All Blacks squad - The Rugby Championship
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@MrDenmore said in All Blacks squad - The Rugby Championship:
This picking squads game is a bit irrelevant, don’t you think, when you have an incompetent coaching panel, a corrupt administration and a public that senses you are really just shifting the deck chairs? I know it’s a fun parlour game picking this bloke or that bloke for each position, but you can swap the chess pieces as much as you want without realising that the real issue is that you’re playing checkers with 4D chess masters. I wouldn’t bother.
So don’t bother. Meanwhile
Moody, Taylor, O. Franks, Whitelock, Romano, S. Barrett, Blackadder, Grace…..
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@MrDenmore said in All Blacks squad - The Rugby Championship:
On the squad issue and given the lack of cattle, might it be time for NZR to follow the South Africans and Australians and open up the potential pool to those playing in overseas clubs? Wasn’t that how Erasmus engineered the Springbok turnaround?
On the standard objection that this will open the floodgates to up and coming NZ players or those early in their AB careers taking the big euros, francs and yen offshore, isn’t it too late for that? It’s happening already. Rugby, like football, is now a globalised sport where moneyed club owners suck up talent regardless of national affiliation or affinity.
Assuming we get past that point, the much more interesting question is are there NZ players overseas worth looking at - particularly in the tight five, blindslide or centres? Stephen Luatua springs to mind, as does Ngani Laumape.
Who of the overseas contingent is compellingly better than who we've got here?
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@ACT-Crusader backline of Ellis, Mounga, Bridge, Havili, Ennor, Reece & Jordan
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@FakatavaAllBlack said in All Blacks squad - The Rugby Championship:
@ACT-Crusader backline of Ellis, Mounga, Bridge, Havili, Ennor, Reece & Jordan
No way.
Ellis, Mo’unga, Fainga’anuku, Havili, Goodhue, Reece, Jordan
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@Bones said in All Blacks squad - The Rugby Championship:
@Victor-Meldrew I would say throw the captaincy to DP, but he really has to prove he's set in stone first. I'd be tempted to go with Scooter.
Sam Whitelock if Sam Cane can’t make the team. He is still first choice in his position. Part of a winning culture over many years.
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@antipodean said in All Blacks squad - The Rugby Championship:
@Bovidae said in All Blacks squad - The Rugby Championship:
The role of the openside has changed as they aren't getting as many breakdown turnovers now, or any more frequently than any other player.
For that you can blame the GOAT. He was so good WR changed the law. Then Pocockwomble turned being second to the breakdown into an art form. Defences got so good that that little trick isn't worth carrying a limited player.
That goes for passive tacklers who give up ground to try and stay on their feet to be the first on the ball.
In my opinion we're at a point where the team is better off denying territory with punishing defence.
This
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@kev said in All Blacks squad - The Rugby Championship:
@Bones said in All Blacks squad - The Rugby Championship:
@Victor-Meldrew I would say throw the captaincy to DP, but he really has to prove he's set in stone first. I'd be tempted to go with Scooter.
Sam Whitelock if Sam Cane can’t make the team. He is still first choice in his position. Part of a winning culture over many years.
Sam is looking more and more like he can't last 80.
Giving it to SB might give him a bit more leeway when he inevitably does something stupid, plus he has the motor to last the whole match and is one of the first on the team sheet at the moment.
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@reprobate said in All Blacks squad - The Rugby Championship:
@Crazy-Horse said in All Blacks squad - The Rugby Championship:
@broughie said in All Blacks squad - The Rugby Championship:
@TheMojoman at super rugby level but has not shown anything at international except against the minnows. I think @Bones was suggesting 1st five but he would have the same problem in Canterbury.
We are talking about DH at 10? Please no. He was barely adequate there for the Crusaders. DH's best position is 15 IMO.
Havili's best position at AB level is on the bench, so we can have a reserve halfback and stack the forward reserves.
