Bundee Aki

Bundee Aki plays inside centre like a man settling an argument.

Born in Auckland, he arrived at Connacht in 2014 and was central to the most unlikely league title of the professional era in 2016. Ireland qualification followed under the residency rules, and with it a decade of debate about whether he was the right kind of twelve for the way Ireland want to play.

The 2023 World Cup ended that argument. He was among the best players at the tournament — carrying through contact, offloading out of it, and defending with the aggression that had always been there but was suddenly attached to better decisions.

What changed was not the physicality but the timing. Younger Aki took contact because contact was available. Older Aki takes it where it hurts a defence most, and passes where it does not.

He is in his mid-thirties now and Ireland keep finding reasons to pick him. On the evidence of the last three seasons, they are right to.