Justin Marshall: Time to take stock of our halfbacks

Is TJ Perenara the next cab off the rank if Aaron Smith is injured? Photo / Getty Images

The big question for the All Blacks is now that their unbeaten streak has been broken, do they look to experiment against the Wallabies in the third Bledisloe Cup test in Brisbane on Saturday night?

They would have in their next test against the United States at Soldier Field in Chicago, but with the Bledisloe Cup in the bag already and the streak over, they may feel they have a bit more freedom to look at other players, keeping in mind also that they obviously want to win every test.

The injury to Tawera Kerr-Barlow highlights the fact that there hasn't been a lot of development at halfback.

Aaron Smith has simply been dominating that position because he is so good and, second, because he simply doesn't get injured.

Looking ahead to the World Cup, if he were to be injured, who would we pick as next best No9? TJ Perenara?

The problem with trying out new combinations against the US, and, with the greatest respect to them, they are not a team who will ask tough questions.

It's just a fact - Japan were the same last year.

You need to find out about these players in the big games and Australia tend to play very well at Suncorp.

This will be a big test for any player.

Now for the No10 position. I would be very surprised if Aaron Cruden didn't have some involvement in Brisbane. By all accounts his issue has been put to bed. It was obviously a very high-profile mistake and the best remedy is to get him back out there as soon as possible.

It would be harsh on Beauden Barrett, who deserves to stay as the incumbent, but, looking at the bigger picture, maybe they should start Cruden and get that elephant in the room sorted sooner rather than later.

As far as the first-five position overall is concerned, the All Blacks are lucky with the depth they have there, with Colin Slade also in the frame and Dan Carter on the brink of returning.

They have four capable players there, which is great, but the same probably can't be said of halfback at the moment.

The Aussies are down, but they're not out. I still believe that they are a work in progress. They have shown glimpses of their capabilities. But at the moment they are very inconsistent. They are stacked full of talent but tend to go missing and leak points. They are still dangerous, though, and were highly competitive against South Africa for 65 minutes. They were put away at Eden Park but were good in Sydney against the All Blacks. They lost to Argentina.

They need to make some tough decisions at halfback and first-five - Quade Cooper could yet have a part to play.