Richard Loe: It's not a true All Black team so don't give them test caps

COMMENT


The touring rugby team to Europe should be called a New Zealand 'A' side. Or it could be called the All Blacks but caps should not be given for the matches as many people feel it is not our strongest side.

That's the only conclusion I can come to after the recent controversy over the naming of the All Black team and the debate over the cheapening of the All Black jersey. I reached that conclusion after hearing (former All Black and current selector) Wayne Smith being interviewed and asked whether he felt the jersey had been cheapened.

He would not answer yes or no. He said something like: "There are procedures we are putting in place and we are working through them."

Pardon? I think he knows better but was striving to avoid answering the question. Wayne was an All Black. He knows what the jersey means. With all due respect - and I mean no disrespect - to Graham Henry and Steve Hansen, they were never All Blacks.

It is not just gnarled old, retired prop forwards who feel like this. Justin Marshall knows too. He doesn't like being left out of one. Grant Fox and Murray Mexted have also spoken out about this.

I have gear bags full of All Black jerseys. Those jerseys are mine. I earned them. I have given the odd one away, sure, to clubs and other deserving recipients. But I have always guarded them carefully. In a three-test series, I might swap one with an opponent but I'd generally keep the other two. I know what it took to earn them.

All Blacks understand this. They are aware of the philosophy or the culture that goes with them. It is something that, if you want it, you have to go out and earn it. Most past All Blacks feel the same way and they feel cheapened when the jerseys are awarded in this way.

Again, I want to make it clear that I am not saying Henry and Hansen are bad coaches or do not have the ability. Far from it. You do not have to be an All Black to be a good coach. But I think you understand the hornet's nest this has stirred up better if you were an All Black. I just think they have mis-read this one. It doesn't mean that All Blacks always make good coaches either. But a coach like Laurie Mains, for example, was always able to talk very knowledgeably about what being an All Black means and the fact that you are not just playing for your country - but all the guys who wore that jersey ahead of you.

When I started playing for the All Blacks, it was the era of Gary Knight and John Ashworth coming to a close. I idolised them. They passed on that jersey to me. Then, when it was my turn to go, I passed the jersey on to Craig Dowd and Olo Brown.

It's not as if the solution is very hard. Call them the New Zealand "A" team or even call them the All Blacks. But do not give them caps for the matches against Italy, Wales and France.

There's nothing wrong with development - in fact it's essential - but let's not do it at the expense of our heritage and the tradition of the black jersey.

In the 1980s, I went away to Japan with an All Black team. Japan received caps for playing against us but we didn't get caps. I see nothing wrong with that arrangement. So what if the opponents get caps for playing against the All Blacks?


- THE HERALD ON SUNDAY