AB legend questions Samoan Test
Tue, 19 Aug 2008 22:46
Bryan Williams, the legendary All Black wing of the 1970s, has questioned the value of a Test match between New Zealand and his country of birth, Samoa.
The All Blacks and Samoa meet in New Plymouth on September 3, a belatedly-scheduled clash that takes place during an almost month-long break in New Zealand's Tri-Nations fixtures.
The Kiwis beat South Africa 19-0 in Cape Town last Saturday (August 16) and would not have played four weeks had the Samoan game not been arranged.
They face Australia in the third leg of their Tri-Nations/Bledisloe Cup series in Brisbane on September 13.
Williams, an icon throughout world rugby, felt the Kiwis have little to gain from the match against a team of such little substance as Samoa.
The Samoan national team is going through a rebuilding phase following wholesale changes in the playing and coaching staff following last year's Rugby World Cup.
Williams played 113 matches for the All Blacks between 1970-78 before launching a successful coaching career, including as head coach of Manu Samoa.
While pleased Manu Samoa was set for just its fifth test against the All Blacks, and first since 2001, he questioned the merits of the fixture for both sides.
That included the likely weakened nature of the Samoan side due to club commitments in Europe.
"It may not even serve the right purpose for the All Blacks," Williams told Yahoo!Xtra.
"It will give them a game. But whether it is going to be competitive or not is another question.
"It is another chance for exposure but obviously the timing is not great from a Samoan point of view.
"In that sense, it probably takes a bit of the gloss of it."
The September 3 Test falls out of the International Rugby Board (IRB) window where European clubs must release players for international action.
Given that the European season is set to start next week, clubs are understandably reluctant to release their star imports for the hastily-arranged encounter.
Williams said that threatened to hit Manu Samoa hard.
"It might be difficult for Manu Samoa to put together a team," he said.
"Most of their top players now play in Europe and Japan and I don't know if they are going to be able to get those fellas back.
"From what I can make out, some of the clubs are saying that their players can't come.
"It just means that Samoa chance of putting together their best team are minimised. So in that sense, it may not represent a huge challenge to the All Blacks."
