Has Hansen gone stale?
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The keeping the powder dry argument is a crock. You can hold back certain plays without the team looking like a bunch of muppets who have never met each other before. I'm really troubled how a bunch of senior players could all collectively play so bloody badly. One guy having an off day, it happens. Two yeah, ok. But we had five or six. Considering a massive squad was sent away to counteract the fatigue issue, it was alarming to see so many players ambling about. Fitness has always been our thing.
I dunno. Maybe there has been too much experimentation. Especially with the backline and the constantly rotating midfield/first five who really wants to be a fullback/out of sorts starting halfback. We just really seem out of balance, not creating space, not bashing it up, not retaining possession.
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@victor-meldrew said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
@mofitzy_ said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
I'm unsure of the best midfield but SBW isn't in it.
I really can't recall a best midfield with SBW in it.
He was no.2 to Nonu and for the last 3 years his brain-farts outnumber his magic off-loads by about 3 to 1 - well. when he's not injured.
For me the defining test of his career is the second test against the Lions.
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@no-quarter I think we were looking very sharp with the SBW/Crotty mid-field for the Lions, until Crotty got injured and next test SBW got sent off.
We were making big in roads into the rush defence then, so maybe this is why Hansen is so persistent with SBW as he feels he is the key to unlocking it? Shame his body is probably about 2 years too late for that.
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I am now at the anger stage. If we have a pattern of play that beats Ireland on the weekend, and deliberately didn't do it enough to win the game, then i am fucking furious. If it was shelved to keep it up our sleeves for next year then i am apoplectic.
That's why I have decided it's bullshit. No coach is that arrogant that they can just ignore the central part of his job, winning tests, for the goal of winning more tests next year. And if he is allowed to with the backing of the NZRU, then i want everyone involved in that process fired.
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@mariner4life what if the powder dry 'alley' is in that we had stuff we were trying to achieve in order to unleash these masterful moves that would wow the world, but cos our kicking was shite and we coudlnt catch, we were unable to get ourselves in a position to unleash/try this magical moves?
We just coudnt execute whatever ever it was they were trying to do, so whethe ror not we had extras up our sleeve, we lost.
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@taniwharugby said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
@mariner4life what if the powder dry 'alley' is in that we had stuff we were trying to achieve in order to unleash these masterful moves that would wow the world, but cos our kicking was shite and we coudlnt catch, we were unable to get ourselves in a position to unleash/try this magical moves?
When you guys are talking about the "powder" you aren't talking about moves are you? If you are, then we are talking about different shit.
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@mariner4life I think that we have a current game plan that can beat Ireland and we played that on the weekend. However, due to poor execution and general dipshit-ness we didn't execute it well and we lost. I still think they're working on a game plan to win the RWC (that isn't Ireland specific but all comers specific) and that is what Hansen is talking about.
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@nepia said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
@mariner4life I think that we have a current game plan that can beat Ireland and we played that on the weekend. However, due to poor execution and general dipshit-ness we didn't execute it well and we lost. I still think they're working on a game plan to win the RWC (that isn't Ireland specific but all comers specific) and that is what Hansen is talking about.
see, i don't see it that way. We didn't look like the better team on the weekend, so i don't see it as "a plan to beat Ireland". It couldn't beat the Lions who used much the same tactics, and it didn't win on the weekend. We had maybe 10 minutes in the ascendency on the weekend, and got nothing for it because key players panicked or made errors under pressure. So if the plan is "hope those same guys don't fuck it up next time like they have the last two" that doesn't fill me with confidence.
The keys to beating the ABs have been the same for how many years now? Heat on the rucks; rush on defense to take away time; make your tackles; cut out the aimless kicks. It's still the key now. How is that possible?
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@mariner4life Fair enough, I lean more towards we're good enough but we're fucking up (the Lions series is a bit of a french red herring for me). The other option is we're just getting beaten by better teams, if that's the case then I'll have to join team ...
... which I've been resisting so far.
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@mariner4life totally dominated for 70 mins and still only lost by 7?
I share some of your views too, and wonder if Hansen has reached the end of the line a year or so too early, but I do honestly think we were a bit of luck and better execution of some basics and beating the Irish, question is would this have simply papered over cracks or given the boost we needed for this slightly different game plan?
