The Silver Fern

Thursday?

No one will ever convince me that he didn't handle it poorly.

Pinched this from reddit:
Sam Cane - Defensive Highlights (Wales vs. All Blacks)

Nov 29, 2017

Watch Sam Cane - Defensive Highlights (Wales vs. All Blacks) | Streamable

Watch "Sam Cane - Defensive Highlights (Wales vs. All Blacks)" on Streamable.

I don't really get all the negativity about bandwagon/fair weather fans. It's just proof that lots of people want them to do well, but have got sick of their shit.

The interesting thing about Warriors bandwagoners is how self aware they are. They are often pretty happy to say they support the Warriors when they were winning.

Besides, it's so frustrating watching a team you care about playing like they don't care while hearing rumours about shortcuts at training, entitlement, etc. Fans will let a lot of poor results slide if they think the players are working hard. That was my experience anyway, as a Chiefs fan for the first 15 years or so.

@JayCee In Hames' defense, Bird does have one of those faces. Besides, they should have been knocked a few weeks off as a reward for Hames being able to jump that high.

@Nepia

Thought you'd like this at about 6:28:

Leila Masaga ..."not renowned for his passing"

Duffie had a few high profile defensive misses that year. Nadolo was the famous one, and even though it was understandable, it was pretty embarrassing. In general, I don't think he was impressing many people with his game. However, the thing that really impressed me about Duffie was how he didn't drop his lip or try and run back to league. I didn't anticipate the trajectory of his improvement but even if he didn't get as good as he has gotten, I would have been impressed with how he conducted himself after that first season.

I mentioned to my wife during the game that I'm finally getting a glimpse into what other fans feel when their team plays the All Blacks... double standards from the ref, smug captain given a free pass to talk to the ref as much as he likes, loose passes and inopportune penalties. I now understand their frustration... except for that we won

I had the Irish commentary. The main commentator must surely have kissed the Blarney Stone, such was his eloquence as the game got off to a flyer. However, their ability to watch replay after replay of Barrett's try and not mention the fact he was tackled very high, was amazing.

Fekitoa's tackle was bad. Definitely a yellow, but we can see from the Cane penalty that injury comes into play, so if the guy had been injured it could have been a red. If the Irish 12 wasn't injured I don't think Cane would have even been penalised.

Barrett played well, but I would have given Retallick man of the match. You don't get much better than that from a lock.

@gt12 said in What is the best AB Midfield?:

he's probably the only senior AB who's reputation is growing. Whitelock and (mostly) Cane are staying steady

I think Cane's reputation has increased massively this year. At the beginning of the year there were plenty of people saying he shouldn't be starting (Ardie should have been). I don't hear many people disputing his place in the team anymore.

@taniwharugby said in Bledisloe 2:

@Milk yeah I still remember being at Twickers in 2002 when ABs played England and they were having a moment of silence for Remembrance Day and some fucker shouted out 'All Blacks' in the middle, then some other knob shouted 'ENNGGLAAND'

Yeah, when someone yells out during a moment of silence it makes me realise that there are some people on this earth who I'll never be able to relate to.

I thought Hames really came right as an International prop by the end of last year. What I find interesting about him is that he shows the difference between Super Rugby and International rugby. I mean, from my point of view, the guy kind of sux for the Chiefs. Our scrum doesn't seem that good and he gets penalized ALL the bloody time.

I know the cupboard was bare and they desperately needed someone to fill a gap, but Cron must have seen something in his scrummaging that would translate better to International rugby than Super rugby. I'm sure they are asking him to develop his game around the park, so maybe we'll see signs of that this year.

I like his selection backstory though, and how he is an example of people not coming through the traditional pathways and getting rewarded for sticking around and working hard.

@Kirwan said in Blues v Hurricanes:

And the commentators highlighted how skilful his deception with his hands was too.

He was carving my team up and I could only laugh and admire the skill and pace.

Yeah, that slow mo where they showed him fake to kick, double pump and pass was fantastic... all while running at pace and being totally aware of who was where.

I still don't think he brings his forwards and backline into the game as much as Cruden, but his no. 12 and winger are dominating the try scoring stats so no complaints there.

Every time I see Barrett kick the ball through and it magically bounces into his chest as he runs at pace I think he has sold his soul... it's the only explanation for the success rate... but that's his problem. It's amazing to watch.

