Super Rugby missing the Saffas?
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@chris the question i am asking myself at the minute , given what we saw with the All Blacks last yeat , has our forward play in all the NZ super teams dropped dramaticly since the South African teams have left super rugby …?.
It well be masking over the quality we are seeing -
@steven-harris said in Blues vs Moana Pasifika 2022:
@chris the question i am asking myself at the minute , given what we saw with the All Blacks last yeat , has our forward play in all the NZ super teams dropped dramaticly since the South African teams have left super rugby …?.
It well be masking over the quality we are seeing.The Brumbies under McKellar (2018-) have dominated the SA teams & have a 50/50 record against our NZ teams. The Holland-coached Hurricanes rabble managed a 38 point bonus-point win over the strongest SA team (Sharks) before Covid ended it. Look at the historic records, SA sides have a much worse success rate over NZ sides than the Australian teams & that continued right up until the end of the decade, when covid hit.
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@steven-harris said in Blues vs Moana Pasifika 2022:
@chris the question i am asking myself at the minute , given what we saw with the All Blacks last yeat , has our forward play in all the NZ super teams dropped dramaticly since the South African teams have left super rugby …?.
It well be masking over the quality we are seeingI am inclined to think our forward play has dropped off since SA teams are no longer in the comp.
They gave a point of difference in SR,Australia play similar to us so it’s same all the time.
Our SR teams don’t have the big hard SA packs to play against anymore.Sure they didn’t always get the results but the SA teams many times had to go on 4 or 5 week tours to NZ and Australia which took it toll.
My opinion the SR comp is worse off without SA. -
@chris Was always going to be as well, which confused me as to why people were so eager to get rid of them.
Shows our arrogance I guess in thinking that we're still miles ahead of the rest of the pack and don't need anyone else.
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@chris said in Super Rugby 2022:
@steven-harris said in Blues vs Moana Pasifika 2022:
@chris the question i am asking myself at the minute , given what we saw with the All Blacks last yeat , has our forward play in all the NZ super teams dropped dramaticly since the South African teams have left super rugby …?.
It well be masking over the quality we are seeingI am inclined to think our forward play has dropped off since SA teams are no longer in the comp.
They gave a point of difference in SR,Australia play similar to us so it’s same all the time.
Our SR teams don’t have the big hard SA packs to play against anymore.Are they big though? I recall looking at pack weights and seeing South Africans were no bigger and sometimes smaller than their opposition.
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Win Percentage of SA sides v NZ sides 2016-2020
Side % v NZ in NZ % v NZ outside NZ % v NZ overall Sharks 27.3% 66.7% 41.2% Lions 22.2% 45.5% 35% Jaguares 37.5% 22.2% 29.4% Stormers 0% 50% 29.4% Bulls 0% 22.2% 12.5% Hopefully that's accurate..
The toughness largely came from the games in SA/Argentina. But of course those are the games that rated terribly because of the timezones
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@duluth and still only one Saffa team could win more than half their home games against Kiwi sides.
From my personal perspective it wasn't the time zones that turned me off Super Rugby - it was the predictability. Expansion was what ruined Super footy and probably contributed to the NZ teams' success. The first six seasons of S12 were much more even and attendances held up well until we went to the stupid pools system and brought in some make weights who diluted the whole comp.
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@antipodean said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby 2022:
@steven-harris said in Blues vs Moana Pasifika 2022:
@chris the question i am asking myself at the minute , given what we saw with the All Blacks last yeat , has our forward play in all the NZ super teams dropped dramaticly since the South African teams have left super rugby …?.
It well be masking over the quality we are seeingI am inclined to think our forward play has dropped off since SA teams are no longer in the comp.
They gave a point of difference in SR,Australia play similar to us so it’s same all the time.
Our SR teams don’t have the big hard SA packs to play against anymore.Are they big though? I recall looking at pack weights and seeing South Africans were no bigger and sometimes smaller than their opposition.
Yep as usually the LF's were Hugh compared to ours and they had heaps of locks over 2.00 m which we struggle with.
