NPC 2022
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@Kiwiwomble said in NPC 2022:
@Machpants said in NPC 2022:
I guess we will see if this Sotutu fella can play.
Who?
I’ve heard a little about him but not seen him play in a long time.
no such person, just a urban legend
Fijian Jesus?
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@KiwiMurph said in NPC 2022:
@FakatavaAllBlack said in NPC 2022:
Fakatava will be itching to play some rugby! Poor Manawatu they just can't catch a break
They at least get Hawke's Bay on a storm week as they play tomorrow night too.
Have you seen tomorrow night's team? The Poo are definitely getting more of the A side plus Tiatia.
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Even the Hawke's Bay fans should have some sympathy for Manawatū.
Auckland, though, have unlimited spending power, 46 players in their NPC squad and a huge academy. Hawke's Bay have 44 fully-contracted Magpies.
Manawatū coach Peter Russell could afford only 28 this season on his ultra-tight budget, down from 31 last year, and one of them is All Black Aaron Smith. In 2019 there were 35 on the books.
Other points from the article is that Tyler Laubscher has a chronic groin problem, and John Plumtree is now helping Russell and co. Oh, and Fletcher Building are a bunch of piston wristed gibbons.
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Frontline loosehead Harrison Allan copped a crazy three-week suspension after one of those accidental head collisions in the opening seconds of the first match against Canterbury.
While he wasn't cited at the game, some eagle-eyed NZ Rugby citing official zapped him.That's new to me. Why can't NZR just publish these judicial decisions?
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Even the Hawke's Bay fans should have some sympathy for Manawatū.
Nope. The Bay money men have managed the books successfully for a longtime now and clearly manage the player budget well (I'm pretty sure Tiatia is paid in donated pies).
Although we could do them a solid and lend them Tiatia for the season.
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Loving the fact that apart from the Poo there are no easy games in the NPC this year. Makes watching every game exciting and you just can't take any team for granted.
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@bayimports I love my npc footy too
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@bayimports said in NPC 2022:
Loving the fact that apart from the Poo there are no easy games in the NPC this year. Makes watching every game exciting and you just can't take any team for granted.
Well they are giving a good showing to prove you wrong so far in this game anyway. No doubt (or at least I certainly hope so anyway) they will be overwhelmed in the second forty minutes.
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@bayimports said in NPC 2022:
Loving the fact that apart from the Poo there are no easy games in the NPC this year. Makes watching every game exciting and you just can't take any team for granted.
came here to endorse this. Full of really interesting games, and some massive upsets. The quality has lifted; a lot of these players would slide straight into Super jerseys.
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ive loved the Otago game so far, and it hasn't be "tackling optional" as has been suggested in the past, the final 10 mins of our game yesterday Otago were scrambling to defend their line
This is what i think of when i consider life without super rugby, the NPC is very enjoyable, even as it is let alone if it became the premier comp again, if i notice the drop in quality at all it doesn't significantly reduce my enjoyment
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@Kiwiwomble I think the quality has been pretty good this year, I think the covid hangover is gone and things moving along nicely.
Been a few blowouts, but plenty of tight games and some great talent on show, the death of NZ rugby has been greatly exaggerated...that said, I think it is still finely balanced, but seen enough in the 1st 3 weekends to know we still have talent coming through.
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@taniwharugby Have been watching the game highlights of most of the NPC games this year and there have been some awesome games. Cannot help thinking that this competition is not that different in quality to a lot of Super Rugby games. This year is not as disrupted as last year. The Crusaders have a good 75% of their team playing for Canterbury and good number turning out for Ta$man while other provinces also have a mix of Super rugby players and a few who have come to play from overseas like Teviata Li for example.
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Moana Pasifika are a part of the even competition I think that is forgotten. You now have another 40 professional players spread across NZ. They're all going back to their provinces as stronger, fitter athletes and better leaders after 6months in a Super Rugby environment. Also, more players are getting fringe opportunities at the other 5teams. At the very least, they're understanding the differences between levels & know where they need to get to in order to get a contract next year.
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