Big guns to boost All Blacks
Mon, 29 Jun 2009 11:13
Winners: Richie McCaw and Rodney So'oialo show off All Black loot
The All Blacks looks set to welcome back some heavy cavalry when a 30-man Tri-Nations squad is named on Saturday, none more so than superstar flank and regular skipper Richie McCaw.
The All Blacks head into the Tri-Natiions on the back of a string of poor performances and they will be low on confidence and the reinforcements can't arrive soon enough.
Veteran No 8 Rodney So'oialo is also due back after a month's rest, while speedster Sitiveni Sivivatu (shoulder) hooker Andrew Hore (ribs) and centre Conrad Smith (hamstring) are all expected to return to the squad.
"That's over a third of your side and it's a lot of test caps," All Blacks assistant coach Steve Hansen told the NZPA.
"Not too many countries could lose the people we lost and still win test matches and still feel disappointed with the way they played.
"We know we played poorly but we also know that we are exposing a lot of new people to test rugby and the experience. They will be better for it."
The All Blacks will head into an intensive two-day next week but it doesn't seem enough to prepare for an Australian side who suffocated France 22-6 in Sydney on Saturday.
"We don't have a choice do we?" Hansen said.
"We have to get up and we have been in this situation before, so the world has not come to an end.
"If you look at the three-match series, Kieran Read really put his hand up as an international No 8, JK [flank Jerome Kaino] has come back and performed really well and [lock] Isaac Ross has shown us he can perform at test level. He's still got some maturing and growing to do but he's don e some good things."
The loose forwards selection will be the biggest squeeze but Liam Messam may pay for his mixed outing in the first French test, with Tanerau Latimer retained as openside cover for the restored McCaw while lock Jason Eaton may provide utility value as the sixth loose forward cover.
"We just think that aerially he's not a world-class test player but he's still quite a handy person to have on that bench where he can play those two roles," Hansen said of Eaton.
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