Rugby: Four Hawke's Bay players make cull for NZ U20 squad

Craig Philpott says four players from Hawke's Bay is right up there with Super Rugby centres. PHOTO/FILE

To the uninitiated it may come across as another age-group selection but making the New Zealand Under-20 cull carries the promise of another realm in rugbydom.

The Baby Blacks is the learner's licence, as it were, to the giddy multi-lanes of a highway of plenty provided the chosen ones adhere to the road signs, signal wisely when the need arises and maintain the discipline of not straying from the straight and narrow.

That's the journey for four talented Hawke's Bay players - Tim Farrell, Marino Mikaele-Tu'u, Pouri Rakete-Stones, Tiaan Falcon - after national under-20 coach Craig Philpott named his squad of 30 to compete at the Oceania Tournament in the Gold Coast, Australia, from April 28.

"It's extremely important in that it's a step in the ladder to the All Blacks and then fulltime professional rugby player, who is Super Rugby player," said Philpott.

The Hawke's Bay Magpies coach said there was a high conversion rate between the talent going through the New Zealand U20 system and slipping on the All Blacks jersey in the past two decades.

"It's certainly a very important team to make," he emphasised.

Farrell, studying at Victoria University in Wellington, Mikaele-Tu'u, of Hastings, and Rakete-Stones, of Napier, are in the mix of forwards while Falcon, of Hastings, is among the cluster of backs.

"[Farrell is] actually a year young for this New Zealand Under-20 side so he's made it a year early," Philpott said last night of last year's Napier Boys High School deputy head boy, who is a loosehead prop.

Fellow former NBHS pupil Rakete-Stones turns out in the Napier Pirate Rugby Club colours in winter.

Falcon, a former Lindisfarne College pupil, made his debut for the Magpies last winter.

Mikaele-Tu'u is a former Hastings Boys High product and last season's Magpie who is returning for his second stint with the Baby Blacks.

The team have 13 returning members, nine with Manchester World Cup experience last year.

Put the selections under a microscope and that sense of worthiness is magnified tenfold when zeroing in on a province the size of Hawke's Bay, nurturing four in one season compared with Super Rugby-heavy metropolitan centres such as Auckland, Wellington, Canterbury, Waikato and Otago.

"For the size of Hawke's Bay it's a heck of a lot. We've got four guys into a group of 30 and, I think, Auckland have seven, Canterbury have six so we're right up there amongst it which is great."

For the record, Wellington have five, Waikato three and Otago one.

Philpott is jetting off with his entourage to the Gold Coast on Saturday, April 22.

The traditional haj of setting up a camp in Auckland isn't possible this time because of the World Masters Games to be staged there.

"We normally spend five or six days there before we go but we can't because ... 25,000 people from around the world are arriving there so we've decided to go straight to the Gold Coast."

The Baby Blacks, who will be based at the Bond University campus, play Fiji first up on April 28 but Philpott was in the dark about the Fiji team's composition.

"They are a little unknown so I'm not sure where they are picking their guys from around New Zealand and Australia as well."

Last year the tourney went into recess so the Kiwis played a two-test series against the hosts, prevailing in one and stumbling in the other.

It's no different this time with Philpott expecting the strongest shove from the Ockers, on May 6.

"Samoa [May 2] are really interesting because they have come up to the World Cup for the first time in a couple of years so there were 12 teams playing in the cup.

"They dropped out of that but won the tier-two tournament last year in South Africa so they're pretty keen to put their best foot forward in Australia."

He said some players who missed out on the Baby Blacks would be included in the Samoan equation.

After the Oceania tourney, which also involves Australia and Samoa, the players will be whittled down by two and they will be away for a month from late May into June for the World Cup in Georgia.

"All those guys will continue to do their normal things except they will just take some time off," he said.

All would have the opportunity to impress with equal game time.

Luke Jacobson, of Waikato, will be at the helm as captain and Jordie Barrett, of Taranaki, will be the team's vice-captain.

NZ SQUAD

FORWARDS: Harrison Allan (Canterbury), Asafo Aumua (Wellington), Sam Caird (Waikato), Adrian Choat (Auckland), Tom Christie (Canterbury), Ryan Coxon (Waikato), Tim Farrell (Hawke's Bay), Alex Fidow (Wellington), Luke Jacobson (c, Waikato), Ezekiel Lindenmuth (Auckland), Marino Mikaele-Tu'u (Hawke's Bay), Dalton Papalii (Auckland), Jacob Pierce (Auckland), John JP Sauni (Auckland), Samuel Slade (Auckland), Pouri Rakete-Stones (Hawke's Bay), Isaia Walker-Leawere (Wellington).

BACKS: Jordie Barrett (vc, Taranaki), Caleb Clarke (Auckland), Ereatara Enari (Canterbury), Braydon Ennor (Canterbury), Tima Faingaanuku (Tasman), Tiaan Falcon (Hawke's Bay), Will Jordan (Canterbury), Kemara Hauiti-Parapara (Wellington), Orbyn Leger (Counties-Manukau), Josh McKay (Canterbury), Jona Nareki (Otago), Carlos Price (Wellington), Tamati Tua (Northland).