Crusaders 2017
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Mo'unga - maybe carrying a niggle, or maybe he's just too important to risk in this game. I see the Highlanders aren't using Marty Banks, either.
Good to see Digby Ioane and Macilai back. I'm also interested to see Shannon Frizell included. For those who don't know he's the brother of Aussie leaguie Tyson Frizell. Has good size for a blindside flanker!
Looks like the injury ward is emptying a fair bit with the business end of the season approaching. Crotty and Pete Samu presumably still crocked, but not many others?
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Gonna be a good clear out at the end of the season, with Razor getting rid of Toddy's deadwood.
And it appears that everyone likes playing for Robertson too which should make recruiting easier if all the boys are telling their mates how they love it in the Crusaders camp.
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@Wurzel Looks like the Highlanders did that pretty easily.
Yeah - I'd think there will be half a dozen that Razor will be looking at shedding. Fifita, Sean Wainui and Leon Fukofuka probably top of the list. Marty McKenzie, Jone Macilai and Tim Perry won't be sleeping comfortably in their beds either.
I think they'll be fairly keen to hold onto everyone else - though Digby Ioane has been something of a foodbill.
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@Chris-B. The problem for Robertson: some of these players are on contracts extending beyond the 2017 season. For example, Fukofuka and Macilai are signed through to 2018. Not sure about the others. Is there a way to get rid of players who are still on a contract, esp if no other franchise wants them?
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The Blues "de-listed" Anscombe (in a baffling move). Anyone know exactly what happened with contracts there?
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Don't know exactly how it works, but the delisted guys go into a draft pool and other teams can pick them up.
So Jackson Willison a few years ago was delisted so the Chiefs could sign and protect Aki. The Chiefs still intended to pick Willison from the draft (assuming no one else would want him) but the Blues picked him
Not sure what happens if no teams want a delisted player. I assume the original team would have to honour the contract?
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@Stargazer You mean they're signed to the end of the 2018 season? I thought we only got Fukofuka for two years and he'd served those out.
Jesus Christ Toddy, what were you thinking!
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When the NZRU-NZ Players Association Collective agreement was signed in August 2013, to run to end of 2015, the ability for a franchise to delist a player was removed.
Anscombe might have been delisted by the Blues for 2013 season and picked by the Chiefs for 2013-2014?
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@Chris-B. said in Crusaders 2017:
@Stargazer You mean they're signed to the end of the 2018 season? I thought we only got Fukofuka for two years and he'd served those out.
Jesus Christ Toddy, what were you thinking!
Yes, that's how I read this:
BNZ Crusaders are delighted to confirm that halfback Leon Fukofuka, has re-signed with the team for another two years. Fukofuka who joined the squad this season said: āIām just loving being part of this Crusaders environment. It is a great group of players and coaches who I am learning a lot from so re-signing was really an easy decision to make.āhttp://crusaders.co.nz/news/951-bnz-crusaders-name-team-for-the-southern-derby (11 May 2016)
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Soooo, "back to the cricket" as it were.
What does Razor do this week with our returning ABs, bearing in mind my dire forecast at the start of the season that we'd be great up until the international window - when Hansen would flog our forwards into the ground - and we'd run out of gas at the close of the season.
It's worse than I expected because - I think we can all agree - we've been sabotaged by those evil and bitter Blues and Hurricanes carnts!!! Second test - cruising to a comfortable series victory and opportunities for Hansen to make early substitutions and rest our brave lads in a dead-rubber third test, when that bitter and twisted little bastard Billy Son intentionally gets himself sent off, purely to drain our forwards' power. And then in the final test, those fucking fog-beaten Canes bastard backs arsing about, playing silly buggers, dropping the ball and missing kicks - solely to keep the scores close and keep those mighty Crusaders forwards out there as long as they possibly could. Christ - we even delivered a tighthead under the posts and those bastards messed it up. It was on purpose, I tell you!
And this week - will they be fumbling and bumbling those chances? Will they fuck. They'll be running in tries from all angles - celebrating before they even get the ball down and leaping to their feet to pull off complex gangsta dance moves, while our bone weary troops are once more unto the breach... Gah, it doesn't bear thinking about.
Anyway. I reckon we've got to take the risk and rest Sam Whitelock and Codie Taylor. Both of them played big, big minutes. Surely, Romano, Barrett and Strange and Funnell and Makalio can take up the slack.
I reckon we can also risk resting Dagg - play a back three of Tamanivalu, Ioane (or Bridge) and Havili.
The props, though - I think they're going to have to pull on the boots.
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- Hall
- Mo'unga
- Ioane
- (Crotty) Bateman
- FABJG
- Tamanivalu
- (Dagg) Havili
Drummond, Hunt, Havili/Bridge
