The Next Generation of All Blacks? Five Stars Ready to Take the ...
With New Zealand in the midst of their European tour, the rugby experts at OptaJason ponder who might feature in the next generation of All Blacks stars.
A second-place finish in The Rugby Championship this year – just ahead of Argentina and comfortably behind South Africa – saw the All Blacks fail to win the competition for the first time since 2019 and for the first time in a non-World Cup year since 2009.
New Zealand’s failure to pick up silverware this year further underlines the fact that the All Blacks are no longer the benchmark in men’s Test rugby. South Africa are now firmly the top dogs when it comes to winning titles.
All Blacks fans might be wondering how they close the gap. The good news is that the talent pool is there. After this season’s NPC campaign saw quality rugby from teams filled with young talent, there are plenty of reasons for All Blacks fans to be positive about the future.
We cast an eye over five players who have stood out this year and shown they have what it takes to pull on the coveted black jersey.
Riley HigginsWellington LionsThe Wellington Lions capped off a spellbinding season with a 23-20 Grand Final win in extra-time against Bay of Plenty in the 2024 Bunnings NPC, clinching the championship for the second time in the last three campaigns. Lions star centre Riley Higgins had a breakout year in what was his third season in the NPC, finishing the campaign as the Player of the Year according to the Opta Index.
The Lions star began the 2024 Bunnings NPC season on the wing, but it was his starring performances at centre where he was most prolific, playing 10 of his total 12 games in the centres.
Higgins either scored or assisted (or both) a try in nine of his last 11 games in the competition, including a hot streak in the Steamers’ six games leading into their Grand Final appearance across which he scored four tries and made four try assists.
He finished with six tries and seven try assists for the season which, alongside Bay of Plenty’s Emoni Narawa, made him one of just two players to both score and assist more than five tries in the campaign.
Higgins’ primary weapon throughout the campaign was his offload. He made 38 successful offloads throughout the 2024 campaign, not just the most of any player this season but nine more than any other player has made in any of the last nine seasons.
Four of his offloads led to tries, as Higgins took on multiple defenders within 10 metres of the opposition line before shedding the ball onto a try scorer on all four occasions.
Although he was adept at putting teammates through gaps with his offloading game, he was adept at cutting through the defence himself, with no player able to better his 17 line breaks and only five managing to beat more defenders (43).
Higgins will be looking to take the next step for the Hurricanes in the 2025 Super Rugby Pacific and build on the 14 career appearances he’s made in the competition so far. While only three of those games were in the starting XV, Higgins was a constant presence in the club’s gameday 23 last season with total 10 caps for the campaign. He’s sure to add to that total in 2025 and beyond.
Kade BanksNorth HarbourThe Hurricanes have snared the signature of attacking weapon Kade Banks for the 2025 Super Rugby Pacific season after the North Harbour man had a stellar Bunnings NPC campaign.
Banks has a single game of experience in Super Rugby Pacific, crossing for a try from four carries for the Blues against the Highlanders in Round 13 last season. He’s shown that he’s got the offensive nous to become a regular fixture in the top flight of domestic rugby.
Banks has now played five seasons in the Bunnings NPC and two as a regular starting winger. The way he exploded in the 2024 campaign left little doubt that he has the potential to feature for the All Blacks down the line.
Banks finished his 2023 campaign with four tries in three games but that was just a taste of his talents. He began the 2024 season with 10 tries in his first six appearances – enough to see him finish the season as top try scorer. He also finished with 47 defenders beaten which was the second most of any player behind Timoci Tavatavanawai (58).
The Hurricanes had one of the best edge attacks in the 2024 Super Rugby Pacific season, scoring 18 tries via their wingers in the season which was the joint-third most of any team behind only the Blues (23) and Chiefs (23). Injecting Banks into a potent backline could be the recipe for further success for the Canes as they look win the competition for the first time since 2016.
Between Caleb Clarke, Sevu Reece, and Mark Tele’a the All Blacks are well stocked for try-scoring wingers but like Banks, those players began in the NPC and showed their stardom at every level as they progressed.
Josh JacombTaranakiJosh Jacomb got a first taste of the Super Rugby Pacific life in 2024 and clearly showed Taranaki head honcho Neil Barnes enough in those games to trust him as the Bulls’ main playmaker for the NPC season; he started at fly half in all but one of Taranaki’s 11 games this season.
