An embarrassment of riches: Hansen's World Cup All Black jigsaw puzzle

The World Cup is less than a year away now and I cannot help but look forward and take stock of where the All Blacks are sitting.

Under Hansen’s reign, the All Blacks have not only developed an envious record on the pitch but also have created a good deal of depth and afforded opportunities to a number of players, all with a view to the 2015 World Cup.

Hansen has a number of pieces to form the World Cup-winning formula and a World Cup squad would be fairly easy to identify for most. However, who makes up the best 23? Has the recent Northern escapade provided an insight into what these chaps are planning as the best mix?

Hooker has been touted as an area of concern and probably still is. Dane Coles has nailed the starting spot with Kevin Mealamu defying Father Time on the bench.

Unfortunately, we have not seen a lot of the next cabs off the rank, with Nathan Harris injured early against the US and James Parsons perhaps not nailing his opportunity against Scotland. Injuries could present a real problem in this position.

The starting props looks assured with, assuming form, Tony Woodcock returning to the loosehead position and Owen Franks still our best tighthead option, certainly at set piece time.

What do we have in behind them? Wyatt Crockett and Joe Moody cover loosehead and Charlie Faumuina and Ben Franks covering the tighthead side.

Ben Franks has the added advantage of being able to cover loosehead as well, a skill always valuable within a touring party.

Sam Whitelock and Brodie Retallick are certainly our best locking partnership and that won’t change before the World Cup.

Patrick Tuipolotu and Jeremy Thrush sit in behind them and have taken the chances afforded to them. With Luke Romano returning to the playing field, the position looks catered for.

Dominic Bird is also rated highly by the selectors but in my view he has failed to really take any chances he has had and may now be feeling the heat from someone like James Broadhurst, who must be knocking on the door after a very good 2014 season.

The favoured loose forward trio appears to be Richie McCaw, Kieran Read and Jerome Kaino with Sam Cane, Liam Messam, Victor Vito and Stephen Luatua lurking in the background.

It is the mix here that I find interesting. Liam Messam and Patrick Tuipolotu appear to be the current preferred bench options as loose forward and lock cover. However, I found it interesting when Nigel Yalden, a New Zealand radio sports commentator, suggested that Hansen intimated that he viewed Tuipolotu as potentially a lock/blindside option, a role Steve Luatua filled before being left out of the Northern touring squad.

Does that mean Hansen wants the flexibility of playing Sam Cane off the bench and that he wants his bench options to provide more speed and versatility in playing an attacking up tempo game in the last 20-30 minutes?

Also, what does this do to our set piece? Our starting pack holds its own but the All Blacks have experienced a few speed wobbles with replacements this season come scrum and lineout time. You can’t plan for every eventuality but an early injury could leave us vulnerable in a knock-out match.

The versatility of all of the loose forwards in being able to play more than one position is a huge bonus so there are a number of possible combinations Hansen can churn out.

Personally, I would like to see Luke Romano come back into form to take one bench spot along with Cane and the obligatory three front rowers.

Romano is excellent at set piece and that should be given top priority at World Cup time. Likewise, Jerome Kaino can cover 8 and McCaw blindside and provides a more balanced feel and solidity to the bench.

Unlike the forward pack, the backline certainly does not appear as straightforward. Aaron Smith, Conrad Smith and Julian Savea are the only certainties at this point to start.

Behind Aaron Smith, there is little consensus as to who should be next in line. TJ Perenara has been preferred as his deputy for the majority of the season, however I thought it was telling that Tawara Kerr Barlow was preferred for the Ellis Park Test.

Frankly, none of the halfback options provide an awful lot of confidence behind Aaron Smith which is why I still find it quite mystifying why Andy Ellis continues to be ignored.

I do remember a radio interview with Hansen where he was asked about Ellis and his reply was that they know what Andy can do and it was an opportunity to see what the younger players have got.

Does that suggest the door is still open for Ellis? I think it just might and he would be my preferred bench option for knock-out matches.

First Five has been one of the most debated positions of late, with four candidates looking to be available for selection. Given the injury issues from the last World Cup in this position it is a welcome conundrum!

If Dan Carter can reach his previous best or close enough to it there is no doubt he will be the number one pick however he has had wretched luck with injuries and is by no means a certainty to be available.

This is where the water starts to perhaps get a bit murky. The greater majority would suggest Aaron Cruden is our next best with Beau Barrett on the bench and I would tend to agree with that. Barrett has probably not done enough to nail down the starting spot and has well in truly proved he is the All Blacks best impact player and can cover wing and fullback.

The pressing concern from both of these players is their goal kicking has left a lot to be desired in recent times. This is a crucial element in crunch matches and where Colin Slade has proved his worth in recent times.

Like Barrett, Colin Slade can also cover the back three and has proven far more reliable off the tee so any particular combination is not so clear cut.

His selection on the wing was of great interest to me against Scotland, a move simply designed to offer him game time or trialling different tactics?

The centres are also well covered with Sonny Bill Williams, Ma’a Nonu, Conrad Smith, Ryan Crotty and Malakai Fekitoa providing some quality options. Nonu and Smith still appeal as the likely duo but again it may not be so clear cut.

Can Sonny Bill rediscover his previous union form in such a short time to displace Nonu and would you have either on the bench covering the midfield?

The back three becomes a whole lot easier to figure out once you decide on who the fullback will be, Israel Dagg or Ben Smith? Ben Smith will play, it’s just a matter of where and with both being afforded two starts at fullback on the recent tour I am still not sure who it is likely to be.

I believe the answer to the question is whether the team will be stronger with a Dagg, Smith and Savea combo or is there a stronger combination to be had or more specifically on the right wing?

Charles Piatau was selected on the right wing for the recent match against Wales and can also play on the left and at fullback.

Some have suggested he could be the right wing for the World Cup and he would not be a bad selection at all. However, I feel Daggs positional play and his excellent boot will add more value, especially come the knock-out stages and the tight, tense manner that these matches tend to be played out.

Many of us will now turn our attention to the cricket and the cricket World Cup in our backyard this coming summer, but the upcoming Super Rugby season is one I am eagerly anticipating. Of great interest will be performances the 9-10-12 axis of the Hurricanes, Chiefs and Crusaders.

Either way, Hansen has plenty of pieces to choose from to defend the World Cup but what will prove to be the correct pieces to make this All Black jigsaw work?

Assuming form and so on, this is the twenty three I would like to see come finals time:
Tony Woodcock, Dane Coles, Owen Franks, Sam Whitelock, Brodie Retallick, Jerome Kaino, Richie McCaw, Kieran Read, Aaron Smith, Dan Carter, Julian Savea, Ma’a Nonu, Conrad Smith, Ben Smith, Israel Dagg

Bench – Kevin Mealamu, Wyatt Crockett, Charlie Faumuina, Sam Cane, Luke Romano, Andy Ellis, Beauden Barrett, Sonny Bill Williams.

That would be the right mix in my view in terms of the conditions and likely football we will be required to play.