- Joined
- May 29, 2007
- Messages
- 4,120
- Country Flag
Back at the start of the season I did a quick run down of who was in contention to gain a place in the All Blacks squad come the internationals this year. Last year in June the All Blacks took on Ireland with a 31 man squad, so it's likely we'll be seeing a similar number for this season when we host England.
There are a number of players who at the start of the season could have considered themselves certainties for selection, regardless of how well or poorly they performed.
SAFE
Hooker - Mealamu, Coles
Prop - Franks, Woodcock, Crockett, Faumuina
Lock - Whitelock, Retallick
Loose Forward - McCaw, Read, Messam, Cane
Halfback - Smith
First Five - Cruden, Barrett
Centre - Nonu, Smith
Outside Back - Dagg, Smith, Piutau, Savea
There are 21 players in the above group, meaning there's enough space for 10 more players in the squad.
HOOKER
First up, is the hooker position, a position we've struggled to fill with new blood in the last few years. At the start of the season I noted that there were only really two contenders for the third hooking berth, namely Rhys Marshall and Liam Coltman. Both are reasonably young (Coltman is 24 and Marshall is 21), and both are particularly promising, but both have also failed to really stand out. If they were to be picked now it would still certainly be on potential, more than proven performance. Marshall is turning into an excellent ball runner and has shown a nice ability to link with other players on attack, whereas Coltman has become very good at imposing himself around the field, particularly in the breakdowns. They're also excellent defenders, each tackling at comfortably above 90%. Unfortunately neither the Highlanders nor the Chiefs are performing in the lineouts at the moment, and the biggest issue for both teams seems to be the thrower. Until the two young guns are consistently hitting their targets 85%+ of the time, I don't think they can be considered at an international level. For the above reason I think we'll see Corey Flynn brought into the squad in June, and I think it's very likely that he'll also be the third hooker at the World Cup in 2015. While he's not as dynamic as he used to be he's a very dependable player and although it's unlikely we'll be going into the World Cup with the hooker position as one of our strengths, I think this will be the best way of ensuring it's also not one of our weaknesses.
PROP
The propping situation is not much clearer now than it was at the start of the season. Ben Afeaki has played only 18 minutes worth or rugby, Joe Moody has yet to feature at all. Jeff Toomaga-Allen has spent a lot of time rotating with John Schwalger, which means that of the likely contenders Ben Franks is the only player to have received consistent game time. This means that at this point in time, Franks must be considered the most probable candidate to get the fifth prop position in the squad. The other player who may be close to the AB's rader to have featured prominently in the season so far is Ben Tameifuna, who hasn't been as impressive this year as in the past and still has the same issues as he always has.
LOCK
Of the second row candidates, Jeremy Thrush has probably been the most impressive so far this season. One can't help but think that he's more of a stop gap, however, and that if fit, one of Dominic Bird or Luke Romano will be selected for the squad. Romano hasn't had as much game time this season as he would have liked, mainly due to injury, but has still performed reasonably well when called upon. His history with the All Blacks is also in his favour. Bird has the best potential of the candidates and seems to have added a more aggressive approach to his game this season, which the selectors will likely find favorable. This position is still very much up for grabs, but given there's still a 15 odd tests before the World Cup I think we may well see Bird included in the June squad. Romano will probably grab the fourth locking spot (if there is one) due to his past performances for the All Blacks.
LOOSE FORWARD
At the start of the season it appeared to be a simple two horse race between Jerome Kaino and Steven Luatua. Kaino was the top player in the world in 2011 and part of a fearsome trio including current All Black mainstays, Richie McCaw and Kieran Read. It doesn't look like Kaino has lost any of what made him world class back in 2011, and he'll be hungry to get his jersey back. Luatua is at the opposite end of the spectrum: he's new and exciting, and can cover lock, but he's yet to prove himself at the highest level. I think that at this point in time the selectors will opt to include both players in their squad, providing they don't do something out of left field and bring in another open side flanker.
MIDFIELD
Going into the season there were two likely options for the squad, to accompany Nonu and Smith. Francis Saili is promising but still has a few rough edges, whereas Ryan Crotty is dependable and likely to perform as required though is perhaps lacking in X-factor. Crotty has been very good so far this season, leading the Crusaders on a number of occasions and looks to certainly have his beard in front at this point in time. Saili has only really just started playing to a foot injury, but still has time to impress. His combination with Nonu could help elevate him into the squad. A bolter this season is Malakai Fekitoa, but like Saili he has a few rough edges to his game. He's still very young and probably will have to wait another couple of years before he'll have a really good chance of joining the NZ elite.
OUTSIDE BACKS
Pre-2013 Cory Jane would've been one of the first names penciled into any All Blacks squad. That changed last year when both Ben Smith and Charles Piutau shone out on the wing for the All Blacks. Jane has started the season slowly but is slowly building, and his history with the team may well be enough to push him into the squad, providing he is playing as well as he is now for the Hurricanes come June. If he's failing to fire then the door may open up for Tom Marshall, a player who can cover the outside backs as well as the midfield. He looks set to get a good run of games with the Chiefs (something quite unusual, really) which should help him press his claim. Left field selections include James Lowe, who may appeal as an out and out winger, but may not get enough time to show his worth and someone like Tevita Li, who looks very promising but is likely a few years away from selection just yet.
LIKELY SQUAD
Hooker - Mealamu, Coles, Flynn
Prop - Franks, Woodcock, Crockett, Faumuina, Franks
Lock - Whitelock, Retallick, Bird, Romano
Loose Forward - McCaw, Read, Messam, Cane, Luatua, Kaino
Halfback - Smith, Kerr-Barlow, Perenara
First Five - Cruden, Barrett
Centre - Nonu, Smith, Crotty
Outside Back - Dagg, Smith, Piutau, Savea, Jane
There are a number of players who at the start of the season could have considered themselves certainties for selection, regardless of how well or poorly they performed.
