How are the AB's tracking heading into the BIL series?
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@ACT-Crusader said in How are the AB's tracking heading into the BIL series?:
If you have all of Bender, B Barrett and Dagg in the starting lineup (like last year), you don't need a guy on the bench that plays wing/fullback.
A 1st 5 plus a midfielder will do the trick.
add in that i don't think DMac is, or will ever be, a decent test player. What makes him a great Super player (at times) doesn't usually translate to test rugby.
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@Milk said in How are the AB's tracking heading into the BIL series?:
I think they'll just get B Barrett to kick. It's what they did last year and I can't imagine his kicking being much worse than usual.
I think they will too.
The problem with putting a reserve kicker on the bench is that by the time you realise you need him, the kicks have been missed and the points lost - refer Piri in the RWC final.
Other interesting point from the Fox interview was him mentioning just five props.
So I guess you pick the obvious best four and then Tu'ungafasi as the fifth - mainly covering the possibility that one of your main four pulls up lame in the final warm-up. If one of them gets injured earlier in the week then maybe a Hames or a Laulala gets called in (depending on whether they think Nepo is a better tighthead than Ofa).
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@Chris-B. we won that game, so him missing matters not
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@taniwharugby Luckily Cruden got injured, otherwise Piri would have been taking Beaver's kick.
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Both the starting props for the Blues were very good on the weekend. Charlie F is in rare form.
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Moody, Crockett, Franks, Faumuina you can take to the bank. Also think Ofa is close to a show-in given his versatility. If one of those 4 go down in the warmup he is seen as a versatile option to cover both sides. Definitely a work in progress, but he has size and a decent work rate.
Locks will be interesting beyond our two world class starters. Will they go with 4 or 5? Will the 5th option be a blindside cover? Or just pick 4 and have 6 loosies. Not a fan of Kaino, Read or Squire playing lock, but given our two starters are 80 minute men, the whole Squire/Savea bench seemed to be the favoured one last year. Albeit Romano had time away from camp and Tuipoluto was going through issues.
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@ACT-Crusader said in How are the AB's tracking heading into the BIL series?:
Moody, Crockett, Franks, Faumuina you can take to the bank. Also think Ofa is close to a show-in given his versatility. If one of those 4 go down in the warmup he is seen as a versatile option to cover both sides. Definitely a work in progress, but he has size and a decent work rate.
Locks will be interesting beyond our two world class starters. Will they go with 4 or 5? Will the 5th option be a blindside cover? Or just pick 4 and have 6 loosies. Not a fan of Kaino, Read or Squire playing lock, but given our two starters are 80 minute men, the whole Squire/Savea bench seemed to be the favoured one last year. Albeit Romano had time away from camp and Tuipoluto was going through issues.
IIRC Hames can play both sides, and I'd much rather him than Ofa, who seems quite average really.
As much as Bird has his fans, I can't see them going past Retallick and the 3 locks from Crusaders country, who have all been in great form.
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@Bones said in How are the AB's tracking heading into the BIL series?:
I'm pretty sure Hames is only a loose head. Haven't seen him in at tighthead before.
Yep, loosehead only.
I think the Sunwolves cleverly exploited Hames modus operandi the other week.
He has built his scrummaging wins on diving under the opposition TH and driving up. He maged one spectacular example of this in that game but more often they got his timing and drove him down as he dived under. To the ref this looks like him pulling his side down.
Very effective player when he gets his game right though and is probably in the LH queue. -
@Nepia said in How are the AB's tracking heading into the BIL series?:
@mariner4life Because they can.
It will likely infuriate some NH fans too so it's all good!
No it won't. Nobody in the NH cares about the Lions tour. It's regarded as a bloated overblown cash generation machine.
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This is the squad I expect to see named. All the key players with injuries just coming right will be named.
5 Props: Moody, Crockett, Franks, Faumuina, Ofa
3 Hookers Coles, Taylor, Coltman
4 Locks: BBBR, Whitelock, Romano, S Barrett
6 Loose Forwards: Cane, Read, Kaino, A Savea, Todd, Squire3 Halfbacks: TJP, TKB, A Smith
3 10s: BB, AC, Sopoaga
4 Midfielders: Crotty, ALB, SBW, R Ioane
4 Outsides: B Smith, Dagg, J Savea, Naholo
1 Utility: D MacThose invited to camp to hear the gameplan as 'just in case' call ups would include. If anyone is out for the series early on then these are the next in line.
Hames, Laulala
Harris
Bird, PT, Fifita
Luatua, Dixon, Shields, A Ioane
Pulu
Fekitoa, Ngatai
NMS
JB -
@Jenlynx said in How are the AB's tracking heading into the BIL series?:
@Nepia said in How are the AB's tracking heading into the BIL series?:
@mariner4life Because they can.
It will likely infuriate some NH fans too so it's all good!
No it won't. Nobody in the NH cares about the Lions tour. It's regarded as a bloated overblown cash generation machine.
The obvious reply to this ridiculous generalisation is "why then have so many tickets been sold at high prices to apparently uninterested NH rugby fans"?
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@Crucial said in How are the AB's tracking heading into the BIL series?:
This is the squad I expect to see named. All the key players with injuries just coming right will be named.
5 Props: Moody, Crockett, Franks, Faumuina, Ofa
3 Hookers Coles, Taylor, Coltman
4 Locks: BBBR, Whitelock, Romano, S Barrett
6 Loose Forwards: Cane, Read, Kaino, A Savea, Todd, Squire3 Halfbacks: TJP, TKB, A Smith
3 10s: BB, AC, Sopoaga
4 Midfielders: Crotty, ALB, SBW, R Ioane
4 Outsides: B Smith, Dagg, J Savea, Naholo
1 Utility: D MacThose invited to camp to hear the gameplan as 'just in case' call ups would include. If anyone is out for the series early on then these are the next in line.
Hames, Laulala
Harris
Bird, PT, Fifita
Luatua, Dixon, Shields, A Ioane
Pulu
Fekitoa, Ngatai
NMS
JBHarris will get the 3rd hooking spot IMO. Fekitoa will be ahead of Ioane for the midfield. NMS will be in ahead of Naholo if back from injury. Don't reckon McKenzie will be near the reduced squad - I'd rate JB a better chance. Interestingly Hansen name-dropped Shields the other day - I'd rate him a better chance than Dixon of making an extended squad.
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@Billy-Tell said in How are the AB's tracking heading into the BIL series?:
@Jenlynx said in How are the AB's tracking heading into the BIL series?:
@Nepia said in How are the AB's tracking heading into the BIL series?:
@mariner4life Because they can.
It will likely infuriate some NH fans too so it's all good!
No it won't. Nobody in the NH cares about the Lions tour. It's regarded as a bloated overblown cash generation machine.
The obvious reply to this ridiculous generalisation is "why then have so many tickets been sold at high prices to apparently uninterested NH rugby fans"?
Sorry to burst your bubble, and I'm not trying to be incendiary, but that's just the way it is. You'll always get bands of wealthy tourists, mainly from England, but they're not really representative. In general, people don't really care. Sorry!!
