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'Their form has to be valued': Ex All Black says Super Rugby form deserves more selection weight
By Henry Lee
The first two rounds of Super Rugby Pacific have concluded, and there have been an abundance of impressive player performances from the Super Rugby New Zealand franchises.
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Some All Blacks have started the new campaign with a hiss and a roar, others have been eased into the action by their respective franchises.
All Blacks head coach Scott Robertson will be eagerly watching, preparing to name his squad for the first Tests of the year against France in July.
Former All Black Jeff Wilson thinks that Super Rugby form should be looked at as the biggest factor when selecting players for the All Blacks.
“So I look at the likes of Emoni Narawa and he played one Test match against Fiji in San Diego, and then all of a sudden, was almost released back into rugby,” Wilson said on The Breakdown.
“All of a sudden he wasn’t given another opportunity. He’s a guy that I think would have pushed to get a starting spot in the Rugby World Cup had it not been for his back injury. That’s how well he was playing.”
Wilson has also been impressed with Chiefs midfielder Quinn Tupaea, who scored a double on the weekend against the Crusaders on his 50th appearance for the Chiefs.
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“Narawa is in the same boat for me as a Quinn Tupaea. Tupaea looks like the old Quinn Tupaea, if anything, he looks bigger and stronger.
“He’s gone through some real adversity with the injury, but now he’s got confidence and I had a good chat with him after the game at Eden Park, and he feels as though he’s really comfortable, he’s confident.”
“Hoskins Sotutu, for example, the current Super Rugby Player of the Year. Their form has to be valued. What they do has to be watched.
“I’d like to think that the All Black team isn’t selected right now, that we’re looking at players who are going out, who haven’t been in the squad, maybe for a couple of years, or just had a taste and go, How do we get them the chance at the next level?”
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The 60-Test former All Black highlights that this must be an ongoing discussion, and that fringe All Blacks with Tests under their belt also need to be in the conversation.
“I think it’s guys like Finlay Christie who was let go out of the All Black environment, goes back and plays really well in the NPC.
“We’re talking 30 odd Test matches with Finlay Christie. I just think that this conversation needs to be deep.
“It needs to be ongoing, and there are players out there who have the skill set to play international rugby. We should not forget that. Just because it’s different in Super Rugby.
“We shouldn’t rule out the fact some guys show things that are special that other players can’t do, and we just have to keep talking about it.”
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I hoped that Razor would stop the “closed shop” approach of recent AB selectors however the vast majority of new caps last year were retirement or injury forced. I continue to hope for better this year….
Agreed with Wilson, until he mentioned Christie.
Yeah…What was he thinking?
For once I agree with Jeff Wilson, there was some baffling treatment of some players last year. If you’re not from the previous regimes ‘leadership group’, you seem to get messed around.
If however, you are in that group, selection seems automatic and not based on any sort of form. “Experience” should only count for so much when these are the players regularly rocking a 70%-win ratio for several years now. Maybe give others a proper go, they might do better.
You agree with Jeff Wilson? In what manner? All his players were selected as All Blacks last year, that two of them lost places while with the ABs has nothing to do with his point.
In fact the type of player you’re referring to getting selected on “experience” and not form is one of his examples!
I think you’re only a completely different topic to Wilson myself :p