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@nepia don't throw that shit in here, the sky is not falling, it's not doom and gloom, we are still #1, and just lost a tight one to the #2 side away.
My point is, the result is secondary to what i have seen on the field this year. There are concerns all over our park, with a whole heap of unanswered questions. If the Irish test was the only blip on the year you could probably make a few claims around tired/luck/off day.
But when you add it to last weeks performance, the loss to the Boks in Wellington, the first 50 minutes to the Boks away, and yes, even the Lions, then there should be at least a few alarm bells. That's a decent amount of evidence that things aren't going perfect, yet i see very little evidence of any changes in thinking.
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I don't think anyone has been keeping the powder dry - that's straw clutching.
I do think Ireland are a bloody good side with a number of players that are currently the best in their position, brimming with confidence and extremely well coached.
I also believe that this was one tough game too far for a lot of the players - not just physically but mentally.
We are also nowhere near as dominant now as we were during the last WC cycle - results notwithstanding. This side simply isn't as good as the 2015 one.
There are also some critical form issues that have been obvious for quite some time.
EOYT for both hemispheres are far from a level playing field. The only time you truly get a measure of how everyone stacks up is at a RWC.
We do look stale but I think that is down to all the factors above more than our form falling off a cliff as it did in 90/91.
Ireland are a bloody good side and did to us what we normally do to others. Still both sides were out on their feet and we could have stolen a thoroughly undeserved victory. I don't think the likes of BBBR will play as poorly again so plenty to work on but I'm firmly in the glass half full camp.
Plus the Black Caps won overnight so it would be churlish to be too negative
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@mariner4life said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
That's a decent amount of evidence that things aren't going perfect, yet i see very little evidence of any changes in thinking.
Due to his record, I'm willing to give Hansen enough rope and believe his comments to think that 'changes in thinking' may actually be contributing to this years results.
I'll be there waiting with the rope if it all goes pear shaped next year though.
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@mariner4life said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
@nepia don't throw that shit in here, the sky is not falling, it's not doom and gloom, we are still #1, and just lost a tight one to the #2 side away.
I don't think that (yet), but some of the comments on various threads since the game suggest others do.
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@nepia said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
@mariner4life said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
That's a decent amount of evidence that things aren't going perfect, yet i see very little evidence of any changes in thinking.
Due to his record, I'm willing to give Hansen enough rope and believe his comments to think that 'changes in thinking' may actually be contributing to this years results.
I'll be there waiting with the rope if it all goes pear shaped next year though.
2014/15 is giving Stevo a heap of rope isn't it? So lets hope behind closed doors he does know what he's doing.
I still fucking hate playing shit rugby in pursuit of some future goal. A 3rd World Cup means less to me than putting teams back in their box.
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@mariner4life said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
@nepia said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
@mariner4life said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
That's a decent amount of evidence that things aren't going perfect, yet i see very little evidence of any changes in thinking.
Due to his record, I'm willing to give Hansen enough rope and believe his comments to think that 'changes in thinking' may actually be contributing to this years results.
I'll be there waiting with the rope if it all goes pear shaped next year though.
2014/15 is giving Stevo a heap of rope isn't it? So lets hope behind closed doors he does know what he's doing.
I still fucking hate playing shit rugby in pursuit of some future goal. A 3rd World Cup means less to me than putting teams back in their box.
I guess for me, living through that late 90s early 00s era I've never got back to we should win every match by right so the losses don't hurt as much as they use to, I didn't even break anything at the final whistle. Don't get me wrong, as good as Hansen has been he's still the guy who let Ireland bust through the door and get their first wins so he's at least looking at 5 years hard labour when he steps down.
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@nepia said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
@mariner4life said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
@nepia said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
@mariner4life said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
That's a decent amount of evidence that things aren't going perfect, yet i see very little evidence of any changes in thinking.
Due to his record, I'm willing to give Hansen enough rope and believe his comments to think that 'changes in thinking' may actually be contributing to this years results.
I'll be there waiting with the rope if it all goes pear shaped next year though.
