by After a commanding 64-19 victory over Japan in the international match in Yokohama on Saturday, here are the All Blacks’ player ratings.
15 Stephen Perofeta: Nothing spectacular, but the full-back made a good connection in attack. However, he didn’t do enough to prevail the next weekend. 6
14 Sevu Reece: Very busy on both sides of the ball. He did a great job in attack, but his defense and work ethic will also please Scott Robertson as he made some very good interventions. 8
‘Effortless’
13 Billy Proctor: Very impressive from the inexperienced center. At times it was almost effortless as Proctor showed some nice touches. He does the simple things really well in both offense and defense, but also has that certain something that makes him a real option for the big games in November. 8
12 Anton Lienert-Brown: Came to the fore in this second quarter blitz as his playmaking ability helped open the floor wide. 7
11 Mark Tele’a: The good outweighed the bad, but probably not enough to change Robertson’s mind for next week. Tele’a had a few defensive errors that somewhat detracted from an otherwise positive performance. 7
Beauden Barrett is coming back
10 Damian McKenzie: Was at the heart of the All Blacks’ excellent second quarter, but faded after the break and became too loose, resulting in an underwhelming performance. You also wonder if McKenzie needs to play a little more directly to the line, especially against the better teams, although his lateral run worked well enough for this matchup. However, we fully expect Beauden Barrett to start against England. 5
9 Cam Roigard: Ended in the credits after a rocky start. The service was sharp, his support play excellent and he showed awareness around the edges, but there were things that worried Robertson. Roigard’s boxing kicks went wrong a few times, something he needs to improve on before heading to Europe. 7
8 Wallace Sititi: England, watch out, the great Wallace is looking for you. By far the All Blacks’ best player in recent games and was at the top again in this duel. He is an incredible talent who could wreak havoc at Twickenham. 8
7 Sam Cane: His leadership was important when they struggled early. Defensively he set the tone with some good shots while slowing down the Japanese ball well. 7
6 Samipeni Finau: The flanker enjoyed this game much more than the England series. Played a little wider, which allowed Finau to show off his athleticism, but when it comes to the better teams, he needs to be more physical up close. 7
The All Blacks overcome a slow start to the tour with a convincing victory over Eddie Jones’ Japan
Captain’s performance
5 Patrick Tuipulotu (c): The captain of the day and the big lock enjoyed this additional responsibility. Some good attacks, including one for a try, while Tuipulotu was also ever-present in defence. 8
4 Sam Darry: Solid, but he is likely to be left off the 23rd list for the England competition. Darry simply didn’t do enough here to convince Robertson that he should face Scott Barrett, Tupou Vaa’i or Tuipulotu. 6
3 Pasilio Tosi: Didn’t make as much progress in the scrum as expected as Japan remained solid. He scored a try, but being a key option off the bench might be his best bet at the moment. 6
2 Asafo Aumua: A poor start but he came into the game having sorted out his set pieces. Once that was sorted out, Aumua began to show what he could do outdoors with some barnstorming carries. 7
1 Tamaiti Williams: Like Tosi, he failed to gain the upper hand against an impressive Japanese scrum. Williams has done a bit more in defense but there are certainly areas where the loosehead can improve. 6
Substitute: Once again they simply lost momentum when the bench came on. We thank Ruben Love, who landed twice on debut, but the rest couldn’t match what the starters produced. 5
READ MORE: Wayne Smith: World Rugby has ‘woke up’ and realized the bench needs to be changed and the All Blacks will take ‘advantage’ from it
