McBeth "Weepu now most important player"

New Zealand has always been proud of the tremendous depth within its rugby ranks. Many other nations are envious of our ability to constantly produce top class players.

Never has there been a better time for us to prove this.

From a position of great strength leading into the Rugby World Cup, the All Blacks now find themselves in a difficult situation.

Gone is the world's ace playmaker Dan Carter and his replacement Colin Slade.

While Richie McCaw and Keiran Read- two of a formidable loose trio- managed to get through their quarter final without any noticeable damage, they are still some way from their devastating best form of earlier in the season.

And while some of the squad appear to be thriving on the constant training and playing, others look to be slightly jaded while still more are recovering from injuries.

So if the All Blacks win this World Cup they will have done so against the odds. They will have proved that our depth is significant and that the All Blacks aren't dependent on just two or three players.

But they will depend on Piri Weepu. With Carter out, Weepu's role and responsibility have increased remarkably. Rather than relying on Carter to make most of the decisions, it's Weepu. His influence is now critical. He cannot lose concentration for a moment or risk putting the new number 10 under undue pressure.

Piri Weepu has suddenly emerged as possibly the most important player in the All Black backline and I get the feeling he'll thrive on the added responsibility!

ENDS

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