@Tim be annoyed if they drop Tupaea for Havili, Tupaea earned another chance to start, Havili offers versatility so is actually a good option off the bench.

talk about mountain out of a molehill...bet it was Fozzie that recorded this and released it to take the heat off him!

@bayimports we picked 3 hookers and wanted to give each a run, we also picked 1 specialist 8, but decided not to give him a run..

not really a Meme, but...

It is an odd sort of feeling as I sit and reflect on our 2022 season.

After years of enduring record losses, multiple winless seasons, sitting at the foot or near the foot of the table year after year, and always being pointed at as a team that doesnt deserve to sit at the top table of NZ rugby.

In 2022, Northland have had their best season they have had in quarter of a century:

• first time since 1997 we have won 6 games in the RR
• first time since the NPC began in 1976 Northland beat Auckland in Whangarei
• first time since 2000 we beat Wellington in Wellington

We pushed a strong Canterbury team pretty close in Christchurch in a quarter final too, and yet, as I do every other year, I sit and think about what could have been!

On paper, when you look over our squad, I think the quarter finals were actually par for the course, with probably one of the stronger squads we have fielded in many a year.

We started the season with a grinding win over Taranaki in New Plymouth that was built around defence, and it was here that this team surprised a few, including myself.

After 4 rounds, Northland had the best defence in the comp, conceding the fewest points and tries of any team, after facing Taranaki, Wellington, Waikato & Auckland no less...all signs pointing to former Northland lock and new defence coach, Marty Veale adding some steel.

Then we had a good 45 mins against Canterbury where a glimmer of another upset was on the cards, and then all of a sudden, all the good we had been doing, vanished, and Canterbury put us to the sword.

This would be the same against NH, a mixed 45 mins, only to be destroyed in the final part of the game, Tasman similar.

We were probably fortunate at this point, in the middle of storm week, BOP strategically opted for an under strength team that we snuck past thanks to a clutch penalty by Dan Hawkins.

Leaving us only to beat a winless Manawatu to take us into the quarter finals, that we did.

But the odd thing for me,is that from that 2nd half v Canterbury, right through to large parts of the BOP game, is that team looked different to the one that had preceded the Canterbury meltdown, we looked like the unorganised, uncoached team that managed a solitary win in 2021.

In the quarter final of the new format, we hit an experienced Canterbury side at home; a team as accustomed to winning finals footy, as we were to not even play finals footy!

After 10 mins it looked like it'd be a rout, but we dug deep and fought, and at about 65 mins, that glimmer of an upset showed itself again, but it wasnt to be.

So again, I go back to the fact that on one hand, this has been our most successful campaign for 25 years, yet I genuinely think we could have done better!

I have not been a big fan of our coaching team (with the exception of Veale who joined this year) from what I see and hear around the place, they certainly don't seem to have gotten the best out of our squad, and even the region when it comes to players and development!

Too often we looked like a club team in our early season games, minimal fitness, minimal game plan and still getting to know one another and how each plays.

As above, on paper, this team was as strong as we have put together for many years, so in my opinion, a quarter final was where we should have been, but as with previous years of disappointment, you kinda just expected us to under-perform, again.

For the most part, this squad was fitter than we have been for some time, and you could tell where deep in games we were still making tackles and pressuring opposition (previously mentioned games aside)

I think our squad props still lack the required fitness, in particular Corey Te Whata-Colley...I love watching this guy play, he loves the contact with and without the ball, and seems to really enjoy playing yet he seemed to fade in and out of games, particularly scrums, and I put this down to his fitness, O'Donnell and to a lesser extent Puafisi could do with improving their fitness too.

While we have had injuries, most notably Tom Robinson, Chris Apoua, but Josh Moorby for a few games, Matt Moulds, Sam Caird, Jack Goodhue (who may or may not have had an AB recall) spent time on the sidelines, but the gaps were largely filled, and players stepped up.

