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Weber unwanted but undaunted

Richard Knowler

It seems cruel to slot Brad Weber into the category reserved for exAll Blacks.

That’s the reality though, isn’t it? Halfback Weber, who will start for Hawke’s Bay in their crucial final round-robin NPC match against Tasman in Napier tonight, has been frozen out by the All Blacks selectors.

His chances of securing a berth for the tour of the northern hemisphere in October and November, barring injury to one of the incumbents, appear remote.

Weber hasn’t added to his 17 test caps, the last as a substitute against France in Paris on November 20, in 2022.

After that tour the general consensus among the rugby public was that TJ Perenara would get the chop. That left Aaron Smith, Finlay Christie, Folau Fakatava – once he got clearance from World Rugby – and Weber to fight for the three halfback spots ahead of the inbound tour by Ireland in July.

The news was bad for Weber. When All Blacks coach Ian Foster settled on his squad the uncapped Fakatava was picked as back-up for Smith and Christie. Weber, like Perenara, was on the outer.

After learning of his axing in June, Weber told media he wasn’t finished.

‘‘I know what I need to do, I’ve fought back before, so I’ll just do it again,’’ Weber said.

‘‘You know my story, this is not the first time I haven’t been selected for the All Blacks. So that’s good for me in that I’ve been here before, I know what it takes.’’

But Weber doesn’t have age on his side. He’s 31. Smith may be 33, but he’s still the king of No 9s in this part of the world. Christie and Fakatava are 27 and 22, respectively.

Yet Weber, who is contracted to NZ Rugby and the Chiefs through to 2023, did a lot right during Super Rugby Pacific and one could only imagine the value he could have provided the All Blacks behind the scenes as they tried to tame their fluctuating form.

Weber has proved in the past that he’s got character. After his test debut against Samoa in Apia in 2015, he was ignored until he made his comeback in 2019.

Can Weber make the squad for the World Cup in France next year? Under the current regime that seems unlikely. Barring a dramatic loss of form or injuries to Smith, Christie and Fakatava, Weber is up against it.

For now Weber now has to focus on helping Hawke’s Bay beat Tasman if they are to leap past Otago in the Odds conference, and secure an NPC quarterfinals berth.

Recent defeats to Bay of Plenty and Wellington (that also resulted in the Ranfurly Shield heading south) have stung the Magpies.

Tasman have been bolstered by the return of All Blacks wings Sevu Reece and Leicester Fainga’anuku, both named on the bench.

This is a big deal for Tasman. The Mako, who are fourth in the Evens conference, could pay for their early misfires and miss the quarterfinals. A win would be enough to secure a berth, as fifthplaced Northland prepare to face Manawatu in Kaikohe on Sunday.

Otago’s assignment isn’t one to be envied; they face a red-hot Canterbury outfit, which has lost only one game, in Dunedin on Saturday.

Otago will be cheering for Tasman at McLean Park. Their season depends on it.

SPORT

en-nz

2022-09-30T07:00:00.0000000Z

2022-09-30T07:00:00.0000000Z

https://fairfaxmedia.pressreader.com/article/282114935453280

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