Fly-half Aaron Cruden fires a pass away during training with the All Blacks
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Writing on Rugby Heaven, Marc Hinton wonders if Aaron Cruden is worthy of a place in the All Blacks squad for their end-of-season tour.
"The All Blacks selectors have a big call to make over the next month or so. Are they prepared to carry a player who is so flawed in the core tasks of his role?
"That's essentially what it comes down to in the case of Manawatu youngster Aaron Cruden who spent all season playing understudy to Dan Carter then fluffed his lines when he got his chance on centre stage in Sydney.
"It's harsh to pass sweeping judgment on the rookie five-eighth on the strength of one test - his first start to boot - when, frankly, the entire team didn't really measure up until the final quarter.
"And it was notable in the aftermath of New Zealand's 23-22 thriller to bring the curtain down on the first "perfect" six-game Tri-Nations campaign that the coaches steadfastly refused to condemn Cruden for a poor tactical and kicking game. Instead they chose to largely focus on the positives, which could be a pointer to their mindset around the gifted - but imperfect - No 10."
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