Putting their hands up for the All Blacks

As the Air New Zealand Cup gets down to the business end, it's time to start considering just who might have played their way into an All Black tour in November. Who's screamed "pick me" with their provincial excellence.

RugbyHeaven co-editors Marc Hinton and Duncan Johnstone pick a player each from the national provincial competition, someone who looks to be playing his way on to that business class seat north, via Hong Kong, at the end of October.

Things could change, of course, but these are the men our experts believe should be in that touring party of Graham Henry's.

JAMIE MACKINTOSH - Marc Hinton

It's time, surely, to give the Whopper his chance. Jamie Mackintosh, the giant prop from Southland, has been a New Zealand rugby project for some time now and this tour shapes as the ideal opportunity to get him in the national mix.

To me, Mackintosh presents as the obvious guy to step up and fill the Greg Somerville void. He's a massive man, is adept on both sides of the scrum (though specialising this year on the loosehead side) and has the presence about him that suggests a step into the test arena won't be beyond him.

Carl Hayman showed that there's always tremendous value in having a seriously large unit in your front row. Mackintosh could be the next man mountain of the All Black front row if he's given the chance to show his stuff on a tour like this.

There has been a careful plan in place with this young man, too. From what I hear he's been groomed for just this very moment.

At 23 he's still young by propping standards, but given as he's been on the national radar since he was a teenager there's been a wise policy of not rushing this 129kg gargantuan through too soon.

But this year he looks ready to me. For starters he's really stepped up on the leadership front, taking the captaincy of a highly respected Stags outfit and making a fairly good fist of it.

There's no one more honest than the Southlanders in this Air NZ Cup, and Mackintosh's leadership and presence has been a big part of that.

He also looks a more complete all-round player with a few years of top rugby at provincial and Super 14 level under his belt. The guy can scrummage, that's for sure. But he's also developing a pretty useful round-the-field game and has upped his workrate as he becomes more aware of the requirements in that area.

There's also a hard edge about him that is always useful at the highest level. To me he looks to have so many of the qiualities that eventually made Hayman the world's most respected prop.

He's also a typical Southlander in that he's a fairly straightforward bloke with no attitude issues. In other words he's uncomplicated and just likes to get the job done.

Now seems the right time to blood him. Whether it's as a loosehead, tighthead or cover for both remains to be seen. That will be Mike Cron's job to fine tune the big fella and ascertain his best value for the All Blacks.

But a tour like this, with an expanded squad and the extra fixtures thrown in, is the ideal chance to get him in the environment and have a little peek at him at the same time.

I'd be very surprised if the Whopper doesn't step up big time for the All Blacks. It's high time, too, Southland got another player in the national team. 

HOSEA GEAR - Duncan Johnstone

In a season when the All Blacks have been reduced to playing a centre as a wing, surely there has to be room in the touring squad for an up and comer with 11 or 14 on his back.

No disrespect to Richard Kahui, Waikato's classy All Blacks rookie who has done more than a decent job running down the right hand touchline during the closing phases of the Tri-Nations.

But having consolidated their position as the best in the southern hemisphere this season, the All Blacks need to explore their stocks on this tour in terms of developing players and wing looks an obvious position for a bit of adventure.

Unconvinced about the merits of Rudi Wulf or Anthony Tuitavake, it's time to spread the net a bit wider.

Surely Hosea Gear has to be head of the queue.

This is a young man who has served his apprenticeship with five years in the Super rugby scene and sevens years of provincial action, the latter part with wellington where he has established himself this season as the No 1 strike player in the Air New Zealand Cup.

Finally free of injuries that have hampered his playing time Gear has run in 10 tries in eight matches as the Lions have swept all before them and collected the Ranfurly Shield along the way.

It's this sort of form that is seeing him finally break out of the shadow of his All Black brother Rico who is now plying his trade in Britain.

Hosea also boasts considerable experience with New Zealand Maori.

He's got pace, a swerve and a sidestep and has increased his work rate to make sure he's popping up in the right places at the right time.

About the only question mark you could level at him would be his kicking game which suddenly seems to be a prerequisite for wings under the new laws and was a key reason in Kahui's successful shift there.

But Gear seems to have taken his attacking game to another level at the moment and is oozing a bit of X-factor just when it's needed.

Tries out wide weren't a hallmark of the All Blacks comeback season and that was a bit of a black mark for a side that prides themselves on their backline attack. Goodness, it;s even had Doug Howlett contemplating a comeback.

Let's face it, it's time to get a bit of zip going again.

Gear isn't lacking for rivals to push into the All Blacks. For a position of apparent weakness at test level at the moment, the next tier of talent is very encouraging.

Zac Guildford (Hawke's Bay), Lelia Masaga (Counties-Manukau), Sean Maitland (Canterbury), Andre Taylor (Manawatu), James Paterson (Canterbury) and Fetu'u Vainikolo (Northland) are all pushing their causes.

David Smith's season has suffered with the blue and whites but he remains a ball of energy.

Of course the All Blacks will be hoping Joe Rokocoko can get back into gear with the struggling Auks.

Former test wing Scott Hamilton has been as solid as ever for Canterbury and then there's his red and black team mate Paul Williams who offers the versatility of being able to play fullback and is certianly on the radar as his place in the All Blacks wider training squad earlier in the season.

So there are no lack of options.

It's hard to see the national selectors turning their backs on the proven talent of Rokocoko, especially with a rare Grand Slam on offer.

But surely a player like Hosea Gear who has scored twice as many tries as anyone in the Air New Zealand Cup must be given consideration.

I always felt that Rico Gear got a bit of a raw deal in the All Blacks. Let's hope little bro gets a look-in.

Who do you think is pushing their cause? Have your say below.

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