All Blacks 2024
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NZR plots to bring Mo'unga home from Japan stint early
Conversations are ongoing in an attempt to bring Richie Mo'unga home from Japan.
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I don't think it's strange to go overseas for 3 years on 2.2 million per, one of the highest wages in rugby. He still could be back eighteen months before RWC, if the desire is still there. The article is a bit of nothing, NZR in talks to see if they can get experienced ABs back shocker! There no inkling of a deal, just NZR want him back, rightly so. I'm sure the same happens in similar situations, with other players. Although thankfully it's rare
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@Tim said in All Blacks 2024 - looking forward:
NZR plots to bring Mo'unga home from Japan stint early
Conversations are ongoing in an attempt to bring Richie Mo'unga home from Japan.
By the time Mo'unga's returned, Robertson will have had at least a full season - possibly 2 - to develop options at 10. Either DMac isn't rated and the other NZ-based 10's aren't seen as worth of development or this is more fake news.
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@Victor-Meldrew can't see it being fake, it didn't say NZR are offering anything apart from 'please come back' and if bbbr was also 29 and had done the same deal, they'd be saying the same thing! NZR would love all abs qualified players playing in NZ.
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Yeah, didn't mean to say the article itself was fake and I'm sure NZR are actually interested in getting players back to NZ. I'd just hoped the new coaching set-up would have looked to the future and develop the talent available in NZ.
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@Victor-Meldrew said in All Blacks 2024 - looking forward:
Yeah, didn't mean to say the article itself was fake and I'm sure NZR are actually interested in getting players back to NZ. I'd just hoped the new coaching set-up would have looked to the future and develop the talent available in NZ.
Well they're at the under 20s as we speak, I think they are being thorough. Rather than 'you've turned down the black jersey,, you're a pariah', they're actively trying to get worthwhile players back.
NZR 'which NZ qualified players do you want in SR?'
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@Victor-Meldrew said in All Blacks 2024 - looking forward:
Yeah, didn't mean to say the article itself was fake and I'm sure NZR are actually interested in getting players back to NZ. I'd just hoped the new coaching set-up would have looked to the future and develop the talent available in NZ.
You can only develop so far. If the talent isn't there, it isn't there.
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so is this different to Razor chasing Whitelock a month or so back?
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@Victor-Meldrew said in All Blacks 2024 - looking forward:
Yeah, didn't mean to say the article itself was fake and I'm sure NZR are actually interested in getting players back to NZ. I'd just hoped the new coaching set-up would have looked to the future and develop the talent available in NZ.
They can do this whilst also bringing back Mo'unga. It's not mutually exclusive.
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Mo'unga made it clear in interviews his biggest motivation was money (plus some platitudes about 'experiencing different a culture' etc). It's hard to imagine him opting to take a massive pay cut
I think the rumours from last year are more likely to play out - Mo'unga, Frizell & Fainga'anuku all play for Tonga at the 2027 RWC
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I will be horrified if NZR offers big dollars to drag players back from overseas, given the financial state they are in, and the risk for further fall-outs. This feels like a PR beat-up to me, with various people signalling how much they value getting the biggest public names playing for the All Blacks, to help them win.
I would prefer them supporting and developing those who commit to NZ rugby - but allowing players sabbaticals to extend their overall contribution to NZ rugby -
Jesus Christ, move on Razor. First it was Whitelock, now Mo'unga. These guys left for a reason, they clearly don't want to play for the ABs anymore, the former an obvious one now that he's retiring. Razor reaching out makes him look very desperate, maybe have some faith in the guys that are playing well here in NZ i.e. DMac. It just doesn't come across well in my view.
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@Canes4life said in All Blacks 2024 - looking forward:
Jesus Christ, move on Razor. First it was Whitelock, now Mo'unga. These guys left for a reason, they clearly don't want to play for the ABs anymore, the former an obvious one now that he's retiring. Razor reaching out makes him look very desperate, maybe have some faith in the guys that are playing well here in NZ i.e. DMac. It just doesn't come across well in my view.
Agree.
But it's also downgrading super rugby. So much better for Razor to focus on the excellent quality still in NZ than players who have left that he's so desperate to get back
It also highlights how much lower the money is in NZ
This is where NZR needs (much) higher quality people running things in NZ. Robertson should have had a phone call by now to tell him to cut this crap
edit. And maybe also the remind him that he's now the AB not still the Crusaders coach
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Beat-up from Napier following a long interview where Lendrum boringly maintains that the status-quo is where we are at and where we will stay.
Smith brings up Razor and Mo'unga, and Lendrum discusses putting him back into the boring status-quo (needs to be contracted etc) then Smith again tries the bait with 'so, early, then?' and Lendrum goes boring again.
The best part is when Smith tries to summarize with 'so there is a desire to bring Richie home early from all parties, essentially' and Lendrum states, 'well, you'll need to ask Richie what his exact desire is'. (edit, see @Duluth post above!)
These guys should have written the much more boring story that NZ is clearly committed to the current model and that any contracted AB has to be here and using sabbaticals to get overseas experience and maintain eligibility.
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The interview:
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@Winger said in All Blacks 2024 - looking forward:
This is where NZR needs (much) higher quality people running things in NZ. Robertson should have had a phone call by now to tell him to cut this crap
and what crap is that as Razor never chased these players they are being asked questions by the media which are being answered and the media makes 1 and 1 in to 100.
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