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New skipper, new players and a new style of play.

All Blacks halfback Aaron Smith is fighting through a rough patch in his impressive test debut season.

Sparky fullback Israel Dagg has declared himself fit to play and is waiting an endorsement from the selectors.

Daniel Carter could be in doubt for Sunday morning's test against Wales. In the final training run for the test in Cardiff, the first five felt some pain in his right leg when kicking and was taken away for further assessment.

Five years of test rugby have honed Kieran Read into a top-notch All Black and perhaps, in Richie McCaw's absence, the next captain.

Most of the All Blacks have been flattened by a violent but brief bug which has swept the squad in London.

Pick a spot - Curucao perhaps, or a hike into Mutuo County in China.

Conrad Smith's noggin has not taken its usual beating. He is weary and his body fatigued but you suspect, like his team-mates, he is ready for one last push against England.

Rocking up at Heathrow Airport in jandals, shorts, singlet and a decent tan, Tom Taylor was an unlikely looking All Black prospect for a run at Twickenham on Sunday.

The test against Italy may have created more selections ideas than the All Blacks panel envisaged.

Early into his job, new IRB boss Brett Gosper has not distinguished himself.

As much as individual brilliance bubbles through the All Blacks, it is the team ethos which creates their momentum.

Italy looked a rusty side in their return to test rugby against Tonga but one warning shone through for their next outing against the All Blacks.

Nobody was exaggerating about Piri Weepu as we waited for a strong performance.

An artillery gun belted off a couple of blasts amongst the rousing range of pre-match activities at Murrayfield.

Wales take their squad for cryogenic training in Poland, the Springboks use the natural advantages of practice at high altitude, but the All Blacks seem the best-conditioned rugby side.

The evidence needs to mount rapidly and in large dollops if Wales are to be a threat to the All Blacks in a fortnight.

Draw up the template for a modern fullback and then work out whether Beauden Barrett or Aaron Cruden best fits the criteria.

Mocked earlier this year for his weight and poor performances for the Blues, Piri Weepu looks like he has saved his best form in 2012 until last, writes Wynne Gray in Edinburgh.

All Black resources will be split for the first two tests on tour, but the intrigue will be how they come to those decisions.