It is always hard to pick a real stand out player from the All Blacks - the ABs have always had such a good team whose parts have always contributed to such a good performance but as in all sports, one player has tended to stand out thanks to his performances over the season which have been the difference.
For me, that player this campaign has been....
Ben Smith.
Ben Smith is on course to be the best All Black of 2013 after a stellar year in the black jersey - to back up a stellar year in the Highlanders jersey.
The 27 year old from Dunedin is surely at the start of the form of his life and given that he is still very much a utility player, his best days are yet to come.
No one else in the ABs has found more gaps and finished off more moves than Ben Smith whose 7 tries make him by a long way - the next top try scorer is Juan Manuel Leguizamon. He also leads the way in line breaks, metres run, etc. and has clearly outshone his fellow winger, Julian Savea who was the breakout player in 2012.
Plus his defence is absolutely magnificent - that's often hard to see in a side where most players are pretty awesome in D, but out on the wing, Smith has hardly missed a tackle - indeed, the one tackle he missed was that one that led to Ben Franks scoring for the Hurricanes during Super Rugby.
Other standouts?
- Steven Luatua - breakout rookie of the season by a long way. You have to feel sorry for Liam Messam who thought he could look after the number 6 jersey for a couple of years following Kaino's departure to Japan.
- Sam Cane - the tackle machine. Richie McCaw has not really been missed, when Sam Cane can put on defensive performances as good as the maestro.
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