@canefan Roger Moore was the James Bond I grew up watching in the 1980s so I was saddened to hear of his passing despite his age.

I read this on another forum.

Time for Paddy T to have a big game at home as the senior lock. I didn't think he imposed himself at all in game 1.

The irony is that MacDonald could take Umaga's position again and Mitchell and Deans have nothing to do with it this time.

@nzzp said in Ireland Vs All Blacks:

Ireland have been seriously good for some time. They should have beaten us in Christchurch a few years ago. They should have beaten us in Dublin in 13. They did beat us in Chicago.

That win in Chicago was the catalyst for this victory in Dublin. Ireland now has the belief they can win these games, and that is half the battle.

The disappointing thing from an AB perspective is that Ireland played exactly how everyone expected them to so Hansen and co should have had a game plan to counter that.

@98blueandgold said in All Blacks Squad for France:

As Selectors pointed out its work rate and energy levels for Akira. ABs need the forwards to work, clean out rucks, link etc so backs can finish which is probably why Akira not chosen

Is "workrate and energy levels" a euphemism for masquerading on the wing ala Fifita?

I'm 2 days late reading this thread so I'll only make a few comments.

I was high up in the stands in the corner where Jordie scored so had a good view of the other chances at the same end of the ground. Both BB and Laumape could have also scored tries as they were in gaps but fumbled under some defensive pressure. But no excuses for Savea - that was a definite try if he had caught the bloody ball. As many have said, if we had taken 1 or 2 of those chances the ABs would be well ahead at HT and in control of the game, as the Lions were never going to score multiple tries.

The thing I was most pissed off about was that the officials let the Lions slow the game down all the time as not all the injuries seemed to be genuine. It was like watching a RL game when the support staff run onto the field at every opportunity. Read should have spoken to Poite about this too.

Now for something about the Lions tour in general. I picked my father up from the airport earlier in the day as he had been working in Europe and was going to the game with me. He travelled back to NZ via London and was sitting next to a guy who was flying into Auckland to attend the 3rd test and flying back to the UK the following day - that's dedication. And at the test there was a South African guy (wearing his Bok colours) next to me who also flew to NZ especially for the game. That is what makes these tours unique so long may they continue.

Entirely predictable, and disappointing.

It is a movie promo but Ryan Reynolds is comedy gold.

@sparky said in Bledisoe #1:

@Bovidae Opps, I forgot about Matt Tood.

Easy mistake.

Vaa'i is going to be on the bench for Wales and France so needs a decent hitout against the USA. I am expecting him to start with Whitelock and Lord to get 20 mins off the bench. It seems BBBR will be one of the players heading to Cardiff early.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/all-blacks/300434516/all-blacks-hold-remembrance-drinks-for-sean-wainui-in-washington-dc

The All Blacks team to play on Sunday morning (NZT) won't be revealed to the public until Friday, but assistant coach John Plumtree said if a player wanted to make himself unavailable his wish would be immediately granted.
A chunk of the tour party, yet to be revealed, will leave for Cardiff the day before the test in Washington DC.

I am expecting Kapa o Pango for this test.

Sam Moli, Nasi Manu or Zane Kapeli.

New Zealand Rugby is planning a special tribute for Wainui for this weekend's NPC matches, with details to be confirmed later this week.

MP would want to have some consistency in their squad so 2 years would be preferable I would think. It also keeps these players in NZ to play NPC.

Any indication on the length of these contracts? 1 yr? 2 yrs?

Taranaki has a home game on Sat so I am sure there will be plenty of emotion at that game too.

@gt12 said in Beer thread:

@voodoo said in Memes:

@gt12 said in Memes:

@canefan said in Memes:

I bet we all have a photo like that.

How good does that beer look too? That is a VB, or a Carlton Draught, or a Lion Red or a DB. Heck, maybe it's a fucking Rheineck.

Either way, it's cold, sub-4.5% alcohol, and that bloke is about to enjoy 15 of them.

Lion Brown or Bavarian Bitter at ours (not anymore, thank god).

My old man drank Lion Brown too, so that's what I was offered when I was young. I have never been a fan of Waikato Draught.

Isn't a local Murupara GP also to blame for the vaccine hesitancy there?

@crucial said in Chiefs 2022:

What's the story with Kapeli?

It was mentioned at the end of SR-TT that Kapeli hadn't been offered a contract as there wasn't a position available.

MP would be a good bet if Kapeli remains in NZ.