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Watch: Rieko Ioane proves his value as midfielder to set up stunning Matt Duffie try against Chiefs
By Online Editors
The logjam of midfielders vying for a place in Ian Foster's 35-man All Blacks squad next month makes for tight competition among those contending for selection.
Jack Goodhue, Anton Lienert-Brown, Braydon Ennor, Ngani Laumape and Rieko Ioane have all staked claims to make the national side that is set to be named on August 30, the day after the North vs South clash.
Goodhue and Lienert-Brown are expected to be named thanks to their experience, versatility and jack-of-all-trades style of play, but it's anyones guess as to who could accompany them.
Laumape is in undeniably good form, but could be ruled out with a suspected broken wrist, while Ennor's pace and acceleration is hard to ignore.
The development of Ioane's game in his transition from wing to centre, though, could make him a leading candidate to star in Foster's midfield, with his distribution arguably the most improved aspect of his game.
Everyone already knows how good of a ball runner and how lethal of an attacking threat the 23-year-old can be with ball in hand, but, while playing against Lienert-Brown and the Chiefs on Sunday, he proved there's more to his game than just that.
In fact, it only took a few minutes for the 2017 World Rugby Breakthrough Player of the Year to prove his worth as a ball-playing centre.
Handed a scrum inside the Chiefs' half, Ioane was fed the ball by Beauden Barrett while running a line that made it seem he was set to crash the ball up.
Instead, he deceived the opposition defence with a swift, deceptive wipers pass to allow Blues fullback Matt Duffie to puncture the Chiefs' defensive line and stroll on through for the first try of the match untouched.
Of course, the well-judged running line made by Duffie was crucial to the try being scored, but the deft distribution of Ioane - a part of his game that has, until now, often gone unheralded - highlights his value and development as a midfielder.
How Foster will interpret Ioane as a midfielder remains to be seen, but what is clear to see that he stands as a viable option to don the black jersey at No. 13 should he be called upon.
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Latest Comments
They also use a far more consistent scale.
Rugby pass seem to have a different scale for each player based on the authors expectations or how much he likes them.
Can't fathom how Moodie and Reece both were a 3.
Go to commentsYes for sure, thanks for sharing. I fully understand that both parties are better off, no one needs to lose, neither competition suffers, in fact both can be better as a result.
Too many true rugby fans (and analysts) don't understand that.
I wouldn't imagine there is a date aye. It was a long decline rugby in SA and Australia was going through, and was so bad it even effected NZ, caused them to argue to can a couple of teams. The nation of SA probably grew into it? I know I watch more of the NH now specifically because of the SR teams playing there. I actually had to mention to Nick Bishop (because of his stubborn perspective) the other day that I've never been a fan of Super Rugby, I don't think they chose the right way to go about professionalism back in 1995. Unfortunately, NZR was stuck between a rock and a hard place, because it had SA's and Australians that ran their unions by States, so we had to separate into "two or three" teams as a result. Our game is in the kak now because of it, they want to kill off the lifeblood of our National Provincial Championship. But now we might see a way out of it, so it's all good.
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