All Blacks must look at lineout tactics, says Brooke

By CHRIS RATTUE

Test locking great Robin Brooke believes tactics are as vital as personnel when the All Blacks set about fixing their lineout problems.

Another former All Blacks lock, Murray Pierce, has called on Chris Jack and/or Mark Cooksley to be the test starters.

Pierce said the experiment of playing transplanted loose forward Troy Flavell as the front-of-the-lineout jumper had failed.

He joined another member of the 1987 World Cup-winning pack, Herald columnist John Drake, in saying the time had come to replace Flavell with a taller lock, although Drake said it was still a "tough call" to drop Flavell.

Cooksley, who has been out of test consideration because of a shoulder problem, will re-join the enlarged squad of 30 when they get together at the Burnham Military Camp near Christchurch on Monday, in preparation for the next Tri-Nations encounter, against Australia in Dunedin on August 11.

Brooke, who is about to start his final NPC campaign with Auckland, did not want to comment on specific selections. But he pointed out that Flavell was about the same height as Springbok Mark Andrews.

Brooke said the All Blacks seemed too easy to read on their own throws because they allowed South Africa to set their lineout, then often threw to where the All Black jumpers were stationed.

" ... if you keep going to the same guys, doing exactly the same throws, the opposition knows what to do," he said.

"Australia will move guys around just before the throw and create deception, and that is difficult to jump against.

"When you've got a lifter behind and in front, it means three people have to move quickly to the right place and if there is some diversion, that makes it difficult to do."

Brooke said he was "intrigued" by the All Blacks decision not to contest South Africa's lineout throws, particularly as captain and No 8 Bobby Skinstad appeared to have a free hand at the back.

But there was some logic in the tactic because it meant the All Black forwards could more quickly form a defensive screen to stop the hard-running South African halves, Joost van der Westhuizen and Butch James.

"If you're not going to contest the lineouts well, then it can be better not to contest them at all," he said.

Pierce said that since Flavell was not a good No 2 jumper, there were only two lineout options - Norm Maxwell and Reuben Thorne.

"It makes it so much easier for the opposing forwards if they really have to worry about only two lineout options.

"And we're no good at short lineouts, so New Zealand's sort of stuck in a bit of a rut until they get that third jumper at the front."

Pierce preferred New Zealand's tallest possible combination, of Jack and Cooksley.

"It's going back to specialists who have the ability and a bit of grunt as well to add more power to the scrum."

However the All Blacks coaches are not in panicking over the team's lineout difficulties. Wayne Smith said the All Blacks had lost three lineouts out of 15 in difficult, wet conditions during the 12-3 win over the Springboks in Cape Town.

Smith said the ball "was blown off-line once" and the All Blacks lost two of their own throws under pressure from South Africa.

It was "a bit of a jungle" in the middle of the lineout, he said.

But Smith felt the All Blacks jumpers won their own ball "when we really needed it, under pressure".

Smith said Cooksley would have to prove his match fitness to be considered.

But the selectors were happy "with the three locks we've got" - Maxwell, Flavell and Jack.