Northern Edition

Select Edition

Northern Northern
Southern Southern
Global Global
New Zealand New Zealand
France France

Why Shaun Stevenson initially missed out on the All Blacks’ squad

(Photo By Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile via Getty Images)

To the surprise of many rugby fans in New Zealand, Chiefs flyer Shaun Stevenson was a shock omission from the All Blacks’ initial 36-player squad for the Rugby Championship.

ADVERTISEMENT

Stevenson has been nothing short of sensational for the Chiefs this season, and has widely been considered a likely bolter ahead of this year’s Rugby World Cup.

But, despite scoring 11 tries in 17 games this season for the Chiefs, Stevenson was overlooked for the All Blacks’ first squad of 2023.

Video Spacer
Video Spacer

Teammate Emoni Narawa was selected as one of the All Blacks’ outside backs, and is also one of five uncapped players in the squad.

Chiefs flanker Samipeni Finau was also selected, along with Crusaders duo Tamaiti Williams and Dallas McLeod, and also Hurricanes halfback Cam Roigard.

But Stevenson has been called into the team as injury cover for winger Mark Telea, and coach Ian Foster hinted that the 26-year-old may play a role in “those first two Tests.”

“He’s find out when he comes in,” Foster told Sky Sport. “We’ve got pretty specific job requirements on both sides of the ball.

ADVERTISEMENT

“On the attack side, he’s proven to be outstanding. He should be very proud of his year.

Related

“We’ve seen a massive improvement in the defensive structural stuff – the tackle and the contact work – but we still want to see a bit more in that space.

“The fact he’s going to come in and be with us, maybe for those first two Tests, is a great opportunity to get a good read of that.”

The All Blacks begin their Rugby Championship campaign against Los Pumas in Argentina next month, before returning to New Zealand to face the Springboks in Auckland.

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

Boks Office | Episode 36 | Six Nations Round 3 Review

England A vs Ireland A | Full Match Replay

HSBC SVNS Vancouver | Men's Day Three Highlights

HSBC SVNS Vancouver | Women's Day Three Highlights

"I would love to play with Siya Kolisi" | HSBC Life on Tour | Vancouver

Kubota Spears vs Shizuoka BlueRevs | JRLO 2024/2025 | Full Match Replay

Behind the Scenes with the Stars of the Kenya Rugby Sevens Team | HSBC SVNS Embedded | Episode 7

O2 Inside Line: This Rose | Episode 3 | France Week

Watch now: Lomu - The Lost Tapes

Trending on RugbyPass

Comments

2 Comments
G
G 616 days ago

The reason is that Foster is an insecure coach who wants to show "I know better" and since virtually everyone believes that he is the in-form back in NZ today, foster decided to show that he knows better. Defense? Has he seen Clarke jump out of line, compromise the blues alignment and miss tackles?

P
Poe 616 days ago

Hard to imagine he won't get a few tests this year. Narawa also

Join free and tell us what you really think!

Sign up for free
ADVERTISEMENT

Latest Features

Comments on RugbyPass

S
SarahStewart 1 hour ago
'Statement of ambition' Ross Byrne signing announced by Gloucester

It all started when I woke up one morning to find my crypto wallet drained—every last Bitcoin I’d invested in was gone. Months of careful trading, wiped out in an instant. I’d fallen victim to a slick phishing scam that tricked me into handing over my private keys. Devastated, I thought it was over. That’s when a friend mentioned Alpha Spy Nest, a shadowy group of crypto recovery specialists who’d helped him out of a similar mess.Skeptical but desperate, I reached out. Within hours, a voice on the other end—calm, confident, and anonymous—told me they’d take the case. They called themselves “Nest operatives,” and they didn’t waste time. First, they asked for every detail I could remember: the suspicious email, the fake login page, the moment I realized I’d been had. I handed it all over, expecting nothing but a polite “we’ll try.”What I didn’t know was that Alpha Spy Nest was already on the move. Their team—part hackers, part detectives—dived into the blockchain like bloodhounds. They traced the stolen Bitcoin as it bounced through a dizzying maze of wallets, each one a little more obscure than the last. Most people would’ve given up, but not them. They had tools I’d never heard of, scraping data from dark web forums and piecing together clues like a digital jigsaw puzzle.Days later, they called me back. “We’ve got a lead,” the voice said. They’d tracked the thief to a sloppy exchange account tied to a poorly hidden IP address. The operatives didn’t stop there—they cross-referenced the wallet activity with chatter on underground crypto channels and found the culprit bragging about his haul. With that, they flipped the script. Using a mix of social engineering and what I can only assume was some next-level tech, they baited the thief into moving the funds again—right into a trap wallet Alpha Spy Nest controlled. Few days after I’d lost everything, I got a final message: “Check your account.” There it was—my Bitcoin, back where it belonged, minus a modest fee for their trouble. I never met the team, never even learned their real names. All I knew was that Alpha Spy Nest had turned my nightmare into a miracle, and I’d never click a shady link again.Contacts: Email: Alphaspynest@mail.com, WhatsApp: ‪+14159714490‬

1 Go to comments
LONG READ
LONG READ Jamie Joseph could lead the Highlanders to the promised land and himself to the All Blacks job Jamie Joseph could lead the Highlanders to the promised land and himself to the All Blacks job
Search