It would pay to resist a tendency for the mawkish when it comes to the selection of TJ Perenara for the All Blacks’ opening Rugby Championship test against Argentina on Saturday.
Yes, it’s a feel good story - the Wellington boy getting the nod to start in his hometown a week after announcing this season will be his last in New Zealand – but his selection is one for the realists more than the romantics.
It is Perenara’s experience, both in the rigours of Test rugby and the unique conditions in Wellington, that the selectors have gone for, even while they look to develop the talents of Cortez Ratima (who earns a spot on the bench) and Noah Hotham, who has not made the squad this week despite a captivating test debut against Fiji.
The Test environment is no development ground, and a certain pragmatism pervades the picks for this opening match against an Argentinian side that knows its best chance to earn a result in the two-Test series comes on Saturday night.
Perenara is a prime example of the need to augment the enthusiasm of youth with the wisdom of tenure.
That’s not to say the dice has not been rolled. The ascension of Sam Darry to starting lock is the result of injuries to both captain Scott Barrett, and Blues skipper Patrick Tuipulotu, but it’s an all-in call, especially when the specialist locking over on the bench comes in the form of Josh Lord, whose own season has been plagued with spells on the sideline.
There is a decidedly greenish tinge in the pack, with Tupou Vaa’i (28), Darry (1) and Ethan Blackadder (11) boasting just 40 Test appearances between them, and substitutes Lord (4) and Wallace Sititi (1) just five.
Much will be expected of the locks with attacking lineouts well below the expected standard in the opening two Tests of the season against England.
Codie Taylor will have to find his targets, which is never easy when those targets are ever-changing.
That aside, the rest of this team feels incredibly settled. The front row of Ethan de Groot, Taylor, and Tyrel Lomax appears to be locked in as the preferred starting three, while Damien McKenzie gets a fourth straight start at first five eighth.
Jordie Barrett has a mortgage on the number 12 jersey, and Mark Tele’a returns to the left wing, seemingly with an edge over Caleb Clarke who started the test against Fiji.
Head coach Scott Robertson and his fellow selectors have gone for Beauden Barrett at the back, a selection that feels well earned after two telling cameos off the bench against England and an assured start last up against Fiji.
His selection paves the way for the introduction of Will Jordan, who returns to the All Blacks fold after an extended injury lay-off and some much needed minutes with the Tasman Mako.
The selection of centre will be the major talking point leading into the Test, but Anton Lienert-Brown’s distinctive distribution skills have seen him get the starting jersey in place of Rieko Ioane.
It would have been tempting, surely, to give another hometown boy, Billy Proctor, a second chance in black but in the decision to stick with Ioane on the bench, the selectors have kept options alive both in the back three and in the midfield.
That is a practical call which should not be considered a snub of Proctor.
The Pumas arrive in New Zealand as a bit of a mystery. It was hard to get a gauge on Felipe Contepomi’s side in the July series against France, and with veteran hooker Agustin Creevy receiving an emergency call-back to replace injured skipper Julian Montoya, there are questions around the depth of the squad.
That said, the All Blacks will not be taking the Pumas lightly. Ten of the New Zealand squad named for this Test were in action in Christchurch two years ago when the visitors nabbed their first win over New Zealand in New Zealand.
In the three Tests since, the All Blacks have outscored the Pumas 138-21, but it is the losses this team remembers more than the wins.
And it is the experience the selectors have banked on this weekend as they edge ever closer to tougher Tests against the Springboks later in the championship.
For now, they have parked their desire to push the fresh cabal of youngsters into the Test arena, preferring to put their faith in the players who have proven pedigree at the highest level.
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