I can remember so big 130 kg plus props.That was probably to their detriment as we ran around the big packs ,that is how we beat them regularly.
You only have to think back to the Bulls pack with Bakkes Botha etc big pack.
This article below sums it up
[link text](link url)https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/super-rugby/119724374/super-rugby-blues-forwards-challenged-to-measure-up-against-daunting-bulls-pack
Adding to that that this is after the Bakkes Botha day's.
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Even if the SA sides weren't that successful, they plyaed in a mre confrontational NH style game, not all teams or always, but it exposed our players to differing rugby - which is good. That's what is missing. The fact they inisted on having the games in the arvo, means I watched bugger all. If they played at least a good percentage early evening, then it would have been at lot wasier to watch here.
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@chris said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@antipodean said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby 2022:
@steven-harris said in Blues vs Moana Pasifika 2022:
@chris the question i am asking myself at the minute , given what we saw with the All Blacks last yeat , has our forward play in all the NZ super teams dropped dramaticly since the South African teams have left super rugby …?.
It well be masking over the quality we are seeingI am inclined to think our forward play has dropped off since SA teams are no longer in the comp.
They gave a point of difference in SR,Australia play similar to us so it’s same all the time.
Our SR teams don’t have the big hard SA packs to play against anymore.Are they big though? I recall looking at pack weights and seeing South Africans were no bigger and sometimes smaller than their opposition.
Yep as usually the LF's were Hugh compared to ours and they had heaps of locks over 2.00 m which we struggle with.
I can remember so big 130 kg plus props.That was probably to their detriment as we ran around the big packs ,that is how we beat them regularly.
You only have to think back to the Bulls pack with Bakkes Botha etc big pack.
This article below sums it up
[link text](link url)https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/super-rugby/119724374/super-rugby-blues-forwards-challenged-to-measure-up-against-daunting-bulls-pack
Compare the heights and weights of the two packs. It rather proves my point. That the South African forwards played a more direct style isn't surprising - they didn't have the same skill levels.
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@antipodean said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@antipodean said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby 2022:
@steven-harris said in Blues vs Moana Pasifika 2022:
@chris the question i am asking myself at the minute , given what we saw with the All Blacks last yeat , has our forward play in all the NZ super teams dropped dramaticly since the South African teams have left super rugby …?.
It well be masking over the quality we are seeingI am inclined to think our forward play has dropped off since SA teams are no longer in the comp.
They gave a point of difference in SR,Australia play similar to us so it’s same all the time.
Our SR teams don’t have the big hard SA packs to play against anymore.Are they big though? I recall looking at pack weights and seeing South Africans were no bigger and sometimes smaller than their opposition.
Yep as usually the LF's were Hugh compared to ours and they had heaps of locks over 2.00 m which we struggle with.
I can remember so big 130 kg plus props.That was probably to their detriment as we ran around the big packs ,that is how we beat them regularly.
You only have to think back to the Bulls pack with Bakkes Botha etc big pack.
This article below sums it up
[link text](link url)https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/super-rugby/119724374/super-rugby-blues-forwards-challenged-to-measure-up-against-daunting-bulls-pack
Compare the heights and weights of the two packs. It rather proves my point. That the South African forwards played a more direct style isn't surprising - they didn't have the same skill levels.
Exactly but it is closer to NH rugby than what we have now.As a learning tool for our Forwards we miss the SA teams.
instead the game we play now, it doesn't get the AB's prepared for NH sides that is showing up more and more.
You revert back to how you play most of your Rugby when under pressure.So we struggle under tight intense pressure with very strong D lines.
The defense is getting worse and worse in SR this season its worse than ever,Defend like that in Test Rugby and you are toast.
We will not win a WC in France playing a SR type game we will be suffocated.As soon as we hit SA in the Rugby championship Last season we struggled big time case in point.
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@chris said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@antipodean said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@antipodean said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby 2022:
@steven-harris said in Blues vs Moana Pasifika 2022:
@chris the question i am asking myself at the minute , given what we saw with the All Blacks last yeat , has our forward play in all the NZ super teams dropped dramaticly since the South African teams have left super rugby …?.
