Hurricanes vs Bulls
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I'm happy with that. The yellow card did turn the game and let the Bulls back in. We did play some smart rugby and pushed in front through penalty goals but disappointing to let them back in. A few players like Coles seem to be hitting for at the right time. I was a little bit worried about our midfield defence. The Crusaders will be looking at that for next week.
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@Canes4life said in Hurricanes vs Bulls:
@hydro11 Mr defence himself “Matty Proctor” should be back next week so that should help. I wonder if the Canes will bring Fifita back in.
Oh, didn't realise that. Should make a huge difference.
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Hope Proctors back. And Goosen too. Although Goosen seems unlikely. Both are very good defenders. whereas its not a strength of Lam, Umaga-Jensen, Rayasi and even Jordie. Add another in Prinsep and 5 starting against the Crusaders who aren't the best on this front.
I'm not expecting the team to win. The Canes scrum is a bit of a joke. But preventing a hiding. And to do that the team s needs much better defenders. Bringing back Proctor and Fifita would be a good start. Goosen is unlikely but I'll keep my fingers crossed.
Looking further ahead I like the look of Toala and Billy Proctor as potentially good defenders. Rayasi needs lots of work but he might get there. And Jordie will get there. But its a shame but for all their attacking qualities I have doubts about UJ and Lam. Lam I've almost given up on now.
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@Winger I agree our best chance is to try and keep it close for 60 minutes and then see what happens in the final 20. We aren't going to blow them off the park early so we should select accordingly.
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@No-Quarter I think if the Canes are a chance they need to score early and get a good 10-15 point lead, no doubt the Crusaders will close that gap but I think if the Canes are going to get the job done they can’t afford to play catch-up.
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@canefan Rayasi looked the goods on attack but was found out a number of times on D, but he will get better with more experience.
If Goosen is ruled out I'd be quite conservative like we were when we won the title a few years ago and have Marshall at fullback, Jordie to the right wing and Lam back to the left. That provides us with another safe pair of hands and another kicking option which I think will be crucial against the Crusaders.
If I was the Crusaders I would kick it to Lam's wing all day, he is woeful on defence.
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@No-Quarter said in Hurricanes vs Bulls:
I'll take that, a wins a win. We haven't been smacking teams this year but we do get it done way more often than not.
Saders next week is definitely a bridge too far but overall a pretty decent season.
Given the weakness of the Canes Front Five, I wasn't expecting that much from the franchise this year. Making the Semi Finals is above expectations.
The Crusaders are the big favourites for next weekend. Not expecting much. Even a making a tight game of it would be a fine achievement for the Canes given the relative strengths of the forward packs.
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@Chris I’d argue Ardie is the heart and soul of our team, if we didn’t have him our W/L record would’ve been a lot worse.
I agree though, Crusaders hot favourites with their forward pack.
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@Canes4life he’s been great but it’s TJ that pulls the canes together when it’s getting tough
Makes the big covering tackles upsets the opposition HB niggles at the Ref is always vocal Take him out you lose a hell of alot I think -
@Canes4life said in Hurricanes vs Bulls:
@canefan Rayasi looked the goods on attack but was found out a number of times on D, but he will get better with more experience.
If Goosen is ruled out I'd be quite conservative like we were when we won the title a few years ago and have Marshall at fullback, Jordie to the right wing and Lam back to the left. That provides us with another safe pair of hands and another kicking option which I think will be crucial against the Crusaders.
If I was the Crusaders I would kick it to Lam's wing all day, he is woeful on defence.
Umaga-Jensen on the wing? Or is that a bit too radical? I think he has played there at some point.
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@Canes4life said in Hurricanes vs Bulls:
@Chris I’d argue Ardie is the heart and soul of our team, if we didn’t have him our W/L record would’ve been a lot worse.
I agree though, Crusaders hot favourites with their forward pack.
Ardie has been amazing this year. He clearly looked gassed at the end of the match but still used his nous and summoned enough energy to get the game winning turnover
