Cape Town – Included in the press release revealing the All Blacks match-23 for Saturday’s Rugby Championship showdown with the Springboks was an intriguing statistic.
It involved captain Sam Cane, who will become the third-most capped All Black loose forward when he leads his team out at Ellis Park.
The 30-year-old from Rotorua will play in his 82nd Test, taking him past the legendary Jerome Kaino (81) on a list headed by the illustrious Richie McCaw on 148 (also the most caps overall), while Kieran Read is the second-most capped loose forward on 127.
While such milestones should normally be celebrated, it is hard to fathom coach Ian Foster’s blind loyalty towards Cane.
Yes, they do go back a long way from their Chiefs days, where Cane emerged as one of the contenders to replace McCaw in the All Black No 7 jersey.
But while he did well at Super Rugby level, I have often felt that Ardie Savea of the Hurricanes was the better openside flank, while even Matt Todd of the Crusaders in the mix as well.
As a compromise, upon Read’s retirement following the 2019 Rugby World Cup, Savea has been asked to operate at No 8 whenever Cane – whose career has also been hampered by injuries – has been available.
Foster continued on that path on Thursday, and to be honest, it does an injustice to both players.
Cane is clearly far off the form that brought him into the All Black set-up in the first place, while Savea – although arguably the best forward in Mbombela last week – is better operating at close quarters on the ground and as a ball-carrier.
A specialist No 8 such as the hard-running Hoskins Sotutu, or even shifting Akira Ioane to the back of the scrum, would be a more feasible option.
Shannon Frizell should provide more grunt than Ioane in the No 6 jersey, but perhaps a more dynamic choice would have been Scott Barrett at blindside flank, with Tupou Vaa’i at lock, which would have added a much-needed physicality boost.
Props Ethan de Groot and Tyrel Lomax have been rewarded for their second-half performances in Mbombela with starts this weekend, and they will hope to get greater parity in the scrums as the Boks have two new front-rowers in Ox Nche and Joseph Dweba this week.
But the same loyalty issues in the pack persist in the backline. At least Richie Mo’unga comes in at flyhalf, although Beauden Barrett’s awkward landing after being taken out by Kurt-Lee Arendse may have played a role in that decision.
Mo’unga will test the Bok defence much more, as he is an actual playmaker, while Barrett is more of a strike-runner. But the David Havili-Rieko Ioane centre combination hasn’t worked yet, while Jordie Barrett isn’t offering much on attack either, while he didn’t deal with the South Africans’ high-ball tactic too well last week.
New Zealand are missing Anton Lienert-Brown’s creativity at the back, but had options such as Braydon Ennor, Sevu Reece, Leicester Fainga’anuku and Roger Tuivasa-Sheck to consider, and none of them are in the match-23.
So, unless Mo’unga produces a Crusaders-type masterclass, I can’t see the All Blacks getting revenge on the Boks at Ellis Park.
In fact, win or lose, it is highly unlikely that Foster would have held onto his job after this weekend anyway. But he will fall on his sword in typical fashion, having refused to make the big selection calls.
All Blacks team: 15 Jordie Barrett 14 Will Jordan 13 Rieko Ioane 12 David Havili 11 Caleb Clarke 10 Richie Mo’unga 9 Aaron Smith 8 Ardie Savea 7 Sam Cane (captain) 6 Shannon Frizell 5 Scott Barrett 4 Sam Whitelock 3 Tyrel Lomax 2 Samisoni Taukei’aho 1 Ethan de Groot.
Replacements: 16 Codie Taylor 17 George Bower 18 Fletcher Newell 19 Tupou Vaa’i 20 Akira Ioane 21 Finlay Christie 22 Beauden Barrett 23 Quinn Tupaea.
IOL Sport
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