Blues v Highlanders
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Good on nuggie, just owned the poor offside work
Also,
Q: Will your celebrate equaling Ben’s smiths caps?
A: I’m still pretty pissed off about loosing if I’m honest -
So the Blues pack is looking more like the goods and the template for the AB pack moving forward. No more being man handled by England. Big, strong and nasty is what we need. The blues loose forward trio could be starting AB’s IMO. Sorry Cane your lost me when you whined about the fans not knowing the game.
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...did sio not get penalised?
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@broughie as a 7 , your as only good as the pack you have in front of you ..to me Cane still stands in a pack that’s not the best ..
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@trodthesod said in Blues v Highlanders:
Mr.Coventry didn’t play Brodie Retallick in the Development squad for the Chiefs.Remember how that turned out.
@duluth said in Blues v Highlanders:
Good to see he looks more solid than he did in the NPC.
Coventry seems to rate him highly and he's being correct about most things. Hopefully he goes well
Good calls.
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@steven-harris understand what you are saying. He just came across as a pussy with his comments and did not stand out as the leader we need. Will he be the as good as he is by the time of the World Cup or will he be supplanted by our new talent?
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Good performance where we knocked the stuffing out of the Highlanders early. Akira Ioane clearly showed out there that he is the best 6 in the country by a mile, with Sotutu and Tuipulotu hurting them badly physically. Also a good shift by our youngsters Tolai, and Darry, where both lookedvery comfortable at this level. Was also impressed with Ruru and Plummer, 2 guys who had massive question marks over their heads. One slight concern I had was the work of James Lay around the field, he's a bit slow and could get heavily targetted by the Crusaders next week.
One positive for the Highlanders was Connor Garden Bachop. Geez he could be some player down the track.
The less said about the TMO the better, he was a disgrace, especially that Frizell decision where he flopped over like a footballer. Sotutu didn't even have his eyes on him and he still came out second best, and that Akira Ioane pass was fine as well. However, we move on.
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@broughie..if your criticism is regarding his coms , I agree with you , in terms of his right to the All Black 7 jersey , we are poles apart ..he is the best in my opinion ..
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@steven-harris Correct. Sam Cane is a beast at test level. By far and away our best 7. I remain hopeful seeing Cane, Sotutu and Akira as our starting loose trio at test level but they'll no doubt squeeze Ardie into the starting lineup when he would be a far far better option off the bench.
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@african-monkey said in Blues v Highlanders:
@steven-harris Correct. Sam Cane is a beast at test level. By far and away our best 7. I remain hopeful seeing Cane, Sotutu and Akira as our starting loose trio at test level but they'll no doubt squeeze Ardie into the starting lineup when he would be a far far better option off the bench.
I’m a big fan of Sotutu and in terms of raw talent I think he has more than any loose forward in NZ, but there’s no evidence right now that he is a better test no8 than Ardie. So unless Fozzie is going to select on potential then I’d keep selecting Ardie and have Sotutu off the bench.
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@act-crusader Fair enough, I just feel going forward that Sotutu's extra size and physicality is more suited to test level than Ardie's style. Ardie is perfect foil for a bench role imo. If it doesn't happen, so be it.
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@act-crusader just in case some forgot 2020
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@steven-harris First name on the AB team sheet IMHO.
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@sparky said in Blues v Highlanders:
@steven-harris First name on the AB team sheet IMHO.
I would hope so - he's captain!
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@act-crusader Sotutu needs to grow as a player but once you start playing Ardie you start planning small ball. His work rate is great but we need more size at number 8.
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@broughie said in Blues v Highlanders:
@act-crusader Sotutu needs to grow as a player but once you start playing Ardie you start planning small ball. His work rate is great but we need more size at number 8.
I agree.
I think he is tidy and athletic but his lack of size at 8 doesn't make him that different from Ardie, despite being slightly more direct. -
righto, match report after I've got home, cooled down and had something to eat and drink.
Blues were dominant all over the park.
Scoreline didn't reflect it.
Refereeing was spectacularly incompetent at times ... the 'forward pass' was up there with Wayne Barnes at Eden Park. What was particularly funny was the pass got caught by Rieko behind Akira ... so he was always behind his man -- but forward? Shocking call, TMO needs a lesson in physics.Lots got missed by the refs all day. Plenty of defensive lineout drives going in early, before the jupmer had feet on the ground. Side entry in rucks was generally just ignored.
Bright spots - a very dominant Blues performance. Hard to see where the points would come from for the Highlanders - needed cards and penalties to threaten. A Smith is magic, still a world class 9.
Plummer played well, which I was stoked to see.
Forwards were very physical and very good. Highlanders forwards lacked conditioning - were walking after about 25 minutes. Akira looked good, Hoskins looked very good, and the tight 5 were strong.I'm looking forward to a re-watch, but penalising Sotutu for setting up to jump and catch a ball was ... interesting refereeing.
Rieko has some serious gas out there. He came from deep to catch the ball from Akira, had 35 to go and defenders around him, and just made them look silly. Serious physical attributes, and still learning the centre role. Looking very good, and getting better.
Perofeta is a masterstroke at the back. He's Cashmore like - solid, you don't notice him, because he just does it all easily and without looking rushed or like it's going to turn to custard. The anti-Jordie if you like
Good game from him though.Good day out, refereeing was average, but a bloody good win with a scoreline that seriously flattered the Highlanders. Needed a BP win and got it, we'll take that every day of the week.
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