All Blacks Face Key Selection Decisions Ahead Of Springboks’ Test

The All Blacks will head into their first Greatest Rivalry Test against South Africa with several key selection decisions still to be made, as head coach Dave Rennie provided positive updates on Will Jordan and Cam Roigard while admitting Damian McKenzie remains less certain.

Jordan and Roigard have both returned to training, and the All Blacks are increasingly confident the pair will be available next week.

“Both Will and Cam got through a bit of training on Friday, and we’re pretty confident they’re going to be right by next week,” Rennie said.

“We want them to have a full week of training; they’ve certainly been ticking enough boxes.”

McKenzie, however, remains a doubt, although Rennie believes the experienced playmaker still has a strong chance of featuring.

“We’re probably less confident about Damian, but still think he’s a good chance to play on the weekend,” he said.

“Hopefully he can train well on Tuesday. The expectation is that all three of those guys will be available,” Rennie added.

While the All Blacks’ established stars work their way back to full fitness, Anton Segner has emerged as one of the biggest selection talking points following his commanding performance against the Bulls.

The German-born loose forward was named man of the match after a colossal display, making 13 tackles, winning three turnovers and carrying the ball 12 times.

His performance has put him firmly in contention for a starting role in the opening Test.

Rennie was quick to praise Segner while also highlighting the contribution of fellow loose forward Peter Lakai.

“There are a lot of good performers. I thought Pete Lakai was excellent too until we took him off, and Anton was massive,” Rennie said.

The competition for places extends beyond the forwards, with Josh Moorby also continuing to impress after making his mark during the international season.

Moorby, who scored two tries against the Bulls at Loftus Stadium on Saturday, started the previous Test against Ireland and also featured off the bench against Italy. Leroy Carter, who also grabbed a brace, impressed on the wing against the Bulls.

“Those guys are applying a lot of pressure,” Rennie said.

“Josh started the last Test against Ireland and played the Italian game off the bench. I thought Leroy was really strong out on the wing.”

“I look at those guys, they work really hard, and that creates opportunities for us,” he added.

Meanwhile, Richie Mo’unga has arrived in camp and is already throwing himself into preparations, although Rennie confirmed the veteran will not feature in the first Test.

“He arrived late last night. He is very excited and jumping out of his skin,” Rennie said.

“He’s already done a fair bit of study; we’ll spend the next while with him getting his head around our game,” he added.

While confirming that Mo’unga will sit out the opening Test, Rennie said the experienced fly-half could make his return in the tour game against the Lions.

“We won’t pick him in the first Test. He’s got a good chance to get some game time against the Lions.”

With several established players returning from injury and a number of emerging stars pushing hard for selection, the All Blacks face an intriguing week of decisions as they build towards the highly anticipated first Test against South Africa.