Blues v Hurricanes
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@african-monkey yep Faiane in for Plummer. Plummer on bench with AJ Lam I'm hearing...
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@canefan This is a mentality of the past, coaches don't subscribe to that view anymore. These days bench players have hugely influential roles & are just as important for the team as the starting role.
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@kiwi_expat that's only true if they actually bring them on at the 50 minute mark. Most of the time Holland injects players too late so it's hard for them to offer any impact. I.e. PUJ last week.
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@canes4life Proctor has been performing well.
also last week they were winning & they still increased their lead. The week before when Holland emptied the bench, the Hurricanes conceded almost 30 points in that second-half. They were doing great until B.Proctor and others were subbed-off.
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@kiwi_expat it doesn't matter if Proctor was playing well or not, my point is if a player comes on too late it's hard for them to have any influence on a game. Therefore being on the bench is less important than starting if a player hardly gets any minutes.
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The Blues team is:
15 Stephen Perofeta, 14 Mark Telea, 13 Rieko Ioane, 12 TJ Faiane, 11 Caleb Clarke, 10 Otere Black, 9 Sam Nock; 8 Hoskins Sotutu, 7 Dalton Papalii, 6 Tom Robinson (c), 5 Sam Darry, 4 Gerard Cowley-Tuioti, 3 Ofa Tuungafasi, 2 Luteru Tolai, 1 Karl Tu’inukuafe.
Reserves: 16 Leni Apisai, 17 Alex Hodgman, 18 Nepo Laulala, 19 Josh Goodhue, 20 Akira Ioane, 21 Jonathan Ruru, 22 Harry Plummer, 23 AJ Lam.
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@kiwi_expat Proctor was mostly on the field that whole time when we lost the lead, again PUJ got very little minutes which is odd because he was one of our best last year, if not our most destructive back, but now can't seem to get a look in.
Nevertheless, Holland obviously has his favourites no matter their form which is pretty bullshit IMO and it's preventing us from reaching new heights.
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he Blues are amped and ready to ensure that the Easter break will be no holiday for the visiting Hurricanes when they clash in the Sky Super Rugby Aotearoa match at Eden Park on Saturday night.
The second placed Blues, with two wins and two losses in their opening four games, will begin the second round of the competition following their 31-16 victory over the Canes in the opening match in Wellington.
Coach Leon MacDonald has made several changes after the disappointing loss to the Chiefs, although most of the Blues squad from that win in Wellington last month will take part this weekend.
The only “new faces” from the opening match are veteran TJ Faiane, who gets his first start after an injury-delayed season, and exciting young lock Sam Darry, who made his impressive Super Rugby debut against the Highlanders.
Darry comes in for captain Patrick Tuipulotu, who has not recovered from a shoulder injury received in last weekend’s match.
Loose forward Tom Robinson, who made a significant impact off the bench against the Chiefs, has earned his first start of the season at loose forward and will captain the side.
“The performance overall against the Chiefs was disappointing, especially at set-piece, our lack of accuracy and discipline. The players who made an impact off the bench or have been working hard on the training field have earned their chance.
“Sam gets another start at lock after he impressed us earlier in the season and Tom will lead this team in place Patrick,” said coach Leon MacDonald.
Sam Nock gets his opportunity to start at halfback for the second time this season with Jonathan Ruru expected to add real thrust again from the reserves.
The front row continues the inter-change of All Black props with Ofa Tuungafasi welcomed at home in front of friends and family for his 101st game in blue, and Karl Tu’inukuafe, both starting.
The potential new cap will come in the form of strong-running winger AJ Lam, outstanding in the Mitre-10 Cup, and rewarded after continuing to impress on the training field.
“We are primed to get back on track with a much better all-round performance,” said MacDonald. “When we got some go-forward ball we showed how dangerous we can be. But we need to be more accurate at set-piece, and continue to improve in terms of our discipline.
“We started the season well but lacked precision over the last two games and last week’s game was disappointing. That has led to some changes this week as players who have done the mahi at training get their opportunity.
“We are back at Eden Park and looking to put together a performance of quality that we and our loyal fans will be proud of.”
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@daffy-jaffy strong looking side, this one could go either way IMO.
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@canes4life said in Blues v Hurricanes:
Ffs, Blackwell returns
I thought we were rid of this waste of space. So Canes had a good win and they change a winning team around with worse players. The coaches are clueless
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@winger said in Blues v Hurricanes:
@canes4life said in Blues v Hurricanes:
Ffs, Blackwell returns
I thought we were rid of this waste of space. So Canes had a good win and they change a winning team around with worse players. The coaches are clueless.
The Hurricanes won lots of games last season with those same players, including beating the Crusaders in Christchurch. Scrafton & Blackwell were two players who contributed hugely towards that win. I think you could show them (and the coaches) a little more respect.
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@canes4life said in Blues v Hurricanes:
@stargazer it's just so painful. IWL was one of the top players on the park last week, it surely doesn't give the kid confidence when he's replaced by one of shortest, if not the shortest lock in Super Rugby history. Seriously, what does a guy like Blackwell do at training to make him command such a permanent position in the team? He's just so ordinary and has tits for hands.
Numia and Rakete-Stones have been alot stronger over recent weeks, Armstrong is lucky to be in the 23, let alone starting.
IWL I thought was massive last game for the Canes and Scrafton was good I cant see why Blackwell is back strange selections.
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@kiwi_expat You sound like you're on the Canes' coaching staff
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@stargazer he must be related to Holland.
I don't think anyone is questioning Scrafton but the size of Blackwell just doesn't cut it. The coaches don't really deserve full respect when their winning record is just over 50%. The Canes and their fans have higher expectations than that, including myself. -
@canes4life From the media release:
Holland said the coaching staff were continuing their plan to rotate some players and give others an opportunity through the tough Super Rugby Aotearoa campaign.
He's mostly rotating the same players. I still have to see proof that all players are given an opportunity.
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@canes4life it's actually around 60%
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I'd say the reason for Blackwell being continually selected is because he's a key leader in the group, he's a senior player, he was the Hurricanes player of the season in 2019, was pretty outstanding in Super Rugby Aotearoa last year too. Also isn't he the Wellington Lions captain?
