All Blacks vs England I
-
@Kiwiwomble yeah, opposing for the AB’s you would think.
-
@mariner4life said in All Blacks vs England I:
@canefan said in All Blacks vs England I:
@kiwiinmelb said in All Blacks vs England I:
My first thoughts , not a lot different to what fozzie would’ve picked.
I suppose when razor sprinkles his magic dust over them it will look much different.
Definitely need to see what pattern they play. I'm hoping for a little more simplicity, less high risk and more direct
bro, the late Fozzie gameplan was incredibly simple and incredibly risk free
Bend don't break defense
Long periods with ball in play early in the game to tire defenses.
Pragmatic attack to ensure we kept the ball
Low turnover attempts to ensure defensive numbers.It's been a fair while since we were overdoing the kick pass to spread the defense out.
We played some seriously good footy in the finals. Knocking out Ireland was something no other team could have done, that was an incredible performance. All but winning the final with just 14 men was a heroic effort. Fozzie definitely finished on a high.
-
@No-Quarter said in All Blacks vs England I:
Frizzell on the park the full 80.
Fuck yeah, Frizzle for 80 instead of 55 - imagine that would mean 3 runs for 27m and 2 for 4 on the tackles - and he had time for another YC, maybe!
-
Like others...I'm not sold on Perofeta...
TJ starting was also a surprise for me.he did play well...I just hope he's not too distracted with his flopping theatrics at the back of ruck trying to milk penalties
-
@Chris-B said in All Blacks vs England I:
@No-Quarter Razor is a very smart man.
When this team stacked with North Islanders falls over the first hurdle, he'll sack Wayne Smith from his selection oversight role and install @ACT-Crusader !
My emails to Razor and Rangi aren’t bouncing…yet
-
@No-Quarter yup. We were a late game missed Jordie penalty kick from 3 WCs in 4 tournaments. Margins are very fine at that level.
(I will say though, I'm confident if Roigard was on the bench, he'd have created something to bring it home...)
Alright, enough bad memories. Back to 2024.
-
Average side for me.
Front row is fine, but Taylor and de Groot haven't played for a bit, and Lomax was short of a gallop and looked it in the semi, so while I don't fault the selections and hope they go well I'm not sure.
Locks are fine and loosies are the conservative approach. McKenzie and midfield is fine. Sevu deserves a go on form.
Perenara is a liability, and his selection with Christie on the bench limits our attack and adds pressure to McKenzie when we really need him to find his feet at test level fast.
Don't think Telea or Perofeta should be there on form, but I don't think BB should walk back in so fair enough.
Bench has little impact other than Aumua, and a little from Ofa. Pretty disappointed with that. -
I was never that sold on perenaras temperament back in the day when he was automatic selection in the 23.
But I hope he has grown up now and goes well
-
-
This is a big test for PT imo. Has generally been eye catching at super level and borderline invisible in tests. Maybe Robertson can get the best out of him.
-
-
-
@Tim said in All Blacks vs England I:
So, the differences from teams predicted before Super Rugby are due to injury (Jordan, Roigard, Taukei'aho) other than Perofeta and Jacobson?
I reckon form came into the equation for Tuipulotu. Losing two locks that were basically guaranteed in the 23 if fit, there were two fringe locks in Vaa’i and Tuipulotu. For me they went with the player in form plus a bit of experience. I’m not sure he would’ve been first choice as a starter given his international record to date but a definite in the 23.
Razor is a big fan of Jacobson, so I’m not too surprised by his selection on the bench.
Agree on Perofeta.
-
Would have liked to see us be a bit more adventerous and have a loose forward trio of Finau, Savea at 7 and Sititi but can understand the selection. Finau, Papps and Savea is a good line up.
TJ back in the team is great for the autobiography but a step backwards for the AB's I feel, would have been better as an impact player to help close out games rather than starting by throwing the ball at DMac's ankles for 60 minutes but we'll see how he goes.
Perofeta I've never been overly sold on so will be interesting to watch him play.
Overall a good squad, understandable selections albiet conservative.
If I was England I'd put pressure on TJ and the first reciever and bomb Perofeta all day till he cracks.
But looking forward to this team playing and what sytle Robertson brings.
-
