KiwiRugby.com

Hosea Gear is big, strong, quick and capable. A potential match-winner every time he steps onto the field but he has been left out of the All Black squad of 30 chosen for the World Cup.

The selectors have opted for just one specialist wing in the young Zac Guildford.

• Corey Jane is a fullback/wing utility
• Israel Dagg is a fullback who can play in the wing
• Isaia Toeava played those two positions and can also play in the midfield
• Richard Kahui is a centre who has been used on the wing for the All Blacks before

So you could say there is plenty of options and plenty of cover.

New Zealand have a lot of talent on the wings at the moment.

• 46 test veteran Sitivini Sivivatu was also left out
• Ben Smith’s form wasn’t good enough for a recall
• Joe Rocokoco can’t get a look in
• Lelia ‘Flash’ Masaga is scoring plenty of tries for Bay of Plenty but his name wasn’t even mentioned among the World Cup hopefuls

So where has Gear failed in the selectors eyes? And is it fair?

The obvious issue is that of how much he gets himself involved in a match.

It can be tough on the wing. The run of play in a game of rugby can tend towards one touchline only and opportunities to even touch the ball can be rare let alone do something with it.

Many factors can influence this.

• Wind can determine which touchline kickers aim for when kicking for the line (penalties, free kicks and tactically).
• The tactics of the opposition can be focused on directing a lot of play down a certain side of the field where they believe they have an advantage
• Other tactics may be more defensive – staying away from one side (or one player) that they believe could disadvantage them

Certainly it may not be a good tactic to kick long into the area of the field where Gear is situated. He will most likely run the ball back and he could very well break the line and score or set up a try – it has happened before.

In a tight match – an important test match – defensive lines can be up very quickly trying to snuff out attacking movements before the ball makes it to the outsides. This is a tactic employed by many of the All Blacks’ opponents. New Zealand has strength out wide.

Enterprising play, speed and individual brilliance often result in tries and so it is only natural that defensive strategies would be devised to combat this.

But that is all about the opposition. What about the play of Gear’s team and the man himself?

In the last test against the Springboks, the All Blacks did not get to direct a lot of play. Much of the attacking was done in response to kicks or broken play and there’s never any knowing how that is going to turn out.

As it happened, Isaia Toeava was way more prominent on the right wing than Gear was on the left.

In a rear left hand attacking movement, first five Colin Slade gave Gear a forward pass so we didn’t get to see Gear stride out in space.

Does Hosea Gear get himself involved enough?

It can’t be easy for a wing on the quiet side of play to get his hands on the ball.

The phrase ‘go looking for work’ is the classic cliche that comes out when a wing gets into positions to carry the ball when play is not directed down one flank or other.

Joe Rocokoco had the ball a lot more times that his position might normally get when he played for Auckland recently against Bay of Plenty. He may have been inspired by his last performance at Eden Park as he heads off to France but the point is that he got himself involved – a lot!

Zac Guildford is also industrious.

I do not know what it is like playing on the wing but many of our top outsides manage to be really quite prominent in matches even when play does not necessarily go their way.

When playing for the All Blacks, Corey Jane seems to create opportunities from situations where he has very little space to work in and opponents in front of him. Zac Guildford often hits the ball up when his team is trying to work their way up field.

Bottom line: the players chosen ahead of Gear do all seem to be more involved in matches and they do so on a regular basis

I watched Hosea Gear play in the NPC against Northland a couple of weeks ago.

While he combined with his insides to create opportunities, you would not have said that he stood head and shoulders above the other players on the field that night or that he was particularly prominent in Wellington’s back play.

Is it a mistake to leave Gear out?

Ticking boxes vs X-Factor

On the other side of the argument, there will be situations on attack where Hosea Gear’s physicality would give him an advantage – where only he could score a try in a particular situation. While he doesn’t quite have the physique of Jonah Lomu, situations do arise where Gear can get over the line in very challenging circumstances.

The same may not be true of Zac Guildford.

Gear could also have greater impact off the bench. A late break could result in an opportunity where 2 defenders stand in the way of the try-line and the All Black attacker. Hosea Gear above all others is the guy we want to have the ball in that situation.

It could be argued that none of New Zealand’s wing options that were chosen offer a great physical presence. Corey Jane is really quite a slightly built guy and Guildford is not much bigger.

In a world cup physicality on the wing just may be needed. Hopefully we won’t be caught short when it matters the most.