Highlanders vs Hurricanes
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I'm excited for this one, both teams are coming off wins against Moana Pasifika and will be wanting a W this week to get some real momentum into their campaigns.
Coming from a Canes perspective it's pretty hard to pick a side for this week with Holland continually chopping and changing, but after Tuesday's game it will be hard to leave out Isaia Walker-Leawere.
I think they will go with something like this with a couple players backing up from Tuesday:
- Rakete-Stones
- Aumua (pending a return from injury)
- Lomax
- Blackwell
- Scrafton
- Prinsep
- Kirifi
- Savea (c)
- Perenara
- Garden-Bachop
- Goosen
- Barrett
- Proctor
- Savea
- Moorby
- Coles / O'Reilly
- Mafileo
- Tosi
- Walkere-Leawere
- Howden
- Booth
- Love
- Umaga-Jensen
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I'll take a stab at the Highlanders team with the recent news that Selby-Rickett and Frizzel will be out for lengthy periods.
- De Groot
- Makileo
- Ainsley
- Dickson
- B Evans
- Mikaele Tu'u
- Lentjes
- G Evans
- Smith
- Hunt
- Dawai
- Umaga-Jensen (pending a return from injury)
- Paea
- Gilbert
- Garden-Bachop
- Marshall
- Leinert-Brown
- Hohneck
- Holland
- Harmon
- Fakatava
- Banks
- Solomona
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@canes4life don't think they'll move MMT to accommodate Evans, but otherwise looks right.
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If fit, Gregory will be among the 23. Maybe Ma'u instead of Hohneck.
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I'll be really interested to see if they go with Banks or Koroi as well.
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@canes4life hopefully not Princep, as he did the full eighty. Was there a ever a slower player off the back of the scrum? He did well with the push over try, I admit, but he's such a plodder
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@machpants said in Highlanders vs Hurricanes:
@canes4life hopefully not Princep, as he did the full eighty. Was there a ever a slower player off the back of the scrum? He did well with the push over try, I admit, but he's such a plodder
Holland loves plodders
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@canefan said in Highlanders vs Hurricanes:
@machpants said in Highlanders vs Hurricanes:
@canes4life hopefully not Princep, as he did the full eighty. Was there a ever a slower player off the back of the scrum? He did well with the push over try, I admit, but he's such a plodder
Holland loves plodders
Yeah. Although Jules certainly showed his worth versus riyasi this last week, for sure! Riyasi was pants
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@machpants I would prefer he started Howden, but I will give Prinsep credit, thought he played well on Tuesday. Though I would be surprised if they start him after 80 on Tues as you say.
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@machpants I would prefer Howden but he’s played a lot more mins than Prinsep in the last week so I think they will go with the plodder.
Who knows though, we might see someone like Delany slot into 6 this week.
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If anyone can even come close to picking the 15 Holland will go with I'll be impressed.
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@foobanz said in Highlanders vs Hurricanes:
If anyone can even come close to picking the 15 Holland will go with I'll be impressed.
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Looking forward to seeing that midfield
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Banks starting? Cripes
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Shit me. Tony Brown has really hit the re-set button. I would have liked to have seen a bit more faith in Dawai. But looks like they wanted to have a stronger defender on the wing. Looking forward to seeing Harmon and Umaga-Jensen back on the paddock. Denny Solomona is a bit of a shock at centre.
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@kiwimurph said in Highlanders vs Hurricanes:
Banks starting? Cripes
Don't panic, he is matched by J. Garden-Bachop.
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Unavailable for selection due to injury or personal circumstances: Tyrel Lomax, Du'Plessis Kirifi, Devan Flanders.
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Hurricanes media release:
https://www.hurricanes.co.nz/news/article/hurricanes-team-named-for-clash-against-the-highlanders-in-dunedin/
Highlanders media release:
Highlanders named for their final New Zealand Derby match | Highlanders Rugby Club Limited Partnership
It may be a holiday weekend for most, but the Highlanders will have work on their mind this Easter Saturday when they play their last New Zealand derby match against the Hurricanes at Forsyth Barr Stadium (7.05pm kick off).
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It's probably the best side the Canes have put out this year, however a few points:
- Why oh why is Goosen not there? Unless they're resting him he 100% should be in the first team.
- Rayasi is lucky to start over Goosen, maybe Holland thinks dropping him after a bad performance would completely knock him for 6.
- Blackwell must be first on the sheet with Ardie lol. He's so automatic I can't even get mad anymore about him starting every game.
