All Blacks vs Springboks II
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Vermeulen pretty much GOAT material over last decade along w DC and GOAT
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@mikethesnow France? They have the forwards to lay a platform and the 9/10 axis to ignite the backline. I'd say France have more upside than England right now. Eddie's team will be v raw in Nov.
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@berniescorner greater than Read?
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@berniescorner Vermeulen is forged in the same mould as Shelford. An absolute test match animal.
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@stodders said in All Blacks vs Springboks II:
brain farts come from pressure. This is only the second game some ABs have played against the Boks.
Fair point, but experienced players had brain-farts out there tonight and last week.
I'm not being negative - I think Foster has done well in some areas and the team overall done OK considering their missing key players- just think that progress has stalled in the last two games.
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@stodders said in All Blacks vs Springboks II:
@berniescorner Jordie couldn't be trusted in other areas. He's matured and been allowed to develop. He now owns the 15 jersey and the kicking duties. He's a success story.
It'll be interesting to see how Mo'unga and Barrett go outside Smith when he returns. Smith is such a brilliant player that he takes pressure off the 10s to make decisions and has greater control over the forwards in front of him. NZ missed him and Whitelock against the Boks.
At least you have them to return to improve the team 😊
Smith isn't going on the EOYT sadly
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@berniescorner said in All Blacks vs Springboks II:
Vermeulen pretty much GOAT material over last decade along w DC and GOAT
Though Vermeulen's a very good player, he has way too many off games to be considered "great". Far from "greatest" for mine.
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@victor-meldrew the Boks strangle teams and are clinical when given chances in the red zone. Playing them is like playing Chelsea under Mourinho. You have to earn the win.
You will rarely get a blow out because they keep the pressure ratcheted high. The average score between ABs and SA in last few years prior to today's game has been 25-23 to ABs. Boks aren't the 57-0 team of 2017 anymore.
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@victor-meldrew McCaw et al had to learn the hard lessons to become the players they did, even when they were experienced.
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@victor-meldrew the biggest criticism of the evening was that the ABs put themselves in a position to close the game out. In possession and seconds on the clock. Boks had looked threatening with the ball, but not "strike from 80m" threatening.
TJP should have hoisted a box kick and put the pressure on Boks to win it from 80m. The breakdown is too much of a lottery to wind the clock down.
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@african-monkey That’s so accurate. Looking at the posts 6 hours later while watching the game and half the fern need a sedagive.
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@bovidae said in All Blacks vs Springboks II:
@Chris
I am only talking about what TJP (mainly) and Mo'unga should have done from the scrum on halfway. Nothing more. Savea made a great run off a retreating scrum and then the percentage play was to kick behind SA and force them to run or kick the ball back. I certainly aren't absolving the forwards in that passage of play.Hard disagree. There were multiple safe ways to close that game out and the one they chose was as good as any. It wasn't a decision making problem. It was an execution problem.
The play they chose was to run down the clock in the Boks half. They had the exact right setup they just didn't execute, it was a lack of urgency/focus to get on the ball carrier that gave the Boks the chance to win that penalty.
If you want to talk poor decision making look directly at Barrett's complete lack of patience and inability to keep us down in opposition territory. There's just no way he starts big games at 10 again if Mo'unga is fit. He is a great supersub and honestly the only other starting role I'd consider him is on the wing.
