All Blacks 2024
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@gt12 When does Holland become eligible?
A lock roster of Barrett, Va'ai, Darry, Lord (assuming he can get over his injury niggles) and Holland is reasonably healthy.
Which frees up trying Va'ai (or Barrett) at 6. Agree that Va'ai has just started to come into his own in the team at lock, but a lock/6 is invaluable in a RWC squad.
Of course, the other option to get height into the AB backrow is to pick a no 8 with height. Know any players like that?
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@reprobate said in All Blacks 2024:
Neither Vaai or Barrett is explosive enough.
Both are more explosive than Blackadder. So that's clearly not a selection criteria at the moment.
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@Kirwan said in All Blacks 2024:
@reprobate said in All Blacks 2024:
Neither Vaai or Barrett is explosive enough.
Both are more explosive than Blackadder. So that's clearly not a selection criteria at the moment.
Even if your explosiveness opinion (which I disagree with) was true, all you could legitimately conclude is that it is not the only selection criteria. It's not like Jacobson is explosive either.
We are also talking about options for when e.g. Holland is an AB lock, October 2025. I sincerely hope that by that time we are not looking at Barrett or Vaai as our 6. Neither is a hard tackling 6 in the Collins/Kaino mode, neither is much of a ball runner. I guess they are arguably our two best ruck turnover players, maybe we should look at them at 7?
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@Kirwan
Bet away - I wouldn't know. I do know Blackadder was the quickest Crusader forward in the bronco a few years back.
Early days to be claiming we have depth at lock. Barrett remains very good if not great, Vaai has stepped up really well, and Darry has looked the part - but really he's pretty green. Big Pat has never consistently performed at the highest level - I hope he will, but it's hardly a given. Lord is green as and coming back from injury. Sounds similar to me to the claims of 'look at the depth of our loosies' earlier this season.I assume rather than province ( Ta$man) you mean franchise. Either way it's fucking tiresome, the underperformers have not been Crusaders, and Vaai has been selected in the squad so his 'province' clearly hasn't been held against him, has it?
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@reprobate said in All Blacks 2024:
Big Pat has never consistently performed at the highest level - I hope he will, but it's hardly a given
surely the coaching group can get the best out of him? I mean, they back themselves to play people back into form, to coach fundamentals in the AB environment (Bell, looking at you), so I'd carry that expectation
Edit: I think Pat's sabbatical didn't help, and I've always been surprised at how he hasn't taken Super form to Tests. But there ya go.
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@reprobate your white knighting of Blackadder against all odds is quite staggering.
Well done son
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@nzzp said in All Blacks 2024:
@reprobate said in All Blacks 2024:
Big Pat has never consistently performed at the highest level - I hope he will, but it's hardly a given
surely the coaching group can get the best out of him? I mean, they back themselves to play people back into form, to coach fundamentals in the AB environment (Bell, looking at you), so I'd carry that expectation
Edit: I think Pat's sabbatical didn't help, and I've always been surprised at how he hasn't taken Super form to Tests. But there ya go.
I really hope so. He's had poorly timed injuries, and it's tough being a bit-part player behind 2 all time greats, you just don't get the minutes to build form.
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@MN5 said in All Blacks 2024:
@reprobate your white knighting of Blackadder against all odds is quite staggering.
Well done son
Why thank you. I must admit to being pretty fucking surprised by it myself given I wouldn't have picked him in the initial squad and was (and am) as confused as anyone by the loosie selections.
But, he's got stuck in and played well and it kinda shits me people focusing on him when so many others aren't performing. Especially the just coz he's a crusader, just coz he's a mate's son shit. Just fucken grow up people, open your eyes and have a look at all the canes and blues and chiefs not performing (highlander not included as injured). -
Is Scott Robertson the worst All Blacks coach of all time?
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@reprobate said in All Blacks 2024:
@MN5 said in All Blacks 2024:
@reprobate your white knighting of Blackadder against all odds is quite staggering.
Well done son
Why thank you. I must admit to being pretty fucking surprised by it myself given I wouldn't have picked him in the initial squad and was (and am) as confused as anyone by the loosie selections.
