All Blacks 2025
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I'd like to see Love and Reihana get some game time at 10 for the ABs. Meaningful game time too. Not Plummer game time.
That said I think any time a NZ rugby player comes back to NZ to play in NZ for NZ teams is good. So Im happy Mo'unga is coming back and we will see if he's good enough for the ABs.
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@brodean said in All Blacks 2025:
I'd like to see Love and Reihana get some game time at 10 for the ABs. Meaningful game time too. Not Plummer game time.
That said I think any time a NZ rugby player comes back to NZ to play in NZ for NZ teams is good. So Im happy Mo'unga is coming back and we will see if he's good enough for the ABs.
Razor says he's good enough
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@brodean yep, which is why if Razor had done his bidding privately, rather than in the media, people probably would have seen this as the win it could be rather than Razor all but saying the guys we have ain't up to it.
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I understand the calls for Love, but Reihana? He should be a long way off. I would rather see Jacomb if we really had to pick someone.
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@canefan said in All Blacks 2025:
@brodean said in All Blacks 2025:
I'd like to see Love and Reihana get some game time at 10 for the ABs. Meaningful game time too. Not Plummer game time.
That said I think any time a NZ rugby player comes back to NZ to play in NZ for NZ teams is good. So Im happy Mo'unga is coming back and we will see if he's good enough for the ABs.
Razor says he's good enough
Good enough to sign for the future as an option.
Anything could happen between now and the EOYT 2026.
Injuries forced Sititi's selection last year against SA after a dud performance against the Puma's as a sub. He was instrumental in losing that game being penalised 3 times in a quarter. Now some people a calling him a generational player.
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@Crazy-Horse said in All Blacks 2025:
I understand the calls for Love, but Reihana? He should be a long way off. I would rather see Jacomb if we really had to pick someone.
Jacomb looked way out of his league playing for the Barbarians team.
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@brodean said in All Blacks 2025:
@Crazy-Horse said in All Blacks 2025:
I understand the calls for Love, but Reihana? He should be a long way off. I would rather see Jacomb if we really had to pick someone.
Jacomb looked way out of his league playing for the Barbarians team.
Didn't see that game to be honest.
Reihana was awful on the weekend at NPC level.
We are just clutching at straws anyway. Unfortunately none of the 'young' tens are showing much.
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@brodean said in All Blacks 2025:
@Crazy-Horse said in All Blacks 2025:
I understand the calls for Love, but Reihana? He should be a long way off. I would rather see Jacomb if we really had to pick someone.
Jacomb looked way out of his league playing for the Barbarians team.
Yeah I don't see what Jacomb has that would make him better. Both still fairly young though? I'm inclined to ignore NPC for the most part anyway - certainly is interesting to judge players on that rather than SR.
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@Bones said in All Blacks 2025:
@brodean said in All Blacks 2025:
@Crazy-Horse said in All Blacks 2025:
I understand the calls for Love, but Reihana? He should be a long way off. I would rather see Jacomb if we really had to pick someone.
Jacomb looked way out of his league playing for the Barbarians team.
Yeah I don't see what Jacomb has that would make him better. Both still fairly young though? I'm inclined to ignore NPC for the most part anyway - certainly is interesting to judge players on that rather than SR.
Reihana had a handful of Super Rugby standard games this season. No better than that. My point is, our up and coming 10s are not that good at the moment. Not advocating for Jacomb, just saying I would look at him before Reihana. Neither one of them are AB standard.
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@Crazy-Horse said in All Blacks 2025:
@Bones said in All Blacks 2025:
@brodean said in All Blacks 2025:
@Crazy-Horse said in All Blacks 2025:
I understand the calls for Love, but Reihana? He should be a long way off. I would rather see Jacomb if we really had to pick someone.
Jacomb looked way out of his league playing for the Barbarians team.
Yeah I don't see what Jacomb has that would make him better. Both still fairly young though? I'm inclined to ignore NPC for the most part anyway - certainly is interesting to judge players on that rather than SR.
Reihana had a handful of Super Rugby standard games this season. No better than that. My point is, our up and coming 10s are not that good at the moment. Not advocating for Jacomb, just saying I would look at him before Reihana. Neither one of them are AB standard.
If the slop dished up by BB at 10 for the past 5 years or so is AB standard, then it's hardly high praise.
