Possible All Blacks 2020
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The one upside we are seeing, if this season does restart, all these all blacks have been well and truly rested..
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@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Bones said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B Nah, crap. Cane and Ardie should be first on the team list but combine them both with a contrasting player to make up the loosies. Cane's shoulder is one of the most devastating in world rugby. Only problem I see is finding a taller player for the vacant loosie role. I really like the look of Robinson for that role.
Yeah - but, if we had a peak Jerome Kaino available no-one would even be considering playing dual sevens.
Calling a spade a spade - that is exactly what playing Sam and Ardie is.
And we'll get away with it in most games. But, in the biggest games we probably won't - Big Pieter-Steph will win World Cups and Player of the Year and we won't!
I agree with this wholeheartedly, but the issue is not Ardie vs. Cane - it's really who is our Kaino-esque number 6 that is going to add more on match day (big game or otherwise)?
Also, I don't see Cane and Ardie being so similar that playing them both means we are losing out other complementary skills. For instance, while they are probably evens in their ball-winning ability, Ardie is clearly a better attacking player, whereas Cane is definitely a better defender.
The next question is who is the currently available player who can best compliment those two guys in the back row - either as a 6 or 8?
This is rather confusing....you say you agree wholeheartedly and then spend the rest of the post disagreeing?
I mean, I agree wholeheartedly with @Chris-B , but that's on the premise we have someone appropriate to play the Kaino-esque role. Who that is NOW is, to my mind, unclear. (In a year or two the position is likely to become much clearer, with guys like Robinson, Sotutu, Akira, Jacobsen etc. looking potentially able to get there.)
So, my position is that, for NOW, we're going to have to suck it up and realise that play one of our two best open sides "out of position" (likely to be Ardie playing 8, IMO).
...and you're probably right that we'll end up doing this for a while - or maybe not given that there's unlikely to be any test rugby this year.
But, my original point was that if we have Sam Cane as captain, we're further muddying the waters, because there's a good chance he's no longer our best 7.
Beyond that, I'd be quite happy with him as captain. He seems to do a good job at the Chiefs and I think he presents better than Sam Whitelock.
But, I'll be pretty surprised if they don't choose Whitelock - that looked like the way the stars were aligning - and I'm not really worried about the RWC push. He's not a serial offender.
I take the point, but I think who is the best 7 will depend largely on how they want to play the game. (I'd add that I also polite fully disagree that Ardie is our best 7 - I think that is Cane. Ardie is, however, an absolutely outstanding back row option in all positions - like Chris Mason but much better.)
Similarly, who wears the 7 jersey will depend upon who our 6 / 8 options are and how compelling a case they each make for selection. I can easily see a scenario where we have a 6. S Barrett, 7. Cane and 8. Ardie back row at some point this year because none of the young 6 / 8 options coming through are quite ready. Indeed, if you're going to consider S Barrett as a 6, you probably need someone a bit quicker, like Ardie, playing at 8 to compete with the quicker back rows.
For me, it is all about balance. We can easily play them both in the back row, provided that the third back rower can bring complimentary skills and attributes to the mix.
S.Barrett stays at lock - we have 3 great locks and a Tuipolutu. Rest, rotate, get the best out of all three for as long as possible. In the big games - merit & form based selection please.
@westcoastie said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Bones said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B Nah, crap. Cane and Ardie should be first on the team list but combine them both with a contrasting player to make up the loosies. Cane's shoulder is one of the most devastating in world rugby. Only problem I see is finding a taller player for the vacant loosie role. I really like the look of Robinson for that role.
Yeah - but, if we had a peak Jerome Kaino available no-one would even be considering playing dual sevens.
Calling a spade a spade - that is exactly what playing Sam and Ardie is.
And we'll get away with it in most games. But, in the biggest games we probably won't - Big Pieter-Steph will win World Cups and Player of the Year and we won't!
I agree with this wholeheartedly, but the issue is not Ardie vs. Cane - it's really who is our Kaino-esque number 6 that is going to add more on match day (big game or otherwise)?
Also, I don't see Cane and Ardie being so similar that playing them both means we are losing out other complementary skills. For instance, while they are probably evens in their ball-winning ability, Ardie is clearly a better attacking player, whereas Cane is definitely a better defender.
The next question is who is the currently available player who can best compliment those two guys in the back row - either as a 6 or 8?
This is rather confusing....you say you agree wholeheartedly and then spend the rest of the post disagreeing?
I mean, I agree wholeheartedly with @Chris-B , but that's on the premise we have someone appropriate to play the Kaino-esque role. Who that is NOW is, to my mind, unclear. (In a year or two the position is likely to become much clearer, with guys like Robinson, Sotutu, Akira, Jacobsen etc. looking potentially able to get there.)
So, my position is that, for NOW, we're going to have to suck it up and realise that play one of our two best open sides "out of position" (likely to be Ardie playing 8, IMO).
...and you're probably right that we'll end up doing this for a while - or maybe not given that there's unlikely to be any test rugby this year.
But, my original point was that if we have Sam Cane as captain, we're further muddying the waters, because there's a good chance he's no longer our best 7.
Beyond that, I'd be quite happy with him as captain. He seems to do a good job at the Chiefs and I think he presents better than Sam Whitelock.
But, I'll be pretty surprised if they don't choose Whitelock - that looked like the way the stars were aligning - and I'm not really worried about the RWC push. He's not a serial offender.
