'Bolter' pick Dallas McLeod on his 'unsettling' All Blacks debut

When Dallas McLeod was asked for his definition of a bolter he paused, then laughed and said, "I guess I am a bolter."

The Canterbury and Crusaders midfield back made his All Blacks debut in the tense 23-20 victory against Australia on August 5.

Having spent most of Super Rugby covering injury on the wing, McLeod ironically replaced befallen Crusaders teammate Braydon Ennor at centre moments before halftime in Dunedin.

The All Blacks were down 17-3. The critic's surprise pick was being thrust into a furnace.

"I obviously wanted to make the original squad but never thought I would," McLeod admitted to RugbyPass.

"I wasn't expecting to go on that early in my debut but I was glad I managed to get out there and then it was halftime.

"It was a bit unsettling personally. All this adrenaline built up and then there was a break.

"The dressing room was calm. We hadn't fired any shots so we talked about holding onto the ball and building pressure. Defensively we focused on chop tackles, stopping the Aussie momentum .

"I just tried to do my role as best I could. I had a lot of support around me. When we got that penalty I knew Riche (Mo'unga) would get it. He does that all the time in the Crusaders."

McLeod didn't make the All Blacks World Cup squad but he was told the coaches were satisfied with his five-week contribution in the Rugby Championship.

His form hasn't tapered off. Playing for Canterbury against North Harbour in the NPC, he scored a try and delivered a pass in the grasp of multiple tacklers that created the winning try for former All Black No 8 Cullen Grace.

"I see myself as a midfielder. I'm a big body so if I can use that to straighten the attack or draw in defenders to create space outside I can be a threat," McLeod said.

Those qualities were illustrated emphatically on March 18 when he starred at second five in a Crusaders Super Rugby 34-28 victory over the Blues at Eden Park.

By April the Crusaders were faced with a mounting injury crisis. Too valuable to drop, McLeod was permanently relocated to the wing and played half of his 14 games on the right side as the Crusaders captured yet another title.

"I'd hardly played on the wing before so it was definitely a challenge," McLeod said.

"Defensively you're a lot wider and often the last line so you have to anticipate faster.

"Kicking long from the backfield wasn't something I'd done much of before and the attacking support lines are different.

"I was lucky I had Wil Jordan supporting me."

"The hardest opponents were the Chiefs. Their back three are all ridiculously quick and have great feet. Etene Nanai-Seturo, his sidestep is insane."

Unfortunately for McLeod his final in Hamilton against the Chiefs ended early when he was concussed in a reckless tackle by Anton Lienert-Brown.

McLeod loves talking about his home, Methven, a small town near the western edge of the Canterbury Plains, 35km north of Ashburton and 95km west of Christchurch.

The town slogan is "Amazing Space.” One pub is Brown (founded in 1883), and the other pub is Blue (founded in 1918).  Rajah, New Zealand's first police dog was from Methven. A bronze statue of Rajah sits outside the Mt Hutt Function Centre.

“It was a cool place to grow up. Very family-orientated with a lot of rugby going on at the club. I remember running around as a little fella, in a frost, in bare feet, and getting chips and lollies at the end of the game,” McLeod reminisced.

“We lived on a lifestyle block. Dad built some goalposts in the backyard. All I wanted to do was be a rugby player.”

Dad Dave owns a building business and mum Julianne is a school teacher.

Grandfather ‘Stalky’ McLeod played 56 games on the wing for Mid Canterbury between 1947 and 1956. Uncle Alan made 74 appearances at five-eighth from 1978 to 1989.

The local high school struggled for numbers so seeking greater recognition for his talent McLeod relocated to Ashburton College initially and then accepted a scholarship to Christ’s College in 2016.

A year earlier they’d lost their annual interschool fixture 80-0 to Christchurch Boys’ High School, Will Jordan scored four tries in the game.

“Ashburton beat them too,” McLeod laughed.

“Christ’s really sorted things out in 2016. We had Reuben Thorne as a coach. He’s a legend. The opportunities I got at Christ’s were huge.”

Christ’s made the semi-finals of the Crusaders-wide First XV championship and won their annual quadrangular tournament for the first time since 2002.

McLeod was Canterbury Under 19 Player of the Year in 2018 and a New Zealand Under 20’s representative. The 24-year-old has played 37 NPC games for Canterbury and won 25 times.