It well be masking over the quality we are seeingI am inclined to think our forward play has dropped off since SA teams are no longer in the comp.
They gave a point of difference in SR,Australia play similar to us so it’s same all the time.
Our SR teams don’t have the big hard SA packs to play against anymore.Are they big though? I recall looking at pack weights and seeing South Africans were no bigger and sometimes smaller than their opposition.
Yep as usually the LF's were Hugh compared to ours and they had heaps of locks over 2.00 m which we struggle with.
I can remember so big 130 kg plus props.That was probably to their detriment as we ran around the big packs ,that is how we beat them regularly.
You only have to think back to the Bulls pack with Bakkes Botha etc big pack.
This article below sums it up
[link text](link url)https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/super-rugby/119724374/super-rugby-blues-forwards-challenged-to-measure-up-against-daunting-bulls-pack
Compare the heights and weights of the two packs. It rather proves my point. That the South African forwards played a more direct style isn't surprising - they didn't have the same skill levels.
Exactly but it is closer to NH rugby than what we have now.As a learning tool for our Forwards we miss the SA teams.
instead the game we play now, it doesn't get the AB's prepared for NH sides that is showing up more and more.
You revert back to how you play most of your Rugby when under pressure.So we struggle under tight intense pressure with very strong D lines.
The defense is getting worse and worse in SR this season its worse than ever,Defend like that in Test Rugby and you are toast.
We will not win a WC in France playing a SR type game we will be suffocated.As soon as we hit SA in the Rugby championship we struggled big time case in point.
I reject the implication that playing South African SR sides would have us better prepared to win a RWC in France. The problem isn't the cattle in NZ, it's the game plan hasn't evolved and the current coaching staff aren't the best. Playing the Bulls wouldn't change the defensive structure employed within the All Blacks.
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@antipodean said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@antipodean said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@antipodean said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby 2022:
@steven-harris said in Blues vs Moana Pasifika 2022:
@chris the question i am asking myself at the minute , given what we saw with the All Blacks last yeat , has our forward play in all the NZ super teams dropped dramaticly since the South African teams have left super rugby …?.
It well be masking over the quality we are seeingI am inclined to think our forward play has dropped off since SA teams are no longer in the comp.
They gave a point of difference in SR,Australia play similar to us so it’s same all the time.
Our SR teams don’t have the big hard SA packs to play against anymore.Are they big though? I recall looking at pack weights and seeing South Africans were no bigger and sometimes smaller than their opposition.
Yep as usually the LF's were Hugh compared to ours and they had heaps of locks over 2.00 m which we struggle with.
I can remember so big 130 kg plus props.That was probably to their detriment as we ran around the big packs ,that is how we beat them regularly.
You only have to think back to the Bulls pack with Bakkes Botha etc big pack.
This article below sums it up
[link text](link url)https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/super-rugby/119724374/super-rugby-blues-forwards-challenged-to-measure-up-against-daunting-bulls-pack
Compare the heights and weights of the two packs. It rather proves my point. That the South African forwards played a more direct style isn't surprising - they didn't have the same skill levels.
Exactly but it is closer to NH rugby than what we have now.As a learning tool for our Forwards we miss the SA teams.
instead the game we play now, it doesn't get the AB's prepared for NH sides that is showing up more and more.
You revert back to how you play most of your Rugby when under pressure.So we struggle under tight intense pressure with very strong D lines.
The defense is getting worse and worse in SR this season its worse than ever,Defend like that in Test Rugby and you are toast.
We will not win a WC in France playing a SR type game we will be suffocated.As soon as we hit SA in the Rugby championship we struggled big time case in point.
I reject the implication that playing South African SR sides would have us better prepared to win a RWC in France. The problem isn't the cattle in NZ, it's the game plan hasn't evolved and the current coaching staff aren't the best. Playing the Bulls wouldn't change the defensive structure employed within the All Blacks.
It would certainly help the players to learn how to deal with it.
