First Take: What will squads look like after World Cup?

Marty McKenzie of the Chiefs. Photo / Getty Images.

In the last week when more senior Super rugby players Nasi Manu and Mike Fitzgerald announced they were heading for overseas contracts, you wonder what shape squads will be after the World Cup.

The export numbers are rising and Chiefs lock Matt Symons also revealed this week he was heading away with assistant coach Tom Coventry to continue their rugby education at London Irish.

Those departures are just one of the concerns about the shape of the 2016 tournament when Sanzar has decided there will be four conferences with more teams.

Balancing that is the arrival of new talent to light up the competition.

In the opening game of this latest round it was the Hurricanes Nehe Milner-Skudder who breezed off the bench and with his mix of intuition, footwork and speed claimed a couple of late tries. He looks some talent and even in an All Black-laden backline, is pushing to start.

Another whose skills are blooming is Damian McKenzie, the teenager who played five eighths at school and is showing his range of talents at fullback for the Chiefs.

He looks a bit scrawny but there's a big ticker wrapped around that wiry frame while his talents have been a consistent standout.

In several games those attacking instincts have been to the fore as he's linked inside and outside his midfield teammates but his defence was a crucial part of the Chiefs work against the Cheetahs.

Several times their wings Cornal Hendricks and Raymond Rule managed to get into open space but McKenzie delivered one concrete front-on tackle and then herded Rule towards the sideline and rounded him up.

McKenzie may end up as a five eighths but for now he is showing fullback skills which match up well against top-class company throughout the country.