Surely a bigger squad size diminishes the need for so many players playing multiple positions, ultimately I'd say prioritise specialists where ever possible, if the best player happens to be able to cover a second position great, unless there is not much to pick between them it shouldn't be a huge factor. Then there's the fact that it's in France so if cover needs to come in, it's not a huge operation to get it there, a small spattering of multi positional personnel is useful but happy for them to sit on the bench, Daly springs to mind.
Squad size is bigger by 1.
Chances of a red card, or a concussion time-out are (probably) bigger by more than 1/32.
To my reading, he's not talking about the first XV, or even particularly the first choice 23. He's taking 3 specialists for the really specialist positions (LHP, HK, THP, SH, FH) in addition to his first choice 23. Which leaves him 5 players to cover any injuries, bans, or RTP protocol absences for the other 10 positions. It's those 5 players for whom flexibility will count more favourably (though a little flexibility is always useful elsewhere in the team, as it gives more options, and means greater spread of the actual jobs on the rugby pitch)
It's a test, isn't it?
I've never understood the English mentality of a 'friendly' international rugby match.
Friendly purely in terms of matches that matter.
In a typical calendar year, there are no friendlies. The 6N matters most, but the June and November internationals also matter.
In a typical year, the closest we get to a friendly is the Barbarians, usually as a warm-up to the June tour, when players from the top 4 clubs aren't available, and it's uncapped, so not a test => friendly.
However, in a RWC year, the RWC is played close to the end of the QN; and... 6 months after the 6N. So we have friendlies.
They are full-cap tests, but are essentially pre-season matches for the international sides. The purpose is to knock the rust off the players, test combinations, embed game plans, and occasionally to see if Bolter X sinks on the international stage.
You guys get ready for the RWC, by playing a season full of rugby, ending in an annual competition that matters.
If we didn't have these pre-season matches, our players would arrive at their first RWC match after 15 weeks without playing any rugby. So we have a pre-season.
"NZ don't play friendlies" - when was the last time NZ had started a RWC after 15 weeks without playing any rugby? Trust me, if that happens, you'll arrange some matches that who's only real meaning is to prepare for the bigger picture, rather than being must-win in their own right.
