Analysis - So, who picked Pasilio Tosi to make the All Blacks this season? The Hurricanes prop, who has started only six of his 36 career Super Rugby games, was easily the (literal) biggest surprise in Scott Robertson's first squad. The projections for the props were fairly solid across all pundits, that was supposed to be the area that wouldn't get much tinkering, but here we are frantically trying to gather information about Tosi and his interesting path to an All Black squad.
For the record: Tosi is a former NZ secondary schools rugby league rep, who moved to Invercargill from Rotorua as a teenager after being scouted by Southland's academy. It was there that he was transitioned from number eight to prop, which makes sense given that Tosi is absolutely massive. He's listed somewhere between 140-150kgs and standing 1.93m tall, which might even make him heavier than Tamaiti Williams.
The prospect of those two on the same front row rotation is worth a discussion on its own, but there's plenty more to digest from Scott Robertson's list of 32 players.
First off, there's the ones who missed out, with the most vocal reaction coming on behalf of Hoskins Sotutu. The Blues number eight will be wondering just what he had to do to impress the selectors, given that he was joint top Super Rugby Pacific try scorer, had the most lineout wins and was among the top ranked players for carries.
There's a couple of ways of looking at his situation: that his role under Vern Cotter's relentless short ball game hampered showcasing any wider talents that Robertson had in mind. Or, that Sotutu is highly coachable and responded perfectly to Cotter's tweaking, so why couldn't Robertson simply trust him to adapt.
Really though, it's probably just come down to the fact that Ardie Savea is going to play number eight and the game plan will revolve heavily around 2023's World Rugby Player of the Year. Wallace Sititi timed his run of form to perfection, plus being only 21 he can remain a project player for now.
The Hurricanes trio of Ruben Love, Peter Lakai and Brayden Iose would have all been feeling pretty confident too, now they can look forward to a trip to Japan with the All Blacks XV. They all will have their time though.
But the real sticking point, which was surely something a lot of people would have seen coming, is that the Blues garnered only three selections overall in the forwards. This was despite their title win being completely based on a concerted effort by their pack. Meanwhile, the Crusaders have six after their abomination of a season - however the dots aren't too hard to join as to why.
Photo: Photosport
Robertson clearly has his favoured boys and that's nothing new in the All Blacks or any other test team. Ethan Blackadder and Williams are there on reputation given how long they've been out injured this year, but you can't question Sevu Reece's return to the All Blacks after a huge individual season.
It will be interesting to see who actually starts on the wings, though. Caleb Clarke and Mark Tele'a are a proven combination, are they the favoured ones or does Emoni Narawa force a rethink?
Then there's Stephen Perofeta, back in the All Blacks after one of the least fair debut experiences ever. His inclusion this time comes off the back of a year with the Blues that saw him pushed out of the first five spot by Harry Plummer, which has turned into a blessing in disguise as he's now presumably going to play the role of a test match utility.
Halfback and midfield were two areas that pretty much everyone got right in their predictions, Billy Proctor being rewarded for a remarkably consistent season. But who starts at halfback? All three of TJ Perenara, Finlay Christie and Cortez Ratima can put forward strong cases, whether that be experience, incumbency, or raw talent.
We'll know what the first combination is next week, when the team heads to Dunedin for the first test against England. There will be a lot discussed about this squad between now and then, and you certainly can't deny Robertson has made things interesting early.
But there is one other interesting fact about this All Black squad: while there are some new faces, this has not been a complete cleanout. There's still remnants of the previous regime's senior player group, plus plenty of key All Blacks that were originally selected by Ian Foster. A brave new world with a few old faces? We'll have to wait and see.
