Does diluted Super Rugby Pacific help or hurt the All Blacks?

The All Blacks are preparing for their first Rugby World Cup since the demise of Super Rugby as a Rugby Championship-based event.

The question is does the new tournament set up, help or hurt the All Blacks on the international stage.

DOES THE ABSENCE OF SOUTH AFRICAN FROM SUPER RUGBY HURT THE ALL BLACKS?

The lack of South African teams from Super Rugby has at the very least obscured the picture when it comes to the relative progress of the Springboks and All Blacks talent pool.

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The United Rugby Championship meanwhile has give South African players plenty of opportunities to face Irish and Scottish opposition ahead of a Rugby World Cup where they are grouped together.

In France, the Springboks could meet the All Blacks as early as the quarter-finals but if they avoid one another in the last eight they could only clash again in the final.

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The two Tests the Springboks play against the All Blacks ahead of the Rugby World Cup might clear up the picture.

Alongside their joint participation in Super Rugby from the mid-1990s until 2020, the Springboks have also played multiple Tests against the All Blacks every year since 1996.

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ARE THE ALL BLACKS LOSING FAMILIARITY WITH THE SOUTH AFRICAN GAME

The All Blacks will still compete with the knowledge that the Springboks will play rugby in a certain way with a heavy emphasis on physicality.

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With no matches being played between South African and New Zealand teams at franchise level there might be some fears that a lack of actual experience of their style of play might make it more difficult for the All Blacks to cope.

Super Rugby Pacific increasingly resembles Rugby League with Kiwi teams particularly looking to avoid the breakdown and also to an extent reducing the amount of times they go into contact.

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If matches are officiated in a way that favours this style we might well see South Africa and some of the Northern hemisphere teams struggle to contain the All Blacks attack.

THE FLIP-SIDE

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Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber has noted with interest the Crusaders use of rolling mauls as a crucial part of their attack.

This brings us to the flip-side where South African teams could be unaccustomed to the nuanced way that the All Blacks could attack.

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Stopping a maul certainly requires a fair amount of brute strength but there is also a level of precision involved that will make the task tougher if defenders are unfamiliar with how it is set up.

Modified obstruction laws give teams some chance of repelling a maul from short range, but even the Springboks won’t want to allow the All Blacks too many chances to feed a lineout inside their 22.

THE VERDICT

We probably won’t know what impact the changes to Super Rugby will have on the All Blacks until after the Rugby World Cup but if they fail to reclaim the Webb Ellis trophy it is likely something that will be mentioned in the post-mortem.

One could argue that the South African teams presence in the URC has already helped cause a power shift that has seen Ireland become the best team in world rugby.

Time will tell if the trends being picked up on in world rugby continue to show that South Africa’s withdrawal from Super Rugby will hurt the All Blacks.