The New Zealand All Blacks over the past four years have arguably been the most dominant rugby team in the history of the sport. The All Blacks go into the 2015 world cup in London as the defending champions and as clear favorites to take home the Webb Ellis trophy for a record 3rd time, whilst becoming the first team to successfully defend the title.
Leadership
Captain: Richie McCaw
Vice-Captain: Kieran Read
Senior Players: Dan Carter, Ma’a Nonu, Conrad Smith, Keven Mealamu, Tony Woodcock, Sam Whitelock, Israel Dagg
Coaching Staff: Steve Hansen (head coach), Ian Foster (asst. coach), Wayne Smith (defensive coach)
One of the All Blacks biggest strengths is their leadership unit; with four players with over a 100 caps and a further seven with over 50 caps the All Blacks will be one of the most, if not the most experienced units in the world cup. The Kiwi skipper Richie McCaw has played 140 tests of which he has led the Blacks in 103. What makes this record even more breathtaking is that he has a win record of 92% as captain. Richie McCaw is without a doubt the greatest captain in the history of the sport barring none. When he is backed by the likes of Dan Carter, Keven Mealamu, Kieran Read and Conrad Smith, all great leaders in their own right, a solid foundation is laid for what could become a spectacular team.
In addition to these great leaders on the field, the coaching staff is also a force to be reckoned with. Led by Steve Hansen who spent most of his years as the understudy to the great Graham Smith the current All Blacks staff has maintained an almost flawless record. Assisted by Ian Foster and former World Cup winning Coach Wayne Smith, Hansen’s tactical mind with definitely be one of the All Blacks greatest strengths.
Likely Squad
Front-row: Keven Mealamu (125), Tony Woodcock (113), Dane Coles (27), Owen Franks (67), Charlie Faumuina (25), Ben Franks (42), Codie Taylor (2), Nepo Laulala(1), Wyatt Crocket (37)
Locks: Brodie Retallick (36), Sam Whitelock (62), Luke Romano (17), Jeremy Thrush (11)
Third-row: Richie McCaw (140), Kieran Read (73), Liam Messam (42), Jerome Kaino (57), Sam Cane (22), Victor Vito (26)
Half Backs: Aaron Smith (38), TJ Perenara (11), Andy Ellis (26)
First fives: Dan Carter (103), Beauden Barrett (28), Lima Sapoaga (1)
Centers: Ma’a Nonu (95), Conrad Smith (85), Sonny-Bill Williams (23), Malakai Fekitoa (8)
Outside Backs: Julian Savea (33), Ben Smith (39), Cory Jane (55), Israel Dagg (46), Charles Piutau (14), Waisake Naholo (1)
The All Blacks selectors are spoiled for choice when it comes to deciding the squad that will travel to London September. At present the All Blacks have a pool of 43 players of which approximately 35 players will make the trip. Amongst those 43 players 18 of them were a part of the 2011 Rugby world cup squad.
Key Players
Brodie Retallick: Amongst the tight five Brodie Retallick has been perhaps the most impactful player in the last 2 years having won the World Rugby Player of the year award in 2014, Retallick’s work rate is almost unparalleled. He towers over his opponents in the line-outs and is a powerhouse in the middle of the scrums, but his loose play is what makes him a key player for the All Blacks. Retallick is always in the thick of the action making thumping tackles in defense and burrowing runs in attack, gaining much needed yards for the All Blacks.
Kieran Read: Read’s powerful tackling and continuous work rate alone would make him a crucial part of this team, but it is his indomitable presence in attack that will make him one of the players to watch in the tournament. He constantly gets involved in the back-line and creates overlaps out wide and has the skills to draw in defenders and off-load to his supporting players. His power also makes him a threat close to the line, especially from the back of a scrum.
Richie McCaw: By the start of the World cup McCaw will be the most experienced player to have ever played the game, which in itself would make him a key player, but it is his unyielding defense and his uncanny ability to force turn-overs and create slow ball for the opponents that puts him on this list. McCaw is known as perhaps the greatest open-side flanker to have played the game and would undoubtedly walk into any team.
Dan Carter: One of the greatest playmakers to have pulled on a rugby jersey, Carter would be the automatic selection at ten for any rugby team. Carter’s ability to co-ordinate his back-line, spot the space and then put players into that space is incomparable. In addition to this his almost pinpoint tactical kicking makes him one of the All Blacks strongest weapons, not to mention his brilliant placekicking abilities.
Conrad Smith: Conrad,(the snake) Smith is able to slither through the smallest of gaps and coil around every attacker that comes within his reach. Conrad Smith controls the defense in this All Black back-line. His ability to operate as a link between the inside and outside backs makes him a vital cog in the All Blacks back line.
Julian Savea: Savea has been called the Jonah Lomu of modern rugby having scored an unbelievable 33 tries in just 30 tests. Savea is the perfect try scoring machine and is virtually unstoppable in one on one situations. If the All Blacks can get Savea the ball within 10 meters of the goal line they are almost certainly guaranteed 5 points. Savea has also worked on his skills under the high ball and has grown into solid defender.
Team Strengths
Set pieces: One of the most prominent strengths for the All Blacks is their solidarity in the set piece. The tight five are almost perfect when it comes to scrummaging technique. As for their line-outs the co-ordination between hooker and jumpers is picture perfect and rarely do they lose their own ball.
Defense: The structural defense for the all blacks is one of their biggest strengths. The organisation between the backs and forwards is exceptional. As for the third-row, the likes of McCaw, Read, Kaino and Messam are very rarely beaten around the contact zone. They are constantly disrupting opposition ball slowing it down giving the backs opportunities to make significant tackles.
Forwards and Backs cohesion: The interplay between the forwards and backs is one of the factors that makes the All Blacks such a dominant force. The high level of skill displayed by all the forwards helps them fit in to the backline seamlessly in open play which often creates overlaps out wide.
Counter attack: the All Blacks have become the masters of turning defense into attack in a heartbeat. Their reaction time around the breakdown and ability to exploit open space makes them a threat anywhere on the paddock.
Fixtures
Sep 20th – New Zealand vs. Argentina (London)
Sep 24th – New Zealand vs. Namibia (London)
Oct 2nd – New Zealand vs. Georgia (Cardiff)
Oct 9th – New Zealand vs. Tonga (Newcastle)
Although the All Blacks are by far the favorites for the title, history has shown that being favorites is never a guarantee as the Kiwis have been favorites in almost every World cup but have come up short on 5 separate occasions and have never won the World cup outside of New Zealand, a statistic that the mighty All Blacks will hope to reconcile in the coming 3 months.
