As we reflect on the Rugby Championship just gone and Southern Hemisphere teams prepare to head north for spring tours, consider this – what would it be like if Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Argentina travelled north as one side and took on the North together. What if there was a SANZAAR equivalent to the British and Irish Lions?
No research identified a common, suitable animal across the three continents and rather than coming up with some grotesque chimera like the Wallapokiwi, let’s just call them the SANZAAR All Stars – worryingly no worse than the marketing team at SANZAAR could do themselves based on previous performance.
Does the Lions concept still work?
Before we talk about who would make a 2021 All Stars starting XV, it’s worth asking the question – is there still a place for such a collaborative touring concept?
Whilst the most recent Lions series against South Africa drew heavy criticism for the style of play from both sides, the Lions themselves have a long and illustrious history – longer in fact than Test rugby between England, Australia and New Zealand.
Whereas England and Australia didn’t face off in a Test match until 1909 and Australia and New Zealand’s first clash was played in 1903, the first Lions tour set sail in 1888. The 21-man squad proceeded to play a 35 match tour across eight months in Australia and New Zealand which included games of rugby and even seven games of Australian Rules Football.
The modern day version of the Lions, with their tours south every four years, has continued to find a place in an already jam packed schedule. It has its detractors but there are plenty of fans, pundits, players and administrators who believe strongly in the value and honour of the Lions concept.
Those who have played for the Lions have often regarded it as one of the highest accolades in their career. World Cup winner and 77 Test veteran Matt Dawson refers to the Lions as the pinnacle. “In rugby terms you’ve made it. There is nowhere to go, and in very, very few walks of our lives do we ever get to somewhere where there is nowhere left to go,” said Dawson ahead of this year’s South Africa series.
The stories, the heroes, the villains and some great rugby moments – yes the Lions have a place in today’s rugby world. And imagine if there was a Southern Hemisphere version – bringing together the greatest players of the time and setting them the challenge of bonding and winning as they take on the intensity of an overseas tour.
Imagine if this side had existed for the past 30 years already and think about the combinations that we’d have been able to see play together. Richie McCaw and David Pocock lining up in the back row. A young Joost van der Westhuizen passing out to the experienced Michael Lynagh. Brad Thorn and Victor Matfield dominating the line out and destroying any ball runners that came down their channel.
(Photo by Jason McCawley/Getty Images)
Who wouldn’t want to see those sorts of combinations playing together?
What would these All Stars tours look like?
It’s late June 2024. The World Cup was a great success and the Super Rugby competition has just had its grand final. The All Stars are heading north to France to play the first SANZAAR AS Series and the whole rugby world is caught in a sense of anticipation.
The All Stars will play three Tests against the French with five warm up games against the very best from the Top 14 league. Previous European Rugby Champions Cup winners Toulouse and Toulon are desperate to make history as they take on the best of the Southern Hemisphere whilst previous Top 14 Champions Clermont and Castres are looking forward to seeing if the Southern forwards can handle the battering ram of French domestic pack play.
Meanwhile back down south, the SANZAAR nations host teams from the north in the usual way and use the opportunity to develop younger players ahead of The Rugby Championship.
Rugby pundits and fans are all debating whether the talent of the All Stars can genuinely come together as a team and not just 15 talented players. Will coach Steve Hansen be able to overcome the national tribalism and find a way to get Aaron Smith to connect with (ahem) Quade Cooper at fly half?
Four years later, after a memorable tour, the All Stars are off again, this time taking on England at Twickenham in a best of three series and club sides such as Saracens, Harlequins and Exeter Chiefs in the mid week games. The vineyards and wine aren’t quite as good as on the French Tour of 2024 but the beer is going down very well and the rugby is something special.
The All Stars Selection Conundrums
If you were picking an All Stars team right now – who would get the nod? Off the back of the Rugby Championship there have already been some tantalising lists created of the best XV the Southern Hemisphere has to offer including a great piece for The Roar by Geoff Parkes that got everyone talking.
But the All Stars aren’t about the best players from one tournament – they are about a group who can come together for one tour; who can shake off their national pride for a few weeks and find a new identity together, not as Australians or Kiwis or Saffers – but as All Stars.
There are some exciting challenges when it comes to selecting a starting XV for that crucial first Test.
Who makes the back row for example? As a huge fan of Sam Cane, the Kiwi flanker would be given every chance of getting back to fitness and if he had a good Super Rugby season behind him then he’d be on the team sheet.
Michael Hooper might not have made the run on side at the beginning of this year. He always gave everything on the field but there were questions over just how effective he was and he still struggled with some of the onfield leadership responsibilities especially around decision making in key moments.
