The man set to shake up the All Blacks' backline
Analysis: Former Crusader Leicester Fainga'anuku has developed his game as a midfielder at Toulon and could put Rieko Ioane on notice, writes Patrick McKendry.
Richie Mo'unga's decision to serve out the final season of his contract at Toshiba means All Blacks head coach Scott Robertson is unable to select one of his most trusted players from his Crusaders days, but he is about to welcome home another who could shake up the selection of the national team.
Leicester Fainga'anuku, the blockbusting wing or centre, left the Crusaders and All Blacks in 2023 – the same time as Mo'unga did – and will return home this year after he finishes his playing duties at Toulon, who have qualified for a home quarter-final in the Champions Cup.
It will be intriguing to see how Robertson uses Fainga'unuku, who can play on either wing as well as the midfield, because the 25-year-old has the potential to replace both Mark Tele'a – who recently announced he is off to Toyota – and Rieko Ioane, who has revealed he will join Leinster next year on a sabbatical. Ioane's attacking opportunities have been limited at a struggling Blues this season.
Fainga'anuku will presumably come into the mix for the three-Test series against France in July and could push hard for a start providing he is fit. A fortnight ago he scored a try for Toulon in his team's extraordinary 72-42 victory over Saracens at Stade Mayol.
Continuity of selection would put Tele'a and Ioane in the number 14 and 13 jerseys respectively, with Caleb Clarke on the left wing, but Tele'a's move to Japan is significant and Robertson is likely to want to look to the future, while Ioane's Super Rugby form has not been particularly impressive.
Put it this way: if Ioane is unavailable for whatever reason this year, who is the starting All Blacks centre?
One would assume that Anton Lienert-Brown, the Chiefs player more used to being an All Blacks substitute, would be the proverbial next cab off the rank but he has become such a good impact player – witness his hard-hitting performance as a replacement against Ireland in the 2023 World Cup quarter-final – that there may be temptation to keep him there.
Chiefs midfielder Quinn Tupaea is a possibility but not a compelling one, while Crusader David Havili is an extremely versatile player though his midfield experience has been mainly limited to second-five.
Over the past decade or so the All Blacks have gone for one power wing (most recently Clarke) and one who relies more on his pace (Tele'a or Sevu Reece) and Fainga'anuku qualifies very much as a power player who could move to centre during Tests, much as Ioane did earlier in his career.
Importantly, Fainga'anuku, mainly used on the wing but also occasionally at No.13 by Robertson during the coach's seven-year championship streak at the Crusaders, has been playing primarily in the midfield at Toulon.
'I always thought one day I would switch to centre,' Fainga'anuku told Rugby Pass in January. 'I already had the opportunity to do it in New Zealand, but [Toulon head coach] Pierre [Mignoni] and the staff offered me a slightly longer stint. It was a privilege and I appreciated the opportunity.
'I feel like I have more influence on the game. You can manage the momentum of the match, you are also more connected to the teammates around you. You feel like you can help them – I love that. Now, I want to keep both facets, by being able to play on the wing as well as in the centre.'
Fijian-born Highlanders wing or centre Timoci Tavatavanawai, 27, could also be in the mix this year following his inspirational efforts as captain of the struggling southerners and both he and Fainga'anuku are exceptional over the ball in the tackle area.
But there is no doubt that Robertson will be particularly excited about the impending return of Fainga'anuku, just as he will be disappointed by Mo'unga's decision to remain in Japan for another year.
Last year, in his first as All Blacks head coach, Robertson showed a loyalty to those he had coached before – most significantly Reece, but also Chay Fihaki, the 24-year-old outside back who was a left-field choice as cover for the injured Jordie Barrett for the Wallabies Test in Wellington last September.
Robertson will likely feel that Fainga'anuku's return is another step towards building for the 2027 World Cup in Australia, by which time Mo'unga will have returned.
Mo'unga and Fainga'anuku have always connected well and an inside back combination of Cam Roigard and Mo'unga next to a midfield of Jordie Barrett and Fainga'anuku would take some stopping.
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