All Blacks v Wallabies at Eden Park.
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@Bones funny as that would be more my description for Hooper. His tackle rate is fairly low for an openside and he loves that 2nd or 3rd man in play.
What I do like about Hooper is how he attacks. We all know he's got wheels, but he is pretty abrasive for a smallish unit.
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@ACT-Crusader said in All Blacks v Wallabies at Eden Park.:
I guess I see a lot of upside with Pocock's game as a rugby fan and don't see him as a 'one trick pony' as is often touted.
I'd find seeing upside in any 28 year old player starting his 11th year of professional footy next year strange.
He is a year younger than Vito, the same age as Franks, Whitelock and Matt Todd - I hope we all have upside left in those guys too!
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The matchday 23 is (with Test caps in brackets):
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Joe Moody (19)
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Dane Coles (45)
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Owen Franks (86)
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Brodie Retallick (56)
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Samuel Whitelock (81)
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Jerome Kaino (73)
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Matt Todd (5)
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Kieran Read - capt (93)
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TJ Perenara (25)
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Beauden Barrett (45)
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Julian Savea (48)
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Ryan Crotty (23)
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Anton Lienert-Brown (5)
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Israel Dagg (57)
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Ben Smith (57)
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Codie Taylor (10)
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Wyatt Crockett (54)
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Charlie Faumuina (41)
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Liam Squire (5)
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Ardie Savea (8)
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Tawera Kerr-Barlow (23)
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Aaron Cruden (42)
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Malakai Fekitoa (19)
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=11732157
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So all the big guns excluding Cane, A. Smith and arguably Savea over Naholo, Hansen not playing silly buggers with the record game, which is great from a rugby fan perspective, but not so much from a Wallabies supporter perspective.
Wonder why Cane is not playing if he is fit?
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@Sapetyvi said in All Blacks v Wallabies at Eden Park.:
So all the big guns excluding Cane, A. Smith and arguably Savea over Naholo, Hansen not playing silly buggers with the record game, which is great from a rugby fan perspective, but not so much from a Wallabies supporter perspective.
Wonder why Cane is not playing if he is fit?
Probably underdone match-fitness wise according to their training data. Give him some extra time before the EOYT.
Glad Augie has been released to play the inbreds.
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@pukunui said in All Blacks v Wallabies at Eden Park.:
@reprobate said in All Blacks v Wallabies at Eden Park.:
@Rancid-Schnitzel cane/savea/todd have won one lineout between them so far this tournament. pocock's in no way a well-rounded player, but if you have our locks, read and kaino, then 7 doesn't need to be a lineout option. this is kinda where my opinion differs - cost vs benefit - would the costs really effect us that much? we've got no shortage of ball runners either, particularly once the bench gets involved.
Worth noting that Pocock has been playing at 8 as part of poopah so should be compared to lineout takes by Read.
not at all, different teams use different guys to jump depending on their strengths, and the original question was simply which aussies in an anzac squad.
i don't think it is particularly controversial to say that (probably) the aussies best player over the last 5 years or so would make that squad ahead of ardie savea who has started 2 tests, and matt todd who will start his 2nd this weekend. i'm pretty sure that the rest of the rugby world outside of nz would lean that way too.
i can't help but think that it's similar to the way people here disregard/slag o'driscoll, which also disappoints me. these blokes can play, and there's no harm in acknowledging that. -
correct they can play, but if I supported a super rugby team and they could choose between Cane, Savea or Pocock, I'd take them in that order...
BOD was a very very good player, but he was a tool!
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@pakman said in All Blacks v Wallabies at Eden Park.:
Would seem very tough if, subject to reasonable performance on Saturday, Todd wasn't on EOYT. In which case the question is whether Dixon is also a lock or if Luatua or another (Ioane, etc.) will get a shot.
Not really. It's the nature of a busy test season that players get the call up temporarily. Whilst nothing is guaranteed, I don't think Todd would be under any illusion that Cane is the first choice openside and when fit he is in direct competition with him.
I think it just confirms what the coaches have been saying about Ardie that he has huge upside but isn't quite there as a starter given his size and endurance levels right now. Whereas right now Todd is at that level where they want a starting 7.
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@dingo said in All Blacks v Wallabies at Eden Park.:
Hopefully its the good J Savea this week, not the disinterested one. He can't have that many chances left.
Again with this? I don't know what the guy needs to do anymore. He's topping stats in heaps of areas, doing great work, I'd say he's meeting targets and then some. He's not there on a chance, he's there on performance.
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@taniwharugby said in All Blacks v Wallabies at Eden Park.:
correct they can play, but if I supported a super rugby team and they could choose between Cane, Savea or Pocock, I'd take them in that order...
BOD was a very very good player, but he was a tool!
Is, is a tool.
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@Bones said in All Blacks v Wallabies at Eden Park.:
@dingo said in All Blacks v Wallabies at Eden Park.:
Hopefully its the good J Savea this week, not the disinterested one. He can't have that many chances left.
Again with this? I don't know what the guy needs to do anymore. He's topping stats in heaps of areas, doing great work, I'd say he's meeting targets and then some. He's not there on a chance, he's there on performance.
You beat me to it. In @dingo's defense he's a Canes supporter so probably hasn't forgiven him for dropping the final in 2015 and then not contributing to our 2016 success. But in Black he has been super effective all year.
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@ACT-Crusader Agreed. Ardie is not seen as a starter (yet) against Tier 1 nations, after they had a look at him starting in the home Boks test.
Todd's chances of going on the EOYT to me turn on whether the selectors think Ireland (2x) and France are true Tier 1 nations (they certainly are Tier 1 in physicality) in which case Savea is probably not suited to start. If so, do they think Cane is ready to start all three games (having had eight weeks off test rugby by then the answer might well be yes). If not, then Todd probably goes to start one of those games.
If Todd doesn't go, you probably have Ardie starting against Italy with Dixon covering 7 (if he's not already starting that game at 6).
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@Tregaskis I think it will depend on what they see with Dixon. I reckon he's one of these hybrid loosies that could cover all 3 back row positions like Masoe. And against some of the NH teams he could be an emergency 7.
They'll no doubt carry Cane, he needs to keep developing and getting test experience under him in the lead up to next years Lions tour.
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@Bones I go back on forth on Julian Savea. To me he fails the "eye" test of a winger because he doesn't make the most of opportunities he's given. He still scores tries, but very few any more are where he actually turns a half chance into a try - which is where many people perceive that Naholo's advantage lies (not that we've seen a great deal of it yet). Savea is still quite effective a gaining metres after contact.
On the other hand, Dagg is scoring tries the same way, by finishing. Our wingers are scoring tries as finishers, usually simply due to numbers and the work of the other 14. We are no longer reliant on a broken tackle for a try as we were in the Lomu-Cullen era, we simply work the ball around and our superior off loading, handling, option taking and eye for space gets us tries.
To me here's a good chance Julian Savea's there because Naholo hasn't stayed fit enough to have an extended run at the jersey, and because NMS is injured. You might even say Rieko Ioane or some unknown is a threat to Savea's longevity. Next year is probably a better indication of whether he'll be a long term All Black (it's a ruthless game for wingers) as NMS returns and Naholo develops or busts.
