All Blacks Squad for France
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Got tickets for the Wellington game - stoked this is game two in the series... but also a smidge worried... because France!
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In the midfield the tricky position is the long term 13. All the contenders play 12 as well, and at twelve the problem is who to leave out.
For me Crotty is inferior to ALB at 13. Goodhue is the incumbent Great White Hope, so I'd shoot for him and ALB.
SBW is a lock at 12.So, for me, second 12 comes down to choice between Crotty, who always makes BB better at 10, and Laumape, who provides old fashioned grunt. I'd go for the former, but suspect it won't come down to that.
At 10, if the go for three, there are two slots potentially available. Can't see Mo'unga not being there.
DMac is not an international 10 and I don't think he ever will be. Very content to see him as a back up 15 -- but would have to get past Jordie. If there is a third 10, it needs to be a specialist.
We need a big hitting 6/8 to even up the loosie balance. If Squire not fully fit we are exposed. None of Fifita/Ioane/Taufua/Whitelock strike me as defensive enforcers.
Have mainly watched Blues and Chiefs this year -- is there any emerging big hitter? Frizell is big and was highly impressive against Blues (know that's not saying that much!), but haven't seen enough of him to know how dominant his D is.
When is team named?
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@pakman said in All Blacks Squad for France:
When is team named?
@kiwimurph said in All Blacks Squad for France:
Tune into the All Blacks social media channels at 9.30am on Sunday May 20 to see who is named in the 33-man squad to take on France in the Steinlager Series in June.Basically, the team will be named about 1 second before Crucial posts it on TSF
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@bones said in All Blacks Squad for France:
@pakman if whitelock doesn't strike you as a defensive enforcer, it would appear you're not watching him play.
Haven't seen a lot of him. to be honest. He is certainly a very accurate tackler, but I don't recall seeing him make dominant tackles in the style of JK or Squire.
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Maybe the choice of the Nr.12 jersey could be linked to the best mean to neutralize Matthieu Bastareaud and his 130 kgs. The French forwards will probably win at least 50% of the possession so I guess Bastareaud will charge relentlessly in midfield. SBW could be the best answer against him.
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@cgrant I concur - mostly. It seems both Crotty and SBW spend a fair amount of time out injured these days and will need to be managed carefully prior to the TRC and through the SR finals. I think we will see Goodhue and Laumape spend time in the centres, Laumape is developing into a Nonu-esque type of player, and Goodhue I can see will eventually succeed Crotty. t's a pity Aso is out injured and Procter seemingly not in the mix, as I think that would have added extra extra spice to the competiton for places.
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@wairau said in All Blacks Squad for France:
@pakman said in All Blacks Squad for France:
When is team named?
@kiwimurph said in All Blacks Squad for France:
Tune into the All Blacks social media channels at 9.30am on Sunday May 20 to see who is named in the 33-man squad to take on France in the Steinlager Series in June.Basically, the team will be named about 1 second before Crucial posts it on TSF
I have to wait for the embargo to finish.
I won't be sitting at the computer 10.30 on a Saturday night for this one
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@pakman said in All Blacks Squad for France:
@bones said in All Blacks Squad for France:
@pakman if whitelock doesn't strike you as a defensive enforcer, it would appear you're not watching him play.
Haven't seen a lot of him. to be honest. He is certainly a very accurate tackler, but I don't recall seeing him make dominant tackles in the style of JK or Squire.
Geez man, you only need to watch the most recent highlanders game for plenty of evidence of dominant tackling. He's been doing it all season and it's very noticeable.
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@pakman said in All Blacks Squad for France:
@bones Didn't see the Lions game, but, on the basis that Whitelock is a big hitter, putting him at 6 with Cane and Ioane would have quite good balance.
Not a tall backrow is it? That's right, I want everything, no compromises.
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@antipodean True. With Whitelock and Cane coming in around 1.90 and Akira at 1.94 that is quite a short trio. Squire and Fifita are 1.96. It does make quite a difference. Also, I don't think Whitelock, Cane or Akira are used regularly in the lineout.
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@toddy said in All Blacks Squad for France:
@antipodean True. With Whitelock and Cane coming in around 1.90 and Akira at 1.94 that is quite a short trio. Squire and Fifita are 1.96. It does make quite a difference. Also, I don't think Whitelock, Cane or Akira are used regularly in the lineout.
Not sure about the other two but Akira is used regularly in the Blues lineout.
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@shadowtrooper said in All Blacks Squad for France:
@cgrant I concur - mostly. It seems both Crotty and SBW spend a fair amount of time out injured these days and will need to be managed carefully prior to the TRC and through the SR finals. I think we will see Goodhue and Laumape spend time in the centres, Laumape is developing into a Nonu-esque type of player, and Goodhue I can see will eventually succeed Crotty. t's a pity Aso is out injured and Procter seemingly not in the mix, as I think that would have added extra extra spice to the competiton for places.
Have to say I'm quite frustrated with the midfield at the moment.
SBW is a lock when healthy but doesn't have the speed or agility he once had. Crotty is a better 12 than 13 certainly.
The NZ SR form 13's seem to barely get a mention - Proctor and Rob Thompson. IMHO, both are playing better than ALB and the "great white hope" Goodhue and both offer more around the park.
ALB is having a better year than last year but not as good as Proctor and Thompson. Again, IMHO, both Proctor and Thompson are better defenders and offer more in attack.
In terms of combinations, I think we could do a lot worse than starting Laumape and Proctor and have SBW on the bench for impact given his match fitness will be much lower than all the others in the running.
Personally, I think it's a little early for Goodhue, who is a terrific prospect, but I prefer the maturity of both Proctor and Thompson.
My $0.02 worth anyway.
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@roninwc said in All Blacks Squad for France:
ALB is having a better year than last year but not as good as Proctor and Thompson. Again, IMHO, both Proctor and Thompson are better defenders and offer more in attack.
ALB has been there and looked exceptionally good at the top level. Suffered from 'second season' syndrome - but if they pick him, it's because he has characteristics that are known and the coaches think will be able to deliver.
Personally I haven't seen enough Super this year to comment more sensibly
