All Blacks Test centurion Mils Muliaina believes that their lengthy injury list has actually proven to be a positive for Dave Rennie.
Since the start of the international campaign, New Zealand have seen a number of players sidelined, forcing the new head coach to rotate.
Some of those absences are short-term issues but they have also lost some key players for the rest of the season.
Ardie Savea and Ruben Love will definitely miss the end-of-year tour while there is a doubt over Richie Mo’unga for the Nations Championship.
All Blacks set for challenging northern tour
It has also been confirmed that Leroy Carter is definitely out of the northern leg of that competition, but the true state of their injury list will be known once they announce their squad for the games against Wales, Scotland and England.
However, despite the disruption it may have caused, Muliaina states that it has enabled Rennie to try out different players and combinations.
“Seventeen is a heck of a lot isn’t it? But on one side of it, it’s promising because we’ve got depth,” he said on The Breakdown.
“You’re going to have your impact injuries you get from contact, but it’s probably the soft tissue injuries.
“Is it the style they’re playing? Is it the training they’re actually doing to play that fast, explosive style?
“I look at it differently, I think it’s great. It’s the time now to really test your depth and Dave Rennie’s done that. He’s already started implementing that, he’s forced to do it ever more.
“Have we got the stock? From what I see, we do.”
Muliaina was joined on the show by fellow ex-All Black Brad Weber, who was more concerned with the back-row replacements than other positions such as fly-half.
Although individuals such as Peter Lakai and Wallace Sititi have performed at Test level, the Savea-Luke Jacobson axis had been a key part of the Rennie regime.
However, both Lakai and Sititi combined well for the All Blacks at the weekend to suggest that the injuries to the first choice loose forwards will not be too keenly felt.
‘Back to his devastating best’
“You look at those players, particularly Love, Savea, Jacobson, those are big names. The replacement players you’re bringing in, how big a drop-off is it? It’s not a big drop-off from Ruben Love is it? We’ve got great 10s,” Weber said.
“He’s not a third choice 10, he’s been playing full-back, but Savea and Jacobson, we were probably worried around the loose forwards, but wasn’t Peter Lakai incredible and it’s also so good to see Wallace Sititi back and confident.
“Coming back from an injury and then he had that bad concussion in the back-end of Super Rugby, he didn’t look like himself for the first couple of games back in the All Blacks jersey, but on the weekend, man, it looks like he’s back to his devastating best.
“We’re filling these guys places really well.”