AB Positions up for grabs
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@stargazer said in AB Positions up for grabs:
@tim said in AB Positions up for grabs:
Midfield
There are two certainties, SBW and Crotty, but Crotty is constantly injured. Could see five midfielders + Ioane being used this year.
Contenders:
Anton Lienert-Brown - very skillful player, not physically dominant. Accurate defender. Had a case of the "2nd season blues" last year, and looked to have dropped some speed. Likely to be picked, the question is how well he establishes himself at the top level.
Jack Goodhue - very accurate and skilful player, with a good all-round game. Has the classy look and "time" of a classic NZ centre. Will be heavily marked and studied in his second season - how will he respond? How will his physicality develop for test rugby? Likely to be picked.
Laumape - physically dominant player, big defender and ball carrier. Lacks the skill and accuracy of the other players. AB backline didn't look great with him at 12. Will his skill level develop further? Unlikely to start, but a handy bench option. Most at risk of missing out.
Jordie Barrett - big, skilful player. Young and raw, but could offer the combination of accuracy, skill, and physicality that is needed at the top level. Will he play at 12 or 15? The wildcard of the midfield.
Others: TJ Faiane is promising and skilful player, but does he have the physical ability? Rob Thompson is tidy but doesn't seem to offer test level ability. Matt Proctor could be a bolter.
Buckman, dammit!
TJ Faiane, meh. Proctor, yes.
No mention of Matt Faddes? Could he be a real option ?
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@kiwimurph Yep, Perofeta already has one, injury interrupted, season of Super Rugby under his belt, and will start most of the games in this one, whereas Falcon is new to Super Rugby, and is stuck behind Mckenzie.
Should have described him as "too inexperienced".
I suspect that Perofeta will train with the ABs but nothing more this year.
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Last and least controversial of the lot - Fullback.
Last year was a tough run to say the least. Ben Smith is the incumbent but is returning from a run of injuries and will be 32 soon. Expect him to start most, with others getting opportunities. McKenzie may be used as a Beauden Barrett like bench option, despite focussing on 1st 5.
Contenders:
Jordie Barrett - very talented player with good size for the high-ball and contact. Needs to work on positioning and one-on-one defence. May focus on midfield
David Havili - good all rounder, looked sharp in tests, how good can he get? Will be under more pressure from opposition in his second season as a prominent player.
Solomon Alaimalo - has the natural ability, how good are his decision making and defence?
Shaun Stevenson - gained some experience now, how good can he get? Will he play 15 for the Chiefs?
Melani Nanai - has all the ability, but how are his decision making and kicking game developing?
Matt Duffie - classy player, but questions over size, defence, and kicking game.
Then there are the possible bolters like Josh McKay, Will Jordan etc.
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@tim Alaimalo is pretty good defender and made good decisions most of the time, but got badly exposed by Julian in a one-on-one in the semi-final and made to look slow as Julian cantered in for a try...which wouldn't have been such a surprise a few years back
Northland also under utilized his boot.
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@tim said in AB Positions up for grabs:
Last and least controversial of the lot - Fullback.
Last year was a tough run to say the least. Ben Smith is the incumbent but is returning from a run of injuries and will be 32 soon. Expect him to start most, with others getting opportunities. McKenzie may be used as a Beauden Barrett like bench option, despite focussing on 1st 5.
Contenders:
Jordie Barrett - very talented player with good size for the high-ball and contact. Needs to work on positioning and one-on-one defence. May focus on midfield
David Havili - good all rounder, looked sharp in tests, how good can he get? Will be under more pressure from opposition in his second season as a prominent player.
Solomon Alaimalo - has the natural ability, how good are his decision making and defence?
Shaun Stevenson - gained some experience now, how good can he get? Will he play 15 for the Chiefs?
Melani Nanai - has all the ability, but how are his decision making and kicking game developing?
Matt Duffie - classy player, but questions over size, defence, and kicking game.
Then there are the possible bolters like Josh McKay, Will Jordan etc.
IMO it's premature to mention Alaimalo, McKay, Jordan and even Stevenson. There's a long queue.
While Dagg is preferred at 14 nowadays, he's still in the fullback mix with JBarrett and Havili. -
@tim said in AB Positions up for grabs:
Last and least controversial of the lot - Fullback.
Last year was a tough run to say the least. Ben Smith is the incumbent but is returning from a run of injuries and will be 32 soon. Expect him to start most, with others getting opportunities. McKenzie may be used as a Beauden Barrett like bench option, despite focussing on 1st 5.
Contenders:
Jordie Barrett - very talented player with good size for the high-ball and contact. Needs to work on positioning and one-on-one defence. May focus on midfield
David Havili - good all rounder, looked sharp in tests, how good can he get? Will be under more pressure from opposition in his second season as a prominent player.
Solomon Alaimalo - has the natural ability, how good are his decision making and defence?
Shaun Stevenson - gained some experience now, how good can he get? Will he play 15 for the Chiefs?
Melani Nanai - has all the ability, but how are his decision making and kicking game developing?
Matt Duffie - classy player, but questions over size, defence, and kicking game.
Then there are the possible bolters like Josh McKay, Will Jordan etc.
Dagg?
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@tim said in AB Positions up for grabs:
@nepia According to their respective team websites, Duffie is 1.92 m and 92 kg, while Havili is 1.84 m and 95 kg. Hence Duffie looking a lot skinnier.
