All Blacks vs Fiji 2
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I don't know if it was injory (edit: must be a typo or short for glorious injury) or luck but in the first half Reece looked a helluva lot more busy than Jordan (and I am on the Jordan bandwagon).
on DMac, there was a time he went back to help BB and I know BB is tallish and stronger than he looks but the two of them against hulking Fijians-they looked like they were going to be swamped-Jordie is that much harder to move backwards, can be useful for a fullback??
Also I think some of DMac's kicking for touch was a little iffy?I think DMac is great off the bench against a tiring opposition and he looks like one of the few who are totally unpredictable and very hard to plan against. But starting? If they don't need his accuracy for conversions? (If he still has that, don't know). Not a starter for me.
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@kirwan said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
@nepia said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
@kirwan said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
@antipodean said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
@mn5 said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
@crucial said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
@victor-meldrew said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
@no-quarter said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
@kirwan said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
@crazy-horse said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
@bovidae or give Reece more time on the left.
It’s a good way to build options there, let’s us move away from Bridge. And RI becomes very hand for the bench covering both wings and centre.
Yeah, so long as we're not starting Bridge I'm happy. Reece provides a lot of threat on the wing.
I'd be pretty happy with a backline of:
Smith
Mo'unga
Reece
Havili
ALB
Jordan
JordieBench:
Beauden
Rieko
Christie (please not Weber. We're best to just not sub Smith).Beauden and Rieko can cover every position 10 out and, seriously, they will both carve tired defenses to pieces given their quality. That's some serious impact off the bench with no major weaknesses starting.
I think that's the best lineup right now. Havilli looks good and ALB has the nous to build the 12/13 combination. The only debate is around 15, I think it's 50/50 with JB & DMac at 15, but happy with either.
I don't think DMac and Jordie really fit the same style so I guess it comes down to the gameplan.
DMac has shown what he does and we know that if you want a continuity game with multiple playmakers he has the speed to get in the right places.
Jordie brings....I'm not really sure what Jordie brings tbh. He's a skilled ball player and has a great kick but I struggle to find a role for him that brings much difference.More physical presence apparently cos he’s really tall as opposed to McKenzie cos he’s really short.
He makes less terrible decisions for a start.
I was trying to get on the Dmac train, but I think we can't have two guys in the backline (at a push three with Reece) that go backwards to find a gap. RM does this alot, and so does DMac.
RM, Dmac and Reece are also all pretty small, so swapping at least one of them out for JB, maybe two with RI for Reece, will help in Test matches.
If you check out the Chiefs games this year DMac didn't actually go backwards that much, he was playing on the line, not sure if it was tigher defences or game plan that meant he and RMo went backwards to find gaps for the ABs.
The obvious answer is to drop Reece
for Ioane and Jordan and size is not an issue.I was just basing it on his performances for the ABs, not Super Rugby. Even with the lower tier nations it was a problem, be worse once we start playing Oz and SA.
But yeah, my back three would be Ioane, JB and Jordan. JB's long distance goalkicking is just too tempting, and he's a good finisher. Having a playermaker fullback is less important too now DH has taken his chance.
I prefer DMac to JB, actually I also prefer BB to JB, but I prefer your 3 to Reece.
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I’m a fan of DMac but he seems too frantic and helter skelter at test level. I actually wish he was in Japan. He’d carve up for the 7s team. Jordie is the better option imho.
BB is the best fullback in the squad, but it appears he doesn’t want to play there and RM also plays much better without him there. Obviously I’d prefer BB at 10, but if RM is selected then Jordie at 15 and BB for the bench.
Reiko also showed how good he is when free of the “shackles” at 13. Keep him on the wing. I’m not loving Havili-ALB but they’re solid enough and have potential.
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With Havili there, we have two playmakers in a system that suits Mo'unga, so I think I'd prefer some more big bodies and/or Beauden starting at 15 (fuck him if he doesn't like it).
That's if Mo'unga can hold the 10 jersey - he's great, but so far he's not really been able to control games and inject himself in the same way that he does at the Saders. He also has a pretty poor defense in comparison to Barrett - ESPN shows Mo'unga missed 3 last week, which led the team. We all remember England of course, and against the very best teams, I think that issue - if it continues - could become a problem.
As the selectors like Dmac, he could be a useful bench option, but the truth is that we only need two of Mo'unga, Barrett, and Dmac in the 23 with Havili at 12. So, he should really be a squaddie who hopes to get some time in the 22 jersey at some point. When Dmac plays at 10 for the Chiefs with weapons around him, he can be a real league style 10 and that style could be interesting to see at international level.
On Jordie, I'm not so tempted by his long range kicking as he hasn't shown that he can consistently make them. However, he does have a big body that could be used more consistently through the midfield and on the edges. We could also look at Jordan as a fullback and perhaps be able to have Roane and Clarke (when he comes back) or Reece on the wings with Jordan at 15. I think his defense can get a bit twisted too though, but it could make for a very exciting back three.
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@stargazer Has Jordie actually kicked a bigger one than Dave in a game?
