Chris Rattue: The Richie Mo'unga-Beauden Barrett debate is now over

Damian McKenzie of the All Blacks celebrates with team mate Richie Mo'unga after scoring a try during the Rugby Championship and Bledisloe Cup match. Photo / Getty Images.

Chris Rattue lists 11 observations from the All Blacks' impressive win over the Wallabies at Eden Park.

1) Well, the Richie Mo'unga-Beauden Barrett No 10 debate should be well and truly over. It was always Mo'unga's time to take over. Life moves on, and the greatest days are gone for Barrett. At his best, he was about the most exhilarating rugby player I've seen, even if he never totally nailed it at the highest test level. Japan hasn't improved Barrett - to my eye, his reactions have slowed. He was no super-sub anymore on Saturday night.

Conversely, Mo'unga - who had another superb game - is a rising world beater. This is an old-fashioned view perhaps, but Mo'unga will get even better if he knows the No 10 jersey is absolutely his, and the team will also operate better with an established pivot. In other words, Barrett needs to accept he is no longer a No 10 starter when Mo'unga is fit.

2) The Springboks-Lions series produced the ugliest test rugby for a very long time. It took rugby trench warfare to a distressingly terrible level. The game devolved into a battle for scrum penalties. Backs, in the traditional sense, were redundant. But it will mean the 'Boks are battle hardened in a way the All Blacks won't be after playing the wan and frivolous Wallabies.

3) There was a little media flurry last week, aiming to get All Blacks coach Ian Foster an extended contract through to the 2023 World Cup. This was accompanied by a suggestion that the supposed impasse was unsettling senior All Blacks.

Those sorts of claims are pretty worthless unless players want to publicly put their name to them. And incumbent players often say they will back a coach - what else can they say?

There is a good reason why New Zealand Rugby should wait until the end of the season. They'll have a better idea then of whether Foster is up to the job, which is why he only got a two-year contract in the first place.

There is no need to rush or fear the need for a change. Quick-hit missions can actually be very successful. Rassie Erasmus was appointed Springboks coach in early 2018 and won the World Cup in style about 18 months later.

Very quiet Eden Park before the rugby test match between the All Blacks and Australia played at Eden Park. 14 August 2021 New Zealand Herald photograph by Dean Purcell.

4) The Wallabies will never consistently challenge the best until they find world-class locks. The blokes they are putting out at the moment are NPC level. They have a few holes in their operation, but that's the biggest by far.

5) Pandemic Era Sports Fatigue. I've got it. Nothing seems real - competitions feel contrived, on hold. It's hard to follow just where these rugby tests will be played, or even if they will be played. A half empty Eden Park didn't help. I also tried a couple of near vacant NRL games and couldn't get through them. A friend tells me it was fabulous to watch the English Premier League football kick off this weekend before full and vibrant houses.

6) When did the Wallabies become so stupid? They were undone by an intercept try in the first test, and still threw long, flat Hail Mary passes which led to two more disasters in the second. They didn't learn from Aaron Smith's short lineout trickery during the game either.

7) Speaking of Aaron Smith, he put on another masterclass. I'll always revere 1960/70s powerhouse "Super" Sid Going as a halfback like no other, but Smith is the best New Zealand has had, by a long way. He has played to a mainly exceptional level for a very long time, and often for big minutes in an exhausting position.

He was initially overshadowed on Saturday night though. Little Aussie livewire Tate McDermott had a fantastic start at Eden Park - I thought the Wallabies started to wilt when McDermott started to wilt.

And that's the thing about Smith - he goes at high speed and quality, and makes great decisions, over the long haul. McDermott, who is just 22 and has been schooled in the inferior Australian game, could turn into another great Wallaby halfback though. And they've had a fair few.

All Black player Sam Whitelock runs onto the field during the rugby test match between the All Blacks and Australia played at Eden Park. Photo / Dean Purcell.

8) I once publicly opined that pocket rocket wing Sevu Reece should have been stood down from All Black consideration for a period, to make a stand about violence against women. I still strongly believe this should have occurred. But his energy, strength and alertness are making him among the most crucial All Blacks. He's a sort of ignition point. When the going gets tough, Reece gets going.

9) A left field question - whatever happened to Ardie Savea's goggles? Trying out such a distracting item during the World Cup was very weird. Are they in a whacky sports museum somewhere?

10) IMO - Sam Whitelock is a more natural test captain than Sam Cane. I have no real evidence for this, just an impression. Just saying.

11) And finally…a rugby mantra. The fewer scrums (and all those pedantic scrum penalties and resets) the better. For the game…and probably the freewheeling All Blacks. Scrum penalties can turn test rugby into a lottery.