Duffie is bigger than you think up close and looks tall on the Ardie scale. BFA is 1.86 m and 93 kg as a comparison.
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@stargazer I dont think it is, the RWC is next year, our encumbant 15 and his back up are on the wrong side of 30, so if they are gonna pluck out a rookie, it will be this year and likely sooner rather than later
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@tim said in AB Positions up for grabs:
Last and least controversial of the lot - Fullback.
Last year was a tough run to say the least. Ben Smith is the incumbent but is returning from a run of injuries and will be 32 soon. Expect him to start most, with others getting opportunities. McKenzie may be used as a Beauden Barrett like bench option, despite focussing on 1st 5.
Contenders:
Jordie Barrett - very talented player with good size for the high-ball and contact. Needs to work on positioning and one-on-one defence. May focus on midfield
David Havili - good all rounder, looked sharp in tests, how good can he get? Will be under more pressure from opposition in his second season as a prominent player.
Solomon Alaimalo - has the natural ability, how good are his decision making and defence?
Shaun Stevenson - gained some experience now, how good can he get? Will he play 15 for the Chiefs?
Melani Nanai - has all the ability, but how are his decision making and kicking game developing?
Matt Duffie - classy player, but questions over size, defence, and kicking game.
Then there are the possible bolters like Josh McKay, Will Jordan etc.
I think I might have mentioned once or twice that Jordie should be a 12.
I'm a big fan of Duffie. Think his aerial ability could be a massive asset at test level. He's still learning the game so hopefully this will be his breakout year.
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@taniwharugby said in AB Positions up for grabs:
@stargazer I dont think it is, the RWC is next year, our encumbant 15 and his back up are on the wrong side of 30, so if they are gonna pluck out a rookie, it will be this year and likely sooner rather than later
The incumbent (BFA) and his back-up (Dagg), and his back-up's back-up (JB) weren't available last year and they did already pluck out rookies (DMac, Havili, and also with Duffie as a wing able to shift to 15). With BB able to play fullback, they don't need to introduce more fullbacks IMO, even if they opt for playing DMac primarily as a 10. NMS is another that can be used at fullback if needed (and available). As I said, the queue is long; very long.
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@stargazer you also said it was premature to talk about those players...it isnt.
While unlikely they will be selected, IF they do decide to go with another (if any of those you mention get injured, form falls off a cliff or anyo f those it is premature to talk about, have a season that is so irresistable) it will more likely be sooner rather than later.
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@tim said in AB Positions up for grabs:
3rd Halfback
Smith and Perenara are obviously the top two. Kerr-Barlow has gone, and there are no players with significant international experience left. This is wide open.
Contenders:
Hall and Drummond at the Crusaders. Both good but not much more. Hall is faster around the field and looks a little bit sharper, not very consistent though. Was preferred for the playoffs last year. Was injured at the end of the year and Drummond got a chance with the ABs.
Brad Weber - has the pass and speed to the ruck, but does he have the game for test rugby? He's rather small, and has struggled on defence. Is returning from a serious injury.
Te Toiroa Tahuriorangi (T3) - Looks in good shape, looks faster too. Another small player. Has looked really good at times in lower grades.
Pulu - would make a good impact sub. Very physical. Would you want this man starting for your team? Pass is often too slow, not great at getting to rucks quickly.
Pity that Enari is injured. Looked really good for NZ U20.
Ruru has the potential to be added to your list. He's got a good pass and he is quite big for a scrum half.
No mention of the red haired nines of the Hurricanes ? -
@cgrant said in AB Positions up for grabs:
@tim said in AB Positions up for grabs:
3rd Halfback
Smith and Perenara are obviously the top two. Kerr-Barlow has gone, and there are no players with significant international experience left. This is wide open.
Contenders:
Hall and Drummond at the Crusaders. Both good but not much more. Hall is faster around the field and looks a little bit sharper, not very consistent though. Was preferred for the playoffs last year. Was injured at the end of the year and Drummond got a chance with the ABs.
Brad Weber - has the pass and speed to the ruck, but does he have the game for test rugby? He's rather small, and has struggled on defence. Is returning from a serious injury.
Te Toiroa Tahuriorangi (T3) - Looks in good shape, looks faster too. Another small player. Has looked really good at times in lower grades.
Pulu - would make a good impact sub. Very physical. Would you want this man starting for your team? Pass is often too slow, not great at getting to rucks quickly.
Pity that Enari is injured. Looked really good for NZ U20.
Ruru has the potential to be added to your list. He's got a good pass and he is quite big for a scrum half.
No mention of the red haired nines of the Hurricanes ?Don't know if he will get enough opportunities to press his case with the AB selectors before a Scotland jersey (and move) is offered.
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@taniwharugby said in AB Positions up for grabs:
@stargazer you also said it was premature to talk about those players...it isnt.
While unlikely they will be selected, IF they do decide to go with another (if any of those you mention get injured, form falls off a cliff or anyo f those it is premature to talk about, have a season that is so irresistable) it will more likely be sooner rather than later.
No, I didn't say that. I said "IMO it's premature to mention Alaimalo, McKay, Jordan and even Stevenson." I didn't say it was premature to talk about DMac, Havili or Duffie. Of all positions on the field, fullback is the least of their worries and therefore has the least priority for introducing rookies. They have 5 fullbacks plus BB, plus possibly NMS. More than enough to address any of the issues you mention.
