Bledisloe II
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We were really good on the weekend, and clearly still well ahead of the Aussies. Ben Smith great 2 weeks in a row in different positions. Still a better fullback. Naholo looks to be finding his feet properly at that level now which is good news. Ngani should be the impact sub, the thinking is all wrong there - he'd be very effective against a tiring side with less line speed and organisation. Barrett, awesome. A Smith, his speed of delivery is so crucial to our success, couple of defensive semi lapses, but one heroic save to make up for it.
Fatties all pretty good, squire (!?) and bbr (as usual) in particular.
For the Oz. Despite the usual echoes in here, pocock was very good in a well beaten side. He's a nuisance. Tui looks like he may just turn out to be the big lump they need to bring much needed balance to the loose trio and pack in general - still very raw and goes missing at this stage though. Gwenia is still pretty handy. Beale is good, Hodge handy, and DHP showed a bit of spark too. Not all doom and gloom I reckon. Forwards don't look fit enough, but I think that is more likely to be tiring themselves out with poor decisions at breakdowns than actual fitness. They also need to take some lessons from us on using turnover ball and shifting it quickly. This is where I see Foley's biggest down side. He's not bad in general, but he doesn't demand the ball and get it wide fast in those situations, and most of the forwards have no idea -whereas all our guys are on the same page with this. Turnover comes, we get it in the hands of our decision makers asap. In bled 1, we turned over a shit load of ball in the first half. They outplayed us, but led only 6-5. We would have been up by 20+ if a team made those mistakes against us. They have guys who can run, but aren't getting them the ball quick enough when they get a chance. -
@cyclops said in Bledisloe II:
@rancid-schnitzel said in Bledisloe II:
I liked Moody's try. Showed great strength. Very unheralded player, but does a shit load of work in tight and hits like a train.
That was a great try. Hope Owen Franks watches some replays, look what can happen when a big strong prop hits the ball at top speed.
In Owen's case that's 3 mph though?
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@reprobate I agree about the fitness thing. I can't see any Tier 1 side being unfit.
It's about conserving your energy. Not doubling up when you don't to. Good technique at scrum and lineout, rather than brute force.
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I don't know what the numbers say but it seemed we forced the Aussies into expending a lot of energy early on. Lots of tackles, big collisions, Laumape hammered them in midfield, opening the door for us to run away with it in the second half. We were relentless in the two Bledisloe tests, no wonder the wobs looked knackered
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@bovidae said in Bledisloe II:
I'm not going to post the link but I read what the Walrus had to say about this game. He was very complimentary but probably wrote that through gritted teeth. The most amusing part, which he acknowledges, is that the scores in Bled I and II does put the Irish series win into context. The NH scribes won't be able to criticise the Wallabies too much without diminshing that achievement.
Think Hansen needs to manage the players well between now and the end of the year. Hands up if you want to lose to England or Ireland? I would be sending the B team en masse to Argentina, should still have enough to get the job done.
There are still plenty of Irish fans who think the gap is narrow between the sides, and they were all over Australia - which they were in fairness, without being able to score too many tries, which is their problem - and it could well be a close enough game. The ABs have hardly been sensational in Autumn over the last few seasons.
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Ireland will be an interesting proposition for this All Black team in its current form. Their game is simple, and very patient. They don't turn over the ball much, don't allow you to bully their forwards, and are pretty handy at slowing the game down to a speed they are comfortable playing. They also attack in areas we haven't been as good defending in recent years, like close to the breakdown. We're going to have to be better at creating attack on our own ball, rather than waiting until they give it up.
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@reprobate said in Bledisloe II:
Naholo looks to be finding his feet properly at that level now which is good news.
Fatties all pretty good, squire (!?) and bbr (as usual) in particular.
As others have pointed out - Naholo has struggled to reproduce his Highlander's form for the ABs, but I think after picking up a couple of good tries last week, he's starting to believe that he belongs in the team. Previously, I reckon he's maybe been a bit over-awed.
Squire's probably been a bit harshly judged at times for not being a ready-made replacement for Kaino. Tough gig - replacing perhaps the best ever AB blindside. Needs to grow into the role and seems to be coming along quite well.
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@chris-b said in Bledisloe II:
@reprobate said in Bledisloe II:
Naholo looks to be finding his feet properly at that level now which is good news.
