Former All Black Jeff Wilson has come out and criticised the amount of kicking that was in the opening round of Super Rugby Pacific in 2o26, especially from the game between the Highlanders and the Crusaders.
Jamie Joseph and the Highlanders were victorious in the South Island derby on Friday evening in Dunedin, where first-five Cameron Millar iced the game with a penalty in the dying stages.
Joseph made a late switch before the game to move his experienced props in Angus Ta’avao and Ethan de Groot, to the bench to combat the Crusaders’ bench impact.
Rob Penney had decided to bench a full All Black front row, including George Bower, Codie Taylor, and Fletcher Newell, who all entered the game in the second half.
In the game on Friday evening, there were 83 in-play kicks, the highest of the opening Super Rugby Pacific weekend.
The Highlanders made 45 of them, while the away side contributed with 38 of their own.
Wilson, who played 60-Tests for the All Blacks, said on The Breakdown that 83 kicks in a game is just “not New Zealand Rugby”.
“We finished a whole season last year, at the end of the year, talking about kicking the ball away and turning possesion over,” Wilson said on The Breakdown.
“And then in the very first game, we saw 80 kicks. That’s not New Zealand Rugby. I’m sorry, keeping the ball in hand you know, you can’t play with fear.
“Because for me, the number of times the moment it broke down, teams were going to a box kick in the attacking half, not even in the defensive half, the exit.
“That’s an attacking strategy. I just I don’t accept that that’s in the best interest of our game, and given the skill sets of our players.”
Former All Black winning first-five Stephen Donald believes that the game between the Blues and Chiefs was much of the same, despite fewer kicks in general at Eden Park.
“Look at last night at Eden Park, the line speed and the focus, it was all about defence from both those teams,” Donald said on The Breakdown.
“As far as mentality, you look at mentality. You look at the Highlanders, how they came out, that was defence focused, and even the Crusaders how they’re kicking it a lot, box kicking and then trying to get defensive.
“It’s almost like the coaches knew that it was gonna be rusty.”