Highlanders 2023
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@Bones I agree, I see nothing wrong with Burns coming in, it's nothing new. Highlanders are right to bring in an experienced player to take pressure off Cam Millar, let the kid grow under the other players. Anyway Highlanders job isn't to develop ABs but players for Highlanders. They talk about the drop off in talent when RMo and BB go, we have that whenever anyone leaves and in all honesty at test level neither RMo or BB are really in top echelon of world 10s.
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Is there any clips or highlights of Freddie Burns? Interested to see what his style of play is.
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@HLD2023Champions If you type his name in the search box on YouTube, you'll find clips.
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Makes me smile a bit with Burns getting a contract some people bagged the shit out of the Crusaders for signing Matera last season but it is ok to sign Burns.
Personally I say good on the Highlanders for signing Burns if it makes them stronger it is great for the Competition.
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@Chris said in Highlanders 2023:
Makes me smile a bit with Burns getting a contract some people bagged the shit out of the Crusaders for signing Matera last season but it is ok to sign Burns.
Personally I say good on the Highlanders for signing Burns if it makes them stronger it is great for the Competition.
I reserve the right to bag the shit out of both South Island teams - and the Chiefs when they do it too.
We have a whole thread with posters complaining about players leaving yet we're giving spots to foreign test capped players.
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@Chris said in Highlanders 2023:
Makes me smile a bit with Burns getting a contract some people bagged the shit out of the Crusaders for signing Matera last season but it is ok to sign Burns.
Who criticised the signing of Matera and is praising the signing of Burns?
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@Duluth said in Highlanders 2023:
@Chris said in Highlanders 2023:
Makes me smile a bit with Burns getting a contract some people bagged the shit out of the Crusaders for signing Matera last season but it is ok to sign Burns.
Who criticised the signing of Matera and is praising the signing of Burns?
Lots of people have on other social media sites I really can not be bothered hunting it out just more big mouth hypocrites.
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I think the difference between Matera and Burns is the capability of the players and those in the teams.
Matera is one of the best loose forwards in the world, being recruited into one of the best clubs in the world. In terms of options at 6/8 the Crusaders had All Blacks and future Junior All Blacks.
Burns is a player who isn't judged good enough to make his premiership match day squad. He is coming to a team that is in a dire state at 10. It has a few decent young players (Millar, Faleafaga and Hurley). But, the squad players are either struggling at this level, broken or inexperienced. Someone like Burns seems a decent shout despite probably not being up to it. It isn't like Finn Russell coming down at slotting into the Crusaders or the Blues.
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@Chris said in Highlanders 2023:
@Duluth said in Highlanders 2023:
@Chris said in Highlanders 2023:
Makes me smile a bit with Burns getting a contract some people bagged the shit out of the Crusaders for signing Matera last season but it is ok to sign Burns.
Who criticised the signing of Matera and is praising the signing of Burns?
Lots of people have on other social media sites I really can not be bothered hunting it out just more big mouth hypocrites.
So no one, but you just wanted to raise the poor victim crusaders flag?
Like SM said, vastly different when a champion team with ABs at 6/8 recruit a foreign 6/8. The highlanders are plugging a gap, so I can see why some might be unhappy with one scenario and abide the other.
Fucken sook crusaders supporters.
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@Bones said in Highlanders 2023:
@Chris said in Highlanders 2023:
@Duluth said in Highlanders 2023:
@Chris said in Highlanders 2023:
Makes me smile a bit with Burns getting a contract some people bagged the shit out of the Crusaders for signing Matera last season but it is ok to sign Burns.
Who criticised the signing of Matera and is praising the signing of Burns?
Lots of people have on other social media sites I really can not be bothered hunting it out just more big mouth hypocrites.
So no one, but you just wanted to raise the poor victim crusaders flag?
Like SM said, vastly different when a champion team with ABs at 6/8 recruit a foreign 6/8. The highlanders are plugging a gap, so I can see why some might be unhappy with one scenario and abide the other.
Fucken sook crusaders supporters.
Sensitive wee chap are you not, had bad day, take a breath.
Or just all this losing makes you bitter. -
@Bones I don't think it matters whether a champions team or another team recruits from overseas as every NZ franchise can call up non full squad members from other NZ franchises. So whatever depth is available at one franchise is available to the others. We saw that last year.
The question is more what depth is available in NZ (at all franchise combined) and first five-eighth is definitely a position with low depth in NZ. However, there are good NZ 10s playing overseas and ideally they would have been contracted. Maybe multi-year contracts prevented that, so I don't really have an issue with the signing of Burns. The young guns at the Highlanders can learn a lot from an experienced player like him, just like the young loosies at the Crusaders could learn from Matera's experience.
Bogado, however, I can't see a justification for signing him on a two-year contract. He's a winger and I don't think we have a shortage of good wingers. He also doesn't offer experience young players can learn from, as he is a young player himself. He's is taking a spot that should have been filled by a Kiwi.
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@Chris said in Highlanders 2023:
@Bones said in Highlanders 2023:
@Chris said in Highlanders 2023:
@Duluth said in Highlanders 2023:
@Chris said in Highlanders 2023:
Makes me smile a bit with Burns getting a contract some people bagged the shit out of the Crusaders for signing Matera last season but it is ok to sign Burns.