Fatties all pretty good, squire (!?) and bbr (as usual) in particular.
As others have pointed out - Naholo has struggled to reproduce his Highlander's form for the ABs, but I think after picking up a couple of good tries last week, he's starting to believe that he belongs in the team. Previously, I reckon he's maybe been a bit over-awed.
Squire's probably been a bit harshly judged at times for not being a ready-made replacement for Kaino. Tough gig - replacing perhaps the best ever AB blindside. Needs to grow into the role and seems to be coming along quite well.
Squire was outstanding. More than happy for him to call 6 'his'.
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@pakman said in Bledisloe II:
@cyclops said in Bledisloe II:
@rancid-schnitzel said in Bledisloe II:
I liked Moody's try. Showed great strength. Very unheralded player, but does a shit load of work in tight and hits like a train.
That was a great try. Hope Owen Franks watches some replays, look what can happen when a big strong prop hits the ball at top speed.
In Owen's case that's 3 mph though?
Again, for a guy who is very possibly the strongest bloke in the team his lack of power as a ball carrier is baffling.
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@mn5 said in Bledisloe II:
@pakman said in Bledisloe II:
@cyclops said in Bledisloe II:
@rancid-schnitzel said in Bledisloe II:
I liked Moody's try. Showed great strength. Very unheralded player, but does a shit load of work in tight and hits like a train.
That was a great try. Hope Owen Franks watches some replays, look what can happen when a big strong prop hits the ball at top speed.
In Owen's case that's 3 mph though?
Again, for a guy who is very possibly the strongest bloke in the team his lack of power as a ball carrier is baffling.
Probably worried if he runs too hard he'll end up scoring a try.
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@mn5 said in Bledisloe II:
@pakman said in Bledisloe II:
@cyclops said in Bledisloe II:
@rancid-schnitzel said in Bledisloe II:
I liked Moody's try. Showed great strength. Very unheralded player, but does a shit load of work in tight and hits like a train.
That was a great try. Hope Owen Franks watches some replays, look what can happen when a big strong prop hits the ball at top speed.
In Owen's case that's 3 mph though?
Again, for a guy who is very possibly the strongest bloke in the team his lack of power as a ball carrier is baffling.
It’s not baffling if you understand basic physics....he’s almost certainly the slowest in the team.
Kinetic energy = 1/2 mass x velocity squared
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@sammyc said in Bledisloe II:
@mn5 said in Bledisloe II:
@pakman said in Bledisloe II:
@cyclops said in Bledisloe II:
@rancid-schnitzel said in Bledisloe II:
I liked Moody's try. Showed great strength. Very unheralded player, but does a shit load of work in tight and hits like a train.
That was a great try. Hope Owen Franks watches some replays, look what can happen when a big strong prop hits the ball at top speed.
In Owen's case that's 3 mph though?
Again, for a guy who is very possibly the strongest bloke in the team his lack of power as a ball carrier is baffling.
It’s not baffling if you understand basic physics....he’s almost certainly the slowest in the team.
Kinetic energy = 1/2 mass x velocity squared
Well yeah but he also loves his Olympic weightlifting and that builds explosiveness like nothing else.
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Read many articles and heard a lot of stuff on the Radio about how bad the Wallabies are ,and that their rugby is dying,it’s the number 4 or 5 sport in Australia..blah blah blah..
Well it’s always been there or there abouts ranking wise,I would suggest what we are watching is an All Black Team with several absolute in our life time amazing players.
Whitelock and Retallick are not gonna be around for ever,nor is Ben Smith or Aaron Smith,or Franks or Moody,not to mention Kieran Read who would rank right up there alongside our great number 8s..
And I have not even got to Beauden Barrett,and how good he could be...
Are we gonna be this good after RWC 2019,when many of these players move on..?
We may have seen a prelude to that when we played Ireland in Chicago without our 2 world class locks..and I don’t see another 2 locks running around domestically that are in the same class.Just a thought people..
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@sammyc said in Bledisloe II:
@mn5 said in Bledisloe II:
@pakman said in Bledisloe II:
@cyclops said in Bledisloe II:
@rancid-schnitzel said in Bledisloe II:
I liked Moody's try. Showed great strength. Very unheralded player, but does a shit load of work in tight and hits like a train.