I take the point, but I think who is the best 7 will depend largely on how they want to play the game. (I'd add that I also polite fully disagree that Ardie is our best 7 - I think that is Cane. Ardie is, however, an absolutely outstanding back row option in all positions - like Chris Mason but much better.)
Similarly, who wears the 7 jersey will depend upon who our 6 / 8 options are and how compelling a case they each make for selection. I can easily see a scenario where we have a 6. S Barrett, 7. Cane and 8. Ardie back row at some point this year because none of the young 6 / 8 options coming through are quite ready. Indeed, if you're going to consider S Barrett as a 6, you probably need someone a bit quicker, like Ardie, playing at 8 to compete with the quicker back rows.
For me, it is all about balance. We can easily play them both in the back row, provided that the third back rower can bring complimentary skills and attributes to the mix.
S.Barrett stays at lock - we have 3 great locks and a Tuipolutu. Rest, rotate, get the best out of all three for as long as possible. In the big games - merit & form based selection please.
Steve, don't be silly, we have two great locks and an S Barrett and a Tuipulotu.
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@nzzp said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@westcoastie said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@taniwharugby said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@nzzp my point about the opening quarter was where we lost the game...which was a few posts back, my point about when Sam did it, I felt that we were never coming back...while I usually think we are a chance to snatch games, but in that game from about halftime, I never really had that feeling that we would steal it.
it was like watching 80min slow-motion car crash. we lost that game at the selection table.
eh, it's the swiss cheese model, but I reckon it started with the RWC being a year too late for us. A year earlier you get good Rieko, good Ben, etc. After that it was:
- selections
- tactics/strategy (not using Scott after selecting him? FFS)
- attitude/dealing with the post-ireland mental slump, lack of physicality
- mental fragility - emphasised by Sam's push
- ...
In hindsight, you can see little issues from 2017 through 2019.
What if we hadn't fucked around giving SBW time? Would've had a settled, experienced ALB/Goodhue combo most likely.
Maybe should've put Read to pasture post-Lions.
Maybe shouldn't fuck around with Lock/Loosie selections (Ireland in Chicago, England in Japan)
But then thats the beauty of hindsight ain't it.@westcoastie said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@nzzp said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@westcoastie said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@taniwharugby said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@nzzp my point about the opening quarter was where we lost the game...which was a few posts back, my point about when Sam did it, I felt that we were never coming back...while I usually think we are a chance to snatch games, but in that game from about halftime, I never really had that feeling that we would steal it.
it was like watching 80min slow-motion car crash. we lost that game at the selection table.
eh, it's the swiss cheese model, but I reckon it started with the RWC being a year too late for us. A year earlier you get good Rieko, good Ben, etc. After that it was:
- selections
- tactics/strategy (not using Scott after selecting him? FFS)
- attitude/dealing with the post-ireland mental slump, lack of physicality
- mental fragility - emphasised by Sam's push
- ...
In hindsight, you can see little issues from 2017 through 2019.
What if we hadn't fucked around giving SBW time? Would've had a settled, experienced ALB/Goodhue combo most likely.
Maybe should've put Read to pasture post-Lions.
Maybe shouldn't fuck around with Lock/Loosie selections (Ireland in Chicago, England in Japan)
But then thats the beauty of hindsight ain't it.Some of the selection in that game were forced by the unavailability of several players, such as Whitelock and Retallick being injured, Romano on bereavement leave. We were short on locks, so they had to play Kaino in the second row.
While I had the impression at the time that there was some complacency, with a preparation that was too relaxed, a lot came down to the forward pack being totally out of sync.
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@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Bones said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B Nah, crap. Cane and Ardie should be first on the team list but combine them both with a contrasting player to make up the loosies. Cane's shoulder is one of the most devastating in world rugby. Only problem I see is finding a taller player for the vacant loosie role. I really like the look of Robinson for that role.
Yeah - but, if we had a peak Jerome Kaino available no-one would even be considering playing dual sevens.
Calling a spade a spade - that is exactly what playing Sam and Ardie is.
And we'll get away with it in most games. But, in the biggest games we probably won't - Big Pieter-Steph will win World Cups and Player of the Year and we won't!
I agree with this wholeheartedly, but the issue is not Ardie vs. Cane - it's really who is our Kaino-esque number 6 that is going to add more on match day (big game or otherwise)?
Also, I don't see Cane and Ardie being so similar that playing them both means we are losing out other complementary skills. For instance, while they are probably evens in their ball-winning ability, Ardie is clearly a better attacking player, whereas Cane is definitely a better defender.
The next question is who is the currently available player who can best compliment those two guys in the back row - either as a 6 or 8?
This is rather confusing....you say you agree wholeheartedly and then spend the rest of the post disagreeing?
I mean, I agree wholeheartedly with @Chris-B , but that's on the premise we have someone appropriate to play the Kaino-esque role. Who that is NOW is, to my mind, unclear. (In a year or two the position is likely to become much clearer, with guys like Robinson, Sotutu, Akira, Jacobsen etc. looking potentially able to get there.)
So, my position is that, for NOW, we're going to have to suck it up and realise that play one of our two best open sides "out of position" (likely to be Ardie playing 8, IMO).
...and you're probably right that we'll end up doing this for a while - or maybe not given that there's unlikely to be any test rugby this year.
But, my original point was that if we have Sam Cane as captain, we're further muddying the waters, because there's a good chance he's no longer our best 7.
Beyond that, I'd be quite happy with him as captain. He seems to do a good job at the Chiefs and I think he presents better than Sam Whitelock.