A few players have had breakout seasons, specifically Rob Rush and Heremaia Murray, Rivez Reihana had easily his best season for us with consistent starts, Jonah Mau'u was very good, Alan Craig finding his feet, Esile Fono and Tama Anderson got a taste for this level too.

Others found a new lease of life, like Jone Macilai, Matt Matich (although it was always there, just not selected last year) and Jared Adams, while others continued to build on previous years work like Tamati Tua, Josh Goodhue & Liam Hallam-Eames, and there was also Ofa Tu'ungafasi who I never expected would actually pull on a jersey, but did, and he certainly wasn't there making up numbers!

There does seem some good stuff going on at lower levels now too, with decent U16 and U18 rep/development programmes running this year, our dev side had a couple of hit outs, ideally should have had more, but small steps and hopefully this will start to show through in the coming years.

I dont want to celebrate mediocrity but also cant ignore the good we did this year, so all in all, a solid season, with an asterix, as always, about what could have been!

😅

Sooo...went along to the Family Group Conference for the boy that mugged TR Jnr today.

This kid...when you hear the story, he's been up against it from day 1...and I think the way the system is geared hasnt helped either, but cant really go into too much here

Anyway, I got to say my piece for TR Jnr and added a bit from me, and I actually got quite emotional during it, which isnt what I had expected.

This kid had been busy, were other parents there, one of the other boys came as well, from incidents over a 4 month period .

Quite a draining experience, I went in with an open mind that this is a worthwhile process, and even told the boy I wanted to believe that there is some good in him and he can set himself on a positive path in life with the support he has around him.

After going through it, I'm no better able to determine if he will change his ways or if he will end up in prison (or worse...) in a year or 2.

He is in a good place (police enforced) at present and has been for 2 full months and will be for at least another 6 weeks or so, but whether he wants to move on, is upto him and equally as much, the ongoing support that he will need.

@Victor-Meldrew just another thing to slow the game down and allow bigger players more time on the park

@NTA for me it's more that a kid that can't buy alcohol is required to ID check people for it...but your normal checkout operators aren't able to, they have to call someone who is approved to sell and therefore ID check.

He has pulled up shoplifters before, that I didn't think he had in him.

@NTA yeah TR jnr is on $23 or so working checkouts at the supermarket and as a 16 year old he was given the responsibility of checking IDs for alcohol...but the ultimate responsibility is on the shift supervisor.

On TR, officially left school 3 weeks ago...now just bumming around living the life, isn't picking up extra shifts cos it would interfere with his social life.

Fortunately he has been meeting with a careers advisor who has some options for him, although coming into Xmas...

He is also seeing the careers advisors well-being person, who I know, although TR Jnr only met him in their workplace.

Some of the things he has seen and briefly mentions breaks your heart, he reckons teens of today do deal with things differently and covid has also changed the playing field.

TR jnr is a little fucker at the moment,and screentime, phone more so than gaming at moment is an issue...but he's 17, what do you do.

@Old-Samurai-Jack most players telegraph a box kick in the way they set up, add in Smith doesn't run much (did a bit more on EOYT) means it is so easy to defend if he isn't setting a box, he is passing it, if 2 or 3 forwards are standing 3m away, you set on them, then pass back to the pod standing on the other side as well...so predictable.

@Kruse I only found out here, right now, there is a post credit scene...so off I shall go.

@Crazy-Horse I have been a fan of Reece the past couple of seasons, smart player, huge workrate, sure he lacks accuracy on defence and is prone to the odd hollywood, but he's a winger!

I like Telea too, he brings something a bit different, slippery as an eel and makes good post-contact metres and like Reece, seems to punch a bit above thier advertised playing weights, so is good having both as an option...

Looks like a few extras at pre-season

@Victor-Meldrew if that were to happen, I'd actually dislike the RWC more as it would ruin test rugby outside the RWC, we may as well have bloody friendlies or sumink!

@Nepia it's the dog that makes that most amusing...kids run into those windows all the time, of course I never did.