SAFE
Hooker - Mealamu, Coles
Prop - Franks, Woodcock, Crockett, Faumuina
Lock - Whitelock, Retallick
Loose Forward - McCaw, Read, Messam, Cane
Halfback - Smith
First Five - Cruden, Barrett
Centre - Nonu, Smith
Outside Back - Dagg, Smith, Piutau, Savea
There are 21 players in the above group, meaning there's enough space for 10 more players in the squad.
HOOKER
First up, is the hooker position, a position we've struggled to fill with new blood in the last few years. At the start of the season I noted that there were only really two contenders for the third hooking berth, namely Rhys Marshall and Liam Coltman. Both are reasonably young (Coltman is 24 and Marshall is 21), and both are particularly promising, but both have also failed to really stand out. If they were to be picked now it would still certainly be on potential, more than proven performance. Marshall is turning into an excellent ball runner and has shown a nice ability to link with other players on attack, whereas Coltman has become very good at imposing himself around the field, particularly in the breakdowns. They're also excellent defenders, each tackling at comfortably above 90%. Unfortunately neither the Highlanders nor the Chiefs are performing in the lineouts at the moment, and the biggest issue for both teams seems to be the thrower. Until the two young guns are consistently hitting their targets 85%+ of the time, I don't think they can be considered at an international level. For the above reason I think we'll see Corey Flynn brought into the squad in June, and I think it's very likely that he'll also be the third hooker at the World Cup in 2015. While he's not as dynamic as he used to be he's a very dependable player and although it's unlikely we'll be going into the World Cup with the hooker position as one of our strengths, I think this will be the best way of ensuring it's also not one of our weaknesses.
PROP
The propping situation is not much clearer now than it was at the start of the season. Ben Afeaki has played only 18 minutes worth or rugby, Joe Moody has yet to feature at all. Jeff Toomaga-Allen has spent a lot of time rotating with John Schwalger, which means that of the likely contenders Ben Franks is the only player to have received consistent game time. This means that at this point in time, Franks must be considered the most probable candidate to get the fifth prop position in the squad. The other player who may be close to the AB's rader to have featured prominently in the season so far is Ben Tameifuna, who hasn't been as impressive this year as in the past and still has the same issues as he always has.
LOCK
Of the second row candidates, Jeremy Thrush has probably been the most impressive so far this season. One can't help but think that he's more of a stop gap, however, and that if fit, one of Dominic Bird or Luke Romano will be selected for the squad. Romano hasn't had as much game time this season as he would have liked, mainly due to injury, but has still performed reasonably well when called upon. His history with the All Blacks is also in his favour. Bird has the best potential of the candidates and seems to have added a more aggressive approach to his game this season, which the selectors will likely find favorable. This position is still very much up for grabs, but given there's still a 15 odd tests before the World Cup I think we may well see Bird included in the June squad. Romano will probably grab the fourth locking spot (if there is one) due to his past performances for the All Blacks.
LOOSE FORWARD
At the start of the season it appeared to be a simple two horse race between Jerome Kaino and Steven Luatua. Kaino was the top player in the world in 2011 and part of a fearsome trio including current All Black mainstays, Richie McCaw and Kieran Read. It doesn't look like Kaino has lost any of what made him world class back in 2011, and he'll be hungry to get his jersey back. Luatua is at the opposite end of the spectrum: he's new and exciting, and can cover lock, but he's yet to prove himself at the highest level. I think that at this point in time the selectors will opt to include both players in their squad, providing they don't do something out of left field and bring in another open side flanker.
MIDFIELD
Going into the season there were two likely options for the squad, to accompany Nonu and Smith. Francis Saili is promising but still has a few rough edges, whereas Ryan Crotty is dependable and likely to perform as required though is perhaps lacking in X-factor. Crotty has been very good so far this season, leading the Crusaders on a number of occasions and looks to certainly have his beard in front at this point in time. Saili has only really just started playing to a foot injury, but still has time to impress. His combination with Nonu could help elevate him into the squad. A bolter this season is Malakai Fekitoa, but like Saili he has a few rough edges to his game. He's still very young and probably will have to wait another couple of years before he'll have a really good chance of joining the NZ elite.
OUTSIDE BACKS
Pre-2013 Cory Jane would've been one of the first names penciled into any All Blacks squad. That changed last year when both Ben Smith and Charles Piutau shone out on the wing for the All Blacks. Jane has started the season slowly but is slowly building, and his history with the team may well be enough to push him into the squad, providing he is playing as well as he is now for the Hurricanes come June. If he's failing to fire then the door may open up for Tom Marshall, a player who can cover the outside backs as well as the midfield. He looks set to get a good run of games with the Chiefs (something quite unusual, really) which should help him press his claim. Left field selections include James Lowe, who may appeal as an out and out winger, but may not get enough time to show his worth and someone like Tevita Li, who looks very promising but is likely a few years away from selection just yet.
LIKELY SQUAD
Hooker - Mealamu, Coles, Flynn
Prop - Franks, Woodcock, Crockett, Faumuina, Franks
Lock - Whitelock, Retallick, Bird, Romano
Loose Forward - McCaw, Read, Messam, Cane, Luatua, Kaino
Halfback - Smith, Kerr-Barlow, Perenara
First Five - Cruden, Barrett
Centre - Nonu, Smith, Crotty
Outside Back - Dagg, Smith, Piutau, Savea, Jane
