All Blacks vs Wallabies I
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@Kiwiwomble said in All Blacks vs Wallabies I:
@nostrildamus thats a worry isn't it? at most five games a week to watch and sometimes only 2, when you compare to managers/coaches of other national teams/sports where players could be spread across multiple teams in multiple competitions
Yes plus coaches are human and go for their familiar players who in 2024 seem to be returning from injury and insufficient match practice...
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If we learnt anything from the SA games I suspect its that our experienced players we still have aren't the leaders they should be. Good players but not leaders. A Sam Whitelock plays and we win the first test because he has the mana and experience of how to lead to win difficult games.
The move to experience on the bench for the second test showed that our experienced guys werent able to bring the calmness required to win the game.
I think super is a much bigger step down after the demise of the aussies and not playing the saffas.
Super form isnt much of a yardstick for test ability now. Not enough pressure on players.
If you think Fozzie and Razor have a similar capabilty of players to pick from we are all in a dreamland. -
Having said that we really should stuff the aussies, they're even worse off than us!
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@Lancaster-Park said in All Blacks vs Wallabies I:
Having said that we really should stuff the aussies, they're even worse off than us!
I think they can pull off the occasional good game, they just don't have great depth in key positions or seasoned leaders (like us!)
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@NTA said in All Blacks vs Wallabies I:
Without knowing the teams, and given the current weather forecast, I'll go ABs by 31-35.
I could live with that
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@DaGrubster said in All Blacks vs Wallabies I:
@NTA said in All Blacks vs Wallabies I:
Without knowing the teams, and given the current weather forecast, I'll go ABs by 31-35.
I could live with that
Noting that anything less than a complete thumping of this magnitude is a dismal failure 😜
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@NTA said in All Blacks vs Wallabies I:
@DaGrubster said in All Blacks vs Wallabies I:
@NTA said in All Blacks vs Wallabies I:
Without knowing the teams, and given the current weather forecast, I'll go ABs by 31-35.
I could live with that
Noting that anything less than a complete thumping of this magnitude is a dismal failure 😜
I'm confident a Kiwi coach will win this.
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@Bovidae said in All Blacks vs Wallabies I:
@reprobate said in All Blacks vs Wallabies I:
It's an interesting thought eh. Most people in NZ think that the bench is for a mix of injury cover and ball runners. Because ball runners have 'ímpact', but to me it is a bit more complex than that and requires some thought about the opposition.
Scrums are only important when you have them. As we've seen this year you can go a full 40 mins without them. The bench selection has been terrible so far, and suggests the coaches don't even know what they want from the subs. Clearly, there is a lack of trust in the front row reserves given the minutes they get.
Charlie Faumuina was a good example of the impact a reserve prop could have, and they sacrificed scrummaging power for ball-carrying and workrate. Newell is essentially Franks MkII at the moment, and Ofa has done nothing despite all that "experience". This test is the perfect opportunity to see what Tosi can do.
Very keen on seeing Tosi vs the Wallabies. Would be less keen vs SA as I haven't seen him enough to be sure of his scrummaging, and while in some games you get none, equally in some games it can cost you the game.
Agree bench has been shithouse, and the attempt to fix it by moving experienced panic merchants BB and TJ there was a predictable failure. -
Ofa had an excellent season in the scrum for the Blues and I don't believe he was bested this year at test level either.
Tosi gained parity with Ofa in the Blues v Hurricanes game so I think he's a pretty strong scrummager. Strong enough under the current laws which mean less scrum resets.
Tosi could be a real weapon for us off the bench. He's probably the best close in tight five carrier in the squad and he can help set a platform for the others. He's also a good lifter and a good mauler.
It could be a real boost for us having someone of Williams size and Tosi's size for the duration of 80 minutes.
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@brodean said in All Blacks vs Wallabies I:
I'd like to see Tosi come on to the bench for the Wallabies too.
How did he go for BOP the other day?
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@reprobate said in All Blacks vs Wallabies I:
One bench approach would be to go with a halfback like Fakatava, combined with Williams, Tosi, Aumua and whatever other close ball runners we have. Just go a very direct narrow game.
That is Why Hotham is there as he runs close in around the ruck quite often.
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@Chris said in All Blacks vs Wallabies I:
@reprobate said in All Blacks vs Wallabies I:
One bench approach would be to go with a halfback like Fakatava, combined with Williams, Tosi, Aumua and whatever other close ball runners we have. Just go a very direct narrow game.
That is Why Hotham is there as he runs close in around the ruck quite often.
I'd really like to see them develop our halfbacks against the Wallabies. E.G. Ratima starting with Hotham on the bench. TJP is leaving, there is no value in continuing to give him gametime at this stage given he's no Aaron Smith.
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@No-Quarter said in All Blacks vs Wallabies I:
@Chris said in All Blacks vs Wallabies I:
@reprobate said in All Blacks vs Wallabies I:
One bench approach would be to go with a halfback like Fakatava, combined with Williams, Tosi, Aumua and whatever other close ball runners we have. Just go a very direct narrow game.
That is Why Hotham is there as he runs close in around the ruck quite often.
I'd really like to see them develop our halfbacks against the Wallabies. E.G. Ratima starting with Hotham on the bench. TJP is leaving, there is no value in continuing to give him gametime at this stage given he's no Aaron Smith.
Yeah but he has “experience”
( even if said experience is not being as good as Aaron Smith )
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He's also not helping us getting over the line.
No point in having experience if it isn't used appropriately.
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@brodean said in All Blacks vs Wallabies I:
Ofa had an excellent season in the scrum for the Blues and I don't believe he was bested this year at test level either.
Tosi gained parity with Ofa in the Blues v Hurricanes game so I think he's a pretty strong scrummager. Strong enough under the current laws which mean less scrum resets.
Tosi could be a real weapon for us off the bench. He's probably the best close in tight five carrier in the squad and he can help set a platform for the others. He's also a good lifter and a good mauler.
It could be a real boost for us having someone of Williams size and Tosi's size for the duration of 80 minutes.
Don't forget he's still developing in that area aswell. He was playing 8 a few years ago and he's come a long way already so he could be a real weapon for the ABs if he can start dominating at scrum time.
