You are here
Home > All Blacks > Aisle be Back: bread from heaven

Aisle be Back: bread from heaven

  • By Kevin McCarthy

The roof will be on, so there’ll be no raining on the parade of Beauden Barrett this Sunday in Cardiff. No surprise that he would be handed his 100th cap at a prestige venue, rather than against Italy a week later.

However, coach Foster is clear that this was also a form decision. So tantalisingly, the debate over he or Richie Mo’ounga is the first choice first-five is now reopened.

Personally, I thought Richie M had edged ahead, helped by some pretty useful form, and Barrett’s absence for much of the season while playing in Japan. He seemed to have the ability to unpick defences that the Barrett of old had, but these days, not so much.

But hey, the old adage about not letting the other guy a stint in your jersey – albeit for sound personal reasons – rings true again .

With Mo’ounga sitting out much of the Rugby Championship, he’s left the door open.

Beauden Barrett is not playing at the peak of his powers but every match, he’s getting better.

He won’t start against Italy the following weekend, meaning the selection for Ireland a week later is when we’ll find out which way Foster is leaning. Probably he doesn’t know yet.

France rounds out the tour a week later. That in some ways may be the BIG match of the tour, so logically your Ireland first-five would probably be your French starter as well.

++++++

I’ve been to Cardiff once. Yep, for THAT game. It’s like nowhere else in the world, I suspect, on match day. Pubs were heaving (the sort of heaving where if you decide to go for a beer before kick-off, you may get back to your leaner shortly before halftime).

Outside in the car-free zone of the streets, theirs is much milling of fans and random friendly mayhem. The sort where a bloke is firing giant up and unders into the masses.

The Welsh of course were not even playing that day in their home stronghold. So, there wasn’t a sea of red.

Not that is, until after the game. Then, there were many many friendly Welsh willing to commiserate with the distraught All Black fans.

By commiserate, I mean dance on our grave. Jubliantly.

Hey, that’s what losing for 66 years plus years in a row does to you.

Forget the talk of this being a mortally-weakened Welsh side. They are missing a lot of players, but its still Wales, at home, and well able to hurt the All Blacks if they try to strut too early.

+++++++

Back on Planet NPC, the Lions again are playing a friendly this weekend. If you can ever term a match in Otago as that.

Just bear in mind the season really hinges on the weekend after – playing away to Tasman – in the competition formally known as the national provincial championship. Roll on some normality in 2022.

++++++

And finally, and I do mean finally, World Rugby looks to have laid to rest with great lack of interest, the flawed idea of a global rugby twelves tournament.

Amen to that.

+++++

Similar Articles

Leave a Reply

Top