Discussion of AB 9s. Best ever All Blacks Half Back?
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I saw Laidlaw play, excellent. But Aaron Smith is easily best AB 9 of my lifetime.
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@bovidae said in Discussion of AB 9s. Best ever All Blacks Half Back?:
@kiwiinmelb said in Discussion of AB 9s. Best ever All Blacks Half Back?:
@beardie I was pretty young , and I might be getting going and laidlaw a little mixed up ,
I remember going having that funky reverse pass though
Yes. From what I have seen and read Laidlaw was the passer and Going the runner.
I remember watching a video from the 1980s that my uncle had which was about the greatest AB team to that point. IIRC Des Connor was their pick at halfback ahead of Laidlaw, Going, Loveridge etc. Way before my time.
Yeah I think my memory was getting things a little mixed up ,
And the debate around his passing game was in fact the other way around ,but he was a popular AB , well he was a cult hero at primary school anyway
On another note , anyone remember the going brothers together for northland and the maoris ? Sid , brian and Ken at 9, 10 and 15 pulling off their triple scissor moves ….. Good times .
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@booboo said in Discussion of AB 9s. Best ever All Blacks Half Back?:
@act-crusader said in Discussion of AB 9s. Best ever All Blacks Half Back?:
In my lifetime:
1 - Aaron Smith
2 - Graeme Bachop
3 - Justin Marshall
4 - David Kirk
5 - Dan Carter 😎——————-
Next rung:
1 - Dave Loveridge
2 - Byron Kelleher
3 - Piri Weepu
4 - TJ Perenara——————-
Everyone else (no order, just for fun)
Jimmy Cowan, Steve Devine, Brendon Leonard, Junior Tonu’u, Andy Ellis, Tawera Kerr-Barlow, Mark Robinson, Mark Donaldson, Kevin Senio, Mitch Drummond, Brad Weber, Andrew DonaldSid only played a couple of tests in my lifetime.
Preston?
Yeah, he should have played a lot more tests. So many also forget the part he played in the 96 series win over the Boks. Although he think he came on as a 10. Farking good player anyway and didn't deserve to ride the pine behind the likes of Strauchan and Forster.
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Smith
Loveridge
Laidlaw
BachopGoing massively over-rated. Great fringe runner, brave defender, good box kicker - average at best elsewhere. Good behind a dominant pack as his slow loopy pass was OK. Very predictable but was worthwhile on wet muddy grounds.
Fantastic 10 man rugby which became a massive problem once our pack lost dominance and we couldn't find a 1st 5
A second rate Marshall. Failing to move on from Going even though there were a number of viable options turned the 70's into NZ's worst ever decade of test rugby
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Smith is not only the best 9 i've seen play for the ABs, he's the best 9 i have ever seen (and i thought Joost would take that mantle forever)
His speed to the ruck, his ability to maintain that speed for a whole game, his support lines, his ruck organisation, his organisation of his forward pods (when allowed) is absolutely top shelf. He also has a pretty handy kicking game, and a good run game if the opposition opens up.
But that pass... the speed and width allows us to attack of 2-ball at the lineout FFS. He's creating space for his first receiver no one else gets. And that's 2 tries in 2 games that occur as a direct result of him delivering a wide flat ball putting a guy on an outside shoulder right on the line.
People always seem tob e looking for reasons not to call him the best (oooh, Connor Murray can box kick, ooooh) but Smith is the fucking man. By far and away our most important player right now.
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@act-crusader What the hell????
Where is Bruce Deans?!!
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@chris-b problem is he only got his chance when Kirk left. But good player.
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@nostrildamus I'm more shaken that ACT Crusader has forgotten him!
Maybe an imposter has hacked his account!!!
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@chris-b said in Discussion of AB 9s. Best ever All Blacks Half Back?:
@act-crusader What the hell????
Where is Bruce Deans?!!
Even @ACT-Crusader knows that he wasn't all that great?
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@snowy I'm very concerned - his list is extremely erratic.
Lyn Davis may not have played a test in ACT's lifetime, but that is still surely no reason not to list him?
No Kahn FotualiÃ? I sense there may be others.
It's bizarre.
Edit: Steve Scott...I knew it, Dan!
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@chris-b said in Discussion of AB 9s. Best ever All Blacks Half Back?:
@nostrildamus I'm more shaken that ACT Crusader has forgotten him!
Maybe an imposter has hacked his account!!!
perhaps the ACT in his name didn't stand for Aust. Capital Territory after all?
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@chris-b said in Discussion of AB 9s. Best ever All Blacks Half Back?:
@snowy I'm very concerned - his list is extremely erratic.
Lyn Davis may not have played a test in ACT's lifetime, but that is still surely no reason not to list him?
No Kahn FotualiÃ? I sense there may be others.
It's bizarre.
Haha. Far out I am and getting old, but not old enough to know the Davis era. Like Sid, Lyn Davis only played a couple of AB games in my lifetime.
But you are right on Bruce. I completely forgot about him. Only real memory is watching him as a kid on that 88 OZ tour and the fact that my old man wasn’t a fan.
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Wasn't there a rumour of a dust up between Fox and B Deans in an AB camp and Fox said either Deans goes or I go?
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@crazy-horse said in Discussion of AB 9s. Best ever All Blacks Half Back?:
Wasn't there a rumour of a dust up between Fox and B Deans in an AB camp and Fox said either Deans goes or I go?
Didn't Fox address that, when he addressed the "fight" between him and Buck and basically poo poo it. Although I think it was no secret he preferred Bachop in 89 which saw him overtake Deans.
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@crazy-horse said in Discussion of AB 9s. Best ever All Blacks Half Back?:
Wasn't there a rumour of a dust up between Fox and B Deans in an AB camp and Fox said either Deans goes or I go?
I doubt there was a dust up. Fox's "physicality" was legendary.
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@bovidae said in Discussion of AB 9s. Best ever All Blacks Half Back?:
Deans shouldn't be anywhere near this discussion. His best years had gone by the time he was first-choice in 1988. Otherwise, let's put Andrew Donald in there too!
Steve "sweet passing" Devine!