Play Australia and NZ teams then hit SA,France,Ireland,England etc
Big jump in game management needed to win those games.No doubt the Coaching staff are shit but so is SR right now, its becoming a weak comp with shit defense that helps us produce AB's ahh I don't think so.
Its producing soft players who are not able to bash it out for 80 min in tight games.
SA teams at least give us a physical contest which is a bit different, we learn't how to wear them down and find weakness in that type of game, not now we don't have that chance. -
@duluth said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
Win Percentage of SA sides v NZ sides 2016-2020
Side % v NZ in NZ % v NZ outside NZ % v NZ overall Sharks 27.3% 66.7% 41.2% Lions 22.2% 45.5% 35% Jaguares 37.5% 22.2% 29.4% Stormers 0% 50% 29.4% Bulls 0% 22.2% 12.5% End of thread.
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@chris said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@antipodean said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@antipodean said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@antipodean said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby 2022:
@steven-harris said in Blues vs Moana Pasifika 2022:
@chris the question i am asking myself at the minute , given what we saw with the All Blacks last yeat , has our forward play in all the NZ super teams dropped dramaticly since the South African teams have left super rugby …?.
It well be masking over the quality we are seeingI am inclined to think our forward play has dropped off since SA teams are no longer in the comp.
They gave a point of difference in SR,Australia play similar to us so it’s same all the time.
Our SR teams don’t have the big hard SA packs to play against anymore.Are they big though? I recall looking at pack weights and seeing South Africans were no bigger and sometimes smaller than their opposition.
Yep as usually the LF's were Hugh compared to ours and they had heaps of locks over 2.00 m which we struggle with.
I can remember so big 130 kg plus props.That was probably to their detriment as we ran around the big packs ,that is how we beat them regularly.
You only have to think back to the Bulls pack with Bakkes Botha etc big pack.
This article below sums it up
[link text](link url)https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/super-rugby/119724374/super-rugby-blues-forwards-challenged-to-measure-up-against-daunting-bulls-pack
Compare the heights and weights of the two packs. It rather proves my point. That the South African forwards played a more direct style isn't surprising - they didn't have the same skill levels.
Exactly but it is closer to NH rugby than what we have now.As a learning tool for our Forwards we miss the SA teams.
instead the game we play now, it doesn't get the AB's prepared for NH sides that is showing up more and more.
You revert back to how you play most of your Rugby when under pressure.So we struggle under tight intense pressure with very strong D lines.
The defense is getting worse and worse in SR this season its worse than ever,Defend like that in Test Rugby and you are toast.
We will not win a WC in France playing a SR type game we will be suffocated.As soon as we hit SA in the Rugby championship we struggled big time case in point.
I reject the implication that playing South African SR sides would have us better prepared to win a RWC in France. The problem isn't the cattle in NZ, it's the game plan hasn't evolved and the current coaching staff aren't the best. Playing the Bulls wouldn't change the defensive structure employed within the All Blacks.
It would certainly help the players to learn how to deal with it.
Play Australia and NZ teams then hit SA,France,Ireland,England etc
Big jump in game management needed to win those games.No doubt the Coaching staff are shit but so is SR right now, its becoming a weak comp with shit defense that helps us produce AB's ahh I don't think so.
Its producing soft players who are not able to bash it out for 80 min in tight games.
SA teams at least give us a physical contest which is a bit different, we learn't how to wear them down and find weakness in that type of game, not now we don't have that chance.You mean like how we did last year?
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@crucial said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@antipodean said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@antipodean said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@antipodean said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby 2022:
@steven-harris said in Blues vs Moana Pasifika 2022:
@chris the question i am asking myself at the minute , given what we saw with the All Blacks last yeat , has our forward play in all the NZ super teams dropped dramaticly since the South African teams have left super rugby …?.
It well be masking over the quality we are seeingI am inclined to think our forward play has dropped off since SA teams are no longer in the comp.
They gave a point of difference in SR,Australia play similar to us so it’s same all the time.
Our SR teams don’t have the big hard SA packs to play against anymore.Are they big though? I recall looking at pack weights and seeing South Africans were no bigger and sometimes smaller than their opposition.
