by Rajitha Ratwatte

The annual Bledisloe Cup matches between the NZ All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies start on Saturday the 8th of August in Eden Park. Two games in Eden Park this year and one in Perth. Eden Park they say is the bastion of the New Zealanders a line of thinking that I don’t subscribe to. When a superior team comes to Eden Park they win, and it has little to do with the mysticism created by overly dramatic scribes! Hauling the All Blacks from a single-digit winter to the sub-tropical climes of Perth however will most likely result in a token victory for the Wallabies, badly needed to bolster a flagging fan base, in the light of the depths to which Australian rugby has fallen in recent times.

Great decisions by the All-Black selectors. The captaincy very deservedly given to Sam White lock in the absence due to the injury of Sam Cane. A fantastic midfield with Anton Lennert-Brown exactly where he should be and ably supported by David Havili. Final acknowledgment that Riekko Ioane is not a center and will do a much better job on the wing. Albeit grudging acknowledgment as he will no doubt make many forays into the midfield from his slot in no 11 but hopefully to simply use his speed and not his non-existent passing or decision-making skills! No Barrett’s in the starting lineup a huge call but how can one overlook the silky skills of Ritchie Mo’uanga and the fact that he put the hard yards in during the domestic season in Aotearoa – NZ. “Clutch” McKenzie probably playing for his kicking skills to supplement Mo’uanga whose only weakness seems to be in this area, because his diminutive size as the last line of defence may be questionable. Jordie Barret with his booming kicks to touch and 6’7″ frame is a surprising omission from the starting line-up as full-back. There is some talk however among the pundits of the game that Jordie doesn’t fit the role, another theory that I find hard to subscribe to. Brodie Retallick who seemed to have got a bit soft by playing in Japan, in the second row to join his old mate and captain maybe a 50 – 50 selection as against Scott Barret (who captained the Canterbury Crusaders and played the entire local tournament) but then that is what battle-hardened combinations and the mate ship derived from them is all about.

An incredible bench for the ABs with 3 Barret’s, Dane Coles, and Brad Webber waiting to create havoc in the Wallaby ranks in the last quarter of the game. The Wallabies suffering a major setback with their star winger Marika Koroibete suspended from the game for a late-night drinking session. An already green team full of rookies will definitely miss one of the best wingers in the business.

Writing the Aussies off is always a mistake as breaking the All-Blacks rhythm and spoiling their moves has resulted in the Argentinians and the Brits winning in the recent past. The power of the off-field referee to change the course of the game has also been made very apparent to the detriment of the game. The Wallabies have a Kiwi coach and nothing to lose, a combination not to be scoffed at. Forget the hype about the venue and look forward to some top-class Southern Hemisphere Rugby!