Stephen Perofeta and Roger Tuivasa-Sheck are among the contenders. Photo / photosport.nz
Stephen Perofeta and Roger Tuivasa-Sheck are among the contenders. Photo / photosport.nz
OPINION:
One of the intriguing elements of the twin rugby tours of the Northern Hemisphere will be the brutal reality that, in such circumstances, selection is closely tied to rejection by more than just spelling and phonetics.
Some of those on the two-match tour of the "feeder fifteen" will haveto grab their chance – or melt away. The All Blacks XV, coached by Leon MacDonald, will play Ireland A and a Barbarians side (coached by Scott Robertson) in November – so there will be 50-60 of this country's top rugby players kicking round Britain at the same time in black jerseys.
The All Blacks will play Scotland, Wales and England and there seems about as much chance of head coach Ian Foster coming up with surprise selections in the top squad as there is for Vladimir Putin to admit he made a boo-boo, withdraw his troops and exile himself to Siberia.
The spotlight will fall on the new boys in a selection circus, the likes of which hasn't really been seen since 2002. Then All Blacks coach John Mitchell decided to leave at home 23 players (some injured) who'd carried off the Tri Nations. Fifteen were from Canterbury, including MacDonald and Robertson. At least they get to tour this time.
The 26-man squad Mitchell took to Europe had multitudinous changes – of the 14 forwards, only five had previously played a test. Only 10 players had been involved in the Tri Nations, nearly all of them (including one Mark Robinson, now NZR chief executive) peripherally. It was an old guys-young guys selection; veterans like Tana Umaga, Christian Cullen and Jonah Lomu were included to help guide a team where about half made their All Blacks debuts on tour.
At the time, it felt like a failure with a loss to England, draw with France and win over Wales. But it was successful in the long run, to be fair to Mitchell, with well-performed All Blacks like Tony Woodcock, Keven Mealamu, Ali Williams, Rodney So'oialo, Andrew Hore, Steve Devine and Keith Robinson making their debuts – and making their mark.
On the other side of the ledger, All Blacks little or never seen again included Regan King, Keith Lowen, Danny Lee, Bradley Mika, Sam Broomhall and Daniel Braid. The last name is maybe unfairly placed in this group – he would have had more than six tests in eight years had it not been for some bloke called Richie McCaw.
Regan King during his sole All Blacks test. Photo / photosport.nz
The 2022 All Blacks XV will likely have much the same kind of structure – experienced players, perhaps like Dane Coles and TJ Perenara, mixed with those yet to attain international status or those, like Stephen Perofeta and Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, with only a nodding acquaintance with it so far.
Perofeta's 50 seconds as an All Black is already a sad reminder that Foster has felt it necessary to put all his marbles in the bag labelled "best team" in this weird All Blacks season where most of the records broken have been unwanted ones. There was neither time, opportunity nor will to see how some of the new guys would perform in extended game time.
There is also a strong feeling that Foster's innate loyalty and conservatism will see Damian McKenzie get the nod for Perofeta's back-up position covering fullback/first-five, even though his form for Waikato hasn't been that flash and his first-five displays at international level not quite convincing.
Perofeta, incidentally, was the best player on the field as Taranaki met Auckland in the NPC on Saturday, engineering all three tries and radiating class. Tuivasa-Sheck had a good second half, though it was the Auckland scrum (anchored by Angus Ta'avao) that took control, turning a 17-3 deficit into a 38-24 win. Another couple of forgotten men, Pita Gus Sowakula and Tupou Vaa'i, had quieter games.
Untried players who could feature in the second-string tour include hooker Tyrone Thompson, props Tamaiti Williams and Ollie Norris, while Canterbury loose forwards Billy Harmon and Tom Christie also seem front-runners. In the backs, powerful midfielder Thomas Umaga-Jensen may be of interest along with North Harbour's Shaun Stevenson, Canterbury's Chay Fihaki and the Auckland back three of Salesi Rayasi, AJ Lam and fullback Zarn Sullivan.
As 2002 showed, investing in the next generation can produce benefits. Selection for such a second-string tour, however, can be a double-edged sword. Those who stand out have a stronger chance at All Blacks status in the future or if a World Cup place becomes available through injury. Those who don't may have to contemplate other futures, not able even to become a one-test All Black like King or Lowen.