But his 2021 for the Wallabies after his Super Rugby break has seen him improve in almost all aspects of his game and he deserves a starting spot in the All Stars.
You’d have to start Siya Kolisi – partly because of his ability but also for other reasons that will become clear later on. As Geoff Parkes explains though in his piece, Akira Ioane had one arm in the jersey before the Boks made him look just good, rather than great, and Pablo Matera has a lot of credit in the back despite a poor TRC. Duane Vermeulen is not the player he was two years ago so he misses out.
So that leaves number eight. There’s arguably no clear winner here. The easy choice is to give the jersey to Ardie Savea and he wouldn’t let you down but it’s not his natural position. Has Rob Valetini done enough to jump ahead of Savea? Savea gets the nod if I was making the call.
What about at scrum half where you’ve got two of the current best No.9s in the world going head to head? Aaron Smith v Faf de Klerk is a great battle when they play against each other but who do you pick when you can only have one?
Faf is not in his 2019 form that’s for sure and Smith continues to deliver at the highest level so he’d get the start. But Faf would be there coming off the bench and the game plan would be for him to terrorise tired defences with his running game and lay off the boot quite so much.
When it comes to the wings there are a sweet shop of choices to consider. A fit Cheslin Kolbe would surely get one wing but what do you then do with Marika Koroibete, red hot Andrew Kellaway, Sevu Reece and Will Jordan? Five players – two wing spots.
Final question to consider – who gets the honour of leading the first All Stars tour? You might well have four international skippers in your pack with three of them in the back row. But only one can wear the armband.
Savea hasn’t cemented his reputation as a great leader yet, isn’t a lock for a starting XV position and so is out of the running. Hooper and Kolisi are both strong leaders but with his success at the highest level over the past couple of years Kolisi will make a good skipper for the All Stars. This also means he is going to get one of the back row slots as well.
With all that in mind, here’s the All Stars XV who would take the field to play France right now…
1. Steven Kitshoff
2. Malcolm Marx
3. Taniela Tupou
4. Brodie Retallick
5. Eben Etzebeth
6. Siya Kolisi (c)
7. Michael Hooper
8. Ardie Savea
9. Aaron Smith
10. Richie Mo’unga
11. Sevu Reece
12. David Havili
13. Samu Kerevi
14. Marika Koroibete
15. Jordie Barrett
16. Julian Montoya
17. Frans Malherbe
18. James Slipper
19. Lood de Jager
20. Rob Valetini
21. Faf de Klerk
22. Rieko Ioane
23. Beauden Barrett
Time to dream
It would take an incredible amount of logistic and political cooperation and compromise and there are plenty of reasons not to make this happen. But seeing the very best players from the Southern Hemisphere tour and play together would be something very special.
Kent Dorfman
Roar Rookie
didn't they try that in '89 when the ANZAC's played the Lions? The name still works for a combined southern team - A (Australia) NZ (NZ) A (Argies) C S (Safas)
QED
Roar Rookie
1) This is more a sad indictment of World Rugby not supporting tier 2 countries. Most often their best players are not released due to playing in overseas competitions in the UK, France, Japan etc. It is only before world cups that they get a chance of a few matches together. The lengthy uninterrupted BiLs tours with three test and mid week games to test and find combinations often exceeds the time a lot of teams get pre RWC. 2) Reasonable points. Selection should be the best players. However since 'talent' doesn't go away, and each tour is only four years apart, there is a core of the 'best players' that will play with each other for at least 2 tours - (more if you are freak like AWJ) 3) Well I walked into that one. 4) You are right I should not belittle Dawson comments. A great player and servant to the game. The BiLs is definitely the pinnacle of NH rugby as you are recognized as the best of the best. We will have to agree to disagree about Marshall as his combination with Mehrtens was for a time the best in the world. Kelleher was very close, so for me that puts him in front of Dawson as well. ;-) But this all subjective so you are just as right as I am.
Pom in exile
Roar Rookie
1. That’s just not true is it?! International teams aren’t created out of some sort of vacuum just prior to a RWC, they generally spend 4 years preparing for it. 2. Again, generally not true. Whilst there may be some combinations chosen for continuity purposes, mostly or more specifically historically it was simply the best players chosen regardless, although there was always a balance struck in the initial squad selections. Picking the best players and then attempting to gel them into a team is what the BILs should be about and is what the fans would hope for and expect, however Gatland has veered away from that. 3. So you do agree with me. :stoked: That’s exactly my point, the team is often less than the sum of its parts. 4. I’m not sure where that’s come from but as it happens, I thought Dawson was at least the equal of NZs scrum halves and mostly better actually. Marshall IMO was extremely overrated, I always preferred Kelleher. Regarding Dawson thinking the Lions was/is the pinnacle. That’s really up to him isn’t it to decide. He’s a World Cup winner who also won a Lions series so he’s in fairly lofty company.
