Bledisloe Cup 2019: All Blacks rush Sonny Bill Williams into starting side
Desperate to bounce back from their thrashing at the hands of the Wallabies, the All Blacks have dropped some big names for the Bledisloe Cup decider in Auckland.
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The All Blacks have dropped a stack of high-profile stars as they seek to stem the Wallabies’ Bledisloe Cup tide, while bringing Sonny Bill Williams straight back into their starting side.
Ben Smith, Rieko Ioane and Owen Franks have been dumped from the squad that lost by a record margin in Perth, with rookie wingers Sevu Reece and George Bridge given starting spots, along with tighthead prop Nepo Laulala who replaces Franks.
Their stuttering attack over the past four Test matches has seen Williams catapulted straight into the starting side to spark the All Blacks’ stuttering attack.
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Few could have imagined an All Blacks side without Ben Smith or Ioane, but the desperate All Blacks selectors have rolled the dice and left both out of the squad in favour of the dynamic Reece and workhorse Bridge.
They have stuck with the openside-stacked backrow of Ardie Savea and Sam Cane, with Matt Todd coming off the bench, but the eight changes to last week’s team suggest there has been serious misgivings about the direction of the All Blacks.
The moves come amidst much angst within Kiwi rugby ranks, as the public fears the loss the Bledisloe Cup for the first time since 2002.
“Bash the Wallabies”. “Play with more freedom”. “The Daily Telegraph’s back page will backfire”.
Rarely has there been such panic in New Zealand over the state of the All Blacks.
After last week’s record 47-26 win by Australia set up the chance of stealing back the Bledisloe Cup for the first time since 2002 in Auckland this Saturday, former players, fans and the media have been furiously debating whether their all-conquering side is in decline, and how to fix said decline.
Imposing former Kiwi lock Ian Jones threw down the challenge to the All Blacks to “beat these Wallabies up” at the sold-out Eden Park after being unimpressed by their physicality in Perth.
“They’ve got to physically go straight and knock these guys around and get into that zone,” Jones told the Radio Sport Breakfast.
“It’s about ‘this is the fortress, this is All Black rugby, this is how we’re going to beat these Wallabies up,’ and just smack them around in that regard.
“They can’t just rely on this wonderful Eden Park factor, they’ll have to front up to themselves. Do I expect the Wallabies to be able to perform at the level again? Yes, I do.
“We have to dampen that, we have to physically get into them, knock them around and show them who’s boss.”
Another former All Blacks lock, Ali Williams, said the players are being overcoached.
“We’ve got to relieve the pressure on these players to start playing naturally,” Williams told The Breakdown television show.
“At the moment, in the first few Test matches of the year, we’ve been playing hindered because of what they think they should be doing.”
New Zealand’s media picked up and ran with the Telegraph’s mock back page of Sonny Bill, and fellow veterans Kieran Read and Sam Whitelock depicted as old men, with the All Blacks set to pick up to eight players aged 30 and over for the clash.
The Stuff website warned: “In playing the age card, however, the Daily Telegraph conveniently overlooked the fact that the All Blacks’ 2015 Rugby World Cup winning squad contained 11 players aged 30 or over.
“Eight of them – including Richie McCaw (34), Dan Carter (33) and ancient hooker Keven Mealamu (36) – played in the convincing 34-17 grand final win over the Wallabies.
“The positively creaky Carter kicked 17 points.”
All Blacks (likely) : 15.Beauden Barrett 14. Sevu Reece 13. Anton Lienert-Brown 12.Sonny Bill Williams 11. George Bridge 10. Richie Mo’unga 9. Aaron Smith 8. Kieran Read (captain) 7. Sam Cane 6. Ardie Savea 5. Sam Whitelock 4. Patrick Tuipulotu 3. Nepo Laulala 2.Dane Coles 1. Joe Moody. Reserves: 16. Codie Taylor 17. Ofa Tu’ungafasi 18. Angus Ta’avao 19. Jackson Hemopo 20. Matt Todd 21. TJ Perenara 22. Ngani Laumape 23. Jordie Barrett.
Originally published as Bledisloe Cup 2019: All Blacks rush Sonny Bill Williams into starting side
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