Future Locks after RWC???
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@Bones said in Future Locks after RWC???:
Darry's name popping up a few times now. What's with that? Anytime I've seen him, he seems to have less impact than Blackwell and is more stringbean than Lord.
He's 22 nad growing into his frame. I have no idea if he'll step up or not; not sure the love he's getting. Seems a good player, but for me way too soon to anoint him as a future AB lock. Needs to prove himself at Super level first
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@nzzp said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@Bones said in Future Locks after RWC???:
Darry's name popping up a few times now. What's with that? Anytime I've seen him, he seems to have less impact than Blackwell and is more stringbean than Lord.
He's 22 nad growing into his frame. I have no idea if he'll step up or not; not sure the love he's getting. Seems a good player, but for me way too soon to anoint him as a future AB lock. Needs to prove himself at Super level first
I think the early comments were based on potential and attitude rather than physical prowess. I guess he stood out as someone with a great work ethic and mental toughness along with some physical attributes and 'smarts'.
It might take a while to come together or it may never happen but there are times that coaches can see a 'package' forming. -
Lord and Darry were in the same NZ Schools team, so pretty much at the same stage of their senior development now.
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@nzzp said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@Bones said in Future Locks after RWC???:
Darry's name popping up a few times now. What's with that? Anytime I've seen him, he seems to have less impact than Blackwell and is more stringbean than Lord.
He's 22 nad growing into his frame. I have no idea if he'll step up or not; not sure the love he's getting. Seems a good player, but for me way too soon to anoint him as a future AB lock. Needs to prove himself at Super level first
For me, that applies to Fabian Holland, too. He seems a good prospect, but didn't really stand out for the NZ U20s, this year.
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It’s interesting that we all knew that our locks are getting old and tired. They can play one good game then average in the other. Yet Foster is playing the safe but perilous route, because his back is against the wall (thanks @Victor-Meldrew ), and has not attempted to blood others. We are quick to lay the blame on our rookies but the pack as a whole has been inconsistent and old, especially the locks.
Whitelock wasn’t great last test but the test against the Argies everyone’s was singing his praises. Retallick likewise. While this is not a Foster thread he is at the center of decision making and I would imagine if he was the next coach he would not no how the make changes at lock beyond what we have.
So Whitelock and Retallick to see us through to 2027.
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@broughie said in Future Locks after RWC???:
Yet Foster is playing the safe but perilous route, because his back is against the wall (thanks @Victor-Meldrew ), and has not attempted to blood others.
TBF, he's brought Vaa'i & Lord into the mix. Think Lord would have been given plenty of game time were it not for injury.
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@Victor-Meldrew Yes. But would have use them in big games or defaulted to safety? More concerned about his job than the future. In contrast across the ditch Rennie has the same predicament but you see his brain saying I have to deal with what I have and moves forward.
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@broughie said in Future Locks after RWC???:
More concerned about his job than the future.
More concerned about winning - which is his job after all.
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@Victor-Meldrew But he created the position he is in by his ineptitude as a coach. I am not sure why your continue to stick up for this guy just because he is what we have. Yes concerned about winning with this aged group because Foster was concerned more about his job. His focus should have been on blooding the next batch of players. He is in this situation of his own making.
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@Stargazer said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@nzzp said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@Bones said in Future Locks after RWC???:
Darry's name popping up a few times now. What's with that? Anytime I've seen him, he seems to have less impact than Blackwell and is more stringbean than Lord.
He's 22 nad growing into his frame. I have no idea if he'll step up or not; not sure the love he's getting. Seems a good player, but for me way too soon to anoint him as a future AB lock. Needs to prove himself at Super level first
For me, that applies to Fabian Holland, too. He seems a good prospect, but didn't really stand out for the NZ U20s, this year.
I think the difference is Holland already has a more filled out frame than Darry and is 2 years younger than Darry.
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@broughie said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@Victor-Meldrew But he created the position he is in by his ineptitude as a coach. I am not sure why your continue to stick up for this guy just because he is what we have. Yes concerned about winning with this aged group because Foster was concerned more about his job. His focus should have been on blooding the next batch of players. He is in this situation of his own making.
lol this is a laughable take
his job is to win test matches. that's it. pick the best team and win
If Vaai had been coming off the bench and providing impact then i could entertain the suggestion he gets a start. But the fact is he comes off the bench and adds fuck all. Why would any coach then pick him?
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@mariner4life said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@broughie said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@Victor-Meldrew But he created the position he is in by his ineptitude as a coach. I am not sure why your continue to stick up for this guy just because he is what we have. Yes concerned about winning with this aged group because Foster was concerned more about his job. His focus should have been on blooding the next batch of players. He is in this situation of his own making.
lol this is a laughable take
his job is to win test matches. that's it. pick the best team and win
If Vaai had been coming off the bench and providing impact then i could entertain the suggestion he gets a start. But the fact is he comes off the bench and adds fuck all. Why would any coach then pick him?
