Wynne Gray: Let's pitch All Blacks against the Rest

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Forget about Fiji and don't worry about getting Argentina to play the All Blacks at Carisbrook.

Politically, logistically and financially, those July 22 proposals don't cut it for an All Black test which doubles as a Tri-Nations warmup and fundraiser for earthquake-stricken Christchurch.

Looking at the Pumas is now the fourth choice after Samoa withdrew, Fiji produced government objections and Tonga was bypassed because they open this year's World Cup against the All Blacks.

Assembling the Pumas from various parts of the globe to travel to Dunedin for a one-off test in mid-winter will bump up costs without any likely merits.

So here's a few thoughts for the NZRU to chew on. Pitch the All Blacks against the Rest, put them up against NZ Maori or make it a Probables v Possibles match.

Administrators argue you can't do that because it would damage the national provincial championship.

The NZRU has done that already by compressing the ITM Cup in this World Cup season. This is a special rugby year for the country; if it is so important for the All Blacks to have a match before the Tri-Nations then pitch our best players into combat.

North v South, State of Origin-style contest, players with surnames starting A-M against the others, whatever the format, get it on.

While we are filling the suggestions box, it would also be great if ITM Cup matches were played as curtainraisers to Super 15 fixtures.

Then perhaps some of the clutter, some of the mish-mash in the elongated rugby programme could be eliminated. And while we're at it the NZRU should eliminate in-bound tests in June next year or continue to play the Super 15.

The revised tournament already has more kinks than a hose left out in the broiling summer sun. The iniquities of not playing every other side in the competition are starting to play out - it is a real weakness.

Stopping next year's Super 15 mid-stride in June and taking 130 players out of work so 30 others in All Black jerseys can meet Northern Hemisphere rivals is ludicrous.

And you can bet your last razoo the new All Black panel will whine about not having their squad assembled in time for those tests and will pressure Super 15 coaches to go easy on their test contenders.

And if you've still got a stray dollar once the June tests are done next year, plonk it on the All Black selectors asking the Super 15 coaches to give the test players some downtime.

If you want a bob each way, there'll be Super 15 coaches then refusing to reintroduce all the test players at once. Either way it's a muck.