Air NZ Cup team of the tournament

With the Air New Zealand Cup done and dusted, Wellington are left to ponder what might have been following yet another loss in the final – their fifth in six years.

With the Air New Zealand Cup done and dusted, Wellington are left to ponder what might have been following yet another loss in the final – their fifth in six years.

But with eight Lions making All Black coach Graham Henry's touring squad to Hong Kong and Europe, as well as three getting the nod in Planet Rugby's Air NZ Cup Team of the Tournament… perhaps the losing finalists can have a little something to smile about?

Air New Zealand Cup winners Canterbury quite understandably outnumbered their counterparts with a total of five red-and-blacks in our XV, but there was still healthy representation from Hawke's Bay (3), Southland (2), Waikato (1) and Taranaki (1).

Air New Zealand Cup team of the tournament:

Full-back: Cory Jane (Wellington). Toughest call to make with the likes of Scott Hamilton (Canterbury) and Israel Dagg (Hawke's Bay) in fine tune. But Mr. Consistency has proved his worth time and again for Wellington, and finally got the All Blacks call-up that has eluded this talented individual for the last couple of years. Solid under the high ball, Jane has a small frame but offers plenty in attack that often leaves defenders chasing shadows. When he's not scoring tries, he can be seen setting them up.

Right wing: Pehi Te Whare (Southland). This Stags' scoring machine was the best of the Southland back-line when put into space. The dread-locked flyer was frequently making breaks when they were most needed and adding crucial five-pointers along the way. Not All Blacks material just yet, but certainly did enough to earn himself a Super 14 contract next year.

Outside centre: Jason Shoemark (Hawke's Bay). This slick player has proved time and time again that he can score from anywhere if given the opportunity. Shoemark is the rock in Hawke's Bay young and talented back-line. His ability to get over the advantage line gets his team rolling and his leadership and distribution skills are ever-improving.

Inside centre: Tim Bateman (Canterbury). Rated highly amongst the best ball-players in New Zealand and needed careful watching all season. This red-and-black doesn't make too many errors and his defensive wall can be almost impregnable. Was partly responsible in setting up Canterbury's tournament-winning try, after a burst towards the line followed a pop up and score for fellow team-mate and unlikely hero Hayden Hopgood.

Left wing: No guessing who this spot belongs to. Hosea Gear (Wellington) scored fourteen tries – double the tally of any other player in the Air New Zealand Cup. Gear's work ethic, confidence, kicking game and speed have all accelerated this year. That sort of form will see him start at least one of the five Tests on the All Blacks' end-of-year tour.

Fly-half: Colin Slade (Canterbury). Started the season number three behind the injured Steven Brett and Hamish Gard. But he's gone from strength to strength, ending with an Air NZ Cup winner's medal. A member of the New Zealand U19 and U21 teams, Slade has risen to prominence nationally during the latter stages of the Air New Zealand Cup campaign, although he has been there from day one. A multi-faceted fly-half with a massive future ahead of him, Slade's a strong runner, has a good kicking game and defends well too.

Scrum-half: Danny Lee (Hawke's Bay). In a competition where scrum-halves have failed to stand out – this might explain Graham Henry's decision to tag along the injured Andy Ellis on tour – the departing Lee was his usual inspirational self. A shame his try-saving tackle on Corey Flynn in the Air NZ Cup semi-final was the last piece of heroics we'd see of him, but it did well to sum up his never-say-die attitude before leaving the field concussed.

Number eight: Kieran Read (Canterbury, captain). This workaholic number eight won every battle at the scrum base week in and week out. While not a specialist number eight, Read did provide a rock at the back of the Canterbury scrum and was also used wisely as a line-out option.

Flankers: Scott Waldrom (Taranaki) and Liam Messam (Waikato). Both players were relied upon to give maximum effort from their respective willing packs and they delivered, playing quality rugby on both sides of the ball. Waldrom was the stand-out number seven in the national provincial championship, while Messam was an impressive all-round force for Waikato. It came as little surprise then that these two hard working loosies cracked the nod in Graham Henry's All Blacks squad.

Locks: Michael Paterson (Canterbury) and Jeremy Thrush (Wellington). This spring-heeled pair stood out head and shoulders above their fellow locks. Thrush continued his fine season with an impressive all-round display for Wellington in the semi-final and final respectively, but was pipped at the last by colleague Ross Fillipo for a place in the All Blacks squad. Paterson was in sensational second row form for Canterbury, and will be one to watch for the future. He was strong in the line-out, and made a meal of opposition team's wayward throwing.

Tighthead prop: Jamie Mackintosh (Southland). The man called “Whopper” because of his 1.92m and 129kg dimensions, is renowned for his scrummaging and was the heart and soul of the Southland pack. A dominant performance equated to a trip to Hong Kong, Europe and beyond.

Hooker: Hikawera Elliot (Hawke's Bay). This number two has made huge strides this year and his line-out throwing has allowed the Hawke's Bay jumpers to post the season's best efficiency stats. They won over 80 per cent of their own ball and only three have been ruled not straight in twelve matches.

Loosehead prop: Wyatt Crockett (Canterbury). The Final did well to sum up this human cannonball's Air New Zealand Cup season: Having seen off John Schwalger, Neemia Tialata was swapped to the tighthead side of Wellington's scrum in an effort to thwart Crockett's threat. Once he was spent, Tim Fairbrother was deputed to stop the big loosehead and was soon sent backwards at a rapid rate. Three blokes, two of them All Blacks, and only Crockett left standing. The net result of that was that we were given irrefutable proof that Crockett's face does not fit with the national selectors.

By Dave Morris