semi final v Waikato
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@stargazer said in semi final v Waikato:
That yellow has cost Northland 3 Waikato tries.
I wish I could say I didn’t see it coming.
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Fuck we’re done, the backs just shovelling the ball along the backline and Waikato pick off an easy intercept.
Waikato have scored 31 points in the last 23 minutes.
What is it with us and conceding big points very quickly? Is it a mental thing and switching off? Fitness? What ever it is, it’s shithouse.
Fuck being a Northland supporter has to be one of the toughest gigs there is. Consistently disappointed.
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We have some younguns who are brilliant and terrible every week. Once they get a bit more experience they could become unbeatable. Disappointing finish but it started out Much better than we dared to hope for.
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Even more than that he said he'd been a bit hard done by.
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Well, I'd like to say we are better than that but I dont really think we are.
Some serious talent in there but something big goes missing and then we can't stop the other team doing anything.
We saw it in the 2nd spell v HB, v Waikato in the RR game and in the 38-50 min period this time and the opening 30 v BOP.
We get opened up and cant close the wound.
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I just want to say , l love Northland. I love the wild ride they take me on week after week. I love the way I shout and scream at the tv when Northland play. No other sporting team brings this unbridled passion out like the Taniwha.
Wow we have some amazing raw talent when let loose can create th he most amazing tries from almost nothing. I just love that about the Taniwha. I love the way our Northland folk at home come out and support the Taniwha, unlike many of the big boy provinces....and just one day we are going to have our day of reckoning, we have just got to take care of some of the more clinical aspects of rugby and then maybe we will get some of the 50/50 decisions go for us that at the moment seem often to go cruelly against us. I hope the boys from 2018 stay together and take plenty from what they have achieved. Thank you Taniwha of 2018 you rock. -
@figgis love your passion and loyalty to your team,they definitely take you on a roller coaster ride,capable of scoring the most brilliant tries but also guilty of being their own worst enemies wether it’s not adhering to basics or just plain indiscipline.
This side has potential,no question but has got to get more street smart..2 games that come to mind,today against Waikato and against Hawkes Bay 2 x games with good leads,we don’t focus,simple basics go out the window wether it’s a missed tackle or a dropped pass..we have just got to learn how to be more ruthless, just that little bit quicker in terms of reading game situations because let’s face we don’t have a shed load of money to go to the market..so we need the guys who do get selected to be better..
Today summed up what we are all about and what it’s like to be a Taniwha supporter..rocks and diamonds..
Will always be Taniwha supporter but you would wish at some stage we will have a day in the sun.
We needed at least 6 or 7 to be at their best today,unfortunately we probably only had 3-4 ,and that’s just not good enough.
Waikato were very flat at the start,and we needed to capitalise on that..the difference being,a good 8-10 players from Waikato lifted their game. -
100% with you figgis. There's something about this province of ours and its supporter base - that crowd for the regular season home game v Waikato was memorable, but sadly the opportunity to repay the loyalty and capitalise on the buzz evaporated on the paddock. But I guess that's part of the attraction - you never know whether it's a rocks or diamonds day when you turn up as you say Steve.
Not sure what happened to our defense in the second half of the season (coincided with Matich injury v Hawkes Bay?)
Wasn't gonna mention it but can't help myself - that forward pass call near the end today was utter BS - 12 down with a mooloo in the bin at that point would have been game on.
Big picture though... Whitcombe and Konia have made us a team worthy of respect again... remember two short years ago we were at Southland's level. -
Whilst I echo all the above thoughts on pride and passion etc, I just feel we’ve taken a slight step backwards this year. The way we have leaked points at certain periods throughout a match belies belief really.
To me it’s a mental thing, as you can see when we’re on point, we’re on point. Countless times you’ve heard in after match interviews “we went to sleep” “we buttoned off”.. that’s all in the head rather than being tired in my opinion. If you’re tired but have good mental strength, that’ll carry you through. Look at the way both Canterbury and the Crusaders apply themselves. Never say die, never out of the fight! We need to adopt that, and apply it for 80 minutes. We’ve shown glimpses we can do it, but we switch off faster than the speed of light sometimes.
