KEY POINTS:
Most of the All Blacks avoided coach Graham Henry before he revealed his World Cup quarter-final side, hiding in bushes or doorways if they saw the supremo heading towards them at their base in the Cardiff countryside.
None wanted the "got a minute, bud" or a tap on
the shoulder which usually means Henry is the bearer of bad selection news.
Mils Muliaina was caught, however, in no-man's land when he turned and found Henry bearing down on him. The coach just grinned as he walked by, muttered "13" and was on his way.
It was a tense time for the squad after they relocated from the warmth of Toulouse to the
cooler Cardiff. Most preferred to wait for the announcement in the team room, taking the accolades or disappointment in the company of their teammates.
Henry later conceded the final choice for the test against France involved some of the hardest decisions in his four years as coach alongside Steve Hansen, Wayne Smith and Sir Brian Lochore.
"When you are associated with a group for a long time, you know them well and they had all put their hands up and played well," said Henry.
The job done, Henry said he was later quizzed by his wife Raewyn, who he whimsically refers to as the fifth selector.
"She had all the questions you guys did about the midfield, wings, lock - just another hurdle for me to jump," he grinned.
Henry confessed he spent more time than usual mulling over all the alternatives with a full squad of 30 to choose from until Sione Lauaki's two match ban was confirmed.
He had to identify the players and combinations best suited to tangle with France and he allowed a little glance ahead to make sure the best workload was achieved.
The backs, he said, involved the most awkward decisions. He thought any of the 14 on tour could have been chosen.
"In the forwards, there is a bit of a gap between some of the first and second players but we have a great situation," he added. "This is the right side for France. It may not be the same next week."
Lock Keith Robinson had been chosen for a variety of reasons. Primarily he was a test-hardened forward who had a presence about his play and would compete massively in the set piece and murky areas, despite only 55 minutes of rugby on tour because of a calf tear.
"If he didn't play in this test, he wouldn't have played for the rest of the tour," Henry concluded. "We want all three of our locks to play and it is better to start with Keith than bring him off the bench."
Sitiveni Sivivatu and Joe Rokocoko had outstanding strike rates in tests and were the appropriate choice for this quarter-final.
Henry said Sivivatu brought the unpredictable splash of flair to his game, while Rokocoko was all pace and power and had a strong chasing game. Some like Aaron Mauger and Doug Howlett had to miss out on the bench because of their comparative lack of versatility.
Daniel Carter, Muliaina and Leon MacDonald were all cleared to play after their leg injuries, although Carter was on light duties and will not be asked to fully test his damaged calf until later this week.
If he does not last, Nick Evans is his probable replacement. He had made enormous progress in this campaign, although Henry said he was not considered to start at either five-eighths or fullback.
The claims of the two fullbacks were too strong for Henry to ignore so he switched Muliaina to centre.
"We have picked the best team for this test. Mils is class at 15 or 13 and he is relaxed about it."
So relaxed he could not come up with the names of any star rival centres when he offered a throwaway line about the quality of centres at the tournament. He ended up in a similar tangle with the identities of opposition fullbacks before wisely suggesting he had some video analysis to complete.
