Picking the ABs to lose ...
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Shamelessly borrowed from Radio Sport Breakfast (to which I listened in the gym this morning ... https://www.radiosport.co.nz/on-demand/week-on-demand/ ).
When was the last time you genuinely picked the All Blacks to lose?
Not ...
... I had a feeling it would be tight ...Not ...
... I'm a pessimist so always pick against the All Blacks .. stopped clock and all ...But genuinely picked/predicted/believed the All Blacks would lose.
For me, in all honesty it was 1990. First test v France on tour ... and to be honest it may have extended to 2nd test.
We'd been shit on tour and lost to a couple of "French Selections".
Was convinced our lineout was shit ...
Playing at Nantes ... oh god ... Nantes ... who remembers 1986?
Fuck we've lost already ...
I was wrong! We killed it. 24-3. (And 30-12 second test.)
I genuinely think that is the ONLY time I really thought the ABs would not win. (I was even convinced the Baby Blacks would win in '86.)
Pricks have let me down 52 and 6 half times times since then ... (out of 327 starts ... ) .
When did you last genuinely believe the ABs would lose?
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I have had doubts over many games in the past, but could I say actually genuinely thought we would lose ... diff ball game.
Racking my brain, I believe the 2004 tri nations, return match against SA in SA. We'd been shit at home, against them, barely won and lost the try count 3-1. Time before that was probably the only true Nostradamus prediction of my life was the 2003 semi, where I genuinely thought Australia would win.
Since then, nothing, and not this weekend either. I thought we would lose to England more than lose to Ireland. Hope I'm right.
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@majorrage said in Picking the ABs to lose ...:
I have had doubts over many games in the past, but could I say actually genuinely thought we would lose ... diff ball game.
Racking my brain, I believe the 2004 tri nations, return match against SA in SA. We'd been shit at home, against them, barely won and lost the try count 3-1. Time before that was probably the only true Nostradamus prediction of my life was the 2003 semi, where I genuinely thought Australia would win.
Since then, nothing, and not this weekend either. I thought we would lose to England more than lose to Ireland. Hope I'm right.
That same 2004 game in SA for me, and the 3rd SA game in 2009. We just couldn't beat them that year under the rules at the time.
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@frank said in Picking the ABs to lose ...:
2009 playing the Boks in SA when they had Matfield and Botha.
Yeah I felt the same after the first test in SA - was convinced we'd lose the second test, but would win the third test in Hamilton (was wrong big time on that one).
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2011 game against Boks in SA with B team or at least unsettled line up. Would have been a finest moment if they'd pulled that off.
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That sickening feeling when you break out in cold sweat and feel like the world is caving in around you. World wars, natural disasters, Phil Kearns commentary - have got nothing on this gut wrenching anguish of feeling like the ABs will lose.
Only recall one ever occasion - half time against France in 2007. I don’t know why and had never before felt like this, but it overcame me as I saw those grey jerseys emerge from the break.
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I had a sinking feeling about the 2003 World Cup knock outs. Too many of our best players were left at home, Spencer had all the skills but didn't lead the backline, the lineout was fragile at the time, lack of professionalism about the set up, the ABs were less well led and less well coached back then.
My God, Ted, Shag, Tana, the GOAT and Reado have made a big difference.
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1986 against Wallabies when our best were suspended for Cavalier excursions.
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Only two, both against the Boks.
The 2011 B team vs South Africa at Port Elizabeth rancid mentioned. No Carter, no McCaw, no Read, no Nonu, no Carter... just too many security blankets missing. while simultaneously trying to continue blooding Slade and help Cowan rediscover form (he never did). Still probably could have won the fixture with a bit of luck too.
It's cheating somewhat but I thought there was absolutely no chance for us in the 3rd/4th playoff in 1999. The team was just too mentally shot and South Africa's appetite for beating the ABs had not been quenched since readmission.
