Having been spoiled by the giants of the past, New Zealand have been caught up by the rest of the world.
With England versus New Zealand on the November 2 horizon and Steve Borthwick poised to name his Test squad on Wednesday for the four-game Autum Nations Series, a number of leading candidates have been pencilled in for some timely club action.
There are just four weeks to go before the All Blacks arrive at Allianz Stadium on November 2, so players will be vying to impress.
The Gallagher Premiership table after round one highlighted how you can get strange quirks in this game, defending champions Northampton finding themselves at the bottom 16 weeks after they lifted the trophy at Twickenham.
All 10 clubs have named their teams and numerous selections catch the eye. For instance, Beno Obano, whose red card was influential in tilting last June’s Twickenham showpiece result in favour of Northampton, has completed his suspension and is a Bath starter at The Rec.
Former Leinster and Ireland second row Ross Molony is set to make his Bath debut in a pre-season clash against a familiar foe.
Both teams were soundly beaten in the semi-finals, New Zealand swatted aside 55-31 by French flair while Ireland were depowered 31-20 by a physical England who especially bullied their scrum.
The defending champions trailed by 10 points on two occasions but replacement Eoghan Clarke’s 69th-minute maul try and a late Jack Crowley penalty got the job done.
The Belfast-based province have endured a rollercoaster season and shoud reach the play-offs if they can topple mighty Leinster
The Belfast-based province have endured a rollercoaster season and shoud reach the play-offs if they can topple mighty Leinster