Yep as usually the LF's were Hugh compared to ours and they had heaps of locks over 2.00 m which we struggle with.
I can remember so big 130 kg plus props.That was probably to their detriment as we ran around the big packs ,that is how we beat them regularly.
You only have to think back to the Bulls pack with Bakkes Botha etc big pack.
This article below sums it up
[link text](link url)https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/super-rugby/119724374/super-rugby-blues-forwards-challenged-to-measure-up-against-daunting-bulls-pack
Compare the heights and weights of the two packs. It rather proves my point. That the South African forwards played a more direct style isn't surprising - they didn't have the same skill levels.
Exactly but it is closer to NH rugby than what we have now.As a learning tool for our Forwards we miss the SA teams.
instead the game we play now, it doesn't get the AB's prepared for NH sides that is showing up more and more.
You revert back to how you play most of your Rugby when under pressure.So we struggle under tight intense pressure with very strong D lines.
The defense is getting worse and worse in SR this season its worse than ever,Defend like that in Test Rugby and you are toast.
We will not win a WC in France playing a SR type game we will be suffocated.As soon as we hit SA in the Rugby championship we struggled big time case in point.
I reject the implication that playing South African SR sides would have us better prepared to win a RWC in France. The problem isn't the cattle in NZ, it's the game plan hasn't evolved and the current coaching staff aren't the best. Playing the Bulls wouldn't change the defensive structure employed within the All Blacks.
It would certainly help the players to learn how to deal with it.
Play Australia and NZ teams then hit SA,France,Ireland,England etc
Big jump in game management needed to win those games.No doubt the Coaching staff are shit but so is SR right now, its becoming a weak comp with shit defense that helps us produce AB's ahh I don't think so.
Its producing soft players who are not able to bash it out for 80 min in tight games.
SA teams at least give us a physical contest which is a bit different, we learn't how to wear them down and find weakness in that type of game, not now we don't have that chance.You mean like how we did last year?
Well that is the point we didn't, due to lack of exposure to playing them lately.
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@chris said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@crucial said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@antipodean said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@antipodean said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@antipodean said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby 2022:
@steven-harris said in Blues vs Moana Pasifika 2022:
@chris the question i am asking myself at the minute , given what we saw with the All Blacks last yeat , has our forward play in all the NZ super teams dropped dramaticly since the South African teams have left super rugby …?.
It well be masking over the quality we are seeingI am inclined to think our forward play has dropped off since SA teams are no longer in the comp.
They gave a point of difference in SR,Australia play similar to us so it’s same all the time.
Our SR teams don’t have the big hard SA packs to play against anymore.Are they big though? I recall looking at pack weights and seeing South Africans were no bigger and sometimes smaller than their opposition.
Yep as usually the LF's were Hugh compared to ours and they had heaps of locks over 2.00 m which we struggle with.
I can remember so big 130 kg plus props.That was probably to their detriment as we ran around the big packs ,that is how we beat them regularly.
You only have to think back to the Bulls pack with Bakkes Botha etc big pack.
This article below sums it up
[link text](link url)https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/super-rugby/119724374/super-rugby-blues-forwards-challenged-to-measure-up-against-daunting-bulls-pack
Compare the heights and weights of the two packs. It rather proves my point. That the South African forwards played a more direct style isn't surprising - they didn't have the same skill levels.
Exactly but it is closer to NH rugby than what we have now.As a learning tool for our Forwards we miss the SA teams.
instead the game we play now, it doesn't get the AB's prepared for NH sides that is showing up more and more.
You revert back to how you play most of your Rugby when under pressure.So we struggle under tight intense pressure with very strong D lines.
The defense is getting worse and worse in SR this season its worse than ever,Defend like that in Test Rugby and you are toast.
We will not win a WC in France playing a SR type game we will be suffocated.As soon as we hit SA in the Rugby championship we struggled big time case in point.
I reject the implication that playing South African SR sides would have us better prepared to win a RWC in France. The problem isn't the cattle in NZ, it's the game plan hasn't evolved and the current coaching staff aren't the best. Playing the Bulls wouldn't change the defensive structure employed within the All Blacks.