- Every game someone other than Prinsep plays at 6 they completely outshine him.
- Great to see Sullivan at 13, and PUJ in the 23 at least.
- I hope we don't give up on Love at 10. He should be there. His ceiling is so much higher than JGB.
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Some surprising / odd selections. But good to see Isaia Walker-Leawere getting a start. With Sangster in the reserves
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@foobanz who does PUJ have to kill to get a start in a big game?
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@canefan said in Highlanders vs Hurricanes:
@foobanz who does PUJ have to kill to get a start in a big game?
It would have helped if his defense was much better vs Pasifika
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I think Holland would have had Flanders featuring in this one but because he went down against MP means they had no choice but to slot Prinsep in there again.
Love went off clutching his leg so that may just be a precaution not playing him this week.
Goosen has started the last two games so he’s probably being rested.
I think rotation is needed at the moment but hopefully we start to see our best side when we go back to one game a week.
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@canefan said in Highlanders vs Hurricanes:
@foobanz who does PUJ have to kill to get a start in a big game?
It also doesn't help PU-J at all, that they've shifted Jordie to 12. At least Sullivan is now starting at 13 and not Proctor. I hope Sullivan grabs this opportunity to show once again that he's better.
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@southernmann said in Highlanders vs Hurricanes:
Shit me. Tony Brown has really hit the re-set button. I would have liked to have seen a bit more faith in Dawai. But looks like they wanted to have a stronger defender on the wing.
Gregory has missed a lot of tackles this season, often leading to tries. Dawai's problem is more his positional sense, as he often shoots up out of the line.
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@stargazer it doesn’t but I feel Jordie’s actually looked better at 12 than PUJ. He’s just as capable on attack and better on defence.
I’ve always felt PUJ has looked better at 13. Hopefully he gets an opportunity there outside Jordie.
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@canes4life said in Highlanders vs Hurricanes:
@stargazer it doesn’t but I feel Jordie’s actually looked better at 12 than PUJ. He’s just as capable on attack and better on defence.
I’ve always felt PUJ has looked better at 13. Hopefully he gets an opportunity there outside Jordie.
I agree. PUJ is a strong running guy. The early Nonu with JB as the distributor
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@canes4life under the roof this feels like a game that'll have a scoreline i.e 32 - 26, not sure who comes out on top, as for Marty banks starting I can at very least trust him to nail his shots at goal unlike hunt lately🙂
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@bovidae not to mention Gregory has shown pretty much nothing on attack in the last 14 months or so.
His defence and ruck clearing is usually a strength, but he seems so far off how he looked in super last year.
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Does anyone know if Iose is injured? Hasn't got a game even from the bench for a while.
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@foobanz he’s out for the season.
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I have a feeling Clan have done Canes a favour starting Banks, I convinced he is 2 years past playing super rugby.
Now you watch the bugger prove me wrong!
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@dan54 said in Highlanders vs Hurricanes:
I have a feeling Clan have done Canes a favour starting Banks, I convinced he is 2 years past playing super rugby.
Now you watch the bugger prove me wrong!
I'm more than happy to see how he goes. The alternative is Hunt.
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Highlanders results vs Hurricanes from 2016-2022
(the year after the Highlanders won the comp seemed like good place to start the range)
Good advantage for the Canes overall
However it's pretty even in Dunedin over the same period: 3 Highlanders v 2 Canes
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Not a Southland fullback any longer...Northland def look on the better end of whatever deal with getting Moorby & Apoua up here with Gregory going there.
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@taniwharugby Moorby and Justin Sangster are probably the two finds of the season so far for the Canes.
Moorby looks like a young Ben Smith so I bet the Highlanders are kicking themselves for letting him go. I can’t see him returning to the Highlanders now that he’s starting for the Canes and has moved to Northland for the NPC.
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Moorby has looked class for several seasons (albeit with an injury or two) and I don't blame Southlanders for having a complex about their players not getting picked by the Highlanders when he kept getting ignored. Top recruiting, Highlanders!
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Not sure if Love is injured ? if fit should be at 10 - yet again plodder manages to get a start... be interesting to see if J.Savea can keep his work rate going from last week.
Rayasi was out of form last week, dropped some very easy passes, he's too good to play that poorly again though.Next week we start the Anzac rounds, have to select our top 15 for that one... getting sick & tired of this bloody musical chairs stuff.
Results - The Silver Fern
