Rating every All Blacks forward from Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry: Ardie Savea leads the way but scrum exposed as prop suffers ‘terrible tour’
Ardie Savea and Tyrel Lomax in action for the All Blacks against the Springboks.
Dave Rennie’s side secured five wins on their South Africa tour but crucially went down 3-1 to the Springboks in Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry Test series; hereās how we rated every All Blacks forward.
Loose forwards
Ardie Savea: Was rested for the tour games but arrived in South Africa ahead of the Tests and showed no signs of rust with two-and-a-half excellent performances. Unfortunately suffered an injury after scoring a brace in Soweto, which ruled him out of the finale, and they certainly missed his leadership and quality. 9
Peter Lakai: Developing nicely and has shown his versatility by playing at either blindside or number eight, while he can also feature at openside. Lakai was particularly excellent in Baltimore and could well keep his spot at the base of the scrum for the rest of the year. 8
Anton Segner: Built on his Nations Championship breakthrough with a fantastic start to the tour, but suffered an injury ahead of the first Test and missed out on facing the Springboks. It was a huge shame as he was one of the All Blacks’ standouts against the franchises. 7
Simon Parker: A better effort after a fairly underwhelming first year in Test rugby in 2025, with a good impact in the opening international before he then delivered a solid display in Cape Town, but Parker perhaps didn’t quite fit the balance and he failed to feature in the final two encounters. 6
Wallace Sititi: A difficult one as his performances in the build-up to the Tests were once again subpar, this after he was publicly admonished by Rennie during the Nations Championship. However, he got opportunities off the bench in Soweto and Baltimore, and just about ended it with his reputation enhanced from the start of the tour. 6
Luke Jacobson: There have been complaints about his cleanout work, with observers of a Springboks persuasion suggesting he is regularly illegal when entering the breakdown, but if you can get away with it…The flanker is ultimately key to the quick ball the All Blacks generate and also helps slow the opposition down, a role which he made his own before injury. 7
Ethan Blackadder: On the subject of Jacobson, while he has become a vital cog under Rennie, one reason why his position could come under threat is because of Blackadder. The Crusaders loose forward was superb in the tour games and finally got his chance at openside in the final match due to an injury to the Chiefs man where he was absolutely outstanding. If he can stay fit, the versatile back-rower can be a useful cog in the All Blacks machine. 8
Semisi Tupou Ta’eiloa: Clearly a fantastic athlete and someone who has immense potential, but he didn’t get a lot of game time and wasn’t a standout when he was on the field. Ta’eiloa isn’t quite ready yet and needs more time in Super Rugby Pacific to develop, provided he gets a contract of course after leaving Moana Pasifika. 3
Locks
Tupou Vaa’i: A mixed bag from the versatile back-five star, who featured at both lock and blindside flanker during the tour. There were some fine shifts, particularly in the earlier Tests, but he had a veritable stinker in the finale in the US. Given how important Vaa’i has become to the team, we probably expected a bit more. 6
Patrick Tuipulotu: Probably could have been used more by New Zealand with just one sub appearance in the Tests prior to the clash in Baltimore. Against the mammoth players the Springboks have up front, Tuipulotu has the physicality to compete with that, but he was generally down the pecking order. 6
Fabian Holland: Went into the tour basically completely cold, having missed the entire Super Rugby campaign due to injury. Did feature for NPC side Otago in pre-season but was effectively going into the South Africa trip with no proper games under his belt. However, he was staggeringly good considering, dominating in the warm-up matches before impressing in the opening two Tests. Didn’t have the impact he would have liked in Soweto and then missed the finale through illness, but that does not detract from an exceptional tour. 8
Josh Lord: A head clash with Ethan de Groot in the opening half of the first Test ruined his tour to some degree. Missed the second and third internationals, and only featured off the bench in the fourth as Lord didn’t enjoy the same success he had in the Nations Championship. 5
Sam Darry: Impressed in the Nations Championship before surprisingly being dropped and then missing the next three All Blacks Tests. Didn’t let that affect him by performing well whenever he was given the opportunity by Rennie, including a fine shift in the third encounter against the Springboks. Didn’t have the greatest game in the US, but it was overall a positive tour for Darry. 7
Jamie Hannah: Came in as injury cover and therefore only featured in one match, but he always looks the part when on the field. Hannah may have to bide his time, however, given the number of second-rows at Rennie’s disposal. 4
Hookers
Samisoni Taukei’aho: A frustrating month or so for the talented Chief, who has found himself as the third choice hooker behind Aumua and Taylor. Did feature ā and score ā in the third Test, but Taukei’aho would have been disappointed not to have received more time on the field. Played well whenever he featured, but it is not quite going for the 29-year-old at the moment. 5
Asafo Aumua: Certainly the best of the New Zealand hookers this year, even if he has mainly been used as an impact player. Did start the third Test in the absence of Taylor and the Hurricanes star was excellent in that game. Certainly putting pressure on the 35-year-old Crusader for a consistent starting berth. 8
Codie Taylor: After holding up well following the Rugby World Cup, which included some fine displays in 2024 and 2025, there is a sense that Taylor is on the decline. His set-piece work is still solid but he has become less influential in the loose. Did receive the honour of captaining the All Blacks in Baltimore after Savea’s injury but how much longer can he hold onto the number two jersey? 5
Bradley Slater: Got a few minutes against the Sharks and Lions with not much to note. Can’t see him being involved in the squad going forward unless the other three are injured. 3
Props
Ethan de Groot: After a much better Nations Championship, this was a step backwards from the loosehead, who found himself under all sorts of pressure from Wilco Louw in the first Test. Missed the second and third games due to injury before returning for the fourth and putting in a better showing in the set-piece. 4
Fletcher Newell: Arguably an underrated part of this All Blacks squad. Tended to stabilise the scrum when coming off the bench, so it was perhaps no surprise that their set-piece was much better when he started at M&T Bank Stadium. Newell went about his business with little fanfare but was quietly very impressive. 7
Tyrel Lomax: A terrible tour for the tighthead, who was consistently sent into reverse at the scrum. Lomax is not the first to struggle against Ox Nche but his general decline in performance is a concern looking towards next year’s Rugby World Cup. He needs a big end-of-year series. 3
Xavier Numia: Only got one start on tour and even then he did just 40 minutes before being replaced. It is understandable that Rennie sees him more as an impact player at the moment but Numia probably deserved a bit more game time. Looked good when he was on the field but the All Blacks need to invest more in his development. 6
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George Bower: Concerns over his scrummaging were abated in Tests one and two, but the 34-year-old was dominated in the third match and subsequently missed the clash in the US. Always answers the SOS when the All Blacks call but they could really do with Tamaiti Williams being back. 5
Pasilio Tosi: After such a good Super Rugby where he looked one of the best scrummaging tightheads, this has been a huge step backwards from the gargantuan prop. Utterly annihilated every time he was on the field. 2
Ollie Norris: Played a couple of games off the bench and then unfortunately got injured as Norris failed to get the opportunity to prove his worth. 3
Siale Lauaki: Struggled initially but grew into the tour and showed that he could be a key part of the All Blacks squad in time. Also played on both sides of the scrum as he showed his versatility. 5
Saula Ma’u: Called up as cover for Norris and therefore only had one chance to impress ā a midweek game against the Lions ā but those 20 minutes were certainly promising. For the first hour, New Zealand were being dominated in the scrum but, once the tighthead came on, that completely altered the momentum and Ma’u had the hosts going backwards. 5