But, I'll be pretty surprised if they don't choose Whitelock - that looked like the way the stars were aligning - and I'm not really worried about the RWC push. He's not a serial offender.
I take the point, but I think who is the best 7 will depend largely on how they want to play the game. (I'd add that I also polite fully disagree that Ardie is our best 7 - I think that is Cane. Ardie is, however, an absolutely outstanding back row option in all positions - like Chris Mason but much better.)
Similarly, who wears the 7 jersey will depend upon who our 6 / 8 options are and how compelling a case they each make for selection. I can easily see a scenario where we have a 6. S Barrett, 7. Cane and 8. Ardie back row at some point this year because none of the young 6 / 8 options coming through are quite ready. Indeed, if you're going to consider S Barrett as a 6, you probably need someone a bit quicker, like Ardie, playing at 8 to compete with the quicker back rows.
For me, it is all about balance. We can easily play them both in the back row, provided that the third back rower can bring complimentary skills and attributes to the mix.
S.Barrett stays at lock - we have 3 great locks and a Tuipolutu. Rest, rotate, get the best out of all three for as long as possible. In the big games - merit & form based selection please.
@westcoastie said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Bones said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B Nah, crap. Cane and Ardie should be first on the team list but combine them both with a contrasting player to make up the loosies. Cane's shoulder is one of the most devastating in world rugby. Only problem I see is finding a taller player for the vacant loosie role. I really like the look of Robinson for that role.
Yeah - but, if we had a peak Jerome Kaino available no-one would even be considering playing dual sevens.
Calling a spade a spade - that is exactly what playing Sam and Ardie is.
And we'll get away with it in most games. But, in the biggest games we probably won't - Big Pieter-Steph will win World Cups and Player of the Year and we won't!
I agree with this wholeheartedly, but the issue is not Ardie vs. Cane - it's really who is our Kaino-esque number 6 that is going to add more on match day (big game or otherwise)?
Also, I don't see Cane and Ardie being so similar that playing them both means we are losing out other complementary skills. For instance, while they are probably evens in their ball-winning ability, Ardie is clearly a better attacking player, whereas Cane is definitely a better defender.
The next question is who is the currently available player who can best compliment those two guys in the back row - either as a 6 or 8?
This is rather confusing....you say you agree wholeheartedly and then spend the rest of the post disagreeing?
I mean, I agree wholeheartedly with @Chris-B , but that's on the premise we have someone appropriate to play the Kaino-esque role. Who that is NOW is, to my mind, unclear. (In a year or two the position is likely to become much clearer, with guys like Robinson, Sotutu, Akira, Jacobsen etc. looking potentially able to get there.)
So, my position is that, for NOW, we're going to have to suck it up and realise that play one of our two best open sides "out of position" (likely to be Ardie playing 8, IMO).
...and you're probably right that we'll end up doing this for a while - or maybe not given that there's unlikely to be any test rugby this year.
But, my original point was that if we have Sam Cane as captain, we're further muddying the waters, because there's a good chance he's no longer our best 7.
Beyond that, I'd be quite happy with him as captain. He seems to do a good job at the Chiefs and I think he presents better than Sam Whitelock.
But, I'll be pretty surprised if they don't choose Whitelock - that looked like the way the stars were aligning - and I'm not really worried about the RWC push. He's not a serial offender.
I take the point, but I think who is the best 7 will depend largely on how they want to play the game. (I'd add that I also polite fully disagree that Ardie is our best 7 - I think that is Cane. Ardie is, however, an absolutely outstanding back row option in all positions - like Chris Mason but much better.)
Similarly, who wears the 7 jersey will depend upon who our 6 / 8 options are and how compelling a case they each make for selection. I can easily see a scenario where we have a 6. S Barrett, 7. Cane and 8. Ardie back row at some point this year because none of the young 6 / 8 options coming through are quite ready. Indeed, if you're going to consider S Barrett as a 6, you probably need someone a bit quicker, like Ardie, playing at 8 to compete with the quicker back rows.
For me, it is all about balance. We can easily play them both in the back row, provided that the third back rower can bring complimentary skills and attributes to the mix.
S.Barrett stays at lock - we have 3 great locks and a Tuipolutu. Rest, rotate, get the best out of all three for as long as possible. In the big games - merit & form based selection please.
In an ideal world that would be my preference. However, who is going to play 6 in your scenario?
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@westcoastie said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Bones said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B Nah, crap. Cane and Ardie should be first on the team list but combine them both with a contrasting player to make up the loosies. Cane's shoulder is one of the most devastating in world rugby. Only problem I see is finding a taller player for the vacant loosie role. I really like the look of Robinson for that role.
Yeah - but, if we had a peak Jerome Kaino available no-one would even be considering playing dual sevens.
Calling a spade a spade - that is exactly what playing Sam and Ardie is.
And we'll get away with it in most games. But, in the biggest games we probably won't - Big Pieter-Steph will win World Cups and Player of the Year and we won't!
I agree with this wholeheartedly, but the issue is not Ardie vs. Cane - it's really who is our Kaino-esque number 6 that is going to add more on match day (big game or otherwise)?
Also, I don't see Cane and Ardie being so similar that playing them both means we are losing out other complementary skills. For instance, while they are probably evens in their ball-winning ability, Ardie is clearly a better attacking player, whereas Cane is definitely a better defender.
The next question is who is the currently available player who can best compliment those two guys in the back row - either as a 6 or 8?
This is rather confusing....you say you agree wholeheartedly and then spend the rest of the post disagreeing?
