All Blacks 2023
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@Tim said in All Blacks 2023:
The 30-strong All Blacks XV squad was selected by the All Blacks coaching team of Ian Foster, Joe Schmidt and Jason Ryan for the 2023 Lipovitan-D Challenge Cup against Japan XV and Brave Blossoms.
The squad includes nine players with Test experience including Aidan Ross, Asafo Aumua, Akira Ioane, Pita Gus Sowakula, Brad Weber, Folau Fakatava, Stephen Perofeta, Brett Cameron and Jack Goodhue.Following their inaugural Northern tour last year, Leon MacDonald has again been named as All Blacks XV Head Coach alongside Assistant Coaches Clayton McMillan and Scott Hansen.
The 30-strong All Blacks XV squad is as follows (age, Super Rugby club, province):
Forwards:
Props
Jermaine Ainsley (28, Highlanders, Otago)
Oli Jager (27, Crusaders, Canterbury)
Tevita Mafileo (25, Hurricanes, Bay of Plenty)
Xavier Numia (24, Hurricanes, Wellington)
Aidan Ross (27, Chiefs, Bay of Plenty)Hookers
Asafo Aumua (26, Hurricanes, Wellington)
Ricky Riccitelli (28, Blues, Taranaki)
Tyrone Thompson (23, Chiefs, Wellington)Locks
Naitoa Ah Kuoi (23, Chiefs, Bay of Plenty)
Quinten Strange (26, Crusaders, Ta$man)
Isaia Walker-Leawere (26, Hurricanes, Hawke’s Bay)Loose Forwards
Billy Harmon (28, Highlanders, Canterbury)
Akira Ioane (28, Blues, Auckland)
Du’Plessis Kirifi (26, Hurricanes, Wellington)
Christian Lio-Willie (24, Crusaders, Otago)
Pita Gus Sowakula (28, Chiefs, Taranaki)
Cameron Suafoa (27, Blues, North Harbour)Backs:
Halfbacks
Folau Fakatava (23, Highlanders, Hawke’s Bay)
Brad Weber (32, Chiefs, Hawke’s Bay)First-five-eighths
Brett Cameron (26, Hurricanes, Manawatū)
Stephen Perofeta (26, Blues, Taranaki)Midfielders
Jack Goodhue (27, Crusaders, Northland)
Alex Nankivell (26, Chiefs, Ta$man)
Billy Proctor (24, Hurricanes, Wellington)
Bailyn Sullivan (24, Hurricanes, Waikato)Outside Backs
Sam Gilbert (24, Highlanders, Otago)
AJ Lam (24, Blues, Auckland)
Ruben Love (22, Hurricanes, Wellington)
Etene Nanai-Seturo (23, Chiefs, Counties Manukau)
Jona Nareki (25, Highlanders, Otago)The All Blacks XV assemble on 29 June, travelling to Tokyo where they compete for the 2023 Lipovitan-D Challenge Cup kicking off Saturday 8 July, at Tokyo’s historic Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium in Tokyo before a second match on Saturday, July 15 at Egao Kenko Stadium in Kumamoto.
Locks are weak IMO
Only 2 x 9s -
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@KiwiMurph Quite excited about him tbh. Would like to see him chucked in straight away.
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@booboo Exactly, some of the selections aren't worth getting annoyed over.
It's good having a B team as well, let guys prove their worth there instead of carrying the water and tackle bags around.
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@African-Monkey said in All Blacks 2023:
Haven't heard any moaning about Sam Cane. That's a first.
1 Reply
Last reply 40 minutes agoVERY lucky on form and function.
Also if Sam Whitelock is playing he's the Moral Captain, doesn't matter what Foster thinks.
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I assume foster said he was “excited” while sounding utterly bored.
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@Billy-Tell said in All Blacks 2023:
I assume foster said he was “excited” while sounding utterly bored.
Totally. Next year I am looking forward to having a coach who speaks with energy and enthusiasm, and gets excited about Rugby. Foster's low/no energy style of operating has been pathetic to watch.
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@African-Monkey said in All Blacks 2023:
It's good having a B team as well, let guys prove their worth there instead of carrying the water and tackle bags around.
Yeah, this is good to see. I think having that 2nd tier - which is great for players & coaches alike - would have prevented a lot of the positional problems we've seen since around '17/18
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@Cantab79 said in All Blacks 2023:
Foster's low/no energy style of operating has been pathetic to watch.
Been awful. Reminds me of that other crap coach,Ted.
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@booboo said in All Blacks 2023:
Where's your indignation?
Foster, Foster, Foster...
Yeah, bloody ridiculous Foster bringing in a rookie wing into cover 12 when he has a perfectly good 15 there already. Not bold enough.
Oh, hang on....
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The only thing that surprises me is that people are surprised
The top 23 was penned in by January and nothing but injury was going to change it
Shuffling the hit pad holders throws bones to the plebs and that's itI personally fucking hate it but I am realistic enough
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@Canerbry said in All Blacks 2023:
@African-Monkey said in All Blacks 2023:
Haven't heard any moaning about Sam Cane. That's a first.
1 Reply
Last reply 40 minutes agoVERY lucky on form and function.
Not on yesterdays performance.
Also wonder if Foster will play a Cane/Jacobson/Finau combination to see how they perform as a unit at Test level.
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Very pleased to see Williams, Finau, Roigard and Narawa in there. All have had excellent campaigns and just kept improving as the season went on. A pretty decent sauce mentioned to me a little while ago that Finau was ticking plenty of boxes with the powers that be. Hopefully we see him get more chance than PGS did…..
Macleod is unexpected. I thought he may make the AB XV side given his good showing early in the season in the midfield and recently on the wing due to us being down a couple of players. He makes very few errors and reads the game very well. Has size too.
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Bit if I can rant
The fucking nerve to say new players need to be perfect to get in when the incumbents have glaring issues and playing much much worse
BB is named as a 10. He'll play fullback
He has significantly more fucking work ons than SS. But he's in.
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