All Blacks EOYT
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I feel dirty, but I have just read a Stuff article on the AB squad and there was not one mention of Sotutu's continued absence, either in the article or in the comments. What's going on over there? Is Razor getting a free ride from the press? Is it just the Fern getting hot under the collar about it?
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The revisionist nonsense with Sotutu on this forum is nuts. One good super rugby season where the next best loose forward trio was a young and inexperienced chiefs trio (except Jacobson) is hardly anything to cry home about.
Remember, Robertson has seven years experience coaching against these players. The two previous play off games against the Crusaders (final and semi final, Sotutu and Akira were treated like literal children by the crusaders forward pack. They were atrocious.
Why would Robertson select a player that has the mental strength of a piece of wet cardboard when he plays a player has big as he is? Sotutu was thrown around like a rag doll by Matera. What do you think would happen against South Africa, England, Ireland etc?
Like Akira, he’s a flat track bully
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@KiwiInLondon said in All Blacks EOYT:
The revisionist nonsense with Sotutu on this forum is nuts. One good super rugby season where the next best loose forward trio was a young and inexperienced chiefs trio (except Jacobson) is hardly anything to cry home about.
Remember, Robertson has seven years experience coaching against these players. The two previous play off games against the Crusaders (final and semi final, Sotutu and Akira were treated like literal children by the crusaders forward pack. They were atrocious.
Why would Robertson select a player that has the mental strength of a piece of wet cardboard when he plays a player has big as he is? Sotutu was thrown around like a rag doll by Matera. What do you think would happen against South Africa, England, Ireland etc?
Like Akira, he’s a flat track bully
Sititi goes alright after getting bullied from pillar to post by Akira and Sotutu in the SR Final this year or does that not count?
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@African-Monkey said in All Blacks EOYT:
@KiwiInLondon said in All Blacks EOYT:
The revisionist nonsense with Sotutu on this forum is nuts. One good super rugby season where the next best loose forward trio was a young and inexperienced chiefs trio (except Jacobson) is hardly anything to cry home about.
Remember, Robertson has seven years experience coaching against these players. The two previous play off games against the Crusaders (final and semi final, Sotutu and Akira were treated like literal children by the crusaders forward pack. They were atrocious.
Why would Robertson select a player that has the mental strength of a piece of wet cardboard when he plays a player has big as he is? Sotutu was thrown around like a rag doll by Matera. What do you think would happen against South Africa, England, Ireland etc?
Like Akira, he’s a flat track bully
Sititi goes alright after getting bullied from pillar to post by Akira and Sotutu in the SR Final this year or does that not count?
Clearly not. And NPC form overrides SR form apparently
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@KiwiInLondon said in All Blacks EOYT:
The two previous play off games against the Crusaders (final and semi final, Sotutu and Akira were treated like literal children by the crusaders forward pack. They were atrocious.
That's simply not true when looking at the 2022 Super Rugby Final.
Sotutu was a one man band in that Super Rugby Final at 8 - he got stuck into absolutely everything and was the ones Blues forward who out pointed his opposite despite playing with the beaten pack - remembering it was Cullen Grace's error at the scrum which lead to Finlay Christie's try for the Blues.
No issues with the criticism but let's at least have a little accuracy.
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People remember what they want to remember.
In 2022, the Crusaders line out went amazing / the Blues imploded (running at 47%). Crusaders accordingly had 60% of the ball and territory. That isn't on those two players.
What they did do, was:
Akira Ioane highest number of metres gained (52), off team high 9 carries, with 15 tackles (1 miss) with 1 penalty conceded 1 turnover conceded. Oh, and he had 4 defenders beaten (team high).
Sotutu made 24 tackles (team high) with 1 miss, 36 metres gained off 7 carries, with 9 passes, including 1 defender beaten and 1 offload.
They two of them were awesome, you are talking absolute horseshit.
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@KiwiInLondon said in All Blacks EOYT:
The revisionist nonsense with Sotutu on this forum is nuts. One good super rugby season where the next best loose forward trio was a young and inexperienced chiefs trio (except Jacobson) is hardly anything to cry home about.
Remember, Robertson has seven years experience coaching against these players. The two previous play off games against the Crusaders (final and semi final, Sotutu and Akira were treated like literal children by the crusaders forward pack. They were atrocious.
Why would Robertson select a player that has the mental strength of a piece of wet cardboard when he plays a player has big as he is? Sotutu was thrown around like a rag doll by Matera. What do you think would happen against South Africa, England, Ireland etc?
Like Akira, he’s a flat track bully
lets also ignore we've also seen 9 tests this year where we've seen little gelling of the loose forward trio
if the selected guys had all fired (and one wasn;t retiring and the big name very hit and miss) then sure....but the AB's loosies need "something"...and the best No8 (on stats...and you know......awarded SR player of the year) in SR isn;t there....its not revisionist to suggest we should be trying him
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@canefan said in All Blacks EOYT:
@African-Monkey said in All Blacks EOYT:
@KiwiInLondon said in All Blacks EOYT:
The revisionist nonsense with Sotutu on this forum is nuts. One good super rugby season where the next best loose forward trio was a young and inexperienced chiefs trio (except Jacobson) is hardly anything to cry home about.