I mean, I agree wholeheartedly with @Chris-B , but that's on the premise we have someone appropriate to play the Kaino-esque role. Who that is NOW is, to my mind, unclear. (In a year or two the position is likely to become much clearer, with guys like Robinson, Sotutu, Akira, Jacobsen etc. looking potentially able to get there.)
So, my position is that, for NOW, we're going to have to suck it up and realise that play one of our two best open sides "out of position" (likely to be Ardie playing 8, IMO).
...and you're probably right that we'll end up doing this for a while - or maybe not given that there's unlikely to be any test rugby this year.
But, my original point was that if we have Sam Cane as captain, we're further muddying the waters, because there's a good chance he's no longer our best 7.
Beyond that, I'd be quite happy with him as captain. He seems to do a good job at the Chiefs and I think he presents better than Sam Whitelock.
But, I'll be pretty surprised if they don't choose Whitelock - that looked like the way the stars were aligning - and I'm not really worried about the RWC push. He's not a serial offender.
I take the point, but I think who is the best 7 will depend largely on how they want to play the game. (I'd add that I also polite fully disagree that Ardie is our best 7 - I think that is Cane. Ardie is, however, an absolutely outstanding back row option in all positions - like Chris Mason but much better.)
Similarly, who wears the 7 jersey will depend upon who our 6 / 8 options are and how compelling a case they each make for selection. I can easily see a scenario where we have a 6. S Barrett, 7. Cane and 8. Ardie back row at some point this year because none of the young 6 / 8 options coming through are quite ready. Indeed, if you're going to consider S Barrett as a 6, you probably need someone a bit quicker, like Ardie, playing at 8 to compete with the quicker back rows.
For me, it is all about balance. We can easily play them both in the back row, provided that the third back rower can bring complimentary skills and attributes to the mix.
S.Barrett stays at lock - we have 3 great locks and a Tuipolutu. Rest, rotate, get the best out of all three for as long as possible. In the big games - merit & form based selection please.
In an ideal world that would be my preference. However, who is going to play 6 in your scenario?
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@westcoastie said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Bones said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B Nah, crap. Cane and Ardie should be first on the team list but combine them both with a contrasting player to make up the loosies. Cane's shoulder is one of the most devastating in world rugby. Only problem I see is finding a taller player for the vacant loosie role. I really like the look of Robinson for that role.
Yeah - but, if we had a peak Jerome Kaino available no-one would even be considering playing dual sevens.
Calling a spade a spade - that is exactly what playing Sam and Ardie is.
And we'll get away with it in most games. But, in the biggest games we probably won't - Big Pieter-Steph will win World Cups and Player of the Year and we won't!
I agree with this wholeheartedly, but the issue is not Ardie vs. Cane - it's really who is our Kaino-esque number 6 that is going to add more on match day (big game or otherwise)?
Also, I don't see Cane and Ardie being so similar that playing them both means we are losing out other complementary skills. For instance, while they are probably evens in their ball-winning ability, Ardie is clearly a better attacking player, whereas Cane is definitely a better defender.
The next question is who is the currently available player who can best compliment those two guys in the back row - either as a 6 or 8?
This is rather confusing....you say you agree wholeheartedly and then spend the rest of the post disagreeing?
I mean, I agree wholeheartedly with @Chris-B , but that's on the premise we have someone appropriate to play the Kaino-esque role. Who that is NOW is, to my mind, unclear. (In a year or two the position is likely to become much clearer, with guys like Robinson, Sotutu, Akira, Jacobsen etc. looking potentially able to get there.)
So, my position is that, for NOW, we're going to have to suck it up and realise that play one of our two best open sides "out of position" (likely to be Ardie playing 8, IMO).
...and you're probably right that we'll end up doing this for a while - or maybe not given that there's unlikely to be any test rugby this year.
But, my original point was that if we have Sam Cane as captain, we're further muddying the waters, because there's a good chance he's no longer our best 7.
Beyond that, I'd be quite happy with him as captain. He seems to do a good job at the Chiefs and I think he presents better than Sam Whitelock.
But, I'll be pretty surprised if they don't choose Whitelock - that looked like the way the stars were aligning - and I'm not really worried about the RWC push. He's not a serial offender.
I take the point, but I think who is the best 7 will depend largely on how they want to play the game. (I'd add that I also polite fully disagree that Ardie is our best 7 - I think that is Cane. Ardie is, however, an absolutely outstanding back row option in all positions - like Chris Mason but much better.)
Similarly, who wears the 7 jersey will depend upon who our 6 / 8 options are and how compelling a case they each make for selection. I can easily see a scenario where we have a 6. S Barrett, 7. Cane and 8. Ardie back row at some point this year because none of the young 6 / 8 options coming through are quite ready. Indeed, if you're going to consider S Barrett as a 6, you probably need someone a bit quicker, like Ardie, playing at 8 to compete with the quicker back rows.
For me, it is all about balance. We can easily play them both in the back row, provided that the third back rower can bring complimentary skills and attributes to the mix.
S.Barrett stays at lock - we have 3 great locks and a Tuipolutu. Rest, rotate, get the best out of all three for as long as possible. In the big games - merit & form based selection please.
In an ideal world that would be my preference. However, who is going to play 6 in your scenario?
Wait, did someone call SBarrett a great lock?
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@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@westcoastie said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Bones said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B Nah, crap. Cane and Ardie should be first on the team list but combine them both with a contrasting player to make up the loosies. Cane's shoulder is one of the most devastating in world rugby. Only problem I see is finding a taller player for the vacant loosie role. I really like the look of Robinson for that role.
