Perhaps the most compelling attacker in New Zealand rugby, Rene Ranger just needs to find the right balance to impose himself on the test stage, All Black coach Graham Henry says.
Ranger's first test start and the promotion of Piri Weepu ahead of Jimmy Cowan were the talking points out of yesterday's late unveiling of the All Black side to face South Africa in the second Tri-Nations test on Saturday.
The injured Joe Rokocoko made way for Ranger on the left wing, while Henry insisted Cowan's demotion to the reserves was not due to form, even though the feisty Southlander was unconvincing in the Super 14 and not at his sharpest through the first four tests.
Ranger is a departure from the All Blacks' emphasis over the past two years on wingers with all-round games, who can kick well and field high kicks.
The 23-year-old Northlander is more of a raw attacking weapon, with his speed and strength for the Blues making a meal of defenders during this year's Super 14.
Henry was impressed with Ranger's form but spoke to him midway through the competition, asking him to cut down his error rate. The impressionable youngster took that advice too far.
"His answer to not making any mistakes was to think, 'well if I don't do anything I won't make any mistakes'," Henry said.
"If he plays within himself he's not going to be worth having in the side.
"We want him to go out there and play and express himself. He's going to make the odd mistake, which every rugby player is going to do, but if you go in with an attitude that you're not going to make mistakes, then you're not going to do anything, basically."
Ranger admitted some nerves yesterday but Henry said that would be quickly fixed with ample touches of the ball.
There would be chinks in his play but Henry hoped that would be countered by positives.
"He needs to get self-sufficient as a footballer, so he needs to know the game, know his role and that will take some time."
It was unclear if the Henry message had got through, after Ranger yesterday voiced a priority to keep his mistake rate down.
"I've got to plan it out, when to express yourself and when not to," he said.
"It's going to be pretty hard in the All Blacks, to try to not throw those 50-50s. I'll probably try to keep hold of the ball, try and stay as clean and quiet as I can."
Ranger agreed with Henry that seeking work would keep at bay nerves which were more intense than before his first test appearance, off the reserve bench against Wales in Hamilton two weeks ago.
"You've got to get the flow going right from the get-go. In the Wales test, all the boys were comfortably winning and it was a matter of fitting in when you got on the field," he said.
"You've got to be pretty focused in those first 10 minutes. It will probably go pretty fast."
Henry said Rokocoko was never likely to start due to his hamstring strain but should be available for the test against Australia in Melbourne on July 31.
Cowan had recovered from an abdominal strain but Henry said his time away from training had counted against him.
"[Halfback] is a very aerobic position and you have to be Superman to be able to play there for 80 minutes," the coach said.
"Our best combination over the years has been to have Jimmy start and Piri finish but from time to time they need to swap those roles and the injury probably made us think a bit more deeply about that."
Weepu was particularly sharp off the bench in last weekend's 32-12 defeat of Springboks and Henry said the 39-test Wellingtonian had trimmed down to good effect.
"He's gone up the graph considerably over the last couple of months, worked hard at making sure he had his challenges under control and worked hard at his game.
"He's a natural footballer. He's very talented and if he's in good shape physically, those talents come out even more so."
ALL BLACKS v SPRINGBOKS
- Wellington, Saturday night
• All Blacks: Mils Muliaina, Cory Jane, Conrad Smith, Ma'a Nonu, Rene Ranger, Daniel Carter, Piri Weepu, Kieran Read, Richie McCaw (captain), Jerome Kaino, Tom Donnelly, Brad Thorn, Owen Franks, Keven Mealamu, Tony Woodcock. Reserves: Corey Flynn, Ben Franks, Sam Whitelock, Liam Messam, Jimmy Cowan, Aaron Cruden, Israel Dagg.
• Springboks: Zane Kirchner, Jean de Villiers, Jaque Fourie, Wynand Oliver, Bryan Habana, Morne Steyn, Ricky Januarie, Pierre Spies, Francois Louw, Schalk Burger, Victor Matfield, Danie Rossouw, CJ van der Linde, John Smit (captain), Gurthro Steenkamp. Reserves: Chiliboy Ralepelle, BJ Botha, Andries Bekker, Ryan Kankowski, Ruan Pienaar, Butch James, Gio Aplon.
