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'Only thing he lacks': Ex-All Blacks say pressure now on Rieko Ioane to deliver
By Ben Smith
Billy Proctor’s breakout performance in his All Blacks debut against Fiji will force incumbent centre Rieko Ioane to up his game according to ex-All Blacks Jeff Wilson and John Kirwan.
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The Hurricanes centre dazzled in his first Test with a display beyond his years that showed the full range of skills from the No 13 jersey.
The difference between Proctor’s showing and Rieko Ioane’s two Tests against England was clear, with the caveat that the quality of the opposition differs greatly.
Ex-All Black Jeff Wilson said that the All Blacks coaches will now know what Proctor is capable of as they assess their midfield options.
“Look, Rieko’s vastly experienced. What Billy proctor went out and did is, fundamentally, he was accurate in everything you need to see from an All Black centre,” Wilson told Sky Sport NZ’s The Breakdown.
“Running great lines, defensively was really strong. But once again, he’s not going to have this time and space against a big and physical defence like South Africa and Argentina.
“When he goes out and has to deliver, he’s going to put pressure on everybody else, right? So now we know what he’s capable of.
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“Does that mean he starts over Rieko Ioane in a big Test match? It’s going to be a different challenge.”
Sir John Kirwan was straight forward in his assessment of Ioane, highlighting the missing piece of his game right now is the “last pass” that frees up the runners outside.
The ex-All Black praised the rest of Ioane’s game but the ability to execute the final ball is the area he needs to work on.
“What Rieko needs to learn to do under pressure is give that last pass. That’s the only thing he lacks, probably,” Kirwan said.
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“He is incredibly strong getting us over the advantage line. Now he’s running really hard lines, the lines that you saw.
“Proctor did that against Fiji, he would have had a blinder yesterday, Rieko. But what they need, when the pressure comes on, is we need to make that last pass.
“Rieko, technically, you do that and we don’t have too many problems. If he doesn’t get better, that’s when they go, oh Billy, you get out there and have a crack.
“So Rieko will know that it’ll be on his things to improve list. But now he’s got that pressure that really motivates you.”
Wilson added that the Blues’ style of play this season means that Ioane is playing catch up at the international level to adjust back to playing with more width.
The English rush defence was also another factor, but the Blues have not played an expansive game this year which means the star centre is short of recent experience executing in game situations.
“He went a whole season without passing the ball with the Blues, because that’s not the way the Blues played,” Wilson said.
“They were direct, they were physical, the fact he wasn’t using the soft skills, the fact they were playing in a lot of games, once again, at night, there’s a couple of afternoon games, but they were blunt force trauma through the middle, and that’s what he did really well.
“He was really strong defensively. We should never underestimate the use of his speed and how he can save the day defensively quite often.
“But in terms of those passing skills, he didn’t do a lot of it through Super Rugby, and I think it’s taking him a bit of a bit of time to get back, maybe back into the habit.
“And against England, you weren’t going to get a lot of opportunity to do that. He missed a couple of opportunities there. It’s something I’ll have to work on.”
In my opinion…just start Billy Proctor and use Rieko as an impact off the bench…thats what I feel needs to be done and that'll spark things up… especially for Rieko…
Why don’t NZ pick correct players for their positions (3 for each position in the squad) and then build and develop this group. A settled team with players correctly positioned will surely develop into a serious RWC contender under all circumstances in 2027? Forget individuals. Particular requirements for each position, only players with those reuirements play there. Other teams don’t have the depth for that approach but NZ do.
I’m not sure why everyone is on about Rieko NOW, i’ve been saying this for a couple of years now. He plays his best rugby at wing.
Jordie- like everyone else- struggled against Englands rush D, then (ironically) was the worst bench player against Fiji.
So he hasn’t been great.
But I’m not forgetting how much of an improvement he made to the ABs overall when Fozzie finally saw what everyone else did at the time and shifted him to 12.
I wouldn’t write him off just yet but wouldn’t be crying if they replaced him with ALB either.
Be interesting to see what Rieko does. Hard to argue retaining him over Billy.
It’s probably not so simple JK, Ioane has all the instincts of winger. At school, we used to call guys like him a “hungus”. They would hold onto the ball and go themselves, never looking to pass, no matter what. If you were good enough and fast enough, like Reiko is, I guess it worked out for you. Then you get a professional contract on the wing.
When you’re a wing, you get taught to finish, not provide. So Ioane has spent his lifetime with his blinkers on. He’s like a racehorse with his peripheral vision blocked out by special goggles. It’s not so simple to suddenly add new skills and instinct. That’s why it’s surprising that people find it surprising that a specialist centre seems to naturally possess those soft skills. Ioane needs time to learn them, but I suggest international rugby is not the place for an apprenticeship when we have other good options to choose from.
Ioane is 27 years old and has been playing at centre for a few years now. If he hasn’t developed those skills by now, then I suspect he never will.
Ioane will be worth 10 points to Ireland in Dublin if he starts. Please retain him!
Ireland should win anyway but always great for the team psychology to have that a$$hole to collectively smash.
I watched ‘that' quarter final in a Galway bar, being one of two AB's supporters present amongst an expanse of green.
Total respect was shown by everyone before and after the whistle, despite our differing emotions.
You can't have been there Turlough, as your own mates would have ejected you.
I am married to an Oranmore girl and I have love and total respect for the Irish, even you, mate.
PS. I was also in Wellington on ‘that' evening!🇳🇿❤️🇮🇪
He was worth 10 points to the AB’s in the RWC quarter final when he provided two try assists. How did that work out for Ireland?
He might not even be 13 by the time that game rolls around.
Amazing how the focus is on Reiko when inside there have been handbrakes at 9 and 12. Ratima showed the difference giving DMac an extra second makes. Jordie has hardly ever bent or broken the line as consistently as ALB did and that takes the pressure off 13. With Akira, the Ioane bros have been targeted forever while others get a free ride.
No, there was none better than Aaron Smith & Richie Mounga to set up the centres, but Reiko was still a poor distributor. His go-to play under pressure of a blitz defence was to hold & hit it up. The instincts of a winger always kicked in.
Agreed, ALB had a great game and a decent halfback helped. The quick hands between DMAc, ALB, BB and Proctor in the backline were really impressive.
Reiko isn’t helped by Barrett’s regression as a passer inside him but surely he’s been playing centre long enough now that he should be able to pass under pressure. Given that he can’t, I’d suggest he never will. Give Proctor more game time and let’s see how he goes against SA.
True. Jordie doesn’t seem to have those skills like ALB
Rieko has also been hampered by an endless list of second fives like Tupaea, Havili, ALB etc
I’m sure we will see more of Proctor
He did more than expected against FIji and deserves more time in the RC
I’d give him and Rieko one game each against Argentina so we can compare against the same opponents
He gave the last 2 passes twice in the RWC quarter final against Ireland. He can do it but I do wonder about the value of the expansive game plan. Foster tried that and it failed against the big teams like South Africa and France.
The subtlies & nuances a proper centre #13 has are chalk & cheese between Billy & Reiko, quality of opposition notwithstanding. And that’s not say Fiji were easy beats btw. They still hit hard. Reiko would’ve had a great game too but by showing off other skills (hard carry & speed to be specific). Billy’s got the goods, just needs the opportunities & I’m 100% certain he’ll be our #13 at RWC27.