“There’s talk of Richie Mo’unga coming back. That didn’t seal my fate but it weighed on me a little bit.”
A little bit? In the (slightly changed) words of the Beatles: “Boy, you’d have to carry that weight, carry that weight, a long time”.
If Robertson and New Zealand Rugby (NZR) bring Mo’unga home from Japan and drop the rules about not selecting All Blacks playing overseas, the flow of Plummer-like, younger talent leaving would turn into a flood.
We’d need a special lane for rugby players at airport check-in counters. Super Rugby? It’d be seriously less super.
Players in positions heavily populated with talent will cast their eyes over the international scene, just as Plummer has done. He is an All Black, but could see he might be the fifth choice first five-eighths if Mo’unga returns (if Stephen Perofeta is also rated ahead of him).
Ironically, All Blacks status means players like Plummer attract a higher premium, as does the fact that French club Clermont are getting a player on the rise, not one at the end of a career, looking for a payday and “life experiences”.
It also means younger players will still have their path to an All Blacks jersey blocked if senior players overseas are available. Cashing in becomes much more appealing once players like Plummer see players like Mo’unga still able to win his place, even though playing in Japan.
It’s been a concern for some time that the path to Japan and Europe has been increasingly trodden by those just below All Blacks status who might have made top tier had they stayed – like tough Chiefs midfielder Alex Nankivell, a member of the All Blacks XV team in 2023, now a valued part of Munster’s team in Ireland.
Please don’t give me that stuff about how well selection of overseas players has worked for South Africa. The two situations are entirely different. The Springboks are in a golden era but there are big differences:
Depth
The Boks now have the greatest depth of any international team, with estimates they could now field 45 or even up to 60 genuine international-class players.
How? A significant reason, the United Rugby Championship – contested by home-based South African franchises (that used to play in Super Rugby) against clubs from Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales.
The Stormers won the inaugural final in 2022, before losing to Munster in the 2023 final while Glasgow beat the Bulls in this year’s climax. Eleven new Springboks were selected this year, all URC players.
That, the huge workload and relentless schedule facing Boks players in Europe has meant South Africa has been carefully watching its top players, trying to manage rest for them – giving more opportunity to others. The All Blacks, meanwhile, have not benefited from the loss of South African clubs from Super Rugby.
Coaching/game plans
New Zealand has suffered coaching upheavals since the days of Sir Steve Hansen.
The Springboks have had settled coaching regimes through Jacques Nienaber and Rassie Erasmus over the past six years.
Their international game plan has barely changed – so overseas players, particularly from Europe, can slot smoothly back into the Boks’ well-known approach.
The rise and rise of coloured players
With a new time zone, the Boks have enjoyed greater exposure to the coloured community – traditional football lovers but able to see the likes of Siya Kolisi and Cheslin Kolbe playing in Europe as well as in internationals, paving the way for more players from a large reservoir.
In New Zealand, rugby has suffered more from the advances of football, basketball and the NRL.
Japan
With no restrictions, most New Zealand players would go to Japan where the club competitions are not quite premier quality. It’s been proven many times that even top players need time and sometimes struggle when adapting to greater rugby demands back here.
Robertson’s conservative selection policies, with two or three exceptions, have heavily emphasised experience and rather underlined his view on accessing overseas players.
His partially successful but flawed first year has had the net effect of helping state his case.
He can point to the 2023 World Cup final where four key players (Kolisi, Kolbe, Handre Pollard, Pieter-Steph du Toit) were based at European clubs. None would have been selected under New Zealand rules. Three more (Jasper Wiese, Kwagga Smith and RG Snyman) were on the bench, so about a third of the 23-man team.
Did the All Blacks lose that final because of their presence or because they missed a kick at goal and the skipper was sent off?
The bigger question is whether it is worth bringing back Mo’unga at the cost of undermining the essence of what has previously made the All Blacks great.
I don’t think so.
