TSF Blues player of the year 2021
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TSF Blues Player of the Season: Dalton Papali'i
No surprise that it's Papali'i. He consistently got votes throughout the season and was chosen as the best Blues player in 5 of the 14 matches.
Player Points MOTM Dalton Papali’i 18 5 Tom Robinson 12 2 Hoskins Sotutu 11 2 Akira Ioane 9 2 Patrick Tuipulotu 5 1 Finlay Christie 5 Otere Black 5 Gerard Cowley-Tuioti 3 Bryce Heem 3 1 Kurt Eklund 3 Jonathan Ruru 3 Caleb Clarke 3 1 Zarn Sullivan 2 Harry Plummer 2 Rieko Ioane 2 Nepo Laulala 2 Stephen Perofeta 1 Josh Goodhue 1
Loose Forwards are popular
The top four spots were all taken by loose forwards
I think TSF votes often favour the loosies but it seems fair. Apart from GCT they were the most consistent.
A loosie came first in 11 of the 14 matches. Sotutu, Ioane & Robinson each with two man of the match wins
Gerard Cowley-Tuioti was the unluckiest
Points were given to the top 3 players in each match. 4 times GCT was just outside the top 3. He was consistent without it showing up that well on the overall standings.
Another player who was consistent but couldn't break into the top 3 often was R Ioane.
Votes for Subs
The four main loosies that played also picked up votes when they were on the bench. Robinson early in the season and A Ioane late in the season.
In SRA there was also a lot of votes for the substitute halfback. A large part of that was probably because of dissatisfaction with the starter. Christie, Ruru and Nock all got a lot votes as subs during SRA
(Nock only got two votes in total for his two starts.. he was a lot more popular as a bench player)Another notable popular sub was Harry Plummer in the final
No love for the Props
Only Laulala scraped onto the leaderboard. That seems off.. maybe the rotation between who was starting had an impact?
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@duluth said in TSF Blues player of the season:
@nepia said in TSF Blues player of the season:
Damn, I’m surprised Sotutu got so high, how many votes does Waisake get?
Yeah Hoskins was well off his best in the first month or so
He only got 3 points in SRA. Then got 8 points in SR TT
Almost like he was on a program to peak for the international season.
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@kirwan i think you are giving Fozzie and his crew too much credit there
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@taniwharugby said in TSF Blues player of the season:
@kirwan i think you are giving Fozzie and his crew too much credit there
Not really. That’s just basic fitness stuff. My issue with Fozzie is he’s too conservative a selector.
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@kirwan and opposition got weaker 🤷♂️
I think it was more he just got more comfortable as the season wore on and was able to play more naturally as the blues got into thier groove
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@taniwharugby I think it just took him a while to get going.
He was excellent against the Crusaders in Christchurch and that's when Blues attack was still really struggling - it was Sotutu doing things on his own.
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@kirwan said in TSF Blues player of the season:
@duluth said in TSF Blues player of the season:
@nepia said in TSF Blues player of the season:
Damn, I’m surprised Sotutu got so high, how many votes does Waisake get?
Yeah Hoskins was well off his best in the first month or so
He only got 3 points in SRA. Then got 8 points in SR TT
Almost like he was on a program to peak for the international season.
Or he is better suited to playing against Australian teams.
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@toddy said in TSF Blues player of the season:
@kirwan said in TSF Blues player of the season:
@duluth said in TSF Blues player of the season:
@nepia said in TSF Blues player of the season:
Damn, I’m surprised Sotutu got so high, how many votes does Waisake get?
Yeah Hoskins was well off his best in the first month or so
He only got 3 points in SRA. Then got 8 points in SR TT
Almost like he was on a program to peak for the international season.
Or he is better suited to playing against Australian teams.
Or non NZ teams...which kinda works for the ABs.
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@kiwimurph said in TSF Blues player of the season:
Sotutu vs Crusaders
That must have been one of the games he was asked to target in preparation for the international season.