It would certainly help the players to learn how to deal with it.
Play Australia and NZ teams then hit SA,France,Ireland,England etc
Big jump in game management needed to win those games.No doubt the Coaching staff are shit but so is SR right now, its becoming a weak comp with shit defense that helps us produce AB's ahh I don't think so.
Its producing soft players who are not able to bash it out for 80 min in tight games.
SA teams at least give us a physical contest which is a bit different, we learn't how to wear them down and find weakness in that type of game, not now we don't have that chance.You mean like how we did last year?
Well that is the point we didn't, due to lack of exposure to playing them lately.
Ummm, we got beaten by an injury time penalty and then beat them on the return.
I'd hardly say that is evidence that we cant play against their style. -
@crucial said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@crucial said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@antipodean said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@antipodean said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@antipodean said in Super Rugby missing the Saffas?:
@chris said in Super Rugby 2022:
@steven-harris said in Blues vs Moana Pasifika 2022:
@chris the question i am asking myself at the minute , given what we saw with the All Blacks last yeat , has our forward play in all the NZ super teams dropped dramaticly since the South African teams have left super rugby …?.
It well be masking over the quality we are seeingI am inclined to think our forward play has dropped off since SA teams are no longer in the comp.
They gave a point of difference in SR,Australia play similar to us so it’s same all the time.
Our SR teams don’t have the big hard SA packs to play against anymore.Are they big though? I recall looking at pack weights and seeing South Africans were no bigger and sometimes smaller than their opposition.
Yep as usually the LF's were Hugh compared to ours and they had heaps of locks over 2.00 m which we struggle with.
I can remember so big 130 kg plus props.That was probably to their detriment as we ran around the big packs ,that is how we beat them regularly.
You only have to think back to the Bulls pack with Bakkes Botha etc big pack.
This article below sums it up
[link text](link url)https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/super-rugby/119724374/super-rugby-blues-forwards-challenged-to-measure-up-against-daunting-bulls-pack
Compare the heights and weights of the two packs. It rather proves my point. That the South African forwards played a more direct style isn't surprising - they didn't have the same skill levels.
Exactly but it is closer to NH rugby than what we have now.As a learning tool for our Forwards we miss the SA teams.
instead the game we play now, it doesn't get the AB's prepared for NH sides that is showing up more and more.
You revert back to how you play most of your Rugby when under pressure.So we struggle under tight intense pressure with very strong D lines.
The defense is getting worse and worse in SR this season its worse than ever,Defend like that in Test Rugby and you are toast.
We will not win a WC in France playing a SR type game we will be suffocated.As soon as we hit SA in the Rugby championship we struggled big time case in point.
I reject the implication that playing South African SR sides would have us better prepared to win a RWC in France. The problem isn't the cattle in NZ, it's the game plan hasn't evolved and the current coaching staff aren't the best. Playing the Bulls wouldn't change the defensive structure employed within the All Blacks.
It would certainly help the players to learn how to deal with it.
Play Australia and NZ teams then hit SA,France,Ireland,England etc
Big jump in game management needed to win those games.No doubt the Coaching staff are shit but so is SR right now, its becoming a weak comp with shit defense that helps us produce AB's ahh I don't think so.
Its producing soft players who are not able to bash it out for 80 min in tight games.
SA teams at least give us a physical contest which is a bit different, we learn't how to wear them down and find weakness in that type of game, not now we don't have that chance.You mean like how we did last year?
Well that is the point we didn't, due to lack of exposure to playing them lately.
Ummm, we got beaten by an injury time penalty and then beat them on the return.
I'd hardly say that is evidence that we cant play against their style.We were lucky to win,I think they did a bit better than us at the last WC.I never said we can't play against their style just with less exposure we are losing our ability to adjust to a certain way teams play.Last year shows that not only SA.
If you are happy to keep playing NZ and Australia teams, and think that is the way to produce better players who can adapt to different styles of play good for you (short sighted maybe)I believe it is a weakness.
A weakness we will see again this season.