Remember, Robertson has seven years experience coaching against these players. The two previous play off games against the Crusaders (final and semi final, Sotutu and Akira were treated like literal children by the crusaders forward pack. They were atrocious.
Why would Robertson select a player that has the mental strength of a piece of wet cardboard when he plays a player has big as he is? Sotutu was thrown around like a rag doll by Matera. What do you think would happen against South Africa, England, Ireland etc?
Like Akira, he’s a flat track bully
Sititi goes alright after getting bullied from pillar to post by Akira and Sotutu in the SR Final this year or does that not count?
Clearly not. And NPC form overrides SR form apparently
Rob Valentini also got bullied by Akira this year too. Not gonna slag Valentini off though as he's still a World Class player, he just got outplayed by his opposite twice in SR this year, as did Sititi in the SR final. Both fine players however and it doesn't make them any better or worse as players.
People love to find ways not to pick players.
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@Billy-Tell said in All Blacks EOYT:
If Robertsons aim was to rile up blues supporters on the silverfern forum then he’s onto a winner. I’m going to judge the tour on results.
Well I'm judging the RC on the results, worst ever
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That's nonsense. Sotutu has been one of the Blues best players for years - suggesting he has had one good season brings into question your credibility.
As for the 2022 Super Rugby final Ioane and Sotutu were two of the Blues best. The Blues lost it in the hookers, locks and playmakers.
Sotutu
7 Carries
36 Metres
1 Clean Break
1 Defender beaten
8 Passes
1 Offload
24 tackles completed
1 tackle missed
1 turnover won
2 lineouts wonIoane
9 Carries
52 Metres
4 Defenders Beaten
2 passes
15 tackles completed
1 tackle missedMatera
10 Carries
12 Metres
2 lineouts won
2 defenders beaten
11 tackles completed
1 tackle missed -
They both took their games two a new level this year - particularly around the breakdown. Akira outplayed every 6 in Super Rugby this year.
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@African-Monkey so you either go with the young guy who shows some talent or two blokes who spend more time on Instagram than they do training? At least Robertson had the balls with the selections for this one part. Both Sotutu and Akira are brats
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@KiwiInLondon said in All Blacks EOYT:
@African-Monkey so you either go with the young guy who shows some talent or two blokes who spend more time on Instagram than they do training? At least Robertson had the balls with the selections for this one part. Both Sotutu and Akira are brats
They obviously did something right if they managed to play massive parts in winning a SR title, or does that only count if it's the Crusaders? Infact, both of them were probably in career best form this year.
As I said, I like Sititi, but he still got outplayed in the SR final, the same thing that you're picking on Akira and Sotutu for. Slightly hypocritical.
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@brodean both Sotutu and Akira’s breakdown work during those matches was atrocious. They were just as bad if not worst in the semi final where they were completely blown off the park. No one complained when they weren’t selected after that.
Lowering the standards of the opponent doesn’t mean you get a free pass. Both seem fickle, on and off the field.
Sotutu had a chance to prove a point in the NPC. He hasn’t
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@African-Monkey Sititi doesn’t have a history of failures. Akira does, and Sotutu has been pretty bloody average in NPC. There isn’t any consistency. Neither stand out when the team struggles. They haven’t done anything to warrant selection other than be in the biggest forward pack in the competition. Take the advantage away and I suspect the same thing will happen as it always does
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@Bovidae said in All Blacks EOYT:
Robertson mentioned that Hotham is better off playing for the AB XV than just being a squaddie, and that applies to Lakai too.
But if TJP continues to make the test 23 we know we're fucked.
TJS is a clear retrograde step.
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Akira can be talked about to the sun goes down he is gone no point it will not change anything.
And Sotutu is not going to be in this squad under these coaches no matter how many people say he is the greatest no.8.
If is all just fluff they ain’t going to be there.
better move on before it does your head in. -
There breakdown work was fine in the 2022 final. Yes the semi in 2023 wasn't great but you can say that for most of the Crusaders AB forwarders this year their game was flawed across the entire season in many facets.
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Akira never played a bad game for the AB's. His form for the AB's ranged from serviceable, to good, to great.
Scott Barrett has had multiple red cards. Those games were real stinkers. Taylor has had a complete failure in his core role at the lineout. Those games were terrible games.
Those guys, along with Sam Cane have been given multiple opportunities to come right after some real shockers. Cane has played a number of shockers. The whole country was callling for him to be replaced in 2022.
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@brodean said in All Blacks EOYT:
Akira never played a bad game for the AB's. His form for the AB's ranged from serviceable, to good, to great.
Scott Barrett has had multiple red cards. Those games were real stinkers. Taylor has had a complete failure in his core role at the lineout. Those games were terrible games.
Those guys, along with Sam Cane have been given multiple opportunities to come right.
Nope Akira had a couple of not visible on the field games for the AB’s worse than serviceable.