Yeah - but, if we had a peak Jerome Kaino available no-one would even be considering playing dual sevens.
Calling a spade a spade - that is exactly what playing Sam and Ardie is.
And we'll get away with it in most games. But, in the biggest games we probably won't - Big Pieter-Steph will win World Cups and Player of the Year and we won't!
I agree with this wholeheartedly, but the issue is not Ardie vs. Cane - it's really who is our Kaino-esque number 6 that is going to add more on match day (big game or otherwise)?
Also, I don't see Cane and Ardie being so similar that playing them both means we are losing out other complementary skills. For instance, while they are probably evens in their ball-winning ability, Ardie is clearly a better attacking player, whereas Cane is definitely a better defender.
The next question is who is the currently available player who can best compliment those two guys in the back row - either as a 6 or 8?
This is rather confusing....you say you agree wholeheartedly and then spend the rest of the post disagreeing?
I mean, I agree wholeheartedly with @Chris-B , but that's on the premise we have someone appropriate to play the Kaino-esque role. Who that is NOW is, to my mind, unclear. (In a year or two the position is likely to become much clearer, with guys like Robinson, Sotutu, Akira, Jacobsen etc. looking potentially able to get there.)
So, my position is that, for NOW, we're going to have to suck it up and realise that play one of our two best open sides "out of position" (likely to be Ardie playing 8, IMO).
...and you're probably right that we'll end up doing this for a while - or maybe not given that there's unlikely to be any test rugby this year.
But, my original point was that if we have Sam Cane as captain, we're further muddying the waters, because there's a good chance he's no longer our best 7.
Beyond that, I'd be quite happy with him as captain. He seems to do a good job at the Chiefs and I think he presents better than Sam Whitelock.
But, I'll be pretty surprised if they don't choose Whitelock - that looked like the way the stars were aligning - and I'm not really worried about the RWC push. He's not a serial offender.
I take the point, but I think who is the best 7 will depend largely on how they want to play the game. (I'd add that I also polite fully disagree that Ardie is our best 7 - I think that is Cane. Ardie is, however, an absolutely outstanding back row option in all positions - like Chris Mason but much better.)
Similarly, who wears the 7 jersey will depend upon who our 6 / 8 options are and how compelling a case they each make for selection. I can easily see a scenario where we have a 6. S Barrett, 7. Cane and 8. Ardie back row at some point this year because none of the young 6 / 8 options coming through are quite ready. Indeed, if you're going to consider S Barrett as a 6, you probably need someone a bit quicker, like Ardie, playing at 8 to compete with the quicker back rows.
For me, it is all about balance. We can easily play them both in the back row, provided that the third back rower can bring complimentary skills and attributes to the mix.
S.Barrett stays at lock - we have 3 great locks and a Tuipolutu. Rest, rotate, get the best out of all three for as long as possible. In the big games - merit & form based selection please.
In an ideal world that would be my preference. However, who is going to play 6 in your scenario?
Wait, did someone call SBarrett a great lock?
@mariner4life said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@westcoastie said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Bones said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B Nah, crap. Cane and Ardie should be first on the team list but combine them both with a contrasting player to make up the loosies. Cane's shoulder is one of the most devastating in world rugby. Only problem I see is finding a taller player for the vacant loosie role. I really like the look of Robinson for that role.
Yeah - but, if we had a peak Jerome Kaino available no-one would even be considering playing dual sevens.
Calling a spade a spade - that is exactly what playing Sam and Ardie is.
And we'll get away with it in most games. But, in the biggest games we probably won't - Big Pieter-Steph will win World Cups and Player of the Year and we won't!
I agree with this wholeheartedly, but the issue is not Ardie vs. Cane - it's really who is our Kaino-esque number 6 that is going to add more on match day (big game or otherwise)?
Also, I don't see Cane and Ardie being so similar that playing them both means we are losing out other complementary skills. For instance, while they are probably evens in their ball-winning ability, Ardie is clearly a better attacking player, whereas Cane is definitely a better defender.
The next question is who is the currently available player who can best compliment those two guys in the back row - either as a 6 or 8?
This is rather confusing....you say you agree wholeheartedly and then spend the rest of the post disagreeing?
I mean, I agree wholeheartedly with @Chris-B , but that's on the premise we have someone appropriate to play the Kaino-esque role. Who that is NOW is, to my mind, unclear. (In a year or two the position is likely to become much clearer, with guys like Robinson, Sotutu, Akira, Jacobsen etc. looking potentially able to get there.)
So, my position is that, for NOW, we're going to have to suck it up and realise that play one of our two best open sides "out of position" (likely to be Ardie playing 8, IMO).
...and you're probably right that we'll end up doing this for a while - or maybe not given that there's unlikely to be any test rugby this year.
But, my original point was that if we have Sam Cane as captain, we're further muddying the waters, because there's a good chance he's no longer our best 7.
Beyond that, I'd be quite happy with him as captain. He seems to do a good job at the Chiefs and I think he presents better than Sam Whitelock.
But, I'll be pretty surprised if they don't choose Whitelock - that looked like the way the stars were aligning - and I'm not really worried about the RWC push. He's not a serial offender.
I take the point, but I think who is the best 7 will depend largely on how they want to play the game. (I'd add that I also polite fully disagree that Ardie is our best 7 - I think that is Cane. Ardie is, however, an absolutely outstanding back row option in all positions - like Chris Mason but much better.)
