AB EOYT 2018
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@duluth said in AB EOYT 2018:
@mariner4life said in AB EOYT 2018:
the 6 jersey is a gaping hole of mediocrity, with no player actually looking up to it at the moment. And a couple that have been selected looking miles from the required standard.
Papali'i
He's been picked as a 6 & 7
yea, what i have watched i have liked. I like him at 7 given the way he plays. But i don't expect him to make the 23 in any of the big games unfortunately.
But my point was the AB squads so far this year.
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@duluth said in AB EOYT 2018:
@mariner4life said in AB EOYT 2018:
the 6 jersey is a gaping hole of mediocrity, with no player actually looking up to it at the moment. And a couple that have been selected looking miles from the required standard.
Papali'i
He's been picked as a 6 & 7
He's becoming the great white (but with a poly name) hope.
Although I don't actually disagree that he's the best long/mid term hope out of those.
But I doubt he will get much test match action at 6 (or 6 substitue) at this green stage of his career.
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At the risk of offending @Billy-Tell I'm going to continue the "WTF where's Akira?" theme.
His non selection in either of these squads is put in perspective by the selection of Gareth Evans. I’m a huge fan of Evans, he’s a Hawkes Bay boy born and bred and is a class attacking player. Emphasis on the attacking player part. He’s not a stand one off from the ruck and make tackle after tackle kind of guy like Whitelock, he’s not a toil away in the rucks ‘all game’ type of guy like – you know what, who is an example of this type of player? He’s a runner out wide, he’ll do some hit ups and he’ll make some tackles. Evans is a white version of Akira and if you compare them head to head in the Super comp (where Evans was considered to be on fire) and at the stuff you select an Evans for (attack) then Akira comes out on top every time.
I don't know how any of the selectors stand up in a press conference and defend the Evans selection over Akira - although I know they'll probably trot out he can play 7.
In saying all that I hope Evans a. gets a run in Japan and b. carves up ... because if they're not going to select Akira then they may as well select more Magpies in the team.
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@rapido said in AB EOYT 2018:
But I doubt he will get much test match action at 6 (or 6 substitue) at this green stage of his career.
Maybe. Although I think his selection might be an indication of what they want to do with the bench next year
There is no Test quality 6/lock or lock/6 at the moment, but we do have good bench locks.He covers the loosies from the bench in a different (IMO better) way than the other options. The selectors made a big deal out of how no one else covers 6 & 7
One year out from the RWC, if he's a serious bench option for that tournament, they should have a look at him in both positions on this tour
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@billy-tell said in AB EOYT 2018:
Anyone else bored with the Akira stuff?
He’s not selected for the umpteenth time, we know people don’t understand, but there’s only so many vitriolic posts before it becomes...repetitive.
Quoted, just to repeat this as well. Akira is the Māori Jesus of the forwards. The Charlie Ngatai of the forwards. Geez, I have faith in the selectors, and if they have good reason not to select him, I trust that decision. If they have reasons not to disclose the full details of why he isn't selected, then I trust their judgment as well. Some people feel way too entitled to that information. It may actually not be in his best interests that everything is disclosed.
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@stargazer given the employer/employee relationship, they are entitled to privacy around what they have discussed, but I think people are calling BS on alot of thier reasoning.
Just say, we have discussed with Akira, he knows what our reasons are and what he needs to work on, he is free to tell you if he chooses, but the reasoning we have been given leads to much more speculation as you can clearly see there is much more to it.
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If we can't complain about player selection and non-selection then the Fern is fucked. No more discussing Jonah from you @Stargazer if that's the case.
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@stargazer said in AB EOYT 2018:
@nepia The complaining has reached excessive levels though. Everyone is repeating everyone. It's not a broken record. It's a broken record collection.
We're all having a shot at the Broken Record Award that @Rancid-Schnitzel has been the front runner for 2 minutes after The Last Jedi was released.
Hansen could solve it all by giving him a game, if he fails we'll shut up.
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@stargazer just because you are a super fan who is loath to say anything even remotely negative about the All Blacks or any All Black players doesn't mean the rest of us have to be.
We have some gaping holes in our pack. A player who looks like he could fill those is consistently over looked despite form. Reasons given don't stack up. That sounds like the perfect thing to talk about on a sports forum.
If you don't like it, why don't you go trawl instagram and find some nice rugby "stories" to share for a while.
