Richie Mo’unga’s ‘complete team’ Springboks verdict and the ‘one thing’ which three-year All Blacks absence taught him
Richie Mo'unga embraces Jesse Kriel after a match in Baltimore, inset, which was the New Zealand's first Test cap in three years
Richie Mo’unga has shared his thoughts after his long-awaited return to the Test rugby arena with the All Blacks following a three-year absence.
The seasoned fly-half was chosen by Dave Rennie to start the fourth and final match in Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series, and his 57th cap was his first appearance since the 2023 Rugby World Cup final in Paris.
That one-point loss to the Springboks was followed by Mo’unga deciding to move to club rugby in Japan for three seasons, making him ineligible for Test selection for New Zealand.
However, his decision to rejoin the Crusaders for the 2027 Super Rugby Pacific tournament put him back in the selection frame and he was called up to tour South Africa following an August 1 appearance for Canterbury in New Zealand’s NPC.
“It’s just a game of inches, really…”
Mo’unga was left sitting in the stands for the All Blacks’ three Test matches in South Africa, Rennie sticking with Ruben Love, the international rookie he named for all three of July’s Nations Championship matches.
However, the head coach called on Mo’unga for Saturday’s Greatest Rivalry finale in Baltimore, but the veteran’s return to the Test fold didn’t result in New Zealand winning the match in the United States of America and drawing the series two-all.
Instead, their 43-28 defeat left the Springboks winning the series three-one and left Mo’unga accepting that Rassie Erasmus’ side have greatly improved since he last encountered them in October 2023.
Asked if South Africa have got better since that Stade de France showpiece decider, Mo’unga said: “Yeah, definitely. They’re a complete team, able to take you on up front and able to be really clinical and take you on in threes.
“But also, they have got players that can play; they have got guys with fast feet in their backs. So, it presents us with really good opportunities – we know we have got to be better and that’s been the story of the last four Tests. But if we can really take those learnings, it’ll be really exciting for the future of this team.
“It’s just a game of inches, really. It just came down to a few key moments. We weren’t really as accurate as you wanted to be, and yeah, they’re just such a great team at applying pressure and taking the opportunities. We didn’t take ours.
“There will be a real good conversation around how can we build pressure. We have seen what we can do with the ball, but it might be what can we do without the ball, what is our defence looking like, and really suffocating them down in their own half.
“That’s from just sort of my first impressions of how the game went. But yeah, it just comes down to some of those small moments we can really be better at.”
First capped by the All Blacks in 2017 when Steve Hansen was in charge, the 32-year-old lined out with Toshiba Brave Lupus, meaning he missed out entirely on the Scott Robertson era after he took charge of the team following Ian Foster’s post-2023 World Cup exit.
Picking up the Test-level thread following a three-year lay-off was no mean feat, and Mo’unga wasn’t shy in the Baltimore aftermath in volunteering what his time away from international-level rugby taught him.
“It’s taught me one thing and that’s the fact that there’s nothing like playing in the Test arena and representing your country,” he enthused.
“The feeling you have of running out and then singing the anthem and performing the haka, there’s nothing like that itself. The other thing is what international footy demands of yourself; it demands the best and the pressure that you’re under, there’s nothing like it.”
“We have to watch that one back”
Asked to rate how he played in the Greatest Rivalry finale, he added: “To be honest, I’ve a bit of a blur. We have to watch that one back. But just assessing how I’m feeling, it’s just so special to be back out there in the Test arena after three years.
“Like, it’s exactly what I thought it’d be like and the feeling of representing and putting on the jersey again, it’s just so special and I felt like I belonged out there and the last three years building to that moment, it’s just really worth it coming back home and giving myself that opportunity.”
It sure felt like old times lining up alongside players such as fellow 30-something Beauden Barrett, who came off the M&T Bank Stadium bench to score New Zealand’s final try. “Yeah, it does. Before (the match) I said it’s such a pleasure to be out there with you, bringing back some good memories.
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“But nothing’s changing the fact that we want the best for this team. Like, forward three years, our roles might look a little different to what it did three years ago, but our motives are still the same and wanting the best for this team.”
Mo’unga signed off with reference to Saturday’s match taking place in front of a 68,173 attendance, suggesting what the record crowd for a Test rugby fixture in the United States should take away from seeing the Greatest Rivalry finale.
“Maybe just be inspired by the game of rugby. It’s a lot different to the NFL, American football, but they would have experienced some awesome fans out there and hopefully an awesome brand of rugby that sort of makes them want to support footy in the future.”
