All Blacks: Generation X factor needed in midfield

Ben Smith is a midfield option. Photo / Greg Bowker

Open-minded and ever hopeful, the All Black coaching panel want to see the next generation of midfielders use the ITM Cup to make a compelling case for test call-ups.

The last few weeks have reminded everyone there is no new wave of talent knocking down the door. Injuries to Conrad Smith and Richard Kahui and, until strings were pulled, the non-availability of Sonny Bill Williams left the All Blacks a touch anxious about their midfield stocks for the Rugby Championship.

The concern is not so much about the present, more about the future. Williams will be available for the two Bledisloe Cup games and then head to Japan, by which time Smith is confident he'll be ready to play. Tamati Ellison and Ben Smith will provide back-up but what's missing from the midfield picture is one or two obvious test-class men in their early 20s.

Conrad Smith and Ma'a Nonu are both 30, Ellison is 29 and Kahui will nearly be 28 by the time he's recovered. This isn't a major concern, but it is at odds with how coach Steve Hansen wants to evolve the team.

His selection strategy to date has been about sticking mostly with the experienced core who won the World Cup while developing the next generation of All Blacks such as Brodie Retallick, Sam Cane, Beauden Barrett and Julian Savea. So, while there is midfield cover at present, the coaches will be happier when a young dynamo emerges to give them security in the long term.

"We have a range of midfield players around the country at the moment who offer a range of different skills," says All Black assistant coach Ian Foster. "There is Robbie Fruean at the Crusaders who is enormously powerful and Francis Saili has played very well for the Blues. Ryan Crotty and Tim Bateman had good Super Rugby campaigns.

"Often there is one young player coming through who is head and shoulders above his peers and you can see that he's got potential to develop into an international player.

"We are looking at our young midfielders and asking who can we develop into an international player?

"I guess that's the message - we would like to be forced into picking someone; someone to really come through strongly and state their case."

Williams' departure will leave Nonu as the only out-and-out, line-breaking, direct option at second five. Controlling the gain line and being able to blast over it in the midfield is deemed critical in test rugby. But Foster says that doesn't necessarily mean the coaches will restrict themselves to power players.

"We definitely see a role for the ball-playing No12 - someone who can act as a second receiver. The ultimate scenario is probably to have one each so we can have a direct option and a ball-playing option.

"I think also that while taking the gain line is important, Tamati and Conrad have shown there are other ways to win it. Those two were among the most effective at getting over the gainline during Super Rugby, so timing, footwork and angles of attack are just as important."

It's those qualities Foster mentions that are drawing the panel towards Ben Smith as a longer-term option in the midfield - and more specifically at centre. The Highlanders utility has predominantly played fullback and wing with occasional ITM Cup and Super Rugby outings at second five. Foster, though, sees similarities between Ben Smith and Conrad Smith and is interested to see how the former would cope at centre in an international game.

Opportunities to do that will be limited but, depending on how games develop during the Rugby Championship, Smith may be injected at centre off the bench. It's more likely that the end-of-year tour will be viewed as a better opportunity to try out Smith in that role, with tests against Scotland and Italy providing the chance for the selectors to be a little more experimental.