Next taxi off the rank for the All Blacks.

There is a team in world rugby labeled Junior, the next word after it is All Blacks and they are class. They have just won the ANZ Pacific Nations Cup with a game in hand; they have also let Mr Henry know they have a few boys ready for his phone call.

Injury has plagued the NZ rugby stocks this year, however is many circles this is seen as a blessing for more youth to be exposed to high-level rugby. Even in a country with a robotic like rugby manufacturing processor, NZ depth has been tested, soon we will see how that test has been received by the players.

Sitting in the stands in Fiji and watching the Junior All Blacks dazzle crowds and opposition, you are left thinking NZ rugby has a bright future. They have powered through Samoa, Fiji and Japan so far, Tonga is next in their sights and like a machine they have got better with each outing.

The next taxi off the rank is the big question? Who will be the next one to hear from the NZ rugby brains trust to move up a level and be in the senior AB’s squad. Names like Victor Vito, Jason Eaton and Hosea Gear spring to mind. Each of these men have been in superb touch in Fiji, they seem to have an instinctive sense that makes them standout, they also have a calmness that only experience can bring you.

Looking a bit closer at the 3 they have done a lot already. Eaton has been an All Black and playing like an Ian Jones style lock, he has aerial ability galore, as well as pace and determination to get around the track and catch a few backs. Normally sandwiched in the middle of the scrum, he also offers a great option in the number 6 jersey.

Hosea Gear too has graced the AB’s jersey; he played in Hong Kong last year and experienced the grand slam tour. His first test really didn’t see the best of him come out, he will have learnt a bundle on tour though and these rewards are showing now. This man has an innate ability to sense try time; he swoops into the backline and usually to the value of 5 points. During the ANZ Pacific Nations Cup he has risen as a leader, he leads the Haka and is held in high esteem by the squad; this has flowed over to his on the field abilities too.

The 3rd taxi lining up is Mr Victor Vito. His rise has been under the nurturing guidance of Gordon Titchens in the IRB Sevens Series. In the process he has run over, or around most people on the circuit. He has wheels, he has a full skill set of NBA basketball hands ability, he also has a super brain for the game. Each time the ball touches his paws it is instant full speed, he goes straight and he goes well. NZ rugby public have initial billed him as the next Jonah, this is a huge comparison, but this young man is grounded enough to take it as a compliment and just play his own game. Over the end sector of the super 14 he was a regular member of the starting team, each match has seen him look more and more comfortable. In the international fixtures in Fiji he has gone swiftly from good to brilliant.
 

The All Black squad has been getting a hammering from the press, not dispatching the French and a narrow (in All Black terms) win over Italy. If this team in Fiji is anything to go by, the stocks of NZ are looking just fine. Again flashing back it has been when the NZ team has been new that the next era has been bright. The baby-blacks was greatest example of this, maybe next the Junior All Blacks will be seen as the spark that ignited the NZ rugby's next platform.