All Blacks great Justin Marshall insisted that Scott Robertson was correct to drop Finlay Christie to the bench for the Springboks rematch.
Christie was handed a starting role at Eden Park – the biggest Test since the 2023 Rugby World Cup final – after Cam Roigard, Cortez Ratima and Noah Hotham were ruled out through injury.
There was obvious concern around their half-back situation going into last weekend’s clash with South Africa, but the Blues playmaker allayed those fears in impressive fashion.
Dropped despite Eden Park epic
However, despite starring in that 24-17 victory over the Boks, he has been dropped to the bench with Hotham making his first international start.
From the outside, it appears a tough call but Marshall has no doubts about Robertson’s decision.
“Without debate, Finlay Christie is the fifth choice scrum-half in this country and he was starting the biggest Test match of his career, and what we’ve seen in this country for a very long time,” the former All Blacks scrum-half told SuperSport.
“That means when any of the others became available and fit again, they were always going to be starting ahead of him, regardless of how good he was – and he was good last week.
“Fair play, he got stuck in – he had a lot coming at him – but Noah Hotham was up the pecking order and he’s come back from his injury.”
Hotham plays for Marshall’s former side, the Crusaders, and the 52-year-old reckons that he has the skills necessary to thrive this weekend.
“I like Noah Hotham, he’s got a really strong running game, he’s really good around the blindside, quite deceptively strong and he’s happy to take on defenders,” he said.
“Watch him on ‘D’ as well, he’s very defensively secure and he actually puts decent shots on forward, which I gave a miss!
“It’s a look selection and I’m looking forward to see him get a start.”
Hotham’s experienced Springboks opponent
Hotham will be up against the experienced Cobus Reinach, who has been selected ahead of Grant Williams for the Wellington game.
And like New Zealand, Marshall believes that the Springboks have plenty of depth at scrum-half.
“Cobus Reinach, when he came on, I said it in commentary, this guy will challenge defenders. He’s really sharp, I love the way that he plays because he’s got good delivery, really good skill set, but equally he’s got a combativeness to that Springbok front-nine because he’s got the threat,” he added.
“When he doesn’t carry, you’ve got to consider him when he doesn’t take the line on and that attracts defenders.
“Grant Williams has got speed, delivery – South Africa are very well stocked. You talk about Faf de Klerk as well, I really love the way that he plays.
“It’s a position of strength for South Africa. You could pick anyone of those three and they would deliver big time. They’re very blessed.”