Tue, 16 Nov 2010 4:19a.m.
What to do with Sonny Bill Williams? The former Kiwi was a sensation at Murrayfield with his audacious offloads playing a key part in many of the All Blacks seven tries.
Sure it was only Scotland and the All Blacks were in rampant form, but wise heads like Richie McCaw and Mils Muliaina suggested after the match that Williams will only get better.
He'll become more selective with his offloads; while he could also run straighter more often and probably have a go himself a bit more too.
The problem for the opposition is that he has pace and power, so he has to be marked, but even if he's tackled he can offload with amazing accuracy. He's a handful in every sense of the word.
So what to do with him? Let's not forget that Ma'a Nonu and Conrad Smith have been a superb combination for the All Blacks with Nonu showing in London how effective he is with the ball, while Smith was almost faultless defensively in Edinburgh.
But SBW probably has to start somewhere and it seems from his two tests that second five is his best position. The coaches have a great headache to sort out.
The big win against Scotland might have been the making of several fringe All Blacks. Flanker Liam Messam at last showed some of his promise, Hika Elliot had a tight controlled game at hooker, while Hosea Gear was all bristling strength and speed as he collected two tries. Like SBW he is putting plenty of pressure on the coaches to re-examine their regular starting XV.
The Scotland Rugby Union owes Kiwi radio man Nigel Yalden a big 'thank you' after he saved them from what would have been an embarrassing mistake. The match commentator was at the ground earlier on Saturday setting up his gear when he noticed the pre-match rehearsal was using an Australian flag, not a New Zealand one. After some stern words from Yalden the correct flag was found and used.
The All Blacks played at such a high tempo in the first half that when Daniel Carter prepared to convert the third try out-of-breath England referee Dave Pearson asked if they couldn't slow down a tad.
There was a nice moment when the All Blacks coaches returned to their seats after halftime and a father approached Steve Hansen about the chance of taking a picture of Hansen with his son. Hansen happily hoisted the lad up on to the bench beside him and posed for the photo at a time when he might have been otherwise pre-occupied.