Murray Mexted predicts All Blacks cull as two loose forwards set for Scott Robertson axe

Murray Mexted has predicted that there will be a cull following the Argentina tour as All Blacks boss Scott Robertson assesses which players are up to Test standard.

The former Test number eight particularly believes that it is a big couple of games for the back-rowers, with New Zealand currently stacked with loose forwards.

Robertson has plenty of options to choose from and he could well give most of them an opportunity over the next couple of matches.

Loose forward combinations

The head coach has opted for Tupou Vaa’i, Du’Plessis Kirifi and Ardie Savea to start for Saturday’s encounter in Cordoba, while Samipeni Finau is on the bench.

That has still left a wealth of talent on the sidelines with Simon Parker, Peter Lakai, Wallace Sititi and Luke Jacobson – the latter two currently injured – missing out.

Robertson may well look to rotate in Test two with the All Blacks, especially keen to give Sititi some game time before the Springboks double header.

Mexted believes that the 50-year-old will use this opportunity to try out most of his back-rowers and then make some big decisions ahead of the South Africa games.

“There are three openside flankers really – Lakai is not going to figure as an eight or a six. This is international rugby, this is the real deal, so the only place he’s got, and it’s the same with Kirifi, is openside flanker,” he told DSPN with Martin Devlin.

“They’re competing for the Test starting position against Savea, it’s as simple as that. After this tour, there will only be two.

“This is my view; out of Lakai and Kirifi, one of them will stay and one of them will go. It’s a tough world out there, but that’s the reality. They’re not going to be looking at them as a number six.

“I think it’s the same thing at eight quite frankly. There are a couple of guys, Sititi and Jacobson, who are about the same size. Are they ball winners? No they’re not. They will pick one of those guys again and one probably won’t last.

“On the blindside, there’s Finau and Parker, because he may be a better blindside than eight – we will find out. It’s going to be great, I can’t wait.

“We’ve also got Vaa’i, who’s put up his hand up and has said to the whole world: ‘Hey, I’m a blindside flanker’. I think it’s going to be wonderful to see what unfolds.”

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Robertson’s bold decisions

Mexted insists that Robertson is now willing to make the bold call after a mixed first season in charge, having been impressed by what the All Blacks boss did in the recent France series.

“We can all forgive last season, it wasn’t a great start for Razor. Losing two in a row in South Africa was not a good thing because it dents our image in the global game,” he added.

“Those guys in the northern hemisphere, they like to try and forget about us down here, but because we keep on winning consistently for 100 years, they’ve got to recognise us.

“This year I thought was going to be a very important year and it was going to tell me whether the coach and his selectors [would succeed].

“The problem that I have had with the team that has been announced to date is that there has been a lack of height and being able to win the ball in the air.

“This year, they look like they’re on the right track, I think they know what they’re doing and Saturday will tell the story against Argentina in Argentina.”

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