All Blacks prop Joe Moody has spoken of his disappointment at missing World Cup selection and said he argued his case to be included in the squad when called by coach Ian Foster on the eve of the announcement.
Moody, who played 40 minutes of Canterbury’s big victory over Manawatu in Christchurch at the weekend, had his Super Rugby season wrecked by an ankle injury in round one that required surgery and he effectively ran out of time to make the World Cup.
It wouldn't have gone unnoticed by Moody, however, that the All Blacks have taken injured lock Brodie Retallick (knee) and loose forward Shannon Frizell (hamstring) to London for the warm-up game against South Africa at Twickenham on Saturday ahead of their opening match against France on September 9.
Moody, a 34-year-old who has played 57 Tests, said of his phone call with Foster: “It was a somewhat, not heated conversation, but I did … try to argue my case when they said I wasn’t going to be ready for the opening round of the World Cup.
"I explained that I didn’t think that was going to be the case. The way things were going I was supposed to play two rounds of NPC – I was supposed to play last week as well – but the medical team decided to err on the side of caution and that it would be better to have another week off.
“I argued that after two rounds of the NPC and another game in London I would have been in a pretty good state but apparently that wasn’t the way they saw it.”
He added: “The first couple of days were pretty tough – that’s an understatement, really.
“I’d set goals for myself for what I wanted to achieve this year and to basically be told that I can’t achieve those goals any more… getting used to that over the first couple of days was tough to wrap my head around.
“Once I sorted that out and set some new goals for myself it’s been pretty good… it’s great to be back in this NPC environment with Canterbury.”
Asked whether he had been told he was unlikely to make the squad, Moody said: “I honestly had no indication at all until that Sunday night, getting that call before the Monday.
“Again, that’s what made it really tough for me but it is what it is and you’ve just got to get on with things.”
Moody’s situation is similar to that of former Crusaders prop Owen Franks, who missed selection for the 2019 World Cup.
There are also echoes of the 2015 World Cup for Moody, who missed selection for that tournament but was called in as an injury replacement. He said he felt he wasn’t good enough to make that initial squad, but clearly feels different about his current abilities, saying “I feel like I’ve still got a lot more to give there”.
For now, Moody isn’t pinning any hopes on playing for the All Blacks this year, but he could do with keeping the World Cup on his radar. An injury to looseheads Ofa Tu’ungafasi, Tamaiti Williams or Ethan de Groot could see him called in as a replacement.
In the meantime, he’s keeping a positive attitude.
“I don’t want to bring any negativity into the camp and be some sort of Debbie downer, there’s no way I should turn up here and be a sourpuss. I’m with the Canterbury side now and it’s all go ahead here.”
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