Similarly, who wears the 7 jersey will depend upon who our 6 / 8 options are and how compelling a case they each make for selection. I can easily see a scenario where we have a 6. S Barrett, 7. Cane and 8. Ardie back row at some point this year because none of the young 6 / 8 options coming through are quite ready. Indeed, if you're going to consider S Barrett as a 6, you probably need someone a bit quicker, like Ardie, playing at 8 to compete with the quicker back rows.
For me, it is all about balance. We can easily play them both in the back row, provided that the third back rower can bring complimentary skills and attributes to the mix.
S.Barrett stays at lock - we have 3 great locks and a Tuipolutu. Rest, rotate, get the best out of all three for as long as possible. In the big games - merit & form based selection please.
In an ideal world that would be my preference. However, who is going to play 6 in your scenario?
Wait, did someone call SBarrett a great lock
Yeah I think it was a new user @smylieb or something like that
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@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B Nah, crap. Cane and Ardie should be first on the team list but combine them both with a contrasting player to make up the loosies. Cane's shoulder is one of the most devastating in world rugby. Only problem I see is finding a taller player for the vacant loosie role. I really like the look of Robinson for that role.
Yeah - but, if we had a peak Jerome Kaino available no-one would even be considering playing dual sevens.
Calling a spade a spade - that is exactly what playing Sam and Ardie is.
And we'll get away with it in most games. But, in the biggest games we probably won't - Big Pieter-Steph will win World Cups and Player of the Year and we won't!
I agree with this wholeheartedly, but the issue is not Ardie vs. Cane - it's really who is our Kaino-esque number 6 that is going to add more on match day (big game or otherwise)?
Also, I don't see Cane and Ardie being so similar that playing them both means we are losing out other complementary skills. For instance, while they are probably evens in their ball-winning ability, Ardie is clearly a better attacking player, whereas Cane is definitely a better defender.
The next question is who is the currently available player who can best compliment those two guys in the back row - either as a 6 or 8?
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B Nah, crap. Cane and Ardie should be first on the team list but combine them both with a contrasting player to make up the loosies. Cane's shoulder is one of the most devastating in world rugby. Only problem I see is finding a taller player for the vacant loosie role. I really like the look of Robinson for that role.
Yeah - but, if we had a peak Jerome Kaino available no-one would even be considering playing dual sevens.
Calling a spade a spade - that is exactly what playing Sam and Ardie is.
And we'll get away with it in most games. But, in the biggest games we probably won't - Big Pieter-Steph will win World Cups and Player of the Year and we won't!
I agree with this wholeheartedly, but the issue is not Ardie vs. Cane - it's really who is our Kaino-esque number 6 that is going to add more on match day (big game or otherwise)?
Also, I don't see Cane and Ardie being so similar that playing them both means we are losing out other complementary skills. For instance, while they are probably evens in their ball-winning ability, Ardie is clearly a better attacking player, whereas Cane is definitely a better defender.
The next question is who is the currently available player who can best compliment those two guys in the back row - either as a 6 or 8?
Cane/Kaino/Read was pretty good against Lions?
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@KiwiMurph said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
To add to this -
When looking at horses for courses - the opposition England were really strong in the loose forwards during the RWC in the leadup to the semi final with their 6/7 combo - its not like they were running a lock at 6.
England showed you don't necessarily need a tall 6 and 7 if you have adequate lineout options elsewhere.
I think Cane could be used as the dominant tackler at 6 and put Savea back to 7, and then introduce a newbie like Sotutu at 8 as your main ball-carrier.
@Bovidae said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@KiwiMurph said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
To add to this -
When looking at horses for courses - the opposition England were really strong in the loose forwards during the RWC in the leadup to the semi final with their 6/7 combo - its not like they were running a lock at 6.
England showed you don't necessarily need a tall 6 and 7 if you have adequate lineout options elsewhere.
I think Cane could be used as the dominant tackler at 6 and put Savea back to 7, and then introduce a newbie like Sotutu at 8 as your main ball-carrier.
For me it depends if oppo has class 7. If so, Ardie a big risk at ruck time. If not, he's a hero. At highest level it's Sam at 7 for me.
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@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B Nah, crap. Cane and Ardie should be first on the team list but combine them both with a contrasting player to make up the loosies. Cane's shoulder is one of the most devastating in world rugby. Only problem I see is finding a taller player for the vacant loosie role. I really like the look of Robinson for that role.
Yeah - but, if we had a peak Jerome Kaino available no-one would even be considering playing dual sevens.
Calling a spade a spade - that is exactly what playing Sam and Ardie is.
And we'll get away with it in most games. But, in the biggest games we probably won't - Big Pieter-Steph will win World Cups and Player of the Year and we won't!
I agree with this wholeheartedly, but the issue is not Ardie vs. Cane - it's really who is our Kaino-esque number 6 that is going to add more on match day (big game or otherwise)?
Also, I don't see Cane and Ardie being so similar that playing them both means we are losing out other complementary skills. For instance, while they are probably evens in their ball-winning ability, Ardie is clearly a better attacking player, whereas Cane is definitely a better defender.
The next question is who is the currently available player who can best compliment those two guys in the back row - either as a 6 or 8?
Cane/Kaino/Read was pretty good against Lions?
@pakman said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B Nah, crap. Cane and Ardie should be first on the team list but combine them both with a contrasting player to make up the loosies. Cane's shoulder is one of the most devastating in world rugby. Only problem I see is finding a taller player for the vacant loosie role. I really like the look of Robinson for that role.
