All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour
-
@pakman said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@bovidae said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@pakman said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
Against Cyril Baille you want your best scrummager starting. It isn’t Lomax.
I've been one of most vocal supporters of Laulala, mainly for his scrummaging ability. I am certainly not suggesting Lomax starts, but Tu'ungafasi if he is dropped. In reality I expect Laulala will be retained, but his time in black must be coming to an end because of his lack of impact around the field.
I do hear you. Nepo isn't a naturally coordinated type of fellow. That said, I thought he did well against Wales. Time in squad would suggest they are clear he's the man scrum time. I suspect he's also a pretty good lifter.
Need Joe to step up on looser stuff. Still remember him throwing behind back offload against French in 2015!If Laulala isn't going to be in the team for his ball handling, he needs to be clearing bodies. Compare the work Furlong and Porter got through at ruck time with Moody and Laulala. In this area, NZ have never really replaced Franks. Coles and Taylor like the wide channels rather than the tight, Whitelock is a tight forward, Retallick is expected to range and shift bodies too, Blackadder isn't accurate enough even with great energy, Papali'i does tight work and Savea doesn't shift bodies either.
When you see backs having to clear bodies from rucks and protect ball as much as the ABs backs do, you have to wonder why you would select smaller backs who will struggle to move opposing players if required to do so.
Props need to up their game to generate the fast ball NZ need to play their gameplan.
-
@bones said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@pakman said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@bovidae said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@pakman said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
Against Cyril Baille you want your best scrummager starting. It isn’t Lomax.
I've been one of most vocal supporters of Laulala, mainly for his scrummaging ability. I am certainly not suggesting Lomax starts, but Tu'ungafasi if he is dropped. In reality I expect Laulala will be retained, but his time in black must be coming to an end because of his lack of impact around the field.
I do hear you. Nepo isn't a naturally coordinated type of fellow. That said, I thought he did well against Wales. Time in squad would suggest they are clear he's the man scrum time. I suspect he's also a pretty good lifter.
Need Joe to step up on looser stuff. Still remember him throwing behind back offload against French in 2015!I might be imagining it, but I seem to recall when Laulala started out at the Crusaders, he was a mobile prop with good loose skills? He's not on his own, but the all round handling in the team has taken a complete nose dive this season - whether that is stemming from the terrible service from halfback, or just lack of appropriate training I can't be sure. But like I said - Smith plays and we're a completely different team - is that papering over the cracks, or is it just having a halfback that can adequately perform his role?
Mick Byrne has been gone for how long now? Was he ever replaced? Maybe the players aren't being challenged enough to develop the skills needed to execute under pressure without a specific coach doing the challenging?
-
When's the AB team announced?
-
@victor-meldrew said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
When's the AB team announced?
Seems late. Are they trying to get BB on bench instead of DMac?
-
@stodders said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@pakman said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@bovidae said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@pakman said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
Against Cyril Baille you want your best scrummager starting. It isn’t Lomax.
I've been one of most vocal supporters of Laulala, mainly for his scrummaging ability. I am certainly not suggesting Lomax starts, but Tu'ungafasi if he is dropped. In reality I expect Laulala will be retained, but his time in black must be coming to an end because of his lack of impact around the field.
I do hear you. Nepo isn't a naturally coordinated type of fellow. That said, I thought he did well against Wales. Time in squad would suggest they are clear he's the man scrum time. I suspect he's also a pretty good lifter.
Need Joe to step up on looser stuff. Still remember him throwing behind back offload against French in 2015!If Laulala isn't going to be in the team for his ball handling, he needs to be clearing bodies. Compare the work Furlong and Porter got through at ruck time with Moody and Laulala. In this area, NZ have never really replaced Franks. Coles and Taylor like the wide channels rather than the tight, Whitelock is a tight forward, Retallick is expected to range and shift bodies too, Blackadder isn't accurate enough even with great energy, Papali'i does tight work and Savea doesn't shift bodies either.
When you see backs having to clear bodies from rucks and protect ball as much as the ABs backs do, you have to wonder why you would select smaller backs who will struggle to move opposing players if required to do so.
Props need to up their game to generate the fast ball NZ need to play their gameplan.
I thought the bench props were better in this area.
-
@frye said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
Bugger me, about twenty minutes ago I had the thought, 'Have TWM abandonded the idea of Bridge as the 'reliable' wing'?!
Pretty tough on Paps!!!!
TJP and Reece didn't survive review of Irish match.
Can only assume Frizell there to allow extra physicality in last 20, if required.
Overall fairly happy with team.
