Otago 2024
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@frugby said in Otago 2024:
Massive missed opportunity last night. Thought the shape of our attack looked fairly poor... with how good our forwards went with ball in hand, we really shat the bed. This year has been better, but bugger me look at the squad.
I'm not having any excuses. If we can win 3/4 we might sneak into 8th, but it will be tight.
I've got a feeling three or four teams will be still gunning for final playoff positions come the last round.
I don't think Otago were that bad, I just think a lot of Wellington players that have been waiting for an opportunity really stood up and it shows the quality of depth the province has been building the last couple years. If Otago can keep all their players fit i.e. Nareki I think they'll sneak in over the likes of Auckland from what I've seen.
Haig looks like a very good prospect and a raw boned 6 that we need at the highest level. I wouldn't be surprised by the next WC if we had a loose forward trio of 6. Haig, 7. Lakai and 8. Sititi. The balance of that trio is perfect in my view.
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Certainly with you @Canes4life that Haig offers some balance in the loose trio that is lilely what we are looking for. Will probably end up somewhere between 115 and 120 kg. So a big unit for a six. Just a really complete footy player does everything right.
While our season hasn't gone well result wise. Some of the huys we wanted to see develop have been heading in the rigjt direction and that is certainly a positive. -
@SouthernMann said in Otago 2024:
Certainly with you @Canes4life that Haig offers some balance in the loose trio that is lilely what we are looking for. Will probably end up somewhere between 115 and 120 kg. So a big unit for a six. Just a really complete footy player does everything right.
While our season hasn't gone well result wise. Some of the huys we wanted to see develop have been heading in the rigjt direction and that is certainly a positive.Certainly a few future ABs in that pack when you inclide Holland and Haig. Nice signs for the Highlanders.
I thought Hurley was very dangerous from fullback aswell. Definitely good signs for the future.
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@frugby said in Otago 2024:
Massive missed opportunity last night. Thought the shape of our attack looked fairly poor... with how good our forwards went with ball in hand, we really shat the bed. This year has been better, but bugger me look at the squad.
I'm not having any excuses. If we can win 3/4 we might sneak into 8th, but it will be tight.
Always strange how people can see things so differently, I though our attack shape looks lively until we got inside the 22, dummy runners, out the back plays, double rounds, always looking to get on the outside shoulder and draw a man…it was our defence that I though looked like a siv
Result aside I was really enthused given then makeshift team
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It was a game if ifs. With the biggest one being about four minutes to go. If we didn't get a finger to the clearing kick it would have been our lineout and we would have probably got the biscuits. But, we did and then lost. Game of inches
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@Kiwiwomble said in Otago 2024:
@frugby said in Otago 2024:
Massive missed opportunity last night. Thought the shape of our attack looked fairly poor... with how good our forwards went with ball in hand, we really shat the bed. This year has been better, but bugger me look at the squad.
I'm not having any excuses. If we can win 3/4 we might sneak into 8th, but it will be tight.
Always strange how people can see things so differently, I though our attack shape looks lively until we got inside the 22, dummy runners, out the back plays, double rounds, always looking to get on the outside shoulder and draw a man…it was our defence that I though looked like a siv
Result aside I was really enthused given then makeshift team
Agree. I meant our shape in the red zone. We seemed to go quite lateral rather than getting our forwards running in a straight line.
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Plenty of time camped on the Wellington line and just buggering it up. No problem getting there. Just finishing it off was a shitshow
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@SouthernMann said in Otago 2024:
It was a game if ifs. With the biggest one being about four minutes to go. If we didn't get a finger to the clearing kick it would have been our lineout and we would have probably got the biscuits. But, we did and then lost. Game of inches
Yeah but then if Maiava scored and didn't put his knee into touch that would have probably sealed the game a lot earlier so horses for courses.
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@frugby said in Otago 2024:
Jamie Joseph is on the panel to appoint the new coach.
Highlight of the season that is.
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So to make the playoffs, we need to go above two sides.
- Canterbury play Waikato at home, and we require them to lose without getting a BP
- Counties play Manawatu away, and we need them to lose
- North Harbour play Southland away, and we need them to lose
- Auckland play Ta$man and BOP, need them to lose one of those
Can't see it happening... most likely scenario, I think involves Canterbury losing without a BP, and that feels very unlikely... and even still we'd need a BP win v Northland.
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@frugby it’s so frustrating that Otago is in exactly the same place they were last year. No real visible improvement apart from a handful of players getting better (which they should, particularly the younger players). The game plan is still nonexistent, the ability to close out a game is nonexistent, the ability to hang in with better teams and at least be competitive is nonexistent.
There aren’t any more excuses of the squad being young and inexperienced. Something has to change or Otago would have wasted one of its better young cores in a long time
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@KiwiInLondon said in Otago 2024:
There aren’t any more excuses of the squad being young and inexperienced. Something has to change or Otago would have wasted one of its better young cores in a long time
And that change being the head coach/coaching group which we have been waiting for and needed for a long time. It’s good that it’s finally happening but it should have happened a lot earlier.
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you could say all the same things about Northland . . . lets see how they match up tomorrow
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@mohikamo said in Otago 2024:
you could say all the same things about Northland . . . lets see how they match up tomorrow
Except with 25ish players who have played Super Rugby you'd expect Otago to have done better. We really should have beaten Wellington, and probably Southland and Taranaki. We will finish the season, hopefully with two more wins than last year. The Counties game was a massive low light.This is the last year this squad, or the core of it can maintain the development label. Injuries were a bit of a problem. But most teams were impacted by them. From a Highlanders perspective the majority of the players we needed to progress did. With the exception of Bell and Te Hiwi, who was injured. I was hopeful we'd get to see Te Hiwi give it a good nudge. Just disappointing we could never consistently get across the gain line. A bit of a theme of recent Landers and Otago sides. A bit small, lack punch and a bit soft in how about we go about things.
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@SouthernMann soft about how they go about things is a good way to put it. Not just in general but that desire to win when it’s close. There seems to be zero self belief but also zero reflection or desire to change.
You can only hope the new coach brings some direction and self belief to this team. They look rudderless and uninspired unless things are going perfectly.
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The strategy for the backs had seemed like pass it to TUJ and hope he makes the gainline, or hiff it out the back to Hurley expecting a rabbit out of the hat. Millar has shown more attacking capability than I thought he had. Josh Whaanga on the wing has never really worked. If he is what we wanted out of a winger. We didn't use him properly. He is taller than most in the comp. He should have been an aerial target. Not an end of the line guy. The forwards have generally been good. Holland would have been handy as a ball carrier. My only complaint up front has been using Fischli as a bloody lock. The Wellington game still pisses me off. That was a great opportunity to show they were a developing bunch of players ahead of guys a couple of years behind them. Wellington turned up and embarrassed them. Plenty of talent coming out of the Hutt and Porirua though. Much more than Kaikorai and Taieri as breeding grounds
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Jamie MckIntosh getting named as defensive coach for the ABs XV also goes to show how poorly Otago manages its personnel. Has done a great job at the Canes as well. How did they let him slip away
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Whoppa was a bit of a complex situation. Missed out on the Highlanders forward coaching role, because they wanted a lineout specialist as Dermody already had the ability to run the scrum (In hindsight, I think Dermody would have just focused on being head honcho).
Missing out to Donnelly for the Otago head coaching job was just straight dumb though.
