Barrett returns for Bledisloe after watching All Blacks' set-piece struggles from the couch

Scott Barrett will make his All Blacks return in the Bledisloe Cup series against the Wallabies after surgery ruled him out of the home Tests against South Africa, which New Zealand lost.

The former captain watched all three matches against the Springboks as a spectator and admitted he rode the emotional swings of the series while paying close attention to the set piece — an area that came under heavy scrutiny after coach Dave Rennie accused South Africa’s front rowers of “walking around” at scrum time.

“I watched those Tests as a fan, like the rest of everyone back here,” Barrett told media on Monday. “I think the set piece is probably an area where they [South Africa] work themselves back into the game. Critical moments, they were able to get up the field through scrum penalties on their ball, and you know their DNA — they leant on it and fed into other areas of their game, which is their maul, and that’s been a strength for them for a long time.”

Barrett was careful not to be too harsh on the players who were on the field, noting that armchair criticism has its limits. The conditions in South Africa, he said, are “like no other”, and sitting at home does not replicate the pressure of being in the middle of a Test match.

“I’m naturally a little bit of a skeptic, so yeah, I think it’s easy to criticise when you’re on the couch at home,” he said. “You’re not there with the boys in those pressure moments. I check myself to say ‘you’re not there’. Don’t fall into that trap — it’s a slippery slope when you start complaining about referee calls and all that stuff.”

The lock is under no illusions about the challenge ahead. Australia beat South Africa in Perth, demonstrating a significantly improved set piece of their own, and Barrett said the All Blacks are “fully on alert” for what is coming.

“You know they beat South Africa, so we’re fully on alert for what’s coming this week,” he said. “As a team, we’ve already addressed a few things on where we need to get better around the scrum. It’s not until you sort of see it on the grass and make those shifts and turn them into habits. Like anything, it’s not an overnight fix, and we’ll have to work pretty hard this week and going forward.”

Barrett’s return gives the All Blacks a significant boost in the tight-forward department as they look to arrest the momentum Australia have built heading into the series.