Gut-check the time as Ian Foster reveals his All Blacks mix to save the day

• Roger Tuivasa-Sheck is set to earn his first All Blacks cap after being named in the reserves.
• David Havili, Will Jordan, Sam Whitelock and Nepo Laulala start from XV.
• Not a specialist lock in the bank with Scott Barrett offering cover from No. 6.
• Dane Coles and Akira Ioane joined the bench after missing the first two tests.

Marc Hinton is a senior rugby writer for Stuff who has covered the All Blacks since 1996.

OPINION: So this is the team Ian Foster picked to play for what could be his All Blacks coaching life?

That’s essentially what it comes down to as Foster rolled out his third line-up of the year for the series decider against Ireland in Wellington on Saturday – a selection that could potentially have major implications for his future on the job.

These must be nervous times for the controversial All Blacks head coach, with the razor sharpness you tread in the modern card game, the weather factor that certainly seems to come into play at Saturday’s Cake Tin, and the simple fact that this is an Irish side of high quality which has completely dismissed any fear or intimidation when it comes to the New Zealanders.

Never mind that they’re quite stumbling towards the finish of a long season – the chance to make further history at the expense of the All Blacks seems to be a powerful elixir.

Maybe Foster will survive if the All Blacks lose on Saturday.

New Zealand rugby boards don’t exactly have a history of switching coaches mid-cycle, let alone admitting they were drastically wrong, as they probably did by bizarrely prematurely renaming the dude last year.

But maybe he won’t.

There are reverberations that make the board doubt (how could they not? The All Blacks stare over the course of losing four of their last five tests), and with back-to-back clashes against the Boks on their bottom to come , bad can get worse before you know it.

Either way, however you slice it, this is a crucial test for the All Blacks who, beyond their coach’s well-being, urgently need to regain their balance, form, confidence and sense of identity before things really implode.

There are less than 14 months until the World Cup kicks off in France, and right now this is hardly a New Zealand side that anyone would shiver.

Taking all that into consideration, it is interesting to run the rule about Foster’s selections for this test.

As you would most of the time he went for the tried-and-trusted, bounced the rugged Scott Barrett to number 6 to add some much-needed muscle and size to the loose trio, brought Nepo Laulala back on tighthead prop and put in Will Jordan and David Havili in his starting backline.

Overall, it looks like a more balanced, well-rounded launch unit, able to withstand air assault, minimize mistakes under pressure, and most importantly, keep a cool head in the heat of battle. You could add the avoidance of red and yellow cards to that list of requirements.

Laulala won’t add much in the park, but won’t give in to scrum; hopefully Barrett leads a more direct pack performance that focuses on advancing the guts; and Jordan’s mere presence poses a threat that the All Blacks simply couldn’t replicate in his absence.

If there’s one grumble about Jordan, it’s that he wasn’t picked in his best position.

You can see why Foster did it (he’d rather have Jordie Barrett and Jordan in his backline than, say, Jordan and Leicester Fainga’anuku), but it’s just a shame that one of the few true World XV types of the All Blacks is being outplayed from where he clearly works best.

Havili is one of those safety-type selections. Quinn Tupaea wasn’t terrible, but he struggled in Dunedin when things got messy, and Havili brings the kind of calming, flawless presence that coaches find comforting.

The impact men’s dice have also clearly been dipped, especially with regard to the roster of Dane Coles, Akira Ioane and Roger Tuivasa-Sheck.

Coles – brilliant at his best – has barely played in 2022, Ioane is battling a foot injury that appears to have blunted his form and Tuivasa-Sheck will be playing his first test in a code he is still, he says, working to go.

It is also interesting that Beauden Barrett has retained his spot at number 10 after one of the worst tests of his career.

Obviously his roster reflects the confidence he will bounce under the gun this week, and a bit of a lost faith in Mo’unga to steer the ship through turbulent waters.

In many ways, it doesn’t matter which players Foster has chosen. They are all decent footballers, even the ones left out.

What really counts is whether he can inspire them to play with the collective heart, desire and required accuracy. And whether he can instill them with the resources to negotiate an arduous journey, the determination to face a setback or two, and the fire to quell the opposition pairings.

Saturday night in Wellington will tell us a lot if these All Blacks really want to play for their coach. They will be as aware as anyone of the pressure the Gaffer is under. And that only they determine how this storyline plays out.