But, he's got stuck in and played well and it kinda shits me people focusing on him when so many others aren't performing. Especially the just coz he's a crusader, just coz he's a mate's son shit. Just fucken grow up people, open your eyes and have a look at all the canes and blues and chiefs not performing (highlander not included as injured).It’s purely cos of the inordinate hype around him, nothing more.
The injury proneness doesn’t help matters either.
He actually seems like a bloody good character from interviews I’ve seen with him. Much more so than loads of other ABs.
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@Yeahtheboys said in All Blacks vs Wallabies I:
Is Scott Robertson the worst All Blacks coach of all time?
Not by a long way!
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@nzzp that doesn’t fit my narrative mate
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@Yeahtheboys said in All Blacks vs Wallabies I:
@nzzp that doesn’t fit my narrative mate
I was trying to find my post with historic win records to post, which is annoying.
He should finish the year with another 2-3 losses likely. He's 4-3 at the moment, with another 7 games to go. Assuming he goes 5-2, finishing 9-5 is a 64% win rate which is above Foster (I think).
Lose 3 and it's 57% which is wild!
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@reprobate said in All Blacks 2024:
@RoninWC said in All Blacks 2024:
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in All Blacks 2024:
@nostrildamus said in All Blacks 2024 - selection:
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in All Blacks 2024 - selection:
Oh, get a grip. So Sotutu is now the finest player not to get selected and everyone else is a journeyman. I find it funny how by attacking another player from a rival team who doesn't even get selected as a No.8 is the main focus of the argument. Just so friggen stupid.
you are talking about EB?
Where would you rank him on his 2024 season against the other 6s and 7s?One of the most effective loose forwards in the comp in a dysfunctional team when playing. Hence pretty much every pundit outside this echo chamber putting his name in the mix.
Being made of glass and a lack of a body of work is a reasonable argument though...LOL, I call BS on this statement.
One of the busiest, sure, but effective, NFW!
He's there because he's the coaches pet and son of a mate and because the fan boys fawn over the few minutes he plays each season.
Should never have walked into the squad let alone starting given how few minutes he's played and how actually ineffective he is when he plays. Busy doesn't mean efffective.
God you're repetitive and full of shit. He didn't walk into the starting side. The starting loosies against England were DP, AS, SF. EB and LJ had their first starts vs Fiji. EB performed, SF had not, and of the options available he earned the starting spot.
I wouldn't have picked him initially due to a lack of playing time, but he has performed well and justified his selection. Stats back that up.
To say he's been selected because he's the son of a mate paints you as quite the fluffybunny.HAHAHA, look who's talking. It's my opinion, you have yours and I have my own.
And it's as clear AF that he should never have been picked in the first place. He did walk into the side without merit, that much is clear.
And I completely disagree that EB has "performed" as I have put in only 1 single previous post, I do not believe that he is effective. He's busy but effective, far from it in my opinion.
You have yours, but that is not reason to call anyone a fluffybunny, especially from one such as yourself!
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Any injury ravaged player from any other franchise, with no recent form or any body of work in black, would never have made this squad. Given that, the scrutiny on his performances given who he was selected ahead of at 6 is warranted. Yes a number of other players have under performed, but at least they were selected on either recent form or their body of work in black (e.g. Ardie). Blackadder had neither, and given his performances to date, people are rightly asking the question as to why he was preferred over other players in career best form.
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@No-Quarter said in All Blacks 2024:
Any injury ravaged player from any other franchise, with no recent form or any body of work in black, would never have made this squad. Given that, the scrutiny on his performances given who he was selected ahead of at 6 is warranted. Yes a number of other players have under performed, but at least they were selected on either recent form or their body of work in black (e.g. Ardie). Blackadder had neither, and given his performances to date, people are rightly asking the question as to why he was preferred over other players in career best form.
He's played better than Finau (who was given the 2 first starts against England in the A team), and Jacobson, so the selection questions now should be directed at them in my opinion. There are only a couple of posts questioning them being there, and heaps around Blackadder.
As I've said repeatedly, I wouldn't have picked Blackadder initially. In my opinion now, he's been well worth his place. Who hasn't: Aumua, Tu'ungafasi, Jacobson, Finau, TJP, Christie, Jordie, Rieko, Telea, Reece, Jordan, Beauden. Arguably Savea too. Yet Blackadder cops more shit than the rest of them combined? That's just fucken weird.
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