All Blacks 2021
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Reckon this goes here rather than the Chief's thread. Hopefully haven't #booboo'ed myself.
Don't akways bother with these player interview pieces but enjoyed this one.
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@bovidae that's never stopped the accusations before. The accusations seemed to have slowed down though, correlating with other nations having their share of PI talent now?
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@crazy-horse said in All Blacks 2021:
@bovidae that's never stopped the accusations before. The accusations seemed to have slowed down though, correlating with other nations having their share of PI talent now?
Agree to a point. The Walrus and his ilk still like to perpetuate the myth when they can, usually around RWC time.
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@bovidae said in All Blacks 2021:
@crazy-horse said in All Blacks 2021:
@bovidae that's never stopped the accusations before. The accusations seemed to have slowed down though, correlating with other nations having their share of PI talent now?
Agree to a point. The Walrus and his ilk still like to perpetuate the myth when they can, usually around RWC time.
Blackbirded his parents didn t we?
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@nepia said in All Blacks 2021:
@chris-b said in All Blacks 2021:
@nepia said in All Blacks 2021:
@chris-b said in All Blacks 2021:
@nzzp We had a pretty ordinary team on the pitch for the final 30 minutes.
The damage was done in the first 30 while Sam was reading comics on the bench.
True - but, when you looked around that team toward the end, you couldn't really see where we would pull something out of the fire.
Not enough genuine weapons.
With the English attacks in the first 30 blunted we wouldn’t need to pull anything out of the fire - we could have just built the win, like we did when we beat the eventual champions in pool play.
Sam wasn't reading comics in the first 30 - he was teaching Helen Keller to read and write!
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@cgrant said in Blues v Crusaders:
Ofa cost the game against the Aussies a few months ago. His bad habits are a problem, but the ABs have only two THPs of international calibre so he should keep on be selected again and again. Lomax is not yet ready, Angus T and Fidow cannot scrum while Jager is irish and Moli always injured (and seen as a LHP). It's urgent to give Newell and T. Williams some game time.
Fletcher Newell is already a great scrummager despite his youth and inexperience, and is going to get much better as he develops. I predict he will be an All Black sooner rather than later, for the reasons you cite. Our depth at TH is poor.
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@cantab79 said in Blues v Crusaders:
@cgrant said in Blues v Crusaders:
Ofa cost the game against the Aussies a few months ago. His bad habits are a problem, but the ABs have only two THPs of international calibre so he should keep on be selected again and again. Lomax is not yet ready, Angus T and Fidow cannot scrum while Jager is irish and Moli always injured (and seen as a LHP). It's urgent to give Newell and T. Williams some game time.
Fletcher Newell is already a great scrummager despite his youth and inexperience, and is going to get much better as he develops. I predict he will be an All Black sooner rather than later, for the reasons you cite. Our depth at TH is poor.
Yeah Agree with That Newell is an AB in waiting
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@chris Can't have such a babyface in the ABs though. He needs to go and have a few nights in a blues bar or something.
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@old-samurai-jack said in Blues v Crusaders:
@chris Can't have such a babyface in the ABs though. He needs to go and have a few nights in a blues bar or something.
Whilst he does have a babyface, I like his old school prop physique. He's a fatty, portly and proud. I don't like the modern move towards slimline props who excel in yoyo tests and have six packs. I'm happy for a TH prop to waddle around the field. I'm happy for a TH prop to be ashamed to go swimming with their shirt off. As long as they punish opposing props at scrum time. Newell fits that mould.
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@cantab79 said in Blues v Crusaders:
@old-samurai-jack said in Blues v Crusaders:
@chris Can't have such a babyface in the ABs though. He needs to go and have a few nights in a blues bar or something.
Whilst he does have a babyface, I like his old school prop physique. He's a fatty, portly and proud. I don't like the modern move towards slimline props who excel in yoyo tests and have six packs. I'm happy for a TH prop to waddle around the field. I'm happy for a TH prop to be ashamed to go swimming with their shirt off. As long as they punish opposing props at scrum time. Newell fits that mould.
Is he? He doesn't look that potty now (he may have been as a school boy). I'll bet he can lift plenty of tin and I agree that he'll be an All Black sooner rather than later.
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1.86m around 6 foot 1 inches if you believe the interwebs, not little. Solid looking joints too.
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My first stab at naming an AB team in 2021
- Moody ( By a country mile)
- Taylor
- Laulala
- Whitelock
- Scott Barrett (when's Lurch back?)
- Very open. Maybe Big Red.
- Sam Cane (c)
- Ardie Savea (Hoskins seems to have second season blues)
- Aaron Smith
- Richie Mo'unga
- Caleb Clarke (Needs to up his work rate)
- David Havili
- Jack Goodhue
- Will Jordan
- Jordie Barrett
- Aumua (If he gets fit)
- Karl T
- Ofa T
- Very open. Patrick T? Dunshea?
- Dalton Papalii
- Fakatava
- DMac
- Reiko Ioane
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@sparky List looks good, but swap Whitelock and S Barrett.
Agree that that 6 is very open. I think Big Red and Blackadder have been the best at 6, thus far (although the coaches may choose to play Cullen Grace there, too, who has also been good).
Retallick should be back in time, but we don't know in what shape he and others on sabatticals in Japan, will return to NZ. So that applies to him, BB and TJP as well. If Guzzler is top fit and ready to go, he'd probably get the 4 jersey, and Scooter Barrett the 19 jersey.
I think Leicester Fainga'anuku can challenge Clarke for the 11 jersey, if he continues to play well. Clarke hasn't been bad, but he's been relatively quiet.
Not convinced by Big Karl. I wonder whether Hodgman would be a better option, but he needs more game time for the Blues, first. Bower may be another option.
Dmac will have to battle with BB for that 22 jersey, I think. They can both cover 10 and 15, so they're a bit similar (and still so different as players, so it may depend on the opposition).
That 23 jersey is also still wide open. Many options there. Rieko, ALB, Reece, Bridge, Ennor (if he plays SR T-T as expected).
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@stargazer All good points, especially Cullen Grace and Leicester F, both likely to be part of the AB squad if they stay fit.
Think Karl T is a better option at scrum time than George Bower or Alex Hodgman. The job of the reserve loose head Prop is mostly to scrum, lift and tackle, anything else is a massive bonus.
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@sparky i would have aidan ross in the mix. He was close a few years ago .he was penciled in but broke his leg and now hes back up there.
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@cpt-kumera Good call. Doing well at the moment. He'll be on the selectors' radar.
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