All Blacks legend urges Scott Robertson to make radical changes ahead of Bledisloe Cup clash
All Blacks lock Tupou Vaa'i and former number eight Murray Mexted.
The time is right for the All Blacks to make changes to some crucial positions in their matchday squad ahead of their upcoming Rugby Championship Tests against Australia.
That is the word from legendary All Blacks number eight Murray Mexted in the build-up to Saturday’s showdown between the trans-Tasman rivals in Sydney.
New Zealand and Australia are out of the running to win this year’s Rugby Championship title but both will be highly motivated to secure victory this weekend ahead of their Bledisloe Cup rematch in Wellington on September 28.
South Africa are in pole position on the Rugby Championship table with 18 points amassed while Argentina are in second place on 10 points, followed by New Zealand (seven) and Australia (four).
The Boks are the only team who have won all their matches in this year’s competition after clinching back-to-back victories over the Wallabies and All Blacks and Mexted, who made 34 Test appearances for New Zealand between 1979 and 1985, feels it’s time for Scott Robertson to make some alterations to his run-on squad with some of his suggestions fairly radical.
“Razor will be looking hard at what he’s doing,” Mexted told The Platform. “So there will be changes in the game against Australia for the Bledisloe Cup in Sydney.”
He was then asked by the show’s host, Martin Devlin, which changes he would make and replied: “In this situation, I think the writing’s on the wall. We’ve got to win 55 to 60 percent of the ball against Australia in Sydney, against a hurt Australian team in Sydney.
“So you’re going to have to have some bigger players up front. So in my mind, I’d be looking at (Scott) Barrett and (Sam) Darry (in the second-row). But I’d also be thinking very hard about Josh Lord. Those are big, big boys with Barrett, who’s about two meters.
Concerns over Tupou Vaa’i at lock
“You’ve got to have that in the middle row if you’re going to get 55 to 60 percent. And that’s not fair on Tupou Vaa’i because I think he had his best game I’ve seen him play in the All Black jersey in Cape Town.
“But he’s not big enough for the middle row to compete at the top of the game, the top of the international game.”
Despite his concerns about Vaa’i’s ability as an international second-rower, Mexted believes there is still place for the 24-year-old in the All Blacks side albeit in a different position.
“So then you look at the loosies and you say, right, one thing we need if we’ve got a couple of or we’ve got one at least, two or three fairly young and experienced players up front and some behind, then you need to have a bit of experience and proven performance at the highest level.
“So you’d have to play Sam Cane and (Ardie) Savea together. But that blindside flanker role hasn’t been resolved.
“Even when (Shannon) Frizell was there, it wasn’t 100 percent certain that Frizell would be the man and they changed the bit. They’ve tried a few players. In my opinion, no one stamped their mark on that position, that blindside flanker position where you’ve got a big brute of a man who’s capable of winning ball in the air and has a bit of grunt.
“You’ve got to have that big, strong, tough blindside flanker who gets less opportunity to the ball compared to the other loose forwards. So when he gets that opportunity, he’s got to make a meal of it. He’s got to really make an impact. I’m looking hard. I’m trying to find one.
“Now, I know they’ve tried Tupou Vaa’i on the blindside earlier and it didn’t quite work but that’s where I would put him for this game against Australia. “I’d put Tupou Vaa’i on the blindside because he’s a much more competent player, much more self-assertive, you know.
“He had a great game in very, very trying conditions, in my view, against South Africa. So I think he’s worthy of playing. And I’d put him at blindside flanker and try and develop him until somebody stands up and says, ‘I’m your man’. I’m a specialist blindside flanker. I’ve got the attributes. Pick me’.
“Now, no one’s doing that in New Zealand at the moment. No one. So, put Tupou Vaa’i there.”
Amongst the other changes which Mexted suggested is in the halfbacks where he feels more experienced players need to be in the run-on side.
“Moving on to the inside backs, there’s no doubt we need experience. There is no doubt. You’ve got to have someone who has the ability to control the game in many respects. If you win 55 to 60 percent of ball, you’ve got to handle it properly to be able to retain it or regain it,” added the 71-year-old.
“You’ve got to be able to distribute quickly. You’ve got to clear it quickly. You’ve got to make good decisions.
“So I’d pick TJ Perenara. And I know a lot of people are saying he’s had his day. But in my mind, he’s the only one we have in that (scrum-half) position in the squad at the moment that has real experience.
‘He’s also bloody shrewd and a good footballer’
“And maybe he did overreact against the referee but he’s an intensely passionate man. But he’s also bloody shrewd and a good footballer. So I’d be looking at him. And if they’re going to cross him off and move on because they’re saying he’s 32 or whatever he is, 33 isn’t it, then I would be looking at bringing Finlay Christie back into the team.
“Did you watch the Shield match (Tasman v Wellington)? Well, you’d have to say that Finlay Christie ran that whole game (for Tasman). I mean, they lost their captain and major ball winner. And yet he ran the game. And he cleared bad ball really, really quickly. So I’d be thinking very hard about bringing him back into the squad, if not on the field.
“If they don’t want to play TJ Perenara, I’d be starting Finlay Christie. And you can’t tell me he hasn’t had enough experience because he’s had buckets of it. If you look at the other options in the squad at the moment, no one’s got buckets of experience.
“And we have to build performance and make good decisions as part of that.
“I’d (also) actually be bringing in a guy who’s been successful and won World Rugby player of the year twice in the last few years. I’ll be bringing Beauden Barrett back into 10. Because when he played 10, he ran the show.”
