Eight talking points from the Rugby Championship test in Wellington.
The toughest part to watch, followed by the best news
Steve Hansen, asked if the 16-all draw with the Springboks in Wellington had been a tough watch for him, replied that no, it hadn't been, although "the last couple ofseconds had been a tough watch." Even worse, you can bet, would have been the sight in the 60th minute of Brodie Retallick leaving the field with a serious shoulder injury. Retallick and Sam Whitelock are the best locking pair the All Blacks have had in the last 50 years. Usually there's been a hard nut (think Brad Thorn or Robin Brooke) and an athlete (think Gary Whetton or Ian Jones). Retallick and Whitelock both provide the lot in one package. The discovery that Retallick may still be running out at the World Cup trumps everything else for the All Blacks from the weekend.
If you were there you know the old days weren't actually always better
Amongst international rugby coaches, South Africa's Rassie Erasmus is the sunny Yin to Michael Cheika's dark Yang. There was just one try from each team in Wellington, where rush defences saw both sides, especially in the first half, constantly fumbling the ball, and Mexican waves, a sure side of boredom, started 20 minutes into the game. But Erasmus, whose heart is always worn right on his sleeve said that for him the intensity made the test an enjoyable one. "I guess in test match rugby you used to see just one or two tries, and games were decided by three points or so. We're getting back to that." As nice a bloke as Erasmus appears to be, I truly hope he's wrong. Go way back in the time tunnel to the 1960s and you'll find almost every damned test was a three or six point margin arm wrestle. Only a Stephen Jones could yearn for a return to those dour days. The rest of us would lose the will to live.
On the other hand, if you want excitement, there's Beauden Barrett
Richie Mo'unga and Beauden Barrett provided a two-pronged attack for the All Blacks. Photo / Getty Images
Barrett at fullback and Richie Mo'unga at first-five is, as assistant coach Ian Foster noted, still a work in progress for the All Blacks. But two things were reinforced. One, that Mo'unga is strong-minded enough to believe that if things go wrong, as they did when he had two kicks charged down early in the test, that "once it happens it doesn't matter anymore." As the game went on he played with the command he's shown so often with the Crusaders. Barrett at fullback was outstanding from the outset. On defence he was superb under the high ball, and it was entirely fitting that it was his blistering speed, gassing Springbok wing, Makazole Mapimpi, that set up the 36th minute try for Jack Goodhue.
With that haircut Paula Bennett would shout him a Waitakere Daiquiri (a jug of rum and coke) in a heartbeat
It's a measure of Jack Goodhue's independence that he went to Christchurch in 2014 when he was 19 with no rugby contract, but to study agricultural science at Lincoln University. "It may be hard to believe," he told me last year, "but it was basically the degree that took me to Christchurch." He's comfortable enough in his own shoes to be the last man with a mullet flapping in the All Blacks, and on the field, at just 24, his talents instantly bring to mind two key men wearing the 13 jersey in past World Cup victories. As Joe Stanley did in 1987, and Conrad Smith did in 2011 and 2015, Goodhue offers intense physicality, steered by exceptional intelligence.
First there was this guy from Kurow, then one popped up from Reporoa
Matt Todd always plays his heart out, and in Wellington the 31-year-old was a machine, recovering from a knock in the back to see out the 80 minutes at full speed. It's been Todd's cross to bear that he first made an All Black squad in 2007 as a back-up to Richie McCaw, and then saw Sam Cane emerge as the new openside flanker. Coach Hansen feels Todd's pain. "That (2007) is a long time ago, and he's always been reliable." It's a measure of how tough the road has been for Todd that the test against South Africa was just his 18th in 13 seasons, and only his fifth start. There's not a player in New Zealand who would deserve a last hurrah in Japan more.
A front rower tells it exactly how it is
At a press conference after the test I asked Dane Coles if he could explain to people like me (and, I suspect, most referees) exactly how different front row contact was under the new law interpretations. Coles, on the field again looking his old darting, dynamic self, summed it up in terms everyone can understand. "it used to be a constant pressure. Now it's more like.. (smacking a fist into a palm).. that."
Why the selectors like Sonny Bill
Sonny Bill Williams was solid in his All Blacks return. Photo / Getty Images
As professional rugby has evolved, it's taken on several elements from league, which is why, for example, Graham Henry had Wayne Bennett talk to his All Black squad as they regrouped after the disaster at the 2007 World Cup. Tackling round the legs, now called a chop tackle, is often the second option to a high tackle, as the chop gives a runner the chance to unload. Sonny Bill Williams didn't set the world on fire in his 58 minutes in Wellington, but he walked off unscathed, which was probably the most important thing, and he got the chance to show that there probably isn't a current international midfielder with such massive upper body strength. He was grabbing Springboks by their upper arms and flinging them to the ground. He must have at least be near the door of the plane for Japan.
After the Wallabies' 16-10 win over the Pumas in Brisbane the test in a fortnight in Perth between the All Blacks and Australia should be the time when (to quote Martin Lawrence in "Bad Boys 2") "this s*** got real." It'd be a surprise if the All Blacks didn't field their best possible team, and weird if the Wallabies didn't do the same. As Steve Hansen has said on many occasions, this year what matters is the World Cup. But he's also made it clear that lying in No 2 spot on the importance table is the Bledisloe Cup, so we could be in for a wild ride.