Yeah - but, if we had a peak Jerome Kaino available no-one would even be considering playing dual sevens.
Calling a spade a spade - that is exactly what playing Sam and Ardie is.
And we'll get away with it in most games. But, in the biggest games we probably won't - Big Pieter-Steph will win World Cups and Player of the Year and we won't!
I agree with this wholeheartedly, but the issue is not Ardie vs. Cane - it's really who is our Kaino-esque number 6 that is going to add more on match day (big game or otherwise)?
Also, I don't see Cane and Ardie being so similar that playing them both means we are losing out other complementary skills. For instance, while they are probably evens in their ball-winning ability, Ardie is clearly a better attacking player, whereas Cane is definitely a better defender.
The next question is who is the currently available player who can best compliment those two guys in the back row - either as a 6 or 8?
Cane/Kaino/Read was pretty good against Lions?
Yes, they were good against the Lions (at least for the periods when Kaino was on the park). However, and perhaps I'm mistaken, but I thought neither Read nor Kaino were available for the ABs this year (or indeed at any time in the future).
-
@mariner4life said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@westcoastie said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Bones said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B Nah, crap. Cane and Ardie should be first on the team list but combine them both with a contrasting player to make up the loosies. Cane's shoulder is one of the most devastating in world rugby. Only problem I see is finding a taller player for the vacant loosie role. I really like the look of Robinson for that role.
Yeah - but, if we had a peak Jerome Kaino available no-one would even be considering playing dual sevens.
Calling a spade a spade - that is exactly what playing Sam and Ardie is.
And we'll get away with it in most games. But, in the biggest games we probably won't - Big Pieter-Steph will win World Cups and Player of the Year and we won't!
I agree with this wholeheartedly, but the issue is not Ardie vs. Cane - it's really who is our Kaino-esque number 6 that is going to add more on match day (big game or otherwise)?
Also, I don't see Cane and Ardie being so similar that playing them both means we are losing out other complementary skills. For instance, while they are probably evens in their ball-winning ability, Ardie is clearly a better attacking player, whereas Cane is definitely a better defender.
The next question is who is the currently available player who can best compliment those two guys in the back row - either as a 6 or 8?
This is rather confusing....you say you agree wholeheartedly and then spend the rest of the post disagreeing?
I mean, I agree wholeheartedly with @Chris-B , but that's on the premise we have someone appropriate to play the Kaino-esque role. Who that is NOW is, to my mind, unclear. (In a year or two the position is likely to become much clearer, with guys like Robinson, Sotutu, Akira, Jacobsen etc. looking potentially able to get there.)
So, my position is that, for NOW, we're going to have to suck it up and realise that play one of our two best open sides "out of position" (likely to be Ardie playing 8, IMO).
...and you're probably right that we'll end up doing this for a while - or maybe not given that there's unlikely to be any test rugby this year.
But, my original point was that if we have Sam Cane as captain, we're further muddying the waters, because there's a good chance he's no longer our best 7.
Beyond that, I'd be quite happy with him as captain. He seems to do a good job at the Chiefs and I think he presents better than Sam Whitelock.
But, I'll be pretty surprised if they don't choose Whitelock - that looked like the way the stars were aligning - and I'm not really worried about the RWC push. He's not a serial offender.
I take the point, but I think who is the best 7 will depend largely on how they want to play the game. (I'd add that I also polite fully disagree that Ardie is our best 7 - I think that is Cane. Ardie is, however, an absolutely outstanding back row option in all positions - like Chris Mason but much better.)
Similarly, who wears the 7 jersey will depend upon who our 6 / 8 options are and how compelling a case they each make for selection. I can easily see a scenario where we have a 6. S Barrett, 7. Cane and 8. Ardie back row at some point this year because none of the young 6 / 8 options coming through are quite ready. Indeed, if you're going to consider S Barrett as a 6, you probably need someone a bit quicker, like Ardie, playing at 8 to compete with the quicker back rows.
For me, it is all about balance. We can easily play them both in the back row, provided that the third back rower can bring complimentary skills and attributes to the mix.
S.Barrett stays at lock - we have 3 great locks and a Tuipolutu. Rest, rotate, get the best out of all three for as long as possible. In the big games - merit & form based selection please.
In an ideal world that would be my preference. However, who is going to play 6 in your scenario?
Wait, did someone call SBarrett a great lock
Yeah I think it was a new user @smylieb or something like that
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@mariner4life said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@westcoastie said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Bones said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B Nah, crap. Cane and Ardie should be first on the team list but combine them both with a contrasting player to make up the loosies. Cane's shoulder is one of the most devastating in world rugby. Only problem I see is finding a taller player for the vacant loosie role. I really like the look of Robinson for that role.
Yeah - but, if we had a peak Jerome Kaino available no-one would even be considering playing dual sevens.
Calling a spade a spade - that is exactly what playing Sam and Ardie is.
And we'll get away with it in most games. But, in the biggest games we probably won't - Big Pieter-Steph will win World Cups and Player of the Year and we won't!
I agree with this wholeheartedly, but the issue is not Ardie vs. Cane - it's really who is our Kaino-esque number 6 that is going to add more on match day (big game or otherwise)?
Also, I don't see Cane and Ardie being so similar that playing them both means we are losing out other complementary skills. For instance, while they are probably evens in their ball-winning ability, Ardie is clearly a better attacking player, whereas Cane is definitely a better defender.
The next question is who is the currently available player who can best compliment those two guys in the back row - either as a 6 or 8?