There's a theme developing here. We appear to have a squad of guys that rightly or wrongly can't command a starting jumper but are deemed great and flexible reserves, covering multiple positions at an average level. Ardie covers 6-8 (and 12). Sami cant get a start. Barrett 6 or lock. Jordie 15, 12 and wing. BB 10 and 15. Havili and RTS and JG 12/13 with a bit of 10/15 thrown in. Reiko 13 and wing. Paps is a 6 or a 7, Sowakulu a 6 or an 8, Akira can't play 80 and Sotutu can't get a run at all.
My solution is to start just 5 forwards and 5 backs (doesn't really matter which ones) and have a 13 man bench. After 60mins we can roll out our bench superstars and dominate all comers.
Who's with me?
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@MrDenmore said in All Blacks squad - The Rugby Championship:
This picking squads game is a bit irrelevant, don’t you think, when you have an incompetent coaching panel, a corrupt administration and a public that senses you are really just shifting the deck chairs? I know it’s a fun parlour game picking this bloke or that bloke for each position, but you can swap the chess pieces as much as you want without realising that the real issue is that you’re playing checkers with 4D chess masters. I wouldn’t bother.
Well, as an ex-pat who doesn't watch every SR game, I find this sort of thread incredibly useful in getting a feel for the players and potential players.
Yeah, you might get one of two cockwomble comments, but the opinions on here comes from people with a pretty damn good knowledge of the game, SR squads, the various players and their strengths & weaknesses. E.g. I'd find out more about MSR than I would ever get from the MSM.
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@Victor-Meldrew keep your ear to the ground on the name Zach Gallagher, the young man is built like a fridge
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@FakatavaAllBlack said in All Blacks squad - The Rugby Championship:
@Victor-Meldrew keep your ear to the ground on the name Zach Gallagher, the young man is built like a fridge
Only 20 big unit went really well on debut for the Crusaders.
I have been watching him since school rugby days. -
@FakatavaAllBlack said in All Blacks squad - The Rugby Championship:
@Victor-Meldrew keep your ear to the ground on the name Zach Gallagher, the young man is built like a fridge
I was impressed by Hicks for the Highlanders too.
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@Victor-Meldrew I hoped he would be good but he disappointed. He is an okay leader. Has that deer in the headlights look about him though and probably was appointed to see if the captaincy brought the best out of him.
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@Mackerzzzz not diminishing Conrad but Nonu made space for the midfield by direct running or his side steps either way. Of course Conrad had to read it but he was one of the smart white guys you need.
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@broughie said in All Blacks squad - The Rugby Championship:
@Mackerzzzz not diminishing Conrad but Nonu made space for the midfield by direct running or his side steps either way. Of course Conrad had to read it but he was one of the smart white guys you need.
We don't have that hard running physical presence at 12 right now. We really miss it
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@Victor-Meldrew thank you for the compliment. I am going to savor that.
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@antipodean said in All Blacks squad - The Rugby Championship:
@Bovidae said in All Blacks squad - The Rugby Championship:
The role of the openside has changed as they aren't getting as many breakdown turnovers now, or any more frequently than any other player.
For that you can blame the GOAT. He was so good WR changed the law. Then Pocockwomble turned being second to the breakdown into an art form. Defences got so good that that little trick isn't worth carrying a limited player.
That goes for passive tacklers who give up ground to try and stay on their feet to be the first on the ball.
In my opinion we're at a point where the team is better off denying territory with punishing defence.
Nah, this is just what we told ourselves when the Aussies had someone who was really good at it and we didn't. All sorts of bullshit about how it wasn't important, and how we could do it too if we wanted to, but were busy doing more important things.
Pocock was one-dimensional sure, but that doesn't mean that what he was really good at wasn't a really fucking useful skill to have. Beirne showed the importance of it last week. And he can do other things too - it's not like being able to get on the ball means a player doesn't have any other skills. Even the one-dimensional Pocock would have been an amazing asset if paired with Whitelock, Retallick, Kaino, Read.
As for our defence, it's not punishing. So we're passive and not looking for turnovers. Woo-hoo.
