2019 Rugby World Cup: Will Greenwood's guide to the All Blacks - strengths and weaknesses of New Zealand's starting XV

Kieran Read leads the haka. Photo / Photosport

Having beaten Australia 40-16 in their quarter-final in Oita, England now face the towering obstacle of a World Cup semi-final against New Zealand.

The All Blacks have not lost a World Cup match since 2007 and have been world champions twice this decade. England have to be considered underdogs, even if Eddie Jones has claimed that "pressure is chasing the All Blacks down the street".

But who will run the show for New Zealand, and who do England need to keep an especially keen eye on?

From 1 to 15, this is how Rugby World Cup winner Will Greenwood sees the All Blacks' starting XV.

15. Beauden Barrett

New Zealand's Beauden Barrett. Photo / Photosport

Supremely talented. Not a lot else you can say. Pick him anywhere, give him the ball and let him play. He defends well and doesn't shirk his tackles, and is happy under the high ball and distributes nicely. All hunky dory so far.

But give him the ball in space and he is utterly brilliant – he scores himself, assists, is good with both feet, beats defenders with pace and balance and has ball control at speed off both hands. He is the Lionel Messi of rugby. He doesn't win every game he plays, but you are watching a true global superstar.

14. Sevu Reece

Hansen understands partnerships and game time. There are four Crusaders in the backline, lads who were not playing for the All Blacks two years ago.

You are not supposed to have four lads with just 60-odd caps between them picked for the knockout stages. But Hansen trusts his experience to pick guys he thinks are ready.

Reece has been in blistering form in Super Rugby and has carried that form onto the big stage. His insane, dancing, power-packed feet could beat you in a phone box – he has a jump step that Jason Robinson would be proud of – but he is also decent in the air for a short lad.

They haven't picked him for his kicking game – instead, he is another they have picked for being able to rip you apart if you defend badly with poor spacings between defenders or any form of dog leg.

13. Jack Goodhue

What a story. He hasn't exactly come from nowhere but to usurp Ryan Crotty and to have Sonny Bill on the bench behind him tells you the faith Steve Hansen has in this lad.

I have absolutely loved watching him play for the last couple of years – this is a rugged, hard, tough defender. Even if you think you are past him, he will find a way to launch himself and grab a sock, a shirt end, anything that will drag you down.

The combination he has with Anton Lienert-Brown is awesome – it is so tough to split them or get around them. He also runs awesome angles with the ball, really taking people on, seeing space early.

He does not have blistering pace but he is so aware of body movement and angles that he will regularly get past the first defender and suck another in and then offload. And that's when the defence is in trouble. England have their hands full with this pair.

12. Anton Lienert-Brown

All Blacks centre Anton Lienert-Brown. Photo / Getty

Made a couple of mistakes against Ireland but they were collectors' items as he is a brilliant defender. He is not blessed with insane pace, but having to operate against fast men in Super Rugby means he has had to work out angles and the art of deception. He is a balanced defender on both shoulders and doesn't buy daft decoys. He stays square and hits hard then shifts and supports from the inside if his man doesn't get the ball.

He is rarely static on a rugby field and very good with ball in hand. Square to defenders, he makes you defend him. If you don't, he powers through weak shoulders and offloads if needed or, if he finds space, links with faster men quickly and stays in support.

Lienert-Brown is technically very good at breakdowns and was happy to win penalties on his own line against South Africa when he knew it was going to hurt whether he got the ball or not.

Just to add to the mix, he is also probably the best offloader in the world – even better than Sonny Bill and Leone Nakarawa.

11. George Bridge

It was some statement by Steve Hansen to drop Rieko Ioane – the wing king for two years – for Bridge. He is not the same physical specimen as Ioane, with his socks down, longish hair and languid running style. But do not be fooled. What a footballer he is.

Bridge has complete awareness of what is going on and knows where his 14 teammates are at all times.

Solid defensively, he certainly does his job, but it is when the All Blacks have the ball that he comes alive. He often leaves the ball for two or three phases, and boasts a telepathic understanding of where the ball is likely to end up. He is like an old-fashioned goalpoacher in football.

If any kid wants to know about positional play and game awareness, they should just watch Bridge off the ball. He is always ready and waiting for his chance.

10. Richie Mo'unga

Richie Mo'unga of the All Blacks runs through drills. Photo / Photosport

Mo'unga was not universally welcomed in New Zealand – or not initially, at least. He had to convince some that he could control a game and not just play fast and loose.

It was meant to be Damian McKenzie at full-back with Beauden Barrett at 10, but injury to McKenzie necessitated Barrett's move to full-back. Many thought it was an error to move Barrett that far away from the action but Mo'unga has backed himself and his style.

He is a little matador on the advantage line, and there is no doubt that, with game time and the opportunity to impress, Richie has stepped up to the plate.

There will be a question mark over his goalkicking until he smacks over a tricky one on Saturday. But if you leave half a gap around the fringes he is gone. Magical ball handler.

9. Aaron Smith

The noise levels, and often the pitch of his commands on the field, would crack windows. He is just a ball of incessant noise, probably the loudest scrum-half I have ever heard (and he is up against some stiff competition).

Smith is always cajoling, urging, screaming at his big men, who duly follow his command with complete trust.

He delivers a laser-guided pass that would take the skin off the hands of a normal human and plays with such tempo when given front-foot ball, you simply cannot reorganise, or reset. The ball is just gone too quickly, with Smith following swiftly behind.

He is occasionally troubled by defenders with his kicking game but when he is on the front foot, he is just poetry in motion – all flow, continuity and rhythm.