That was a great try. Hope Owen Franks watches some replays, look what can happen when a big strong prop hits the ball at top speed.
In Owen's case that's 3 mph though?
Again, for a guy who is very possibly the strongest bloke in the team his lack of power as a ball carrier is baffling.
It’s not baffling if you understand basic physics....he’s almost certainly the slowest in the team.
Kinetic energy = 1/2 mass x velocity squared
Don't confuse speed with power, i.e. the rate at which he does the same amount of work close to the or at the defensive line, not scooting down the sideline.
@steven-harris said in Bledisloe II:
Are we gonna be this good after RWC 2019,when many of these players move on..?
Weren't we discussing this post RWC 2015?
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@steven-harris well, actually i think the Wallabies might actually just be a bit shit.
Since the 2015 RWC final they have played 34 tests for 14 wins, 2 draws, and 18 losses.
Against notable opponents:
NZ 1-7
SA 1-1 (2 draws)
England 0-5
Ireland 1-3
Scotland 1-2They are padded in the win column v Argentina, Italy, Fiji, France, and their Bunnies in Wales. So it's not just that they have to play us 3 times a year, they are losing to everyone, home and away.
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@steven-harris and just on your point re: us
The aftermath of the 2015 RWC should have been the catalyst for a fall from grace. To lose that many players, of that calibre, all at the same time? 2016 should have been awful. And yet here we are.
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@steven-harris said in Bledisloe II:
Read many articles and heard a lot of stuff on the Radio about how bad the Wallabies are ,and that their rugby is dying,it’s the number 4 or 5 sport in Australia..blah blah blah..
Well it’s always been there or there abouts ranking wise,I would suggest what we are watching is an All Black Team with several absolute in our life time amazing players.
Whitelock and Retallick are not gonna be around for ever,nor is Ben Smith or Aaron Smith,or Franks or Moody,not to mention Kieran Read who would rank right up there alongside our great number 8s..
And I have not even got to Beauden Barrett,and how good he could be...
Are we gonna be this good after RWC 2019,when many of these players move on..?
We may have seen a prelude to that when we played Ireland in Chicago without our 2 world class locks..and I don’t see another 2 locks running around domestically that are in the same class.Just a thought people..
Pretty certain I read an article somewhere saying he could be the very best ever. Hard to argue with that.
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@mariner4life but you know what,they actually don’t too badly at rugby world cups..
My question to you is,.how good will we be after all these several greats we have move on..? -
@mn5 said in Bledisloe II:
@sammyc said in Bledisloe II:
@mn5 said in Bledisloe II:
@pakman said in Bledisloe II:
@cyclops said in Bledisloe II:
@rancid-schnitzel said in Bledisloe II:
I liked Moody's try. Showed great strength. Very unheralded player, but does a shit load of work in tight and hits like a train.
That was a great try. Hope Owen Franks watches some replays, look what can happen when a big strong prop hits the ball at top speed.
In Owen's case that's 3 mph though?
Again, for a guy who is very possibly the strongest bloke in the team his lack of power as a ball carrier is baffling.
It’s not baffling if you understand basic physics....he’s almost certainly the slowest in the team.
Kinetic energy = 1/2 mass x velocity squared
Well yeah but he also loves his Olympic weightlifting and that builds explosiveness like nothing else.
I know the franks family reasonably well, they don't do much olympic lifting (if any at all) it's mainly squats and deadlifts.
Having run beside him at the gym a few times I can confirm he's so slow it's almost funny.
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@steven-harris said in Bledisloe II:
@mariner4life but you know what,they actually don’t too badly at rugby world cups..
My question to you is,.how good will we be after all these several greats we have move on..?fuck knows. and nor do you
The pertinent point is, how were we after 2015? We lost two of the best players in history, both in crucial positions. We lost probably our best ever 12. We lost a guy in the conversation as our best ever 13.
Add to that Kev our rock from the bench. Woody had only just gone. Both the starting wings basically fell off a cliff. Vito and Franks gone. Charlie F, TKB and Kaino have gone since then as well. Dane Coles has had a couple of years off.
And yet we are still flogging all and sundry, with the occasional blip, just like before.