Rollercoaster is the perfect way to describe following this side. Love them to bits, but hell its frustrating.
Would like to see the majority of this side stick around next year, but I’d also like to see us fill a spots by going to the market if at all possible. An out and out speedster on one wing to complement Hyland would be good. Also a super rugby class fullback would be nice. No disrespect to Matty Wright, he was good yesterday, but I feel his times coming. He’d be a good squad man to keep around for another season or two though.
Plenty to think about in the off season...
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@j77 couldn’t agree more about being clinical and ruthless. We let teams in with mistakes (a lot of individual ones yesterday - nerves ?) not kicking for territory (which we did a lot better yesterday), and generally with a bit of inexperience / decision making on defence. A classic couple of examples were Debreczeni coming in on d early in the second half, taking no one and leaving our line splintered; and when we were down to 14 players and on our line, we had to come in, take the man running and leave the space on the outside but we didn’t make that choice. Also, we need to be better at our restarts - the ball should be higher, into the 22, and close to touch line with a great chase. They have just scored and we want to put pressure on them. Overall better game management by players on the field has to be at the top of the list for next year.
A key area for me with development and recruitment is props and locks. There is no substitute for size and power. The drop between our first choice lineup and others ends up being too large. We end up with good flankers at lock and that means we struggle at scrum time and lineout. It was a clear difference yesterday where our scrum fell apart at the end, and a key factor in the falloff of performance at the end of the season. A solid set piece is the foundation for so much in rugby and has always been at the heart of of Canterbury and Crusaders rugby. Any of those SA giants like fishing?
On Matty Wright, I love the guy. Yesterday was his best game of the season. Running off guys in to space. This season for him has definitely been up and down with too many rocks along the way but his experience is invaluable and he still has a bit of speed. He worked really hard on defence yesterday. I was impressed and for me he still has it. I didnt feel like that mid season.
From a couple of years ago the change in this squad has been huge. Lot of that has stemmed from better club rugby with any outside recruits playing their club rugby up north. We were unlucky with season ending injuries to Macalai, Verney before we started and with Jack heading off to the ABs 😀 ( Good to see him and Cam - our next Coach ? - at the game yesterday). With so many young talented Northland players now with another year under their belt we should be better next year. Still waiting for that break through season but think we have a good bunch of guys, so always a passionate Taniwha supporter and proud Northland.
NB: hope some keys guys for us pick up S15 contracts. Top of the list are Matich and Ross Wright.
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@j77 can't argue mate... imagine how passionate we'd all be if they lifted a couple more notches and we were ranked around 6th in the country... right now 11th would be about right (ie 4th best in the championship, although we are up there with HB and Otago on our day). Number one for me would be shoring up that defence which, for periods as we've all seen, has been diabolical. Then I'd agree speed on one wing and that fullback spot are high on the list. Having said that, Matty Wright had a top game yesterday, Steve mentioned a couple of weeks back Alaimalo may possibly be looking at returning... geez that would be great... any more word on this I wonder?
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@kev you're right there of course kev. If you don't have a solid, quality forward pack you are like Fiji (god bless them) all the flair and excitement in the world but you don't win too many games v quality opponents.We certainly have a coach who knows how important this is...
Also, I think it goes without saying we missed Jack Goodhue's rock solid D in the midfield to tie in with Ranger's superb turnover and maul creating abilities... have been mighty impressed with Debreczeni and Gregory (my Dad made the call yesterday he will be an All Black... he tends to turn out getting these calls right in the end) -
@fidz71 a contract has been put in front of Alaimalo,its with his agent at this time,he also owns a house in Hamilton and has younger brother who is part of the Waikato system so I would imagine he has other options and he is signed with chiefs for another 2 x years.
Might be a few weeks before we know the outcome.
A good piece of news handed to me this morning however is that Tom Robinson has been signed by the Blues which is great reward for a guy who had some really bad luck with injuries.I would imagine there will be some announcements over the next few weeks..will keep you all posted if I hear anything.
Just thought I would throw something out there,I really do feel we need look at signing a 2nd five, the word I heard around Regan Verney was very positive even though he was injured throughout the season his off field contribution was outstanding.