The Opta Index – an objective rating of the best overall players in the game, incorporating attacking and defensive data – ranked Jacomb as the number one fly-half for the 2024 NPC campaign ahead of North Harbour’s Tane Edmed and Northland’s Rivez Reihana.
One of Jacomb’s strongest assets is his kicking game; he made 115 kicks in play this NPC season, the second most of any player. He was also one of just two players to kick for 3,500+ metres (3,742m).
He was a master of the grubber kick, sneaking 14 of those low kicks through defensive lines with no other player making even 10 kicks of this type. The Bulls playmaker also ranked in the top two for territorial kicks (85), his game lending itself to a playing style based on possession, territory, and attrition.
Although he took control as first receiver on the majority of attacks – with 174 touches there – the Taranaki number 10 enjoyed popping up wider in the attacking line. No player distributed the ball from third receiver more often than Jacomb (14 times) in the 2024 campaign and it is a philosophy which matches up with how the Chiefs like to move the ball at Super Rugby level.
The Chiefs’ playmakers passed 69 times from third receiver in the 2024 Super Rugby Pacific season, more than any other team, while only the Western Force’s playmakers (62%) opted to pass on a higher percentage of their touches than the Chiefs’ (60%) this year.
Jacomb’s steady game is the rock around which Taranaki and the Chiefs have built their 2024 seasons and while the All Blacks currently rely on the creative genius of Damian McKenzie and Beauden Barrett, there is room for a fresh face to inject themselves in the New Zealand squad and keep the incumbents on their toes.
Nikora Broughton was a man on a mission in the 2024 NPC season, putting in an immense workload as he drove Bay of Plenty towards their first NPC Grand Final appearance since 2019.
The Steamers forward started at number eight in all 13 of his NPC appearances in 2024, showing impressive durability as he played 70+ minutes in all but one of those games – a 56-minute effort against Manawatu in Round 5 in which he still managed to score a try and gained a game-high 94 metres.
Broughton’s ability to carry the ball was the defining trait of his 2024 NPC season. His final total of 164 was 26 more than any other player this year and he was the only individual to cross the gainline on more than 100 carries (115) in the campaign.
These were carries of substance too; he made dominant contact on 53 carries, one of only two players to log 50+ in this category (Billy Harmon – 52 for Canterbury).
His defence wasn’t hampered by his attacking output; his 183 tackles were the second most of any player in the campaign behind only teammate Joe Johnston (184), and he was the first man into contact on 118 of those tackles – the joint-most of any player (also Caleb Delany for Wellington).
Additionally, only Wellington’s Riley Higgins (7) and Canterbury’s Billy Harmon (6) made more tackles resulting in a turnover than Broughton (5).
Broughton has already made 17 appearances in Super Rugby Pacific for the Highlanders and will hope to build on the six starting opportunities he had in 2024 when the competition returns in 2025.
Christian Lio-WillieOtagoChristian Lio-Willie made the most of his time on the pitch for Otago in the 2024 NPC season, making 18.3 carries per 80 minutes – the most of any player in the competition (min. 180 minutes).
This impact has seen him selected for the New Zealand XV tour of Europe in 2024 – a squad of players that have been chosen by selectors as potential future All Blacks.
He proved a force to be reckoned with this NPC season, making dominant contact on seven carries per 80 minutes – more than any other player – crossed the gain line on a league-high 13.9 carries per 80 minutes (min. 160 minutes).
What’s undoubtedly impressed selectors has been his capacity to get through his carries as a forward while making a high contribution on defense. He made 20+ carries and more than 15 tackles twice in the 2024 NPC season. Since Opta began collecting the data in 2011, only six other players have managed this even once in a game in the competition.
In Super Rugby Pacific, Christian Lio-Willie has plied his trade for the last two seasons with the revered Crusaders. Across his 27 appearances for the Christchurch team, he’s played 60+ minutes on 11 occasions and been one of their key attacking weapons. Only hooker Codie Taylor (14) and outside backs Reece (14) and Leicester Fainga’anuku (13) have scored more tries for the Crusaders than Lio-Willie (7) in that time.
If Lio-Willie had dreams of making an impact upon his arrival in Christchurch he’s surely achieved them; his 277 carries for the Crusaders since he made his debut is the most of any player and over 100 more than the next closest teammate (Cullen Grace – 175).
His 18 offloads are the second most of Crusaders player since he made his debut (Reece – 28) while only Tom Christie (376) has made more tackles in that time (Christian Lio-Willie – 220).
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