All Blacks 2025
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yeah, with a solid set piece, you can select any game plan you please
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@akan004 said in All Blacks 2025:
@chchfanatic said in All Blacks 2025:
Paddy Tups with a fractured scull. Won’t see him again this year I suspect.
Why are we getting so many injuries this year? Massive blow.
It's not just the ABs.
Wallabies lost Piestch and Wilson to injury on the weekend on top of Valetini, Tupou, Lynagh, Lolesio, Donaldson etc etc
Boks for this weekend are without Siya Kolisi , Arendse, Van der Merwe and Du Toit who all got injured from last weekend.
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@KiwiMurph bigger faster and harder players (as in muscle mass as opposed to fatty lumps)
Remember when a forward pack was only around 800kg, now, they regularly tick over 900kg and the shapes of those in modern packs are much more athletic and powerful than those from yesteryear, a consequence of better diet and training.
I always marvel at the fact one of our great AB backs in history (granted it was 100 years ago) in Bert Cooke, would be too small for most school teams nowadays, reputedly weighing in under 70kg.
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@Canes4life said in All Blacks 2025:
@No-Quarter said in All Blacks 2025:
@Canes4life that's not really true, Dalton sat behind McCaw and Cane, the AB captains, and post Cane's retirement he's had scant little chances. He was strong for the Blues this year and is well suited to test footy, it beggars belief he wouldn't even be in the squad.
Lol he never sat behind McCaw and he’s had 36 appearances for the ABs, plenty of time to push for a starting jersey. If he was so suited to test rugby he would still be in the squad, obviously lacks a few ingredients in his game that the coaches are after. For me he never really dominated at test level, a bit like Blackadder. No point selecting the same blokes and expecting different results.
There are a lot of Dalton fans on this Fern which is fine because on form he’s good but you can’t argue against the other guys who have been selected, they’ve played better this year.
Maybe the best thing for him is to fight his way back into the ABs and earn that jersey again. Kudos to him if he does.
Your argument seems to centre around if Dalton was good enough he'd be in the squad, which is a poor argument to say the least. This coaching group has made a number of poor selections when it comes to the loose forwards, and they were a huge point of weakness for us last year as a result.
Yes Dalton has played 36 tests behind the AB captain, many off the bench. After Cane's retirement he was the obvious replacement but has not had a chance to show what he can do with a extended run of matches in the jersey. You know, that extended run of matches you keep calling for Canes players when they don't immediately make the step up?
It's obvious you didn't watch many Blues games this year too as Dalton was one of their best. It's pretty debatable who was better between Kirifi and Dalton as they are pretty different players, but Dalton is obviously much better suited to the the "big mans" game test footy. If Kirifi is not getting his turnovers, what exactly does he bring at test level? He sure ain't winning any collisions.
My frustration with the coaches is it's taking them a very long time to learn that players like Kirifi and Blackadder are always going to struggle with the collisions against the big sides, and we'll be put under pressure as a result. A trio of Vaa'i - Dalton - Ardie would look a lot stronger.
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@No-Quarter said in All Blacks 2025:
@Canes4life said in All Blacks 2025:
@No-Quarter said in All Blacks 2025:
@Canes4life that's not really true, Dalton sat behind McCaw and Cane, the AB captains, and post Cane's retirement he's had scant little chances. He was strong for the Blues this year and is well suited to test footy, it beggars belief he wouldn't even be in the squad.
Lol he never sat behind McCaw and he’s had 36 appearances for the ABs, plenty of time to push for a starting jersey. If he was so suited to test rugby he would still be in the squad, obviously lacks a few ingredients in his game that the coaches are after. For me he never really dominated at test level, a bit like Blackadder. No point selecting the same blokes and expecting different results.
There are a lot of Dalton fans on this Fern which is fine because on form he’s good but you can’t argue against the other guys who have been selected, they’ve played better this year.
Maybe the best thing for him is to fight his way back into the ABs and earn that jersey again. Kudos to him if he does.
Your argument seems to centre around if Dalton was good enough he'd be in the squad, which is a poor argument to say the least. This coaching group has made a number of poor selections when it comes to the loose forwards, and they were a huge point of weakness for us last year as a result.
Yes Dalton has played 36 tests behind the AB captain, many off the bench. After Cane's retirement he was the obvious replacement but has not had a chance to show what he can do with a extended run of matches in the jersey. You know, that extended run of matches you keep calling for Canes players when they don't immediately make the step up?