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@nzzp said in All Blacks 2025:
@MN5 said in All Blacks 2025:
@nzzp said in All Blacks 2025:
@sparky said in All Blacks 2025:
We did something similar with Sonny Bill Williams which turned out alright, even if the circus around him was nauseating at times.
We did it again with Roger Tuisava-Sheck who never really seemed at home in Rugby.
SBW was a crazy athlete - if he got the positioning and skills he was going to succeed in some format.
Was he really ? Great beach muscles but was he noticably faster, fitter, stronger than others ?
Ma’a Nonu blasted through tackles better than he did, J Savea, R Ioane etc were quicker.
If you want to compare him to our greatest 12, a wing who had a peak as high as any in world rugby and the best athlete in the team, then go for it. It may not make the point you are trying to make though.
He was a pretty remarkable dude, carried a big frame with him and some serious muscle.
Genuine freak athlete, despite not having the all round ability of those who came through playing rugby all their lives.
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@reprobate said in All Blacks 2025:
@Crazy-Horse said in All Blacks 2025:
@Bones said in All Blacks 2025:
@brodean said in All Blacks 2025:
@Crazy-Horse said in All Blacks 2025:
I understand the calls for Love, but Reihana? He should be a long way off. I would rather see Jacomb if we really had to pick someone.
Jacomb looked way out of his league playing for the Barbarians team.
Yeah I don't see what Jacomb has that would make him better. Both still fairly young though? I'm inclined to ignore NPC for the most part anyway - certainly is interesting to judge players on that rather than SR.
Reihana had a handful of Super Rugby standard games this season. No better than that. My point is, our up and coming 10s are not that good at the moment. Not advocating for Jacomb, just saying I would look at him before Reihana. Neither one of them are AB standard.
If the slop dished up by BB at 10 for the past 5 years or so is AB standard, then it's hardly high praise.
No arguement from me there. I have never rated BB as an outstanding 10, even when he was in his prime.
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Mo'unga's strength in SR was his ability to wait for, identify a mismatch and exploit his acceleration to best effect. Not sure spending a few years playing giggle ball in Japan as he ages is going to make him a clear best option when he comes back.
Which concerns me greatly about Captain Combover's coaching if he's hanging his hopes on him.
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@antipodean said in All Blacks 2025:
Captain Combover's
He's had a promotion from Crafty to Captain?
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@Crazy-Horse said in All Blacks 2025:
@Bones said in All Blacks 2025:
@brodean said in All Blacks 2025:
@Crazy-Horse said in All Blacks 2025:
I understand the calls for Love, but Reihana? He should be a long way off. I would rather see Jacomb if we really had to pick someone.
Jacomb looked way out of his league playing for the Barbarians team.
Yeah I don't see what Jacomb has that would make him better. Both still fairly young though? I'm inclined to ignore NPC for the most part anyway - certainly is interesting to judge players on that rather than SR.
Reihana had a handful of Super Rugby standard games this season. No better than that. My point is, our up and coming 10s are not that good at the moment. Not advocating for Jacomb, just saying I would look at him before Reihana. Neither one of them are AB standard.
This is bang on.
We lament the same blokes failing in black. But no one is banging the door down behind them.
Our talent pathways are looking sketchy
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@mariner4life said in All Blacks 2025:
@Crazy-Horse said in All Blacks 2025:
@Bones said in All Blacks 2025:
@brodean said in All Blacks 2025:
@Crazy-Horse said in All Blacks 2025:
I understand the calls for Love, but Reihana? He should be a long way off. I would rather see Jacomb if we really had to pick someone.
Jacomb looked way out of his league playing for the Barbarians team.
Yeah I don't see what Jacomb has that would make him better. Both still fairly young though? I'm inclined to ignore NPC for the most part anyway - certainly is interesting to judge players on that rather than SR.
Reihana had a handful of Super Rugby standard games this season. No better than that. My point is, our up and coming 10s are not that good at the moment. Not advocating for Jacomb, just saying I would look at him before Reihana. Neither one of them are AB standard.
This is bang on.
We lament the same blokes failing in black. But no one is banging the door down behind them.
Our talent pathways are looking sketchy
I dunno, no one is getting a chance to prove otherwise either, are they?
You wouldn't exactly say Holland was banging down the door looking like a superstar either, but he's been given a proper chance and is shaping up nicely.
