RWC: All Blacks v Italy (Cancelled) (Pool B)
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@taniwharugby yeah it was noticeable the last game Ioane played that early on he was hanging around the tackle area and often popped up at first receiver, but just had no options and did nothing.
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Not getting this bizarre loyalty to Rieko.
Bridge and Reece have made every post a winner.
Reece made the decisive break which led to the try in the Bok game which broke the game open and Bridge finished it. Bridge tore it up in the 2nd Bledisloe and both have been on fire for the Saders all year.Rieko hasn't done squat.
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@Frank yeah people are saying Smith and Ioane should get a chance to play into form, but it'd be interesting to see just how much all four have played this year for the AB's. My feeling without going looking for unwanted facts is that if anything, Smith and Ioane and have had more "chances".
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@Bones not to mention you have to balance taking the chance to play someone into form vs playing people who are in form.
What if Ioane didnt recapture his form and Bridge had been sitting on the sidelines?
As many have alluded, had Ioane had the chance in B2 that Bridge did, he might well have looked shit hot too, but by the same token, Bridge took his chance, and aint giving it up easily, so ball is now in Ioanes court to try and use every second he gets as a chance to force his way back in.
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@taniwharugby yep, plus Ioane may have continued on in his current vein of form and then we'd have an absolute unknown and a known...unknown?
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@taniwharugby said in RWC: All Blacks v Italy (Pool
:@Bones not to mention you have to balance taking the chance to play someone into form vs playing people who are in form.
What if Ioane didnt recapture his form and Bridge had been sitting on the sidelines?
As many have alluded, had Ioane had the chance in B2 that Bridge did, he might well have looked shit hot too, but by the same token, Bridge took his chance, and aint giving it up easily, so ball is now in Ioanes court to try and use every second he gets as a chance to force his way back in.
Saving Bridge for the semis, just like Howlett in 2007....
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@ACT-Crusader what happened in 2007?
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@taniwharugby said in RWC: All Blacks v Italy (Pool
:@ACT-Crusader what happened in 2007?
Kevin Rudd and Gordo became PMās, Sarkozy was made President of France, Goddard had one of the most atrocious reffing performances in the history of Super rugby at Loftus.
So not much.
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@Frank said in RWC: All Blacks v Italy (Pool
:Not getting this bizarre loyalty to Rieko.
Bridge and Reece have made every post a winner.
Reece made the decisive break which led to the try in the Bok game which broke the game open and Bridge finished it. Bridge tore it up in the 2nd Bledisloe and both have been on fire for the Saders all year.Rieko hasn't done squat.
I agree with this. Rieko looks shot in terms of his body language / confidence. Look at how he over celebrated scoring that try against Canada. Wing is such a form/momentum position and he just doesn't have it anymore.
People have speculated that Akira isn't in the team due to a poor attitude. Maybe Rieko has shown the same thing in camp since his golden run from being picked out of left field for the Lions series? Doesn't want to put in the hard yards to win his spot back?
Total speculation on my part and maybe some posters will call me out for talking rubbish, but I just get a really strong feeling he's done, not the sort of guy who can deal with not being the top dog in the ABs. Still, he was absolute dynamite in 2017-18 so will always be a great AB off the back of that.
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@TeWaio I think if āattitudeā was a genuine issue I simply donāt think they wouldāve selected him.
When the team is away overseas on a campaign like this why would they take the risk of having a guy there with an attitude issue that can impact on others. I know these guys arenāt robots and players are going to have issues and emotions that go up and down, but if attitude of a player is a problem then it makes more sense to remove the player.
There were other players they couldāve taken.
They couldāve taken Nathan Harris allowing Coles to play his rightful position š
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@SammyC said in RWC: All Blacks v Italy (Pool
:@pukunui said in RWC: All Blacks v Italy (Pool
:@ACT-Crusader said in RWC: All Blacks v Italy (Pool
:@pukunui said in RWC: All Blacks v Italy (Pool
:@Bones said in RWC: All Blacks v Italy (Pool
:@pukunui yeah, I'd agree that apart from when Bridge has gassed someone or broken a tackle, he definitely doesn't seem to gas anyone or break tackles.
Like you say, Reece is really uncreative and tends to look meh ball in hand.
Plus Ioane is super amazing in defence and kick receipt.
Looking past your lame attempt at humour I would say Rieko at his peak (which wasnāt long ago) makes Bridge look pedestrian.
I like Bridge as the 2nd fullback type player though.
Just not more than Smith.I donāt know what you are talking about with Reece. I said he HAS the ācreate something out of nothingā ability. It is the other aspects of his game im questioning.