1. Joe Moody

Like Kyle Sinckler, he looks far too much like a centre when handling the ball. Moody epitomises how far rugby has moved on – he has an awesome skill level, but doesn't play fancy. He is happy to tip on to men who are in space but just as happy filling space and taking the gain line away from sides with very low, shoulder-leading body angles attacking defenders' inside shoulders.

The All Blacks are happy to go through you as well as round you and Moody puts in a shift. He is also a major factor in why the All Black scrum and line-out is rock solid. Like most looseheads he doesn't grab headlines, but he is absolutely class.

2. Codie Taylor

There was a time when Taylor had the number 16 on his back as he served as understudy to Dane Coles, the global superstar. Now the roles are reversed. Steve Hansen is awesome at promoting from within, nurturing talent, giving opportunities where form demands and Taylor certainly falls into that category.

He is hugely athletic, a ball of muscle, and plays a little more direct than Coles, who is more akin to an extra flanker in his positional play in the loose. Taylor is always close to the ball, between the 15m lines in the middle of the park. Coles, by contrast, likes to play out on the extremities. Both are rock solid with their line-out darts.

3. Nepo Laulala

Nepo Laulala. Photo / Photosport

Another all-court All Black. New Zealand don't pick players who aren't comfortable with the ball in hand – they pick players on what they can do and then teach them to be the best in their position. Besides, when your brother is Casey Laulala you are always going to be comfortable throwing a ball around.

The other side of his game is excellent, too, and when New Zealand have needed a square scrum to launch from – as in their big games against South Africa and Ireland in this World Cup – Laulala has delivered.

4. Brodie Retallick

One of the big learnings from New Zealand's epic fails at World Cups was 'don't take unfit players'. Fully fit, fully functioning players allow the team to be better, no matter the skill of the individual. The All Blacks were relentless in that.

Retallick forces you to throw away the textbook. When he is fit, Retallick plays and New Zealand tend to win. He is an exceptional line-out talent, an incredibly intelligent rugby player who is happy to put his shoulder to the wheel but also happy to play what is in front of him. In short, he is the closest I have seen to Martin Johnson in the years I have spent watching in terms of impact, control, empathy, energy and sheer bloody-mindedness.

5. Samuel Whitelock

Sam Whitelock. Photo / Photosport

If Retallick gets all the plaudits, then Whitelock doesn't mind. In that sense, he is a classic Kiwi: an understated family man who just gets on with things. No whooping and hollering – just one of life's 'doers'.

He is less athletic than Retallick, and more akin to an old-fashioned second row. He doesn't want to be a hybrid and doesn't want to be looked upon as an extra back row forward.

Instead, he wants to jump up and down in line-outs, bend over and push in scrums, hit things at rucks, carry hard and tackle close to breakdowns.

He has well over 100 caps for the All Blacks in the second row, which is an insane achievement, and is now going for his third winner's medal. This bloke doesn't tend to lose, either.

6. Scott Barrett

Has had a brilliant World Cup after a tough summer having cost the All Blacks the game when he was sent off against Australia. He has since been uber-disciplined. He's great under the high ball and amazing at restarts - one of his keys to being picked as England are so dangerous at imposing pressure from kick-offs.

He also offers a tremendous ball-carrying and running option and he has great hands plus a turn of pace you would expect from a back row, although he is definitely a second row at heart.

The All Blacks' footballing ability increases with him in the side, though their jackling threat is slightly diminished with Barrett in the team ahead of Sam Cane. He also offers yet another lineout option, with everyone from Nos 4-8 able to jump. But that's not the only reason he has been selected, with his ability to put England on the back foot with and without the ball likely to be central to New Zealand's approach.

7. Ardie Savea

This is where you need Bill McClaren. With his remarkable legs, arms, knees, energy, drive, power and action, Bill would have a field day with Ardie.

He is seemingly out of control but with time he has learned to understand when to use the limitless enthusiasm and when to have control. A man who always used to be one ruck away from a yellow card, he is so much more disciplined now.

Deployed at 6, he is given a free rein to cause chaos with and without the ball. While Sam Cane and Kieran Read do the workman-like bits and pieces, Savea gets to do the fun stuff – like packing down at 8 on All Black ball in many attacking scrums in order to explode from the base and give opposing fly halves nightmares. If Savea beats Tom Curry away from the scrum and gets to Owen Farrell, expect a monstrous impact between two lads who don't back down.

His stamina is sensational, too – he was still winning turnovers against Ireland in the wide channels late on, which led to the George Bridge try. He also won some big turnovers in the win against South Africa and had some massive runs that combined footwork with power.

8. Kieran Read

All Blacks captain Kieran Read. Photo / Getty

You are not supposed to be such a nice bloke when you are an All Black captain and number 8. There is supposed to be edge, and bite, but Read lets his rugby do the talking.

He is supremely fair when the All Blacks lose but he is also a supreme competitor. Very tough at the breakdown, he is also a great line-out option and is happy to play second fiddle to Savea if they want a man with more athleticism at the base of the scrum. The team always comes first, always.

He runs outstanding lines off his 9 or 10 and has the ability to stand flat on the gain line, invite big defenders onto him and then, with a gentle wrist flick, pass the ball into the space to his side and allow a fast travelling All Black to punch a hole. Real skill.

The only error I seem to remember him making was overchasing Liam Williams in the first Lions Test in 2017, which led to the tourists going the length of the field. It was a rare switch-off moment that led to Sean O'Brien's wonder try.