specifically ... I’m not going to say [what they were]. I was really pleased with the performance of the team overall, but there were some players who showed they want to play and that was exciting for us.’’
It was all too easy, too pressurefree, but Mo’unga logged 59 quality minutes with his dancing feet on display, not to mention his deadly boot (he slotted 9 of 12 conversions), leaving Foster an impossibly tight call between he and Beauden Barrett as his starting No 10 to face Wales.
Papalii and Jacobson both put in quality shifts to enhance their status as cast-iron loose trio contenders for Cardiff, Jordan ran for a team-high 166 metres, while Coles showed enough in his halfhour off to demonstrate he’s up for a similar role next week.
Braydon Ennor, Fin Christie and Ethan de Groot all logged promising first test starts, while big Josh Lord came off the pine for the last 22 minutes to chalk up a memorable All Blacks debut. The young midfield of Quinn Tupaea (162m on the run) and Ennor offered a tantalising glimpse at the future, while Christie’s sharp work at halfback underscored the depth now on tap at No 9.
Skipper Sam Whitelock was rapt to tuck 58 test minutes under his belt, after his recent absence.
‘‘I’m one of those players who hasn’t played a lot the last couple of months, and I felt like I was off a little bit. At different times I was blowing a bit, but I expected that, and enjoyed it.’’
Asked what the US would have made of such a ritual dismantling, Foster showed he is also somewhat of a diplomat.
‘‘In that third quarter they showed a lot more of what they can do. I know they’ll be disappointed, but if they use that well it could be a launch pad for things to come.’’