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@sparky said in Picking the ABs to lose ...:
I had a sinking feeling about the 2003 World Cup knock outs. Too many of our best players were left at home, Spencer had all the skills but didn't lead the backline, the lineout was fragile at the time, lack of professionalism about the set up, the ABs were less well led and less well coached back then.
Really? I felt shit scared early in the second half of that Welsh game, but that was the only moment that season between the Blues and Crusaders dominating Super Rugby to the moment Mortlock took that intercept I had even an iota of doubt. We had toweled SA a week prior, while Aussie looked average against the Scots. Just a few months earlier we had put 50 on them in the same building and won back the Bledisloe finally - so the thought of Aussie winning just wasn't on my radar.
Certainly wouldn't have been anywhere near as confident in a final against England for obvious reasons.
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Never....but then I always expect Northland to be able win too, so that kinda sums up my mental state.
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@rotated Those scorelines from the RC in 2003 massively flattered the ABs. The team seemed to lack experience without Merts, Umaga, Anton Oliver, Cullen or Lomu.
I honestly thought the AB's would lose the Quarter Final against South Africa. Fitzy said before the Semi Final that he wouldn't have picked a single Wallaby for a joint team, that is not how I felt. I was worried before the semi that Eddie Jones had a cunning plan. Really felt that ABs team looked undercooked.
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@sparky said in Picking the ABs to lose ...:
@rotated Those scorelines from the RC in 2003 massively flattered the ABs. The team seemed to lack experience without Merts, Umaga, Anton Oliver, Cullen or Lomu.
I honestly thought the AB's would lose the Quarter Final against South Africa. Fitzy said before the Semi Final that he wouldn't have picked a single Wallaby for a joint team, that is not how I felt. I was worried before the semi that Eddie Jones had a cunning plan. Really felt that ABs team looked undercooked.
Fitzy though MacDonald was better than Mortlock? Marshall better than Gregan? Thorne better than Smith?
Jeepers
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Believe it or not, I was a bit worried when we were 29-13 up at 1/2 time against France in the 2015 quarter finals. The horrible, grey, sweaty feeling I experienced at the Millennium Stadium in 2007 started to seep back in
Funnily enough, I knew we were going to win the World Cup when Carter dropped a goal against the Boks a week later.
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I picked us to lose the following games:
v South Africa in Wellington this year
v Australia in Brisbane last year
v the Lions in Wellington last year
v Ireland in Chicago in 2016
v Australia in Sydney in 2015
v South Africa in Johannesburg in 2014
v England at Twickenham in 2012.I also predicted we'd draw with the Lions in the final test of last year's series and against Australia in Sydney in 2014.
What can I say - I know my footy. Naturally, I kept all these predictions offline . . .
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Almost never...although the 2011 semi stands out, years of failed world cups, losing Carter then Slade. I think I was just running on hope for that one, thought it might have been another chapter in humiliating All Blacks world cup failures. Very nice to be wrong. Hoodoo broken.
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@act-crusader said in Picking the ABs to lose ...:
half time against France in 2007. I don’t know why and had never before felt like this, but it overcame me as I saw those grey jerseys emerge from the break.
This. I said to wife while we looking around the stadium at half time that "we are going to lose this". She actually believed me for once. The whole thing felt wrong, especially the way Barnes was (n't) reffing. Having been at Twickenham in '99 didn't help the sense of foreboding either.
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@smudge said in Picking the ABs to lose ...:
I picked us to lose the following games:
v South Africa in Wellington this year
v Australia in Brisbane last year
v the Lions in Wellington last year
v Ireland in Chicago in 2016
v Australia in Sydney in 2015
v South Africa in Johannesburg in 2014
v England at Twickenham in 2012.I also predicted we'd draw with the Lions in the final test of last year's series and against Australia in Sydney in 2014.
What can I say - I know my footy. Naturally, I kept all these predictions offline . . .
I'm assuming in 99 you just told a bunch of blokes at Uni ?