@bovidae said in Blues win percentage against NZ teams:

Rennie had a huge cleanout when he took over before the 2012 season. Something like 13 new players, the majority from outside the region, and many not household names (e.g. Tikorotuma). The likes of BBBR and Tameifuna played much bigger roles than expected. I know that the coaches spent a lot of time analysing players during the NPC and were meticulous in their recruitment.

Yeah, I was absolutely gutted with that squad he'd cobbled together. From my uneducated eye, a bunch of 20 year old nobodies. Brodie Retallick!? We're screwed!

When Ben Tameifuna waddled onto the field as an injury replacement against the Blues I thought I was about to see a car crash.

Also, I wasn't a Cruden fan... didn't think he was really up to it and couldn't get past the fact he looked like he was there thanks to the make-a-wish foundation.

Yup, I know my stuff.

@molloyjh said in Ireland II:

There are a lot of people who don't like Nucifora though.

He does seem to have that effect on people, on both sides of the equator.

What I find interesting is how many of these offences are exaggerated in my opinion.

The All Blacks have and always will be accused of being overly cynical. In rugby the winning team is better at pushing the envelope, so I can understand the criticism. I used to think the same about George Smith when he was winning against us. Cozy relationships with the refs go hand in hand that point.

The cameras don't lie, and there are certainly instances of All Blacks committing foul play. I'd argue it's no worse than other teams, but that's neither here nor there.

However, this lack of humility is manufactured as far as I'm concerned. As fans we're terribly self-righteous and thin-skinned, but I'm very proud of how the All Blacks conduct themselves. I remember Kafe's rant about the lack of humility from the ABs and he played an interview from Retallick and Cane to prove it, and I couldn't have disagreed more with his description. This Aaron Smith thing has been blown way out of proportion. He screwed up, but still: "Sports star cheats on partner. Has quickie in bathroom"... shock horror! I thought that was one of the perks of being a rugby star in NZ.

I guess it build's on OP's point that everyone wants to bring the team at the top down to earth, either by their actual infractions, exaggeration or fabrication.

As a New Englander now I have plenty of self-righteous indignation about deflategate too.

I'm on the fence with DMac. He always seemed destined to be a test player, so I am interested in him getting an extended run now, while we can afford it (the stars have aligned for him with Bender and Jordie out). That said, I don't actually know if he can adapt his million-miles-a-minute, uber-involvement game into the test arena. The jury is certainly still out but I'm watching with interest.

However, I've stopped using his size against him. At some point a player takes the ball into traffic enough times and tackles enough men twice his size, where it's not fair to hold it against him. Besides, I'm not convinced it was his height that was the problem with the missed catches.

I've been liking that show, and if they can keep getting interviews with people like Grant Fox I'll definitely keep tuning in.

I've also been enjoying the AllBlacks.com podcast series. Mils' one talked a bit about the change of culture he experienced in the ABs and how he still sees the fruits of that today:

SoundCloud - Hear the world’s sounds

Riki Flutey was pretty good for a yarn too:

SoundCloud - Hear the world’s sounds

There are other interviews with the likes of Sopoaga and Dane Coles that I just think offer a different side of these guys that I usually see in the media. They're a little more open I think. Definitely worth checking out if you have time.

All Blacks Podcast

That was cool. Obviously I'm cheering for all the NZ teams this tour but I keep remembering the regret I felt for cheering for England when they whitewashed the Aussies, because they later went on to share the test win record. So now I'm sitting here like the Beautiful Mind guy trying to work through permutations that would lead to me regretting hoping the Lions get crushed.

Just a couple of thoughts:

That screaming during opposition lineouts is pretty obnoxious aye? I know all teams like to make a racket but this was something else.

Have they not cracked down on cracked down on contesting in the air up North? I agree those calls on Williams were harsh, if I'd seen them last year... but even that first one would have been a yellow in Super Rugby 2017.

That early maul call on the Blues try line annoyed me.

Only Warren Gatland could unite Ferners in actually defending the Herald's coverage of foreign rugby teams.

I'm a fan of Ben Smith, but that flying kung fu kick when he takes high balls is not on. I'd concede keeping a knee up, but the extended foot when you're traveling at pace seems really dodgy to me.