2014/15 is giving Stevo a heap of rope isn't it? So lets hope behind closed doors he does know what he's doing.
I still fucking hate playing shit rugby in pursuit of some future goal. A 3rd World Cup means less to me than putting teams back in their box.
I guess for me, living through that late 90s early 00s era I've never got back to we should win every match by right so the losses don't hurt as much as they use to, I didn't even break anything at the final whistle. Don't get me wrong, as good as Hansen has been he's still the guy who let Ireland bust through the door and get their first wins so he's at least looking at 5 years hard labour when he steps down.
rugby results for games i watch not play don't affect my mood one bit. If they do then maybe you need more in your life.
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@mariner4life said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
@nepia said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
@mariner4life said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
@nepia said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
@mariner4life said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
That's a decent amount of evidence that things aren't going perfect, yet i see very little evidence of any changes in thinking.
Due to his record, I'm willing to give Hansen enough rope and believe his comments to think that 'changes in thinking' may actually be contributing to this years results.
I'll be there waiting with the rope if it all goes pear shaped next year though.
2014/15 is giving Stevo a heap of rope isn't it? So lets hope behind closed doors he does know what he's doing.
I still fucking hate playing shit rugby in pursuit of some future goal. A 3rd World Cup means less to me than putting teams back in their box.
I guess for me, living through that late 90s early 00s era I've never got back to we should win every match by right so the losses don't hurt as much as they use to, I didn't even break anything at the final whistle. Don't get me wrong, as good as Hansen has been he's still the guy who let Ireland bust through the door and get their first wins so he's at least looking at 5 years hard labour when he steps down.
rugby results for games i watch not play don't affect my mood one bit. If they do then maybe you need more in your life.
I had a lot more going on in my life back when lost games did affect my mood.
Any way we all use this place as therapy so there's no need to have affected moods in the real world.
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I feel super-shitty depressed the ABs lost to a very good Ireland side, but not yet ready to jump off the bridge or hide the razor blades. It’s a loss. Learn from it; move ahead.
Wasn’t that long ago that an undefeated AB side that included BBBR, Whitelock, Read and even McCaw required a MIRACLE to beat Ireland in Dublin in November, 2013. That miracle might have papered over some deficiencies then, too, but we were mostly elated and didn’t talk too much about what a has-been Hansen was, and we even bounced back and won another World Cup title. I really don’t see any reason we can’t do it again. Sure, we’re not as dominant as we’d like to be, and maybe that loss if going to feel like a sharp rock under the towel at the beach all summer. But we’re at least as good as anybody else, and more likely better than them all. If other teams want to believe the ABs are shot, let them.
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@nepia said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
@mariner4life said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
@nepia said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
@mariner4life said in Has Hansen gone stale?:
That's a decent amount of evidence that things aren't going perfect, yet i see very little evidence of any changes in thinking.
Due to his record, I'm willing to give Hansen enough rope and believe his comments to think that 'changes in thinking' may actually be contributing to this years results.
I'll be there waiting with the rope if it all goes pear shaped next year though.
2014/15 is giving Stevo a heap of rope isn't it? So lets hope behind closed doors he does know what he's doing.
I still fucking hate playing shit rugby in pursuit of some future goal. A 3rd World Cup means less to me than putting teams back in their box.
I guess for me, living through that late 90s early 00s era I've never got back to we should win every match by right so the losses don't hurt as much as they use to, I didn't even break anything at the final whistle. Don't get me wrong, as good as Hansen has been he's still the guy who let Ireland bust through the door and get their first wins so he's at least looking at 5 years hard labour when he steps down.
It depends what stage of life you are at I think. Like you, the early 00s era, the longer we went not winning the RWC, there was a time when I lived and died on each game. That culminated with our shock loss in 2007 and led me to the Fern (thank goodness!!). Once we won in 2011, it felt like that moment the character from Fever Pitch (Nick Hornby) experienced, when Arsenal finally won a title all of his angst flew away. 2015 was an even bigger hit, we have truly been spoiled over the last 7 years. There are some fans out there who have no idea what it was like losing in cruel and excruciating ways to Gregan/Larkham/Eales, and choking like dogs at RWCs 1995, 1999, 2003 and 2007
