KEY POINTS:
Luke McAlister's brilliant no-look pass to Isaia Toeava on Saturday night was also - if I'm reading the All Black selectors right - a sighter of future test backlines.
It's both an exciting and scary thought that somewhere in the masterplan lies this concept, that the All Blacks
will try to further impose themselves by encouraging capers in the middle of the backline. At the moment, you could envisage the All Blacks cutting all and sundry to ribbons with those two again wearing the test 12 and 13 jerseys, as easily as you could imagine hanging your head in despair as another test goes west.
You have to give McAlister and Toeava this - they are part of an exhilaratingly new rugby generation where thrilling devilment often tries to trump good sense. You don't know whether to laugh or cry sometimes, but deep into sport's entertainment age, the difficult art of rugby is more than capable of holding its own despite the constant whingeing and inadequacies concerning rules and referees.
Saturday night's Super 14 match at Eden Park between the jazzy Blues and the colourless Reds offered up teams from opposite ends of the Australasian rugby spectrum.
From the moment Eddie Jones' Reds fronted the Hurricanes in Brisbane it was clear that the former Wallaby coach had gone back to ground zero to rebuild a shattered side. The Reds didn't run out of the tunnel all night.
If Jones trained his charges down a corridor in the off-season, he's only widened the gameplan by a lick of paint since. Opponents can call Jones on his trench warfare because while he has a decent pack, he's got few cards to play in the backs.
Not so David Nucifora's Blues.
There was a time when most Blues' chicanery was wrapped up in the No 10. Following the departure of Carlos Spencer, the rapid demise of Tasesa Lavea, and flirtation with McAlister, there has been a personality shift. Isa Nacewa looks like a nightclub act but he's the veritable platform on which McAlister and Toeava can dance.
Nacewa is feeding his comrades, and running stylishly in support. Remember too that it was the first five-eighths who raced back to make a crucial tackle on runaway Crusader Scott Hamilton in the opening round at Eden Park. So the Spencer spirit has shifted along the backline.
Lying in wait is the possibility that McAlister - if he hangs around - and Toeava will be joined by David Smith, the gifted helter-skelter wing who somehow ended up with the Hurricanes this year. Add in Anthony Tuitavake and Joe Rokocoko and the Blues can have a backline to drive both friend and foe crazy.
Toeava is the twitchiest of footballers. He tends to snatch at the ball, often with his legs already jumping ahead. His ability to quickly transfer under pressure, which Wayne Smith so admires, is an undoing for now because he also spills more ball than an All Black centre should.
But the way he danced through the Reds was a joy to behold. Memorably, his long-angled run to create a try involved a casual dodge of a retreating Queensland forward who kept chugging back in search of a game he could still understand, rather than bother trying to lay a hand on Toeava.
It is impossible to say whether Toeava will be good enough to eventually translate his game to test rugby. At the moment the answer is no, judging by what he produced in the black jersey last year. You wouldn't even bet on him against the full strength Crusaders, who gobble most snap, crackle and pop opponents for breakfast.
For now, Toeava lacks a power game and commanding personality to fall back on when the tricks of his trade don't work against the big boys, although those are qualities that may develop.
The All Black selectors erred in pushing him ahead so soon. It risked damaging his confidence and step-by-step development. Their overly-stout defence of his abilities lacked the credibility which should be retained for test judgments even in these head-spinning days of player rotation. Toeava is having to start again, but at least the signs look promising in that his verve remains intact, his spirit undiminished. At 96kg, he plays a game below his bulk, but at least he has the frame to build a test game.
The great news is that this brilliant talent has been returned to his home Super 14 side, and we have a truly magical prospect in store.
The Queensland coach would take a vow of silence to have such brilliance on his side. Jones' wallet has been lightened, and his heart may be a little heavier after experiencing first hand the Super 14 riches in other stores.
In the end, the All Blacks may find that Toeava is too flimsy for the best test rugby, although let's hope not. It may become a balancing act, of gloriously good against moments of bad, as with Ma'a Nonu.
The fascinating part to the Toeava case is whether or not he represents a joyful shift away from the bludgeoning styles of Tana Umaga and Stirling Mortlock, and the cold-blooded efficiency of a Mils Muliaina at centre.
Enough of all this crystal ball gazing though. With a bit of luck and good management, it is time to sit back and revel in watching a magical young footballer reaching his prime.