This is rather confusing....you say you agree wholeheartedly and then spend the rest of the post disagreeing?
I mean, I agree wholeheartedly with @Chris-B , but that's on the premise we have someone appropriate to play the Kaino-esque role. Who that is NOW is, to my mind, unclear. (In a year or two the position is likely to become much clearer, with guys like Robinson, Sotutu, Akira, Jacobsen etc. looking potentially able to get there.)
So, my position is that, for NOW, we're going to have to suck it up and realise that play one of our two best open sides "out of position" (likely to be Ardie playing 8, IMO).
...and you're probably right that we'll end up doing this for a while - or maybe not given that there's unlikely to be any test rugby this year.
But, my original point was that if we have Sam Cane as captain, we're further muddying the waters, because there's a good chance he's no longer our best 7.
Beyond that, I'd be quite happy with him as captain. He seems to do a good job at the Chiefs and I think he presents better than Sam Whitelock.
But, I'll be pretty surprised if they don't choose Whitelock - that looked like the way the stars were aligning - and I'm not really worried about the RWC push. He's not a serial offender.
I take the point, but I think who is the best 7 will depend largely on how they want to play the game. (I'd add that I also polite fully disagree that Ardie is our best 7 - I think that is Cane. Ardie is, however, an absolutely outstanding back row option in all positions - like Chris Mason but much better.)
Similarly, who wears the 7 jersey will depend upon who our 6 / 8 options are and how compelling a case they each make for selection. I can easily see a scenario where we have a 6. S Barrett, 7. Cane and 8. Ardie back row at some point this year because none of the young 6 / 8 options coming through are quite ready. Indeed, if you're going to consider S Barrett as a 6, you probably need someone a bit quicker, like Ardie, playing at 8 to compete with the quicker back rows.
For me, it is all about balance. We can easily play them both in the back row, provided that the third back rower can bring complimentary skills and attributes to the mix.
S.Barrett stays at lock - we have 3 great locks and a Tuipolutu. Rest, rotate, get the best out of all three for as long as possible. In the big games - merit & form based selection please.
In an ideal world that would be my preference. However, who is going to play 6 in your scenario?
Wait, did someone call SBarrett a great lock
Yeah I think it was a new user @smylieb or something like that
Or @shag.
-
-
@pakman said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B Nah, crap. Cane and Ardie should be first on the team list but combine them both with a contrasting player to make up the loosies. Cane's shoulder is one of the most devastating in world rugby. Only problem I see is finding a taller player for the vacant loosie role. I really like the look of Robinson for that role.
Yeah - but, if we had a peak Jerome Kaino available no-one would even be considering playing dual sevens.
Calling a spade a spade - that is exactly what playing Sam and Ardie is.
And we'll get away with it in most games. But, in the biggest games we probably won't - Big Pieter-Steph will win World Cups and Player of the Year and we won't!
I agree with this wholeheartedly, but the issue is not Ardie vs. Cane - it's really who is our Kaino-esque number 6 that is going to add more on match day (big game or otherwise)?
Also, I don't see Cane and Ardie being so similar that playing them both means we are losing out other complementary skills. For instance, while they are probably evens in their ball-winning ability, Ardie is clearly a better attacking player, whereas Cane is definitely a better defender.
The next question is who is the currently available player who can best compliment those two guys in the back row - either as a 6 or 8?
Cane/Kaino/Read was pretty good against Lions?
Yes, they were good against the Lions (at least for the periods when Kaino was on the park). However, and perhaps I'm mistaken, but I thought neither Read nor Kaino were available for the ABs this year (or indeed at any time in the future).
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@pakman said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@junior said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in Possible All Blacks 2020:
@Chris-B Nah, crap. Cane and Ardie should be first on the team list but combine them both with a contrasting player to make up the loosies. Cane's shoulder is one of the most devastating in world rugby. Only problem I see is finding a taller player for the vacant loosie role. I really like the look of Robinson for that role.
Yeah - but, if we had a peak Jerome Kaino available no-one would even be considering playing dual sevens.
Calling a spade a spade - that is exactly what playing Sam and Ardie is.
And we'll get away with it in most games. But, in the biggest games we probably won't - Big Pieter-Steph will win World Cups and Player of the Year and we won't!
I agree with this wholeheartedly, but the issue is not Ardie vs. Cane - it's really who is our Kaino-esque number 6 that is going to add more on match day (big game or otherwise)?
Also, I don't see Cane and Ardie being so similar that playing them both means we are losing out other complementary skills. For instance, while they are probably evens in their ball-winning ability, Ardie is clearly a better attacking player, whereas Cane is definitely a better defender.
The next question is who is the currently available player who can best compliment those two guys in the back row - either as a 6 or 8?
Cane/Kaino/Read was pretty good against Lions?
Yes, they were good against the Lions (at least for the periods when Kaino was on the park). However, and perhaps I'm mistaken, but I thought neither Read nor Kaino were available for the ABs this year (or indeed at any time in the future).
Hah! I posted against wrong quote. Mean to comment re comparison McGod/Kaino/Read and Ritchie/Jerry/Rodders.
We need at least two hard hitting tacklers. Which allows third loosie to be someone like Ardie.
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this mirrors my thoughts.
if we have proven 6 and 8 in team ardie comes into converstion as 7.but ardie in a inexperenced trio at 7 is a no goer. we are a long way from that so ardie fills in at 8 or comes off the bench.
if hansen wanted to play barrett at 6 he should have played cane and dropped ardie.
