Crusaders v Fijian Drua
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@booboo yeah as good as Christie may be (and I havent seen much of his play that made me think McCaw) we already have 2 7s in the AB squad, plus a guy playing 8 that should be 7, and then 2 other guys who have played 7 too....then the other options, while I would rate Christie ahead of Kirifi (as I would pretty much any 7 in NZ Rugby) but Kirifi is a million miles from AB quality, I think Chrstie is on a par with Harmon, Choat and Gibson...I'd say alot of stars need to align for him or them to get selected.
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Hopefully everyone is done being triggered by @Stag now, so let's get back to the game.
It was good to see the Saders put their heads down and work for the right to throw the ball around. They have been guilty of neglecting the tough stuff this year against the less fancied teams so that was a change for the better.
I was thinking during the game that despite his better showing Fihaki is still at least the 4th fullback. If Jordan went down it would be interesting to see who would play 15. Havilii? (my pick), Bridge?
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@Crazy-Horse
"It was good to see the Saders put their heads down and work for the right to throw the ball around. They have been guilty of neglecting the tough stuff this year against the less fancied teams so that was a change for the better."That is what I got out of the game a good time before playoffs.
Defence has had a change to, with more line speed and a inside out Rush defence featuring.
Maybe the Crusaders have thrown a switch and adjusted for the playoffs.They seem to go to a different level around this time most seasons. -
@Chris I think having Goodhue in the mid-field helps, he seems a good presence for the defence, and appeared to make a good number of tackles last night (although ESPN says he only made 6, with 1 miss)
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@taniwharugby said in Crusaders v Fijian Drua:
@Chris I think having Goodhue in the mid-field helps, he seems a good presence for the defence, and appeared to make a good number of tackles last night.
Yep great organiser as well he lead that quicker line speed on defence.
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Another wee thing I enjoyed seeing was big Tamaiti draw and pass in the lead up to one of the tries (may have been the Bridge try or the Christie try). He looked very comfortable doing it.
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@Nevorian said in Crusaders v Fijian Drua:
Backline definitely looked slicker, passes were going in front of the receiver so no having to stop or reach behind, almost the Crusaders of days past. Didn’t miss Richie at all or Havili for that matter. Discipline a lot better too.
Crusaders always look better without paper bag Havili in the midfield. Goodhue offers a direct running gain-line making physical presence at 12 that Havili does not. Jack's simply a bigger body and brings a lot more defensive assurance as well.
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Which genius in Christchurch rubber stamped using red illuminations on the posts to signify a successful kick at goal?
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You'd have to think Billy Harmon would be the next cab off the rank if Paps or Cane went down and the ABs were looking for a specialist 7 (suspect they'd use Blackadder there though). On SR form I'd even rank Billy Harmon above Sam Cane since he came back.
Can't really read too much into that game. Drua didn't really test the Crusaders but the "young guns" did well. LF is a machine on the wing. He is another loose forward at the breakdown, defense is good, positioning good, and has all the skills (despite a really wobbly kick). -
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@Nevorian said in Crusaders v Fijian Drua:
Did anyone notice there was some guy called Blacklock playing for the Crusaders at about the 50 min mark?
Easily done, we had two main formation callsigns at 43(F), blacksmith & gamecock. Always embarrassing when you called yourself blackcock on the radio!
