‘Did Conrad really score that many’: Rieko Ioane dismisses All Blacks drought

The life of an All Black is one that a lot of young kids in New Zealand strive for. Those men selected to play for the national team are fortunate enough to travel the world, they get paid to play the game they love, and they’re widely worshipped as sporting Gods.

From the outside looking in, it doesn’t look all that bad. It’s no surprise the playing group loves going on tour as they genuinely seem to enjoy one another’s company, and it must be rewarding to have countless fans at places like Johannesburg Airport ask for a selfie.

But then there’s the other side of it.

If you look at any sports team that has a passionate fan base, there's a sense of urgency surrounding the playing group's ability to deliver on the field. Serie A side Cagliari walked over to fans and apologised as a collective – their mascot included – after a recent 4-nil loss to Napoli.

It’s similar with the All Blacks.

“There’s always expectation to win a Test match,” coach Scott Robertson told reporters on Thursday morning in Sydney. Fans in Aotearoa expect excellence and those within the All Blacks’ setup understand that all too well.

Take Rieko Ioane, who debuted at Test level on November 12, 2016, against Italy on the All Blacks’ end-of-season tour. Ioane has been a mainstay of the New Zealand side ever since, racking up almost 80 Test matches and scoring 36 international tries.

“With experience and years under your belt, that pressure and that outside noise dwindles down and I know I’m only focused on my team and the opinions of my close circles,” Ioane told RugbyPass before this weekend's Bledisloe Cup opener.

“I feel as though you begin to, as well as cope better with outside pressure and everything going on, you only tend to focus really on mum and dad’s opinion… they’re the ones that get through, and obviously the opinion of my teammates and my coaches I hold dearly.

“If it’s pressure from them I know it’s coming from a good place, but I’ve learned to block out as much as I can and just focus on being myself when I’m in here, and when I’m not a rugby player I like to detach myself a little bit.”

When Ioane first made the jump from a prodigal talent with the prestigious Auckland Grammar First XV to the All Blacks Sevens, it didn’t take long for the world to take notice. As a teenager, the Kiwi was picked to represent Team New Zealand at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

Ioane went on to win All Blacks Sevens' Player of the Year award.

In 2017, the rising star established himself as one of the world’s best wingers in 15s after taking out World Rugby’s Breakthrough Player of the Year honour and also receiving a nomination for World Rugby’s top gong: the 15s Player of the Year accolade.

It’s incredible what Ioane achieved as an All Black at such a young age, and his development as an international player in the years since is a testament to both himself and the coaches around him. Seven years on, Ioane is New Zealand’s premier outside centre.

But, after the team’s two defeats to the world champion Springboks over in South Africa, some fans are calling for Ioane to shift back to the wing. Ioane has switched to the edge during Tests this year but moving him completely would be a significant call for the coaches to make.

Ioane has only scored one try since the start of last year’s Rugby World Cup, and that includes the Blues’ run to championship glory in Super Rugby Pacific. But away from that, the midfielder has come a long way as a distributor and defender – almost like Conrad Smith.

For context, Smith – who played more than 90 Test matches during the greatest era in All Blacks history – scored 26 tries during a legendary international career. As fans will remember, it was Smith’s rugby smarts and defensive prowess that saw him stand out.

But while there's plenty of outside noise that comes with being an All Black, Ioane was unfazed by the idea that his try drought is a problem; instead, pinpointing what is working for him at outside centre.

“In terms of my case, I think they grew accustomed to all the tries and the highlights from the earlier years,” Ioane explained.

“But, for this team, did Conrad (Smith) really score that many tries? People weren’t out saying, ‘Why’s he not out scoring tries’ because he’s focusing his skills in other places. He was defending, being that distributor.

“It comes with it. I’ve evolved my game from just tries and I used to struggle on defence and I don’t now. It’s all part of developing my game and it’s far from the finished product but I know it’s trending in the right direction and I still know what I can do.

“My team and the coaches have all that faith in me.”

On Saturday afternoon at Sydney’s Accor Stadium, Ioane will once again combine with Jordie Barrett in the All Blacks’ midfield. This is a combination that goes back a couple of years now, and there’s no doubt the pair have shown plenty of promise as a duo.

Over in South Africa earlier in The Rugby Championship, Barrett played some of his best rugby in the All Blacks’ No. 12 jumper while Ioane served valiantly as a distributor outside him. The pair have plenty of growth in them but that’s all part of the game.

“Us two are far from the finished product,” he added.

“We’ve made leaps and bounds and we feel confident (with) each other’s game. We’re two big boys and we like to play that way, and obviously the results this year don’t show it but we’re just going to keep working hard at training.

“We know when we click and we do get it right, we’re one of the better midfielders.

“We still have plenty of faith and plenty of confidence in our game.”