There are tour games that offer fringe players a heaven-sent opportunity to force their way into the Test elite, and there are fixtures with the New Zealand Maori, according to The Independent's Chris Hewett.
"Many a red-rose wannabe has seen his international ambitions evaporate into the chill night air of the North Island, most notably in 1998, when the prospects of a large number of Englishmen went "pop" all over Rotorua.
"That England XV lost 62-14, and the memory of it still keeps people awake at night. The Maori are not quite the overwhelming force they once were, however. Martin Johnson, buoyed by his Test side's unexpected victory over the Wallabies at the weekend, can legitimately dream of victory when his "dirt-trackers" mark the Maori union's centenary here in Hawke's Bay tomorrow."
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