World Cup ties snipped for season opener

Talk about moving on - the All Blacks have gone into overdrive. Just four players will start in the same positions as the Cardiff World Cup calamity when they face Ireland in their first rugby Test of 2008 here on Saturday.

For what is shaping as a challenging encounter at Westpac Stadium, coach Graham Henry will start his season of regeneration with a team vastly different from the one who crashed 20-18 to France in the World Cup quarter-finals at Cardiff last October.

There are four new caps included, with right winger Anthony Tuitavake the only one to start, while half of the 22-man squad were not involved in the failed World Cup campaign.

Henry, who controversially survived the fallout from the tournament himself, has had personnel changes forced on him by the overseas player exodus of the last year.

He did not have time to reflect on the mass changes since Cardiff, with his concerns centred around getting a new group to gel in less than a week.

“We’ve got some challenges, obviously it’s a pretty short turnaround,” Henry said today.

“We’ve got these guys for four training runs before a major Test match at the weekend against a very strong Irish side, who have got their best side on the track.”

The four who retain their positions from Cardiff are captain and openside flanker Richie McCaw, lock Ali Williams, five-eighth Daniel Carter and winger Sitiveni Sivivatu.

Also starting but in different roles are regular No.8 Rodney So’oialo, who will pack down on the blindside flank for the first time in 42 tests, while Mils Muliaina is shifted once again, this time from centre to fullback.

Starting hooker Andrew Hore came off the bench in the quarter-final disaster while the only member of Saturday’s reserve bench involved at Cardiff is fullback Leon MacDonald.

So’oialo has switched to allow Jerome Kaino to start at No.8 in his first Test for two years, even though blindside flanker is Kaino’s main role with the Blues.

The loose forwards combination has an experimental feel, something confirmed by forwards coach Steve Hansen.

“We’re looking at the different combinations to try and establish who’s best to go where and this is a test we’re looking to do that in,” he said.

“Both of them can play eight, both of them can play six so from time to time you might see that change during the course of the game.”

After a light training run yesterday, Henry was impressed with how his players came through a more demanding session today, both mentally and physically.

“Obviously there’s a huge amount to do in a short period of time, it’s just a matter of trying to make sure we cover the essentials and not try to cover it all so it’s reasonably simplistic on Saturday,” Henry said.

“Just getting that balance right’s important, we’re making sure we’re giving the guys what they can handle.”

The three Test rookies on the reserve bench are Blues lock Anthony Boric, Chiefs five-eighth Stephen Donald and Highlanders flanker Adam Thomson.

Three players are listed as unavailable because of injury - centre Richard Kahui, halfback Brendon Leonard and prop Tony Woodcock - while Sione Lauaki could have been named but Henry wants him to rest a niggling hamstring strain for another week.

Ireland also play Australia in a Test in Melbourne on June 14.

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