-
@pakman said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@frye said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
Bugger me, about twenty minutes ago I had the thought, 'Have TWM abandonded the idea of Bridge as the 'reliable' wing'?!
Pretty tough on Paps!!!!
TJP and Reece didn't survive review of Irish match.
Can only assume Frizell there to allow extra physicality in last 20, if required.
Overall fairly happy with team.
Surprised by Bridge, but the rest looks the best that Foster has available. Good to see QT getting a start. Being thrown in at the deep end with little Test inexperience but at least QT has some experience inside and outside of him.
Also pleased to see Cane starting but Foster keeping continuity with Whitelock as captain.
EDIT; Don't get why Frizzell in the 23 over the other options like Jacobson or Papilli
-
-
@victor-meldrew Good point. The Foster 'chat' might suggest a bit shagged?
-
@pakman said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@victor-meldrew Good point. The Foster 'chat' might suggest a bit shagged?
Yeah 6 million tackles last week!
-
@machpants said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@pakman said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@victor-meldrew Good point. The Foster 'chat' might suggest a bit shagged?
Yeah 6 million tackles last week!
-
Good team.
I would have kept Paps at 7 -
@frye said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
Good too see some dropped, but internally it'll be thought of as rested. According to their review as they did nothing but missed the final bit of execution. We're fucked if Rieko goes out, he's the only decent wing cover (not so important) but who the fuck goes to 13? Fullback havili? Limited noob Tupaea? Jordie? Fucking DMac?
-
@machpants said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@frye said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
Good too see some dropped, but internally it'll be thought of as rested. According to their review as they did nothing but missed the final bit of execution. We're fucked if Rieko goes out, he's the only decent wing cover (not so important) but who the fuck goes to 13? Fullback havili? Limited noob Tupaea? Jordie? Fucking DMac?
Jordie obviously 🤣
-
@crucial said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@chris said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@crucial said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@chris said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@kirwan said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@chris said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@kirwan said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@chris said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@victor-meldrew said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@chris said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@victor-meldrew said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
@chris said in All Blacks v France, 2021 NH Tour:
Razor can’t be held responsible for the idiot that stuffs his game up when he is not under Razor.
Not sure what this has to do with George Bridge....
Bridge plays ok under Razor so same story.
But that only holds true if Test rugby isn't step-up from Super Rugby, doesn't it?
What ?
Lots of players look good in Super Rugby and struggle up a level in Test rugby.
What has that do with Foster being coach and Razor not being good enough to be AB coach that’s what the discusion was about.
Foster has picked Bridge for 2 years so if he isn’t good enough for Test Rugby that confirms Foster should not be AB coach as he can’t identify who is good enough to play test rugby.
Razor can’t be judged as not being good enough and that’s what the original conversation was about if he hasn’t had a chance .You are the one comparing how players go under Razor, at a lower level of rugby. It's not a good comparison.
No Crucial started that I gave the opposite opinion. As I said to him its not a good comparison reversed either.
No. You are still getting the wrong end of the stick.
I was simply saying (if you go back to my OP) that it is a valid question to ask whether lifting Razor up a step automatically means fixing weaknesses when he has already had a chance to fix those weaknesses in some players for many years (or direct his assistants to do so).
I have not claimed that he is a bad coach. I am questioning why he may not have taken action to improve some of the problems players have already. Maybe he has tried and there is no room for improvement eg RMs decision making under pressure and 'lack' of direction.
If that is the case then that doesn't point to him being able to fix AB problems because no one can probably fix that player further eg can't turn RM into DC.
Therefore given the current cattle he can't turn around the team in those key areas.There is way too much assumption that he would be the saviour of AB rugby and talk of the stupidity of NZR not to appoint him. We heard all the same stuff about Deans but in the end did history show that we threw away a great coach?
No but we sure haven't made a good decision in appointing Foster, we would not have been worse of would we ? .And maybe in a better position than we are now if they had gone with Razor..
I would prefer to see Robertson get a chance on the back of being a winning coach year in year out.
But I would rather have Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck coaching the AB's than the present crop of losers.I don't necessarily disagree but reserve the right to question whether he is the BEST choice when there is a strong likelihood that he will continue the selection of players that have proven to be defective.
If he can bring in a different style that plays to their strengths and doesn't expose their weaknesses then fair enough. I'm just asking the question.To be honest, I would completely understand if he came in now or very close to the RWC and basically went all Cantablacks (with a few key plug ins) in order to try and blag a RWC Rassie style. But, if he came in 2024 with a full cycle ahead of him and still went down that route I would think we have a serious problem
