AB squad for the Rugby Championship
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@mariner4life Purely on form, that's pretty tough.
The only guarantee I can think of in that time frame would be Savea (probably the last person I would have picked this time last year). Retallick on this years brief form but he didn't play last year.
In the backs, Aaron Smith a maybe, Goodhue a maybe. Ben Smith and Ioane last year but definitely not thus far this year.
There are a lot less obvious selections now, a sign that the rest have caught up.
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@Chris-B in all honesty, given the shit that has come out of his mouth in the last month, a lot of which makes no sense, is often contradictory, and doesn't pass the eye test, i have to believe he knows exactly what he is doing, exactly what he is going to do, and this is all just phony war bullshit until the first game of the cup. And he's just throwing the press a bone, knowing they will pretty much just eat up what ever he says.
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@Kirwan said in AB squad for the Rugby Championship:
Loose forwards are starting to look like a weakness.
starting? they've looked like a weakness for 2 years.
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@mariner4life said in AB squad for the Rugby Championship:
@Kirwan said in AB squad for the Rugby Championship:
Loose forwards are starting to look like a weakness.
starting? they've looked like a weakness for 2 years.
It's certainly weaker now with Read's form dropping off a cliff, not even being able to replace a journeyman like Squire, Cane coming back from a broken neck, project players being jettisoned like Frizzell, and Fifita apparantly a lock/blindside.
Even Barrett isn't very good at six.
The only player in good form and health is Savea, and he got played into the ground by the Hurricanes and it looks like they are trying to re-energise him. That's the only reason I can see Todd even being in the frame, as he's not very good either.
Huge step down from McCaw, (good) Read and Kaino.
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@mariner4life said in AB squad for the Rugby Championship:
@Chris-B in all honesty, given the shit that has come out of his mouth in the last month, a lot of which makes no sense, is often contradictory, and doesn't pass the eye test, i have to believe he knows exactly what he is doing, exactly what he is going to do, and this is all just phony war bullshit until the first game of the cup. And he's just throwing the press a bone, knowing they will pretty much just eat up what ever he says.
You'd certainly hope so.
Hansen pretty clearly just says what's convenient at the time - but, he's in the invidious position of having to do lots of interviews, while not giving much of anything away and not hanging any of his players out to dry.
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@Kirwan it's the 10 situation leading up to 2011 all over again. They tried everyone, and no one stepped up. But at least that was just finding the back up.
This is trying to find a starting fucking blindside. And we don't even need them to live up to the last guy (one of our best ever) just be obviously to standard. And in 4 years, no one has done that. And so, 2 games out from a world cup, no one knows who is the starter (actually i assume the coaches do, because the alternative is insane).
Objectively, we have a set of pretty good props; two excellent hookers; two excellent locks and not a lot behind; two excellent opensides; nothing at 6; and an 8 who everyone is hoping is just priming himself for 4 more big tests.
That is, well, not ideal.
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@Chris-B they should start Cane (6) Ardie (8) Todd (7)
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@taniwharugby said in AB squad for the Rugby Championship:
@Chris-B they should start Cane (6) Ardie (8) Todd (7)
Fifita at 11?
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@taniwharugby said in AB squad for the Rugby Championship:
@Chris-B they should start Cane (6) Ardie (8) Todd (7)
A 800 kg scrum. Ardie needs to start at 7. He is not an 8 in the traditional sense but I guess that’s out the window. While we are at it with forwards playing 3 positions we could have a 7 playing 2.
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@broughie said in AB squad for the Rugby Championship:
A 800 kg scrum. Ardie needs to start at 7. He is not an 8 in the traditional sense but I guess that’s out the window. While we are at it with forwards playing 3 positions we could have a 7 playing 2.
our scrum was about 915kg the other night, which was about 20kg heavier than the bok one, dont think it'd be a big deal if I was being serious...but we have been told we wont see Cane/Ardie at 6/7, and I'm kinda thinking the coaches simply dont see Cane as an option at 6, despite him playing closer to that role than any of the others they have tried the past year or so.
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@mariner4life said in AB squad for the Rugby Championship:
In my eyes the only way this makes sense is if Read is playing 6. In which case the point of Fifita is?To give hope to Akira Ioane.
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