There looks to be an internet competition against Elliott Daly where Jordie kicked one from 65 metres.
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@chris-b said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
@bones Don't know about percentages, but I've seen Dave called up and land a number for the Mako.
Enough for me to have a bit of faith when it happens.
I think I've seen Jordie sink a long one against the Jags, and he kicked a long one against the Chiefs.
He kicked a winning goal against the Chiefs last year (I think) but I can't remember how long that was (edit: about 40 odd), and he of course missed two against the Brumbies this year.
I don't think he's landed a long-range attempt (say, plus 50 metres) to win a game - but @Stargazer or some other super fan will no doubt be able to point to 20 instances
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😂😂😂
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Didn’t he have new special one made last time he was caught out?
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I don't like Jordie at 15 because of his goal kicking, that's just a bonus in certain situations. I like him there because he has the key attributes that you can't really do without as a test level 15 these days - outstanding under the high ball and physically really strong on defense. Two thing that Dmac lacks which is why I see him as a squad member or bench player at best.
When in form Jordie also has a strong (not fast) running game and can put his outsides away when the opportunities arise. He has the potential to be world class in that position, however last season after he dominated Super rugby there the coaches inexplicably out him on the wing which utilises precisely none of his strengths. It's the 2nd dumbest selection I've ever seen (first being benching Cane in the semi) and it ruined his confidence.
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When Beauden is at 10 we also need a short-range kicker too! Mutter mutter.
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@chris said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
@booboo said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
@dan54 said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
@nostrildamus said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
I like this team as well! But I hope they are testing the starting props as they were well outdone around the field by their Fijian opponents-I thought Fiji used their props far better than we did.
I've gone to the 'Shannon isn't so bad but he doesn't seem to synch well with others' frame of mind. I suspect he is a real fave with the coaching staff but he needs for me to reproduce the impact he had for the Highlanders.
Also I've fallen into the 'Jordie is pretty good actually as AB fullback' camp. Sure his kicking game wasn't perfect but when you are booting it 20m further than the others your mistakes don't get capitalized on so much. He might not tackle like Jerry Collins but he is far more likely to stop the big bllokes than the mulleted Jack Russell from the Waikato.
And a good-looking midfield! How often does that happen lately!! Well ok, more often recently, but a gripe is a gripe..
Still, I hope I don't see Mr Foster looking out of his depth, passive, frustrated, but motionless in the coaching box. In the last test on the cutaway tv movements he looked like a passenger, not an engaged coach.
Really? I don't really care what any coach looks like in the box, some bounce around, some are animated some sit there quietly, geez I didn;t think that was how anyone judged coahes.
But he's fat.
How does he fit into the box then
He's piped in.
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@nostrildamus said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
@chris said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
@booboo said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
@dan54 said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
@nostrildamus said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
I like this team as well! But I hope they are testing the starting props as they were well outdone around the field by their Fijian opponents-I thought Fiji used their props far better than we did.
I've gone to the 'Shannon isn't so bad but he doesn't seem to synch well with others' frame of mind. I suspect he is a real fave with the coaching staff but he needs for me to reproduce the impact he had for the Highlanders.
Also I've fallen into the 'Jordie is pretty good actually as AB fullback' camp. Sure his kicking game wasn't perfect but when you are booting it 20m further than the others your mistakes don't get capitalized on so much. He might not tackle like Jerry Collins but he is far more likely to stop the big bllokes than the mulleted Jack Russell from the Waikato.
And a good-looking midfield! How often does that happen lately!! Well ok, more often recently, but a gripe is a gripe..
Still, I hope I don't see Mr Foster looking out of his depth, passive, frustrated, but motionless in the coaching box. In the last test on the cutaway tv movements he looked like a passenger, not an engaged coach.
Really? I don't really care what any coach looks like in the box, some bounce around, some are animated some sit there quietly, geez I didn;t think that was how anyone judged coahes.
But he's fat.
How does he fit into the box then
He's piped in.
Messy, a lot of wastage left,
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@no-quarter said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
I don't like Jordie at 15 because of his goal kicking, that's just a bonus in certain situations. I like him there because he has the key attributes that you can't really do without as a test level 15 these days - outstanding under the high ball and physically really strong on defense. Two thing that Dmac lacks which is why I see him as a squad member or bench player at best.
When in form Jordie also has a strong (not fast) running game and can put his outsides away when the opportunities arise. He has the potential to be world class in that position, however last season after he dominated Super rugby there the coaches inexplicably out him on the wing which utilises precisely none of his strengths. It's the 2nd dumbest selection I've ever seen (first being benching Cane in the semi) and it ruined his confidence.
Goodhue at 12 is competitive
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@bovidae said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
@rapido said in All Blacks vs Fiji 2:
O8s there something wrong with old stand at Waikato Stadium? Why was it not used?
@WillieTheWaiter may be able to tell us.
oh yep maybe - does need some earthquake strengthening work done to bring it up to code - didn't think about that.. just assumed they didn't think it would get that big of a crowd.
