All Blacks selection pressure builds after demolition of the Bulls

The All Blacks have given coach Dave Rennie a selection headache heading into their first Test against the Springboks in South Africa.

This comes as several players are making strong claims following New Zealand’s 50-19 demolition of the Vodacom Bulls in Pretoria early on Sunday (NZT).

Rennie rested and rotated his squad again for the third match of the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry tour but the performances have made some decisions harder ahead of next weekend’s Test at Ellis Park in Johannesburg.

“It certainly wasn’t our test side tonight, there will be a number of changes but there were some really good performances that will put pressure on us from a selection point of view,” Rennie told a media conference.

“We’ve got a plan around selection, and there was a handful of positions that were going to be decided based off tonight's performance.”

The All Blacks have now won all three matches on tour. But the Bulls provided a different test as Rennie’s side lifted their performance at set-piece time and showed more discipline.

Anton Lienert-Brown of the All Blacks. Photo/Ron Gaunt/Photosport

“I thought our set-piece was really strong, especially the scrum. I thought from a discipline point of view a lot better tonight.

“We created so many opportunities… probably left a few points out there which is a little frustrating, but can’t fault the effort.”

The All Blacks won 92 per cent of their lineouts and were perfect at scrum time, a big step up from their 80 per cent scrum success against the Sharks.

Codie Taylor speaking to media at the press conference. Photo/Ron Gaunt/Photosport

Captain Codie Taylor says the forward pack is building nicely but knows the challenge will rise sharply against the Springboks.

“I’m sure they’re going to be asking a lot more questions come next week, from where we started with the Stormers and build our way through these club games I feel like we’ve made some great strides as a forward pack,” Codie told journalists after the Bulls match.

“By no means are we the finished product, there’s going to be so much more we can work on and it’s going to be even tougher come next week. But we can be really happy and confident with the steps we’re making.”

The Bulls win also comes with the arrival of several key players who were not involved in the match.

All Blacks captain Ardie Savea arrived in camp earlier in the week after taking time away to reset.

Richie Mo’unga has also joined the squad after being called in following winger Caleb Clarke’s shoulder injury.

Mo’unga had been playing for Canterbury in the National Provincial Championship.

That gives Rennie more options as the All Blacks prepare for the step up to Test rugby.

The focus now turns to Ellis Park where the All Blacks will face a Springboks side that will provide a far greater test of the improvements made during their tour.

For Rennie, the Bulls performance has done exactly what he wanted. It has created genuine competition for places when the stakes are about to get much higher.

For more information on the All Blacks tour, click here.