Lachlan Boshier offloads during the Ranfurly Shield. Photo / Photosport
Lachlan Boshier offloads during the Ranfurly Shield. Photo / Photosport
COMMENT:
There is no prettier sight than amber and black hoops paired together in a high-quality synthetic jumper.
It's a versatile colour scheme, easy on the eye in business, smart-casual, formal and romantic nightwear settings.
It's never looked prettier than it did in Christchurch on Saturday afternoon, and it's neverlooked as sharp as it did on the back of Lachlan Boshier, who has overtaken 1996's three-try hero Dean Magon for Taranaki's best professional-era performance in a Shield challenge.
From start to finish Boshier's performance on the openside flank was extraordinary, displaying in turns the dynamic qualities of a Josh Kronfeld, the grit and sinew of Richie McCaw and the uniform of a Graham Mourie.
Strong magnets under the letters of my keyboard are desperately trying to lure me into writing something trite, something along the lines of "if he's not the second-best No 7 in the country behind Ardie Savea then Auckland doesn't have a harbour bridge issue" but I refuse to succumb to such cheap temptations.
The chatter is that he doesn't quite have the physical presence the All Blacks are looking for in a loose forward, but he went a long way to making that fear redundant on the weekend.
Yes, it's only third-tier footy but Boshier's piece de resistance followed a breakout campaign for the Chiefs, where he was a diamond in Warren Gatland's bucket of slops.
His form was so eye-catching it elicited a response from the enemy.
"If you can leave someone like Lachlan Boshier out [of the All Blacks], who I thought was incredible during Super Rugby Aotearoa, he didn't even make the North Island side. That tells you about the depth of New Zealand rugby," said Wallabies coach Dave Rennie.
The purpose of his comments was probably three-fold: he means it; he positions himself as the battler working away for Australia in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds; and he wants the All Black selectors to start second-guessing themselves.
Perhaps they should be.
This is the strongest the NPC has been in years (the sad reality is that it may never be this strong again), and Boshier has just put in a match for the ages in a high-stakes environment.
He might not have the jersey he wants most yet, but he'll always have that amber-and-black afternoon in Christchurch.
Taranaki celebrates winning the Ranfurly Shield. Photo / Photosport
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For a mid-size union like Taranaki, the Ranfurly Shield can be a godsend, providing financial succour in such straitened times. Unfortunately, the province is in no position to benefit given their 20,000-seat stadium is out of commission and all home games are being played at the 3000-capacity TET Stadium.
It's been a rollicking good start to the Mitre 10 Cup, but also an awkward one because the good times are set to end with the removal of the All Blacks.
Not sure it does much for the integrity of a tournament for it to have such a different face at the start as it will at the end, but perhaps beggars shouldn't be choosers.
This is the most engaged the public, and media, has been with the NPC for years.