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@mariner4life said in AB EOYT 2018:
@stargazer just because you are a super fan who is loath to say anything even remotely negative about the All Blacks or any All Black players doesn't mean the rest of us have to be.
We have some gaping holes in our pack. A player who looks like he could fill those is consistently over looked despite form. Reasons given don't stack up. That sounds like the perfect thing to
talkrepetitively moan about on a sports forum.If you don't like it, why don't you go trawl instagram and find some nice rugby "stories" to share for a while.
It's the repetive moaning I don't like. We've heard the complaints hundreds of times. Nothing new is being said. That's what I don't like; not the fact that it's being discussed.
I agree that that 6 spot isn't settled and that the coaches are still searching and trying. I agree that from the outside it looks logic to give Akira a shot at it as well, but they obviously have reasons not to give him that chance just yet, while they continue to try with other players in who they obviously see something some of us from the outside have questions about (or some of you lot, reject without knowing what the coaches are exactly looking for). If they are - for one reason or another - are not willing to give us full disclosure on their selection decisions, then I accept they may have good reasons for it. Yes, others may not accept it and moan about. But do you really have to do that hundreds of times?
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@mariner4life add in the other players that are in both the extra 19 and the Maori squad already, I woulda thought the Japanese game ideal for Akira (I mean Akira is Japanese name isnt it? ) and it still means he gets all that extra meaningful gametime in the Americas while being part of the extended AB squad.
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@nepia said in AB EOYT 2018:
If we can't complain about player selection and non-selection then the Fern is fucked. No more discussing Jonah from you @Stargazer if that's the case.
Yep. It's an interesting talking point days after a very unusual squad was selected. It's exactly why a site like this exists.
There is a great technique for people not interested in a post or thread; Just keep scrolling.
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@stargazer actually yes. Because i watch our current options getting walked over repeatedly, offering very close to fuck all. And yet get picked again the next week.
So i either say repeatedly "Why the hell isn't Akira Ioane being selected" or i repeatedly say "both Frizzle and Fifita are blatantly not good enough. Squire is barely adequate, but always hurt. What is Luke Whitelock?"
I guess a new one is "What is a Gareth Evans"
Pick your poison.
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Fifita by his own admission loathes the hard work despite his athleticism, so he's back proving himself there. Frizell was solid if unspectacular in his outings and is worth persevering with. Very few good blindsides start their test careers dominating at that level.
Akira plays at 8, so he's behind Read. If you've got an inexperienced blindside, you probably want experience at the back of the scrum in case Read is injured.
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@kirwan The talking point in itself is interesting. Everyone keeping on repeating the same thing isn't.
Yep, scrolling is definitely what I'm doing most of the time, hoping for a post that's not about the forward Māori Jesus. Unfortunately, I have to read all these repetitive posts first (or at least the first sentence(s), to know that they're repetitive.
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@stargazer well what would you like to talk about then?
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@antipodean said in AB EOYT 2018:
Fifita by his own admission loathes the hard work despite his athleticism, so he's back proving himself there. Frizell was solid if unspectacular in his outings and is worth persevering with. Very few good blindsides start their test careers dominating at that level.
Akira plays at 8, so he's behind Read. If you've got an inexperienced blindside, you probably want experience at the back of the scrum in case Read is injured.
I actually thought Frizell did quite well in Nelson. Steamrolling opposition at some occasions. His selection was a total surprise, odd even after hardly starting for the Highlanders, and he's far from the finished product, but definitely showing things that make it worth continuing with him and giving him opportunities.
Fifita; I've more questions about that selection, although the fact that he can play both lock and blindside may have a lot to do with that.
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@stargazer guess the problem is, when you get a bunch of different posters jumping on at varying times of the day, not reading right back through the entire thread and wanting to have thier 2c worth say on the matter, you will get multiple posts on the topic, but my 2c are no more valid than anyone elses (except @MN5 that guy is stuck in the late 90's when it comes to rugby) so you will always get repetition on a forum.
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@mariner4life said in AB EOYT 2018:
@stargazer well what would you like to talk about then?
Other players? The opposition we're going to face on the Northern tour? Game plans? The ABs coaches have said before the French series that this year they were going to experiment with different structures etc; we've seen that in the RC. What has worked so far, and what hasn't. Plenty to talk about.