All Blacks team winners and losers: ‘Concerning’ fall from grace as Scott Robertson welcomes back ‘world-class’ threat and DMac project resumes

Dylan Coetzee
Split with David Havili, Damian McKenzie and Cam Roigard.

Split with David Havili, Damian McKenzie and Cam Roigard.

Scott Robertson has named his All Blacks side to face Japan in the first Test of their northern tour as the coach rounds out his first season at the helm of the side.

As we always do at Planet Rugby we take a closer look at the winners and losers from the selection for the Test against Eddie Jones’ Brave Blossoms.

Winners

Cam Roigard

The electric scrum-half had a brilliant 2023 and rose dramatically in the All Blacks ranks culminating in a trip to the World Cup where he was dubbed the heir to Aaron Smith’s throne. As it turns out injuries had other plans with Roigard missing every Test this year whilst on the sidelines.

The prolific half-back makes his return after some trademark performances in the NPC where he found his way over the whitewash several times. In his absence Cortez Ratima has shown his quality so Roigard will be looking to hit the ground running and no doubt he will be a try threat.

Patrick Tuipulotu

The big second-row adds another accolade to his list as he leads the All Blacks out for the first time in his career. It is a fair reward for Tuipulotu who has been an important senior figure since returning to the country and it is an apt appointment for the Blues leader.

The 31-year-old has been crucial in bridging the gap between experience and youth as the All Blacks have been trying to cope with the departure of legendary second-row pair Sam Whitelock and Brodie Retallick.

Wallace Sititi

The powerhouse back-row is easily the best find of the year for the All Blacks as he put in some blockbuster performances at blindside flank during the Rugby Championship. His ability in the carry is hugely important for the All Blacks in getting over the gain line and he is one of those rookies who looks like a Test veteran from the outset.

Sititi now gets a chance in his preferred number eight position where we expect him to thrive even further. It will be interesting to see just how different his performance will be but regardless we expect him to play many more Tests whatever number is on his back.

Samipeni Finau

Sititi’s rise was Finau’s downfall as the Chiefs man failed to take his chance early on in the Test season forcing Robertson to look elsewhere for solutions. However, he gets his chance now and knows all too well that a big performance is required.

Finau will be under the microscope and he will be wise to that. Playing alongside his club teammate Sititi and former Chiefs man Sam Cane is the ideal environment for him to lay his marker down at Test level.

Billy Proctor

The sensational outside centre has only had one chance in the black jersey and he looked very much at home in the Test against Fiji. Unfortunately for him, he has been stuck behind the experience of Rieko Ioane patiently waiting his turn.

That turn has now arrived and it comes at a time when there are question marks over Ioane’s influence in the backline. We wouldn’t call it an audition for Ioane’s shirt but in the same breath, it is a chance to convince Razor he is the man for the job.

Damian McKenzie

Pockets. That is the best way to describe his season, pockets of good and pockets of not so good. There is no questioning the skill and/or ability of DMac the debate is more around how best to use him.

Razor has backed him yet again to get the job done and fair play because the high tempo kind of game Japan will play could well play right into McKenzie’s style. Chances are he will have a brilliant game but it is the tight more brutal Tests where his overall ability as a pivot will be tested.

Returning wings

The pecking order for the wings has clearly flipped on its head with Mark Tele’a and Sevu Reece suddenly second choice in their positions. Both are great players but the challenge is massive with Caleb Clarke and Will Jordan firing.

The crazy thing is that the duo will both probably have a great game but with the depth in the All Blacks ranks the management has the luxury of knit-picking.

Scott Robertson: ‘You have always got to be careful around Eddie Jones’

Uncapped stars

What a month it has been for Peter Lakai who only just got called in for the injured Ethan Blackadder and Dalton Papali’i and now he could earn his first cap. Anyone who watched Super Rugby Pacific this year will know he is all-round class as an openside in terms of the fundamentals but the 21-year-old also offers composure and ball playing ability. He could be a massive player for the future.

Another is Ruben Love who has often been compared to Christian Cullen because of his elusive running ability. He is a star who is well deserving of a Test cap and should he be used he could be a real try threat.

Scott Robertson

It has been a tough start to Test life for Razor but he has handled the whole process well enough by blooding quite a lot of new talent along the way. Of course, there are still many answers he is looking for and fair play to him for rolling the dice and searching for those solutions rather than being stagnant with his selection.

Scott Robertson reveals why the All Blacks followed the Springboks lead with an early team announcement

Losers

David Havili

Missing out on the starting side for this kind of game speaks volume for his fall down the pecking order. Once a favourite of Razor at the Crusaders, Havili is a victim of depth and timing of injuries in recent times. It is hard to remember when his last game-breaking performance was and it is concerning times for his Test future.

Josh Lord

Another player who is a victim of injuries which has left the door open for Sam Darry to leapfrog him in the pecking order. Don’t get us wrong it is lovely to see Lord on an All Blacks teamsheet as his potential is notable, however, there is just the sense that his body won’t let him get there.

There is always the chance the management has continued to deploy him only from the bench to manage his workload. Still, if it were not for injuries he could be a stalwart by now.

Harry Plummer

The playmaker is a victim of Project DMac, to be frank. Razor has invested time and energy into allowing McKenzie to settle and as a result, Plummer misses out on the chance to play the kind of game that suits an emerging Test star.

Still, Plummer will get his chance with the All Blacks XV.

Japan fans

While we have just praised Razor for rotating and giving it a go we must spare a thought for the Japan fans who miss out on seeing some of the biggest stars in the game. The Barrett brothers are very popular in the country and it is rare not to have at least one of the three lurking in the matchday squad.

READ MORE: All Blacks team: Scott Robertson gambles against Japan as Cam Roigard returns, new skipper named and rookie finally in his preferred position