After all the hype, all the build-up and months of expectation that new coach Scott Robertson’s firstAll Blacks squad of the year would signal his intent to revolutionise the national team with a heavy dose of next-generation players, he’s unveiled a 32-man group that feels a little like he’s picking up where his predecessor Ian Foster left off.
It would be harsh – certainly an exaggeration – to suggest Robertson’s first squad of the year is underwhelming, but it certainly doesn’t scream revolution or make anyone wonder about the untold possibilities of how this All Blacks side could reimagine test rugby.
It’s a squad that feels like it may be missing a spark – and has placed a heavy weighting on previous test experience and has a risk averse vibe that hints that the selectors didn’t see quite enough from various uncapped aspirants to back them.
The selection of Wallace Sititi is the exception. The 21-year-old Chiefs No 8 looked enormously powerful on either side of the ball in the closing rounds of Super Rugby, and the sort of player who could break open games or turn them with a significant act.
But other than that, it’s hard to know from where the excitement will come, and who – if anyone – is going to facilitate the sort of revolution many were forecasting on Robertson’s watch.
It’s not that Robertson’s All Blacks are likely to underachieve or not deliver, it’s just that they look likely (on the basis that much the same players have been picked) to deliver a similar brand of rugby to that which we saw throughout the tail end of 2022 and 2023.
Hoskins Sotutu's non-selection will be a decidedly bitter pill for the Blues No 8. Photo / Getty Images
In which case, it may in time become valid to question why New Zealand Rugby was so intent on moving the previous coaching regime from their posts only to usher in a new group who are going to rely on most of the same players and build their strategy around all the same elements of solid set-piece, technically adept collision work and sharp pass and catch.
Maybe the problem was expectation getting out of hand and the narrative running away on itself. Robertson was appointed to win test matches, not to appease the public – and so of course he’s picked a squad that he and his fellow selectors believe can do the latter, hence there is a heavy preference for genuine hard nuts and those who have played at this level before.
There’s a hard truth to test rugby these days: It is a North to South game more than it is East to West. That, to some extent, explains the make-up of the loose forwards which is easily the most contentious and intriguing.
After seven months of Super Rugby Pacific grind, it is hard to understand how Blues No 8 Hoskins Sotutu has missed out – particularly when one of the men picked ahead of him, Ethan Blackadder, barely featured.
But this is how All Blacks’ selection rolls – there is a heavy weighting placed on those who have previously played tests and looked the part, and it seems as if there is an equally strong negative weighting against those who didn’t impress when they were given their chance.
Sotutu wasn’t able to persuade the selectors that he’s a reformed character after falling out of favour in late 2022. They seem unconvinced that he is capable of giving them the crunch, work rate and all-round presence they feel they need.
It will be a decidedly bitter pill for the Blues No 8 to swallow as at least last year when he was dropped, he could understand it was related to his performance.
But in 2024, he was at the heart of everything the Blues did – stuck his head in dark places, threw his body into contact and worked tirelessly to get to the ball, so his omission this time around will be all the harder to stomach.
The choice of Stephen Perofeta ahead of Ruben Love was another case where previous experience was preferred over Super Rugby contribution, and another case where it feels as if those in the incumbent coaching group believe there is more to be gained by continuing to invest in the choices of their predecessors rather than starting afresh.
The choice of Scott Barrett as captain was forecast and predictable. It seems a steady-as-she-goes decision designed to give the coaching group a leader they know and trust and someone who will lean into old-school values when the pressure cranks.
Ardie Savea would perhaps have been the choice of the wider playing group had the appointment been put to a democratic vote, but in a year when Robertson has so much on his plate, it’s understandable he’s gone with Barrett.
But as much as Robertson’s first squad may not carry the expected wow factor, it doesn’t mean it won’t be a group with the ability to win tests.
It’s a solid 32, with experience, bruisers and a few playmakers to suggest that if the plan is to build on the work of their predecessors, selectors have picked the right players.
