All Blacks forward pack prepare to scrum with the Lions. Photo / Brett Phibbs
All Blacks forward pack prepare to scrum with the Lions. Photo / Brett Phibbs
Where have all the great new All Black forwards gone?
Having picked over pundits' predicted All Black squads, two things stand out.
Firstly, New Zealand has riches in the backs other countries can only dream of.
Calls for a player such as Hurricane Matt Proctor to be included only highlightthis - he would have to oust Anton Lienert-Brown, Ngani Laumape, Jack Goodhue or Sonny Bill Williams. Somebody very good or with amazing potential is going to miss out.
SBW's gorgeous pass for a try against the Hurricanes - looping the ball no-look into an almost invisible gap while two defenders clutched at him - was worth the price you pay for watching the hopeless Blues.
Rugby has its issues, absolutely, but they shouldn't cloud the magic which often takes place on the field. New Zealand backs can score tries by the bucket load that would have won awards decades ago.
Take out the majority of likely starters and this could be the All Black backline:
That lot would do serious damage in any company, even if they are yet to hit their prime.
The last great All Black forward discovery - Joe Moody scores his outrageous try against the Waratahs. Photo / Photosport
Secondly, it just doesn't look nearly as healthy in the forwards. Returning Crusader Joe Moody, now under serious threat of suspension for an appalling hit on the Waratahs' jack-in-the-box Kurtley Beale, may be the last great test forward to emerge since his debut in 2014.
From a possible All Black squad, this could be a back-up pack:
Tim Perry, Nathan Harris, Ofa Tu'ungafasi, Scott Barrett, Patrick Tuipulotu, Ardie Savea, Vaea Fifita, Akira Ioane.
I wouldn't trust that lot to do the job against South Africa, Ireland or even England in its current state.
Raw strike power is unfortunately matched by a serious lack of proven ability or potential in the trenches. That loose forward trio could misfire all over the place. Barrett is a lightweight lock, and Tuipulotu's head just doesn't seem in the game at times although his power running potential is enormous.
Apart from the 29-year-old late blooming Moody, who may have just enough time left to go down as one of the greats, only Liam Squire has emerged as a big test prospect. For whatever reasons he could hardly be labelled a test winner yet.
The mighty forwards of recent years - including current pack members Brodie Retallick, Sam Whitelock and Kieran Read - are completely unchallenged, even on the horizon.
Hooker Codie Taylor, with a very small x-factor, versus the disparate charms of Keven Mealamu or Andrew Hore or the wondrous Dane Coles. No contest, unfortunately.
Is modern Super Rugby at fault, or were we just lucky with the class of McCaw, Retallick and co.? Or am I failing to understand how good Taylor, Perry, Harris, Barrett and co. can be?
Brodie Retallick celebrates his try with Richie McCaw during the 2015 Rugby World Cup Quarter-Final. Photo / Photosport
Furthermore, promoting England recruit Brad Shields as the one who got away has a whiff of cause célèbre...he is not on the same planet as Jerome Kaino or Read. Yes, Jordan Taufua has the spirit, but he's also on the small side.
Elsewhere, Sam Cane is a fabulous number seven, a strongman whose effort-to-effect ratio is as good as it gets. But Richie McCaw was in the man-of-the-match vicinity almost every game he played, and Cane isn't in that class. Ardie Savea is the antithesis of Cane, his amazing energy misdirected at times in the best company.
The day the All Blacks require trench warfare to save a test is the day Akira Ioane will be found out. I still find it hard to believe he will be picked, but that is the drum beat.
Only the mobile loosehead Moody has raised the bar, although his raised arm against Beale was an act of outright thuggery demanding a red card. It is an indictment on the game that he was allowed to then score a try and probably cost the Waratahs victory.
Still, Moody's return, even if it will go on another hold, is a massive big boost for the All Blacks as they prepare for the arrival of France, Twickenham and beyond next year.
Or as one TV commentator opined on another matter over the weekend, the coaches will sigh a breath of relief.