It's obvious you didn't watch many Blues games this year too as Dalton was one of their best. It's pretty debatable who was better between Kirifi and Dalton as they are pretty different players, but Dalton is obviously much better suited to the the "big mans" game test footy. If Kirifi is not getting his turnovers, what exactly does he bring at test level? He sure ain't winning any collisions.
My frustration with the coaches is it's taking them a very long time to learn that players like Kirifi and Blackadder are always going to struggle with the collisions against the big sides, and we'll be put under pressure as a result. A trio of Vaa'i - Dalton - Ardie would look a lot stronger.
I think both Dalton and Kirifi are missing ingredients in their game that we need for this AB team to flourish. I've made it quite clear that Kirifi is on borrowed time and Lakai should take his spot when fit, out of all our options Lakai seems to have the best all round game that will suit the style of rugby we want to play. He's bigger, more powerful and he showed in 2024 that he can do everything that Kirifi did in 2025 playing 7. He's just a much better and more natural athlete, he's built like a brick shithouse and he's got that power game in the carry that will help us get on the front foot as well. Lakai is probably the happy medium between the bigger Papali'i and the smaller Kirifi, I'm really hoping he flourishes because like 13, 7 has been a real problem area for the ABs of late. Savea for me clearly starts at 7 though when Sititi comes back in (assuming that will be this week).
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@Canes4life yeah am with you there, Lakai has serious potential, I think he has a higher ceiling than either player. I just think we'd be better off with Dalton right now as we have battled to win the breakdown collisions of late.
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@No-Quarter said in All Blacks 2025:
@Canes4life yeah am with you there, Lakai has serious potential, I think he has a higher ceiling than either player. I just think we'd be better off with Dalton right now as we have battled to win the breakdown collisions of late.
I'm not trying to hate on Dalton as I'm a fan of his style of play but I guess he just loses out right now because the AB coaches preference of player in that area. I tend to agree that Kirifi should really only be on the field if we have two bigger loosies partnering him, Kirifi + Savea just doesn't work against those bigger packs. I'm hoping Lakai starts to show his potential at test level and I'm sure Dalton will get another opportunity when injuries strike. They clearly see him in front of Blackadder considering he came in for that last French test.
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@No-Quarter said in All Blacks 2025:
@Canes4life yeah am with you there, Lakai has serious potential, I think he has a higher ceiling than either player. I just think we'd be better off with Dalton right now as we have battled to win the breakdown collisions of late.
Last weekend, apart from the third quarter, I thought we did well at ruck and maul time. Kirifi isn't the answer, but I thought he put in a solid shift. I'm still hoping that Parker could be the answer at 6, and I'd like Dalton to switch to 6 in future to see how he goes
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@canefan said in All Blacks 2025:
Kirifi isn't the answer, but I thought he put in a solid shift.
The short Wellington Blackadder.
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@antipodean said in All Blacks 2025:
@canefan said in All Blacks 2025:
Kirifi isn't the answer, but I thought he put in a solid shift.
The short Wellington Blackadder.
I won't be triggered by your analogy....
At least we know who he is. EB fans probably still think he's the second coming of the messiah
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@KiwiMurph said in All Blacks 2025:
@akan004 said in All Blacks 2025:
@chchfanatic said in All Blacks 2025:
Paddy Tups with a fractured scull. Won’t see him again this year I suspect.
Why are we getting so many injuries this year? Massive blow.
It's not just the ABs.
Wallabies lost Piestch and Wilson to injury on the weekend on top of Valetini, Tupou, Lynagh, Lolesio, Donaldson etc etc
Boks for this weekend are without Siya Kolisi , Arendse, Van der Merwe and Du Toit who all got injured from last weekend.
I think it depends on the nature of the injuries, things like soft tissue injuries you can maybe question fitness and conditioning ,
But collision injuries like a bone fracture are going to happen regardless
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Born in Christchurch
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@george33 said in All Blacks 2025:
Patt T got facial fracture out 6 weeks probably depends on surgery if needed.
Should be right for the EOYT.
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It's quite possible the coaches sincerely think they know what Dalton offer and want to see other options while they can but that doesn't quite explain other positions, like Savea at 8 (thinks)...
