Ben Smith scores a try during the All Blacks' win over Namibia. Photo / Getty
Ben Smith scores a try during the All Blacks' win over Namibia. Photo / Getty
To paraphrase the old saying, there are few certainties in life apart from death, taxes and a good performance from All Black Ben Smith.
Smith, like the rest of his teammates, was frustrated at the stop-start nature of the match against Namibia which allowed the tier two nation to controlthe pace of the game and marshal a tiring defence, but he, just about more than anyone, took full advantage of the space that was available.
Coming on at fullback in the 52nd minute once Colin Slade went off with a tight hamstring, Smith was quickly at his best with the ball - especially in broken play where he must rate as one of the best runners in the game.
It is a comfort for the All Blacks selectors to know what they will get from him, no matter the importance of the game, and that's why he has become one of the first names on the team sheet for a big test.
There will be much bigger tests to come for the All Blacks in the near future, but whereas some of his teammates ran into contact and pushed needless passes, Smith played in his usual heads-up style which reaped benefits for himself and his team. Despite being on the field for only 28 minutes, he carried the ball five times for 46m, beat five defenders and scored a try.
Afterwards he paid credit to Namibia's defence for limiting the All Blacks to nine tries in the 58-14 victory.
"They did really well at reading our play and shutting down from the outside. A couple of times when we got phases together we looked a lot better so that's probably our work-on - to be a bit more patient and the opportunities will come.
"We have to try to get some fluidity in our game so we can put teams under pressure."
Another who impressed was right wing Nehe Milner-Skudder. The little Hurricanes player scored two first-half tries - the first with his footwork and the second with his finishing in the right corner - and he generally had a happier time of it than four days ago against Argentina at Wembley Stadium.
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"He scored a couple of great tries and he's got some great footwork," Smith said. "It was good to see him dot down and get the ball in his hands because he's so dangerous when he does."
After going through a spell of not scoring in three tests, Julian Savea scored two tries to improve his remarkable tally to 32 in 37 matches.
Image 1 of 7: Nehe Milner-Skudder dives over to score the All Blacks' second try. Photo / Brett Phibbs
"I was just trying to get involved as much as I could," he said. "It's good to dot down, but I'm just trying to do what I can for the team first.
"They put a lot of pressure on and we made a lot of errors. I guess for our skillset and standards it probably wasn't good enough for us."
As for Sonny Bill Williams' freakish ability to get the ball away under pressure, Savea said: "He's a special talent - being able to get the ball away with four defenders on him is helpful to us so I'm glad he's on our side."