Why would any coach pick him? Because they are trying to build depth in the squad to cover for injuries. You invest in players, easing them in. Same way that we get bolters to play T20 - to see how they go, expose them to the big time, and down the line prepare them for high pressure matches.
WE just don't hvae the 'easy' games as much any more to blood players, or the strength of team to allow weaker players game time.
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@nzzp said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@mariner4life said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@broughie said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@Victor-Meldrew But he created the position he is in by his ineptitude as a coach. I am not sure why your continue to stick up for this guy just because he is what we have. Yes concerned about winning with this aged group because Foster was concerned more about his job. His focus should have been on blooding the next batch of players. He is in this situation of his own making.
lol this is a laughable take
his job is to win test matches. that's it. pick the best team and win
If Vaai had been coming off the bench and providing impact then i could entertain the suggestion he gets a start. But the fact is he comes off the bench and adds fuck all. Why would any coach then pick him?
Why would any coach pick him? Because they are trying to build depth in the squad to cover for injuries. You invest in players, easing them in. Same way that we get bolters to play T20 - to see how they go, expose them to the big time, and down the line prepare them for high pressure matches.
WE just don't hvae the 'easy' games as much any more to blood players, or the strength of team to allow weaker players game time.
Crikey. The shit that was being heaped upon the coaches for not winning and now you want to revisit that and say they should have been developing players over and above selecting the best option to win?
That's bizzarre.Not developing players in some areas has been a shit side effect of the losses and trying to create a stable selection platform to build off, I agree, but those were the cards we dealt ourselves
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@Crucial said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@nzzp said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@mariner4life said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@broughie said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@Victor-Meldrew But he created the position he is in by his ineptitude as a coach. I am not sure why your continue to stick up for this guy just because he is what we have. Yes concerned about winning with this aged group because Foster was concerned more about his job. His focus should have been on blooding the next batch of players. He is in this situation of his own making.
lol this is a laughable take
his job is to win test matches. that's it. pick the best team and win
If Vaai had been coming off the bench and providing impact then i could entertain the suggestion he gets a start. But the fact is he comes off the bench and adds fuck all. Why would any coach then pick him?
Why would any coach pick him? Because they are trying to build depth in the squad to cover for injuries. You invest in players, easing them in. Same way that we get bolters to play T20 - to see how they go, expose them to the big time, and down the line prepare them for high pressure matches.
WE just don't hvae the 'easy' games as much any more to blood players, or the strength of team to allow weaker players game time.
Crikey. The shit that was being heaped upon the coaches for not winning and now you want to revisit that and say they should have been developing players over and above selecting the best option to win?
That's bizzarre.Not developing players in some areas has been a shit side effect of the losses and trying to create a stable selection platform to build off, I agree, but those were the cards we dealt ourselves
I was responding to the question about why any coach would pick a player specifically.
Foster's backed himself into a corner, where we've had the worst of both worlds. Playing a consistent team (builds combos), but still losing and not building depth as a result of the combo choices. I don't think he should necessarily have been playing second stringers - but we are running our first XV players into the ground and it's a high risk strategy.
We had an issue in 2019 by not landing on a 6 or midfield going into the RWC. We wound up with Savea at 6 in big games, as a 'suprise' type RWC choice, largely because we didn't have much of a choice at that point. There's a tension, and it's damn tough to do. Shows how spoiled we've been
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@mariner4life said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@broughie said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@Victor-Meldrew But he created the position he is in by his ineptitude as a coach. I am not sure why your continue to stick up for this guy just because he is what we have. Yes concerned about winning with this aged group because Foster was concerned more about his job. His focus should have been on blooding the next batch of players. He is in this situation of his own making.
lol this is a laughable take
his job is to win test matches. that's it. pick the best team and win
If Vaai had been coming off the bench and providing impact then i could entertain the suggestion he gets a start. But the fact is he comes off the bench and adds fuck all. Why would any coach then pick him?
Well first of all he hasn’t been winning test matches. He’s lost more than won recently right or are we all good based on 2 wins in a row.? Fuckin excellent AB record from this chap.
And not trying to develop depth is laughable as well especially when some of our blokes will be using walkers soon. What’s the purpose of Vaai being there if your not going to use him? If he’s not good enough find someone else.
Have our locks been stand outs this year on a consistent basis? As consistent as our forward pack for years now. I think we both agree our pack has been on the decline for a while now starting with Hanson and continuing with Foster.
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As to the locks, as I said previously, Foster should be rotating them so one of Whitelock or Retallick starts with Barrett, and the other (or Vaa'i) is on the bench.
Vaa'i did start against Arg last year, as well as Italy on the EOYT.
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Outside the current group I like the look of:
Lord
Sangster
Holland
Gallagher
IWL -
PPP getting no love in the thread but I think pre injury he was starting to play to match his size.
