B&I Lions 2017
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@antipodean alas, no, it is an off-shoot of NZH, so tries to pass itself of as serious journalism
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@Margin_Walker said in B&I Lions 2017:
@Pot-Hale
Nah, Warburton, Tipuric, Falatau. With Moriarty on the bench.....
In all seriousness I'd go Stander, Warburton, Falatau , but plenty of rugby to be played between now and the tests. Time for anyone on the plane to make a case for themselves and no doubt for others to pick up knocks.
I do think that one thing the Lions need to do is keep their eyes open for players that may flourish beyond original expectations and plans.
We continually see average NZ players that go north and become effective way beyond their performances at home. I can't write this off entirely to a 'lower standard' and have to think there is a big element of suiting the detail on the way the game is played.
Take Jimmy Gopperth as an example. In NZ he never cracked the big time because in a game at speed he didn't quite have that time on the ball or speed of thinking and would stand a fraction too deep. The expectations in the northern game are different and suit his style. His skills are able to shine instead.
For the Lions there will likely be guys who find that instead of having to play the way they always do to be in tune with their team they relish being dragged into a faster pace. They may be able to read things instinctively etc. For a forward, maybe not having to pile into every ruck or have prolonged scrum battles frees up their energy to play more dynamically.
These are the type of players that make longer tours interesting. They have a chance to work things out and grow their game. A chance you don't get with one off tests. -
That last bit:
**"Answer this: what exactly can be done about it anyway? Do we have a blanket rule saying you can only play for the country you're born in?
That would help out the Pacific nations but because it would be a detriment to the likes of New Zealand and England, it won't happen."**
it wouldn't help Samoa, most of their players are NZ born.
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@Crucial Good point. As a shining example see Ryan Jones in the 2005 tour. Not an original pick but a late injury replacement and he ended up playing 8 in all three tests. Whilst he was always a good player, that tour was the making of him.
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@Crucial said in B&I Lions 2017:
@Margin_Walker said in B&I Lions 2017:
@Pot-Hale
Nah, Warburton, Tipuric, Falatau. With Moriarty on the bench.....
In all seriousness I'd go Stander, Warburton, Falatau , but plenty of rugby to be played between now and the tests. Time for anyone on the plane to make a case for themselves and no doubt for others to pick up knocks.
I do think that one thing the Lions need to do is keep their eyes open for players that may flourish beyond original expectations and plans.
We continually see average NZ players that go north and become effective way beyond their performances at home. I can't write this off entirely to a 'lower standard' and have to think there is a big element of suiting the detail on the way the game is played.
Take Jimmy Gopperth as an example. In NZ he never cracked the big time because in a game at speed he didn't quite have that time on the ball or speed of thinking and would stand a fraction too deep. The expectations in the northern game are different and suit his style. His skills are able to shine instead.
For the Lions there will likely be guys who find that instead of having to play the way they always do to be in tune with their team they relish being dragged into a faster pace. They may be able to read things instinctively etc. For a forward, maybe not having to pile into every ruck or have prolonged scrum battles frees up their energy to play more dynamically.
These are the type of players that make longer tours interesting. They have a chance to work things out and grow their game. A chance you don't get with one off tests.Love this post, half of the fun of the tour is seeing such players break through, and predicting who will thrive. This time round, I think Jamie George, Justin Tipuric and Elliot Daly all fit the profile of guys you probably wouldn't pick for a Test XV right now, but could excel in the style of play of the build-up games and could easily end up starting a Test or two.
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@booboo said in B&I Lions 2017:
@Crucial said in B&I Lions 2017:
@booboo said in B&I Lions 2017:
@Crucial said in B&I Lions 2017:
@MiketheSnow said in B&I Lions 2017:
Some interesting NH performances over the weekend.
At the moment if fit
Murray, Sexton, Nowell, Farrell, Joseph, North, L Williams
Reality
Webb, Farrell, Nowell, Joseph, J Davies (playing left and right, not inside and outside), North, L Williams
I never get left and right centres. Is it because they can only pass one way?
Is it a bit like "edges" in loigue?
What does that mean? I dont watch boofball.
Don't watch a shit load myself, but they seem to station a mini team on each side of the field for attack.
Usually a centre, a second rower and wing. Maybe a prop.
Instead of calling the sides of the field the sides of the field they call them edges.
I think the distribution of those players is down to said players ability to run, step, pass etc as the play flows a certain way.
if you go back 20 odd years ago in league , maybe more ,
they tended to have all or most of the forwards around the ruck area and the blindside , and the backs would normally form up in orthodox fashion on the openside of the field , from halfback , stand off , inside center outside C,
i played both codes , it was a pain the arse if you were an outside centre having to keep swapping to each side of the field ,
then they came up with the idea of left and right centres staying inside the wingers on each side of the field , its less complex , but somehow they have evolved with that role into being closer to second row forwards and less like the specialist centres who tended to run into open space a lot more , like they still do in union IMO
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@kiwiinmelb said in B&I Lions 2017:
i played both codes , it was a pain the arse if you were an outside centre having to keep swapping to each side of the field ,
Yeah - I played a bit of outside centre at school many years ago and that's my lasting memory of that position - the amount of running from side to side you had to do to get into position...
...and playing outside greedy bastard first (especially) and second fives who rarely sent the ball down the chain.
I played games where it was like fielding at fine leg in cricket! Except it was fucking cold and you occasionally had to tackle some bastard.
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@Chris-B. said in B&I Lions 2017:
@kiwiinmelb said in B&I Lions 2017:
i played both codes , it was a pain the arse if you were an outside centre having to keep swapping to each side of the field ,
Yeah - I played a bit of outside centre at school many years ago and that's my lasting memory of that position - the amount of running from side to side you had to do to get into position...
...and playing outside greedy bastard first (especially) and second fives who rarely sent the ball down the chain.
I played games where it was like fielding at fine leg in cricket! Except it was fucking cold and you occasionally had to tackle some bastard.
Or if you made a decent run and your looking for a break to get your breath back in the line , then someone yells at you to get back in position , on the other fucken side of the field
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@kiwiinmelb every flanker ever read that and gave a sneer of derision
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@mariner4life At least, the ones who can read did.
Now get back to groveling in the fucking mud and stop interrupting our intellectual discourse.
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@Chris-B. "intellectual discourse"? Is that what you guys are doing while the rest of us are playing rugby?
"No, we don't want it until it's quick ball and there is no one in front of us, you guys keep it"
"okay now! shit, I've dropped it. okay, scrum for them, we'll have a bit more of a chat"Parasites living off the hard work of others
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@mariner4life Acute tactical appreciation.
"Look at those two stunning babes on the sideline. If you drop the ball on the 22 line, we should be ideally situated to flex our manly backs' muscles at them, while the peasants fuck about collapsing their scrums and rubbing each others faces in the mud".
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@Chris-B. yep, and after the game while the forwards are having a quiet beer reflecting on that ruck he didn't hit hard enough, or the tackle that was almost slipped, the backs are out there preening and congratulating one another in front of the women claiming the game was won by them!
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@taniwharugby Which it obviously was - through "magnificent speed, strength and skill".
"And what do those fat boys do?" she asked.
"You mean other than take up space... ha ha ha...".