Who criticised the signing of Matera and is praising the signing of Burns?
Lots of people have on other social media sites I really can not be bothered hunting it out just more big mouth hypocrites.
So no one, but you just wanted to raise the poor victim crusaders flag?
Like SM said, vastly different when a champion team with ABs at 6/8 recruit a foreign 6/8. The highlanders are plugging a gap, so I can see why some might be unhappy with one scenario and abide the other.
Fucken sook crusaders supporters.
Sensitive wee chap are you not, had bad day, take a breath.
Or just all this losing makes you bitter.Weird. You come on a highlanders thread to moan about people being unfair to the crusaders, get asked who was being unfair, basically say you made up your reason so you could have a sook because the people on social media are mean
Then call someone sensitive when they said whoop de Doo.
Thumbs up.
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@Bones said in Highlanders 2023:
@Chris said in Highlanders 2023:
@Bones said in Highlanders 2023:
@Chris said in Highlanders 2023:
@Duluth said in Highlanders 2023:
@Chris said in Highlanders 2023:
Makes me smile a bit with Burns getting a contract some people bagged the shit out of the Crusaders for signing Matera last season but it is ok to sign Burns.
Who criticised the signing of Matera and is praising the signing of Burns?
Lots of people have on other social media sites I really can not be bothered hunting it out just more big mouth hypocrites.
So no one, but you just wanted to raise the poor victim crusaders flag?
Like SM said, vastly different when a champion team with ABs at 6/8 recruit a foreign 6/8. The highlanders are plugging a gap, so I can see why some might be unhappy with one scenario and abide the other.
Fucken sook crusaders supporters.
Sensitive wee chap are you not, had bad day, take a breath.
Or just all this losing makes you bitter.Weird. You come on a highlanders thread to moan about people being unfair to the crusaders, get asked who was being unfair, basically say you made up your reason so you could have a sook because the people on social media are mean
Then call someone sensitive when they said whoop de Doo.
Thumbs up.
Appreciate your in put as always I understand where it comes from.
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@Stargazer said in Highlanders 2023:
@Bones I don't think it matters whether a champions team or another team recruits from overseas as every NZ franchise can call up non full squad members from other NZ franchises. So whatever depth is available at one franchise is available to the others. We saw that last year.
The question is more what depth is available in NZ (at all franchise combined) and first five-eighth is definitely a position with low depth in NZ. However, there are good NZ 10s playing overseas and ideally they would have been contracted. Maybe multi-year contracts prevented that, so I don't really have an issue with the signing of Burns. The young guns at the Highlanders can learn a lot from an experienced player like him, just like the young loosies at the Crusaders could learn from Matera's experience.
Bogado, however, I can't see a justification for signing him on a two-year contract. He's a winger and I don't think we have a shortage of good wingers. He also doesn't offer experience young players can learn from, as he is a young player himself. He's is taking a spot that should have been filled by a Kiwi.
The argument against Bogado would be better if there was a more even spread of talent. Was a better winger available to the Highlanders? Doesn't appear so, according to their coaches. Will better wingers than Bogado be sitting in the stands for the Crusaders when and if he plays. Most certainly. The Highlanders can only recruit who is available. Certainly appears as if the Highlanders have an image problem in terms of players wanting to be on the park for them insteead of in the stands for other teams.
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@SouthernMann Manasa Mataele shouldn't be playing for the Wester Force; did the Highlanders try to sign him last year? What went wrong with Vereniki Tikoisolomone? Did they try to get Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens from the Blues, where he doesn't get game time? Why did Ngane Punivai move to the Chiefs?
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@SouthernMann said in Highlanders 2023:
@Stargazer said in Highlanders 2023:
@Bones I don't think it matters whether a champions team or another team recruits from overseas as every NZ franchise can call up non full squad members from other NZ franchises. So whatever depth is available at one franchise is available to the others. We saw that last year.
The question is more what depth is available in NZ (at all franchise combined) and first five-eighth is definitely a position with low depth in NZ. However, there are good NZ 10s playing overseas and ideally they would have been contracted. Maybe multi-year contracts prevented that, so I don't really have an issue with the signing of Burns. The young guns at the Highlanders can learn a lot from an experienced player like him, just like the young loosies at the Crusaders could learn from Matera's experience.
Bogado, however, I can't see a justification for signing him on a two-year contract. He's a winger and I don't think we have a shortage of good wingers. He also doesn't offer experience young players can learn from, as he is a young player himself. He's is taking a spot that should have been filled by a Kiwi.
The argument against Bogado would be better if there was a more even spread of talent. Was a better winger available to the Highlanders? Doesn't appear so, according to their coaches. Will better wingers than Bogado be sitting in the stands for the Crusaders when and if he plays. Most certainly. The Highlanders can only recruit who is available. Certainly appears as if the Highlanders have an image problem in terms of players wanting to be on the park for them insteead of in the stands for other teams.
The most frustrating thing for me is how the Highlanders under Mauger pissed away the 2018-2019 seasons with a very good squad loaded with Maori All Blacks and experienced campaigners still remaining from 2015-2017. Mauger's results of 8th and 7th in those two years was appalling. That squad was really well-balanced & should've finished among the top 4 teams in those seasons.