All Blacks: How the 10 squad members fared in thrilling NPC quarter-final
All Blacks hooker Asafo Aumua and scrum-half duo TJ Perenara and Cam Roigard.
New Zealand’s National Provincial Championship (NPC) quarter-finals got underway on Friday with traditional heavyweights Wellington hosting Counties Manukau at Sky Stadium.
The home side were full value for their 29-14 victory and will now face the winners of the quarter-final between Bay of Plenty and Hawke’s Bay, which is one of two other last-eight encounters taking place on Saturday with the last one scheduled for Sunday.
There were 10 All Blacks and All Blacks XV squad members in action in the encounter and, if truth be told, they all showed why they have received higher honours, although some more so than others.
Wellington
Wellington came into the NPC’s knockout rounds brimming with confidence as they are the top seeds in the competition – after finishing at the summit of the standings after the round robin phase of the competition.
Leading the charge for Wellington was burly All Blacks hooker Asafo Aumua, who came to the fore with an outstanding all-round display.
The 27-year-old did what was expected of him in the execution of his core duties but it was his brilliance on attack which would’ve impressed All Blacks head coach Scott Robertson and his fellow selectors.
Aumua proved difficult to stop with ball in hand and was involved in build-up play of three of Wellington’s tries.
Another All Blacks player who caught the eye was experienced scrum-half TJ Perenara, who was a surprising selection for this match.
It would be the 32-year-old’s last appearance at the famous venue and he capped a fine all-round performance by crossing for a deserved try after gathering a pass from Aumua deep inside Counties territory.
Meanwhile, Wellington’s two other All Blacks squad members, backline duo Billy Proctor and Ruben Love, gave a good account of themselves.
Proctor was on the field for the entire game and looked dangerous on attack, which resulted in him crossing for a try midway through the opening half, while Love came off the bench early in the second half and looked solid in defence.
Proctor was joined in midfield by All Blacks XV player Riley Higgins, who opened the scoring for Wellington early in the second half.
The home side’s three other All Blacks XV representatives, back-row duo Peter Lakai, Du’Plessis Kirifi and Xavier Numia can also be proud of their efforts.
Back-row Lakai (number eight) and Kirifi (openside flank) were lively on either side of the ball, and the latter was rewarded with a try for his efforts, while Numia did his bit in the execution of his core duties during a 73-minute stint on the field.
Counties Manukau
Although there were only a couple of members of Counties’ matchday squad included in the New Zealand representative teams, it was two high profile players whose respective selections received plenty of coverage earlier in the week.
Scrum-half Cam Roigard was named in the All Blacks squad despite only playing one game, against Manawatu last week, after recovering from a knee injury.
After coming off the replacements bench last time out, Roigard was in Counties’ starting line-up on Friday and showed some nice touches during a 64-minute stint on the field.
Although the visitors were on the back foot for long periods, the 23-year-old caught the eye with his slick service to his outside backs and crossed for a well-taken try in the 56th minute.
Meanwhile, Counties number eight and All Blacks XV representative Hoskins Sotutu, who once again missed out on a call-up to the senior All Blacks side, was a player who emptied the tank for the visitors during the full 80 minutes.
Sotutu was a willing ball carrier who took the fight to his opponents with some strong carries and also did his bit on defence, but it wasn’t enough as Wellington prevailed in the end.
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