Former All Blacks hooker James Parsons believes there is an extra \u201cedge\u201d with Dave Rennie, who is not afraid to drop players if they have not performed.<\/p>\n
The 62-year-old took over as New Zealand head coach after Scott Robertson in January and has been tasked with making them Rugby World Cup title challengers.<\/p>\n
They started well enough under Rennie as they won four Tests in a row, which included defeating the Springboks at Ellis Park, but they have since succumbed to three successive defeats.<\/p>\n
Mass changes from Rennie<\/p>\n
The All Blacks<\/a> boss has responded by making 11 personnel changes in total \u2013 six to the starting XV and five on the bench \u2013 for their Bledisloe Cup clash this weekend.<\/p>\n Fabian Holland, who also missed the Baltimore match, Ethan Blackadder and Tyrel Lomax are arguably the headline omissions for the Wallabies encounter.<\/p>\n And Parsons states that Rennie<\/a> is taking a different approach to his predecessors when it comes to selection and holding players accountable.<\/p>\n \u201cI think you\u2019ve got to take your opportunity, he\u2019s not afraid to wield the axe. With previous All Blacks coaches, normally it would be pretty hard to lose your spot, you would probably have to have a couple of howlers in a row,\u201d the former front-rower said on the Aotearoa Rugby Pod.<\/p>\n \u201cYou get the sense that if you\u2019re not up to it\u2026 there\u2019s that edge, there\u2019s that nervousness when you\u2019re in camp.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s different sort of feeling when it comes to team naming. I think everyone sits there going, \u2018am I going to be in?\u2019 which is a great play.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not unhealthy, that is where you get the best; you get that excitement that you\u2019re in the All Blacks but that nervous energy of, \u2018am I in the team or not?\u2019 That\u2019s when you rise.\u201d<\/p>\n All Blacks team: Five takeaways after Dave Rennie takes \u2018sizeable risks\u2019 as \u2018pressure\u2019 increases on head coach<\/a><\/p>\n After playing all four Tests in Rugby\u2019s Greatest Rivalry, including starting the first three, tighthead prop Lomax has been discarded from Saturday\u2019s clash.<\/p>\n It is a big move from Rennie, with the Hurricanes star a key part of the squad over the past few years, but the head coach is evidently unhappy with what he\u2019s seen from the 30-year-old.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019ve got to look at it from the sense that they haven\u2019t got what they wanted at scrum-time. Dave said he\u2019s been given some clear messages and we all know that Dave\u2019s massive in backing game stats,\u201d Parsons said<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cI wasn\u2019t expecting to not see him but my assumption would be, one, the scrum and, two, those backing game stats when he has a high threshold for his tight five and the expectations around those.\u201d<\/p>\n Surprise backline call<\/p>\n Rennie has also made some interesting decisions behind the scrum, which includes bringing Leroy Carter back into the starting XV ahead of Josh Moorby.<\/p>\n Carter was dropped for the previous match after missing two key tackles but he has returned to the left wing spot.<\/p>\n Moorby has been moved to the bench and Parsons has a theory why he has been handed the number 23 jersey.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a 23-man game so you\u2019ve got to think they have the intention of using him. Where it\u2019s different this time is they probably wouldn\u2019t want to move Jordie to full-back, they wouldn\u2019t want to move Will to full-back,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n \u201cI know they can but I don\u2019t think that they would want to. This time, Richie\u2019s gone down and they probably weren\u2019t expecting it. If Damian or Beaudy went down, it could really rattle the mix if you carried Tavatavanawai.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you base on where they\u2019ve played Josh you get the sense it\u2019s Damian, one, Beaudy, two, and then Josh has the ability to play at full-back.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd then you\u2019ve got your Jordie Barrett and Will Jordan, who they see as specialists at 12 and wing.\u201d<\/p>\n