Maori All Blacks bring fire to Thomond

Maori All Blacks head coach Colin Cooper need only point to the four players he lost to Steve Hansen this week as evidence of the importance his own representative team has in the cause of New Zealand rugby.

A week after the Maori put the United States to the sword in Chicago in the first leg of an unique rugby double-header in the Windy City, flanker Elliot Dixon, scrum-half Tawera Kerr-Barlow, wing Rieko Ioane and full-back Damian McKenzie will be on All Blacks duty against Italy in Rome tomorrow as the world champions bid to bounce back from their stunning loss to Ireland.

Which means opportunities for another batch of hopefuls looking to make an impression in a side with a developmental mission every bit as important as its cultural significance.