Edit: just realised I didnāt write what i meant about Reece. Will edit.
The stuff Bridge does well is what the team actually needs - a guy that works hard to run the right line and angle. Heās on the end of stuff because of his work rate not because it magically falls into his lap. And when he has had to beat a man he has.
Kind of like Ben Smith. Just not as good.
Thatās just rubbish, heās a quicker version of Ben Smith and way safer under the high ball this year. Smith has hardly caught a bomb all year
Is Bridge really that great under the high ball? He got out-jumped by 5-foot-nothing Cheslin Colby the other week.
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@Frank said in RWC: All Blacks v Italy (Pool
:Things I would never have picked at the beginning of this year.
- BFA not in test 15, and perhaps not in test 23.
- Rieko Ioane on the outer.
- Reece and Bridge being our top two wingers.
- Ardie Savea playing at blindside.
- Jack Goodhue not being first choice 13.
- Scott Barrett and Patty T improving.
- Owen Franks not going to the World Cup.
Mo'unga taking over the first five jersey and Beaudy shifting to fullback wasn't something I expected.
It has amazed me how Hansen has discarded experience after beating that drum for the best part of 15 years. I wonder quite where we'd be if DMac hadn't got injured, but I have to say, I'm happier with Richie/Beaudy than I would have been with Beaudy/DMac.
Can't say that I'd identified any major problems with Rieko prior to him getting dropped for Bled II, but unless he's been playing up a storm in training, he's not done anything (vs Canada especially) to compel Hansen to give him Bridge's jersey.
Main questions for me for the play-off games is who joins Lienert-Brown in starting in the midfield (I currently think it will be Crotty) and who takes the outside reserve back spot - I think it will be Ben, but it could be Jordie.
Biggest mistake so far in my book - they shoulda taken Big Karl instead of Atu. Switch Ofa to the backup tighthead and have Angus as the fifth prop. I'm not at all convinced with our reserve front row at scrum time - and I can't see how having 30 minutes of a somewhat more mobile Angus is going to be more of a game changer than a solid scrumming Karl.
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@ACT-Crusader said in RWC: All Blacks v Italy (Pool
:@TeWaio I think if āattitudeā was a genuine issue I simply donāt think they wouldāve selected him.
When the team is away overseas on a campaign like this why would they take the risk of having a guy there with an attitude issue that can impact on others. I know these guys arenāt robots and players are going to have issues and emotions that go up and down, but if attitude of a player is a problem then it makes more sense to remove the player.
There were other players they couldāve taken.
They couldāve taken Nathan Harris allowing Coles to play his rightful position š
I think the explanation for that is timing - he only lost his spot so late at Bled II that by then most of the 31 was locked in, and dropping him altogether would've been too disruptive? And now a few months later and 3 games into the WC he's deteriorated further mentally, but its too late?
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@Bones said in RWC: All Blacks v Italy (Pool
:@TeWaio yeah I don't think much can be put on the try celebration. It's not like he's always calmly just walked back. He always celebrates tries emphatically.
Yeah fair, I'm just more used to seeing him score tries that matter in the last 2yrs, rather than against minnows!
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@pukunui said in RWC: All Blacks v Italy (Pool
:I think the selectors have screwed it up a bit to be honest. The way to get Rieko (our best back other than BB for the last 2 years) back up to top form and confidence wasnāt to drop him then play him in midfield from the bench. They also did similar with Ben Smith, dropping him then claiming he had lost his self belief. Which he later said wasnāt true.
Who knows what level Ioane and Smith would have been at if they had been retained starting for the Bled 2 cake walk.
I think they would have been average and slow.
Blaming the selectors for selecting two in-form players, who have played in-form over two players that were given a few tests and didn't really do anything makes no sense to me.
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@Frank said in RWC: All Blacks v Italy (Pool
:So....if Italy beats us with a bonus point, we are out of the tournament.
For Italy to go through they not only need that but also need to allow us to get a losing or 4 try bonus point.
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@ACT-Crusader said in RWC: All Blacks v Italy (Pool
:@Frank said in RWC: All Blacks v Italy (Pool
:So....if Italy beats us with a bonus point, we are out of the tournament.
For Italy to go through they not only need that but also need to allow us to get a losing or 4 try bonus point.
Really?
Boks on 15
NZ 14
Italy 10.If we get no points from the game, and they get win + bonus they go to 15.
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@Frank sorry it should read
āFor Italy to go through they not only need that but also need to avoid us getting a losing or 4 try bonus point.ā
