@cgrant said in All Blacks XV:
@Canes4life said in All Blacks XV:
@taniwharugby said in All Blacks XV:
@akan004 iIRC he looked handy when he got on for the Crusaders, but wasnt as good in NPC
He was completely outplayed in the NPC final by Delany, Blackwell and Bird at lineout time and he fell off a couple one on one tackles.
NZ Rugby need to stop selecting teams before the final has been played. No better measure of a player than when the heat is on. Gardiner isn't up to International standard. (yet)
Same goes for the non-selection of Cullen Grace in the ABs earlier this year when he was an obvious stand-out in the Super final.
I am happy you were wrong. Gardiner was outstanding in Dublin and this is good news for NZ rugby.
That doesn’t mean the likes of Delany wouldn’t have flourished if he got an opportunity aswell.
Cudos to Gardiner, he was impressive.