Richard Loe: Resting policy uncovers talent

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This year's Super Rugby competition is still as important as ever, despite the absence of so many internationals at times in World Cup year, but I don't envy the marketers trying to drum up interest.

With so many big names missing or being told to play certain minutes in the early rounds, it's not a great advertisement to woo punters along. You're still going to get the die-hard fans like me but if their team falters then it's hard to blame them for not turning up.

I don't like to use the term a watered-down competition but we've seen what the ITM Cup has become without All Blacks playing.

Just do the maths. This country needs to produce 20 props - which we struggle to do - and more need to be found if you leave the All Blacks out for a few weeks.

It's the same for halfbacks - three for each of the five franchises - and the standard of No9s in this country drops significantly beyond the top six.

It doesn't lessen my interest because I'm a great believer that you're only as good as your weakest link. It's a great way to build depth and gives others a chance and I'm always interested in the next wave of talent coming through.

We've seen it in the development of a good stock of No 10s in New Zealand and at the Crusaders Matt Todd is a good back-up to Richie McCaw.

If I was an All Black who had already announced I was leaving at the end of the season, like Ben Franks, Jeremy Thrush and Conrad Smith, I might be a little nervous about sitting out any game time.

If a young fella who gets a chance plays as well as the incumbents then they could find themselves on the sidelines for a different reason.

It's not good for the player but good for the development of rugby in this country. The Springboks are doing much the same thing with their internationals either being rested or missing. This makes it really difficult to predict what might happen this season.

The Chiefs and Crusaders look to have the strongest sides with the most depth in the New Zealand conference and, along with the Waratahs, would be my picks for the top four.

The Sharks and Stormers look the pick of the South African sides but the fate of teams from the Republic often comes down to the draw and how long they spend on the road because they can struggle on month-long tours. The Brumbies should be consistent and the Rebels, like they did on Friday night against the Crusaders, will upset a few teams.

I'm looking forward to seeing the Blues. They should be better than last season and have some top players but look light in the locking department and will falter at some point. Offsetting that is the fact they have some dynamic players out wide. It certainly shouldn't be dull - and they've already had players in court or leaving at the last minute.

Typical Blues season, then.