Also, on Vai'i, he's been fairly good in most of his matches for the ABs. He's just behind the two greats and Scooter in the pecking order.
I also can't see Dickson leap frogging Lord in the coaches rankings. They clearly rate him highly.
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Just a point on the worth of our ageing contingent.
They are also our leadership depth.
God only know would would have happened if Whitelock wasn't there at the end of the game to pull Coles out of the situation (twice). -
@Crazy-Horse said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@Bones said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@Crazy-Horse said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@Bovidae said in Future Locks after RWC???:
Josh Dickson would only be 28 in 2023.
I thought he was older than that. Seems like he has been around for ages.
Geez really? I only remember him for like 3 or 4 seasons.
edit: so yeah 5 years at the highlanders. Another Aussie though.
I wouldn't be surprised if my muddled brain has him confused with someone else from years ago. All the Highlander locks look the same to me.
i swear ive had this very discussion with someone on here recently and realised the landers have had a progression of samey "there or there abouts" locks
guys like donnelly, and tom franklin
@Bones said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@Crazy-Horse said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@Bovidae said in Future Locks after RWC???:
Josh Dickson would only be 28 in 2023.
I thought he was older than that. Seems like he has been around for ages.
Geez really? I only remember him for like 3 or 4 seasons.
edit: so yeah 5 years at the highlanders. Another Aussie though.
raised in NZ and went to Otago boys thought
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@Nepia said in Future Locks after RWC???:
PPP getting no love in the thread but I think pre injury he was starting to play to match his size.
Also, on Vai'i, he's been fairly good in most of his matches for the ABs. He's just behind the two greats and Scooter in the pecking order.
I also can't see Dickson leap frogging Lord in the coaches rankings. They clearly rate him highly.
im a huge PPP fan, i think he often plays much better than he's often given credit for....but god it worries me how often we rely on the idea of guys coming back from injury...and not richie coming back after proving himself over several years...guys that have a few great games and a whole lot of "potential"
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@Kiwiwomble How far is he from a return from injury?
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@SBW1 https://www.rugbypass.com/news/all-blacks-prospect-pari-pari-parkinson-ruled-out-for-12-months/
12 month injury back in Nov 21
but strangely for this discussion i just saw this
they list PPP as incoming from france.....it is only the roar though
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@Canes4life said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@KiwiMurph said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@Canes4life said in Future Locks after RWC???:
Justin Sangster from Bay of Plenty, Isaia Walker-Leawere from the Hawkes Bay
Wouldn't play for the Canes would they?
Of course, both have had great seasons provincially aswell as for the Canes. Walker-Leawere in particular brings plenty of size and mobility which is needed at international level.
They both have got to be starters for the Canes first. Unsure if this will happen.
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Canes have 9 loose forwards. Too many. And Lakai must be included somehow. Just poor planning if they haven't room for him
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@Winger what? who?
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@Kiwiwomble LOL, there are/were so many NZ players off-contract and there have been so few announcements, that I think the Roar is just writing down this year's squads, plus and minus players who have signed or announced they are leaving. All the uncertain players seem to have been named as being in the squad, which simply isn't what is known just yet.
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@Kiwiwomble said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@Winger what? who?
Lakai. Future Canes lock. Might be too tall though
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@Winger ...and why was that addressed to me? apologies if im missing the obvious here
@Stargazer maybe he had a holiday in europe and theyre just counting that
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@Kiwiwomble How likely are we to see any players coming from overseas or returning Kiwis. Would be awesome to see Will Heinz at halfback for the Crusaders, he has been awesome for Canterbury.
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@SBW1 i would have no idea
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@Kiwiwomble said in Future Locks after RWC???:
@Winger ...and why was that addressed to me? apologies if im missing the obvious here
You replied with "what" who?" when @Winger said that the Canes have 9 loose forwards and that Lakai must somehow be included. I thought you meant to ask who the 9 loose forwards were, but I can understand that Winger thought you were wondering who Lakai was. So he replied. He's definitely not a future Canes "lock" though.
@Stargazer maybe he had a holiday in europe and theyre just counting that
I don't know why they suggest PPP is returning from France, but IMO it's a very bad article from the Roar.
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@Stargazer fair point i didnt help the confusion, just wasn't sure why i was tagged on the first comment about canes loosies/locks
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@Kiwiwomble It was probably a reaction to the article you posted.
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Kiwiwomblereplied to Stargazer on 19 Sept 2022, 02:28 last edited by Kiwiwomble 19 Sept 2022, 02:42
@Stargazer OH...yeah, that makes sense...completely missed that as didn;t actually read it other than see PPP show up when i googled his name
apologies @Winger
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@broughie said in Future Locks after RWC???:
So Whitelock and Retallick to see us through to 2027.
Whitelock to become the first 200 test player 😀
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So the latest hot take here is that while we were losing against top tier opposition, we should've been trying out unproven and inexperienced players?
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