Dave Rennie addresses Ardie Savea switch after ‘real physical presence’ gets nod in captain’s old spot
Ardie Savea in action for the All Blacks and Luke Jacobson warming up.
Dave Rennie has backed “tough” back-rower Luke Jacobson to impress after naming him in the All Blacks starting side to face France this weekend.
Few observers had the Chiefs man in their line-up for New Zealand’s Nations Championship opener, but the 29-year-old has qualities which the new head coach likes in a player, especially a loose forward.
Jacobson will do the dirty work around the breakdown in order to allow his back-row partners, Ardie Savea and Peter Lakai, to thrive.
Captain Savea moves back to number eight having shifted to openside in 2025, while Lakai will make his first professional start at blindside.
‘We like Luke’
“I suppose it’s just numbers on the back for me, it sounds like some people got excited about the change. All those guys have played a little bit of eight,” Rennie said.
“We like Luke, Luke’s tough, he’ll add a real physical presence against the French and we think that’s really important.
“Both Pete and Ardie will also give us post-tackle presence and are excellent athletes who suit our type of game. It was the area we probably discussed most, around combinations, so those guys will start and Wallace off the bench.”
Traditionally, it is the blindside who is the taller man and the workhorse that enables the more athletic and dynamic back-rowers to wreak havoc in the loose.
At the weekend, that player is wearing seven as Jacobson has been tasked with putting in big hits, disrupting the French breakdown, clearing out their rucks and helping in the lineout.
“Like I say, Lakai is packing down at six in the scrum, it’s probably the only difference. We like Ardie at eight, we could have played Ardie at seven, so what I reckon they’ve got is complementary skill sets,” Rennie said.
“I’m excited to see them work together.”
Midfield selection
If the loose forwards are able to do their jobs, it will make the job for the All Blacks backline much easier where Quinn Tupaea will hope to impress.
Tupaea, despite featuring predominantly at inside centre for the Chiefs this season, wears the 13 jersey.
He did that twice for the All Blacks last year under Robertson and formed an excellent combination with Jordie Barrett in the 28-14 victory over the Wallabies in Perth.
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“He’s had a great season, Quinn, and we’re very fortunate as Billy Proctor has been excellent for the Hurricanes,” Rennie added.
“Obviously, we had Anton [Lienert-Brown] up at Kobe this year and he had a fantastic season so we’re pretty comfortable with all of those guys.
“They’ve all got slightly different skill sets but Quinn’s very abrasive both with and without the ball, and so we like that mix.”