Kent Dorfman
Roar Rookie
right on - just look at all of the kickable penalties Hooper turns down to go for a try. Great stuff if you can score tries but the Wallabies couldn't. What made England so hard to beat? Johnny W would boot 6 penalties and 3 drop goals despite the Poms never being a threat to score a try, suddenly you are chasing them 27 points down and then yourself must turn down kickable penalties and always go for a try.
QED
Roar Rookie
I think people put too much weight on the 'scratch' team argument. 1) Other than this year's disrupted COVID preparations, the BILs get more lead up/tour matches and time together than most country's world cup teams. 2) The core of the team is usually dominated by one country, often Eng but most recently under Gatland Wales. So there are many established combinations. In addition, the core of each team has played together over successive tours. 3) The BILs is a flawed concept. It is predicated on the acceptance that one country is better or at least equal to four. It should be the other way around. The Lions should win the majority of these 3 test tours but history shows that they have not. 4) I disagree with Dawson comments that the BILs is the pinnacle, it may be for a NH player. But almost without exception at any given time it would be harder to get into an All Black side than the BILs. I may be biased but over the course of his career when was Matt Dawson considered the best halfback in the world or better than his AB counter part at the time?
QED
Roar Rookie
I would say one of the factors that got the AB's over the line in many tight contests was due McCaws captaincy. Hooper is a great player. He has finally grown into an ok captain but he is not a great captain. I would have Kolisi over Hooper for that reason.
Kent Dorfman
Roar Rookie
too right mate - gotta get the name right. so there is the British & Irish team as Britain covers Eng, Sco & Wales. But what of Oz, NZ, SAf & Arg? Oz & NZ are often referred to as the Antipodes, but that doesn't cover SAf or Arg. Being called the "Southern XXXX" sounds a bit lame.
Kent Dorfman
Roar Rookie
playing great rugby in a poor team means you don’t stand out or aren’t a great player. What would you be saying about McCaw if the AB’s only won 50% of their games?
Kent Dorfman
Roar Rookie
"Brad Thorn and Victor Matfield dominating the line out" - I doubt anyone would replace Bakkies as Matfields locking partner - worked too good in tandem for SAf & die Blou Bulle, plus he was a thug who intimidates the opposition with dirty cheap shots - too valuable to leave out of the team
Kent Dorfman
Roar Rookie
despite continued comments of the Lions ending, the tours are getting bigger and bigger with more fans touring, massive $$ to the host countries brewing companies, it is still probably the highest achievement players have - to play for or against the Lions. Based on "normal" form it would be an All Black team with a few token Safa's or Ozzies in the squad, but the AB's of late has been off the boil since Mr Hansen retired so she may be a more diverse squad re nationalities.
Englishbob
Guest
Id love this, what would the SH amalgam be called? There's no historical basis for lions in a B&I team so go wild and pick the best animal you can. Tigers?Dragons?Kraken? You'd assume the team would be largely kiwis and saffers but just imagine a SH touring party rocking up to Edinburgh Cardiff Dublin London and or Paris, maybe a midweek game against the reigning ECC champs and Samoa/Fiji/Tonga/Japan playing the home nations in-between. It'll never happen but just once would be great.
Phil Jackson
Guest
Sounds good on paper, however as in all team sports whenever a composite team is selected coming from a host of sources with every selector from those clubs etc. politics rears its ugly head and real consensus/satisfaction is rarely achieved.
Teko
Guest
@NotKev what are you saying, where does political parties and union come into a forum about a hypothetical squad selection... Even in reality, surely you know there is nojurisdiction whatsoever for all the organisations you are going on about, my goodness! Messrs, coming to this squad I would only change Navili at 12 for Lukhanyo Am to strike a balance in the centre...
Rhys
Roar Rookie
Watch the last 10 mins of the RSA vs WBs game. Critical TO on our five metre line. Springs to mind for its importance in the test.
piru
Roar Rookie
agreed, too American Southern Stars maybe
piru
Roar Rookie
I used to play for Perth/Bayswater with a numbat on the chest, they're about as non threatening as it gets!
Tooly
Roar Rookie
Pretty simple . . South Africa’s forwards including du Toit and Snyman with Retallick. . The ABs backs . . Tupou bench. . Rassie Coach. . Hooper Ball Boy.
Tooly
Roar Rookie
Sam Underhill.
Tooly
Roar Rookie
He could get over and on the ball , make effective tackle and not get bounced. Watch Sam Underhill.
Tooly
Roar Rookie
Yes .