Rugby: Kahui looks just right

Richard Kahui ticks all the boxes to face the Springboks at second five-eighth. Photo / Getty Images

In assessing the options at second five eighth for this week's test, Richard Kahui is the one that feels right.

Whether the selectors feel the same way won't be known until Tuesday, but they will find the case of Kahui hard to resist.

Right now, second five is not Kahui's best position. Most of his professional rugby has been at centre although he's had cameos on the wing and at second five - always keen to slip back into the No 13 jersey.

But no one is talking about a career move. The first clash with the Boks is a huge test.

It's imperative the All Blacks win for their Tri Nations campaign and to release the mental grip the Springboks grabbed last year.

Kahui has been dropped into this do-or-die situation out of position before. He played on the wing in the 2008 clash against the Wallabies the week after the All Blacks were pounded in Sydney.

So he has the mental strength to handle the occasion and the stress of an unfamiliar role. He's been one of the form backs in the past two weeks and his defence provides exactly the sort of bone-jarring intensity required to derail the Boks. He ticks all the boxes for Saturday night, certainly more than the other contenders.

Benson Stanley has made an accomplished start in test football but he's had no exposure to Tri Nations. Handling Wales is one thing - the Boks is another.

The South Africans are expected to opt for their powerhouse midfield of Jean de Villiers and Jaque Fourie - a handy combination that will need to be subdued. They will need to be bettered, not just matched, and Stanley perhaps doesn't have the experience or range of skills to unsettle the South African pairing.

Ma'a Nonu does have everything required - except match fitness. While All Black coach Graham Henry has said Nonu is in the frame to play, the Hurricanes man has only managed 70 minutes of club football in the past six weeks.

For all his gifts, and for all that he has kept himself in good nick throughout his injury, it would be a risk to start Nonu with so little game time behind him.

That's why Kahui feels like the right selection.

"I have got a lot more comfortable in the last three weeks," he says. "I have got rid of a little bit of the nerves and anxiety that I had before. Now there is confidence and excitement.

"One of the things that got me here [All Blacks] was the ability to play more than one position. I am comfortable playing centre or wing. I would like to play in the midfield full-time but I can't control that.

"It would be nice to be involved. If you miss the starting XV there is the bench."

Kahui mentions the bench because he knows that with only two specialist wings and his proven ability to cover there, as well as centre and second five-eighth, he's a prime candidate to be named as No 22.

For some young players, the frustration of the continual shifting would be too much. Kahui has just turned 25. When he made such a dramatic debut and enjoyed such a strong rookie season in 2008, he might have expected to have won more caps than he has. He might justifiably have expected to be a regular starter by now.

On the face of it he might appear a prime candidate to take off soon, believing he hasn't been given what should be his, the way many of his peers have. But he carries no sense of angst or impatience. He realises no one is owed anything from rugby. "My desire is to be an All Black as long as possible," he says.

"If I can be an All Black for the next five years I would be rapt. That's why I play rugby. It is not about the money. I would like to be an All Black; a really good All Black; so I will be here as long as I am in the mix to be in the All Black. I am happy to wait."

Second-five sits as the toughest call to make with loosehead and blindside probably the only other areas of contention. Tony Woodcock has shown some hunger to regain his jersey while Ben Franks scrimmaged well with the Crusaders against the South African Super 14 sides.

Jerome Kaino's aggression and intensity will be welcome against South Africa yet there might be some interest in seeing how the wider ball-carrying talents of Victor Vito can stretch the Boks.

"We are pretty close," says assistant coach Wayne Smith in regard to knowing the starting XV. "I said to the guys today I am a coach for about an hour a day and a selector 24/7. You are always looking at selection, looking for hunger, alertness - we are never totally settled.

"A lot of behaviours in camp, at training, off the field when they are in camp, they all count. They all go into the pot and then you make the choice."

Possible All Black Starting XV:

Mils Muliaina, Cory Jane, Conrad Smith, Richard Kahui, Joe Rokocoko, Dan Carter, Jimmy Cowan, Kieran Read, Richie McCaw, Jerome Kaino, Tom Donnelly, Brad Thorn, Owen Franks, Keven Mealamu, Tony Woodcock.