All Blacks 2025
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Mmm... here is an alternative view. Every team with BB at the helm or at an influencial position of running the cutter has had the "headless chook" syndrome. Canes, Foster's reign, Blues including Cotter's Blues, and now Razor's reign . Great player and AB, but bugger me, seems to have an effect on structure and composure. He is the only constant in the "problem". Discuss.
. It is on Razor that he keeps picking him at 10, though.@Old-Samurai-Jack said in All Blacks 2025:
He is the only constant in the "problem". Discuss.
. It is on Razor that he keeps picking him at 10, though.That last line is key
He's seen two different 10s dominate the playoffs and win Super Rugby 2 years in a row playing traditional 10 style and said no thanks both times.....
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@Old-Samurai-Jack said in All Blacks 2025:
He is the only constant in the "problem". Discuss.
. It is on Razor that he keeps picking him at 10, though.That last line is key
He's seen two different 10s dominate the playoffs and win Super Rugby 2 years in a row playing traditional 10 style and said no thanks both times.....
@KiwiMurph said in All Blacks 2025:
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in All Blacks 2025:
He is the only constant in the "problem". Discuss.
. It is on Razor that he keeps picking him at 10, though.That last line is key
He's seen two different 10s dominate the playoffs and win Super Rugby 2 years in a row playing traditional 10 style and said no thanks both times.....
To be fair, though - Vern Cotter agreed with Razor.
As soon as he had Beaudy available, Plummer barely got a look in.
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@KiwiMurph said in All Blacks 2025:
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in All Blacks 2025:
He is the only constant in the "problem". Discuss.
. It is on Razor that he keeps picking him at 10, though.That last line is key
He's seen two different 10s dominate the playoffs and win Super Rugby 2 years in a row playing traditional 10 style and said no thanks both times.....
To be fair, though - Vern Cotter agreed with Razor.
As soon as he had Beaudy available, Plummer barely got a look in.
@Chris-B said in All Blacks 2025:
@KiwiMurph said in All Blacks 2025:
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in All Blacks 2025:
He is the only constant in the "problem". Discuss.
. It is on Razor that he keeps picking him at 10, though.That last line is key
He's seen two different 10s dominate the playoffs and win Super Rugby 2 years in a row playing traditional 10 style and said no thanks both times.....
To be fair, though - Vern Cotter agreed with Razor.
As soon as he had Beaudy available, Plummer barely got a look in.
Bit of a different situation. Plummer had decided to head off overseas by that stage. Played like it too.
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@Chris-B said in All Blacks 2025:
@KiwiMurph said in All Blacks 2025:
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in All Blacks 2025:
He is the only constant in the "problem". Discuss.
. It is on Razor that he keeps picking him at 10, though.That last line is key
He's seen two different 10s dominate the playoffs and win Super Rugby 2 years in a row playing traditional 10 style and said no thanks both times.....
To be fair, though - Vern Cotter agreed with Razor.
As soon as he had Beaudy available, Plummer barely got a look in.
Bit of a different situation. Plummer had decided to head off overseas by that stage. Played like it too.
@KiwiMurph It's a bit poor to just turn up for the cash.
I would have picked Plummer last year instead of Perofeta, but he still would have been third choice. In my mind he's David Hill.
Reihana is promising, but doesn't look test ready.
I don't buy that these guys were/are the missing links.
DMac or Beaudy is the question - until the second coming!
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I am hoping the negativity on the Fern is a contrary indicator,
-Awful analysis, incorrect conclusions, zero insight. Wrong about pretty much everything@Frank said in All Blacks 2025:
I am hoping the negativity on the Fern is a contrary indicator,
-Awful analysis, incorrect conclusions, zero insight. Wrong about pretty much everythingFFS. I've just spent the whole week invoking the reverse Curse of the Meldrews....
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@KiwiMurph It's a bit poor to just turn up for the cash.
I would have picked Plummer last year instead of Perofeta, but he still would have been third choice. In my mind he's David Hill.
Reihana is promising, but doesn't look test ready.
I don't buy that these guys were/are the missing links.
DMac or Beaudy is the question - until the second coming!
@Chris-B said in All Blacks 2025:
@KiwiMurph It's a bit poor to just turn up for the cash.
I would have picked Plummer last year instead of Perofeta, but he still would have been third choice. In my mind he's David Hill.
Reihana is promising, but doesn't look test ready.
I don't buy that these guys were/are the missing links.
DMac or Beaudy is the question - until the second coming!
If Plummer had been staying I would have picked him over Beauden at 10 for the Blues, and he was more successful.
I don't think he is/was the answer at AB level, he had one good year then fucked off - and it's not like his individual brilliance won that title. -
@Chris-B said in All Blacks 2025:
@KiwiMurph It's a bit poor to just turn up for the cash.
I would have picked Plummer last year instead of Perofeta, but he still would have been third choice. In my mind he's David Hill.
Reihana is promising, but doesn't look test ready.
I don't buy that these guys were/are the missing links.
DMac or Beaudy is the question - until the second coming!
If Plummer had been staying I would have picked him over Beauden at 10 for the Blues, and he was more successful.
I don't think he is/was the answer at AB level, he had one good year then fucked off - and it's not like his individual brilliance won that title.@reprobate said in All Blacks 2025:
@Chris-B said in All Blacks 2025:
@KiwiMurph It's a bit poor to just turn up for the cash.
I would have picked Plummer last year instead of Perofeta, but he still would have been third choice. In my mind he's David Hill.
Reihana is promising, but doesn't look test ready.
I don't buy that these guys were/are the missing links.
DMac or Beaudy is the question - until the second coming!
If Plummer had been staying I would have picked him over Beauden at 10 for the Blues, and he was more successful.
I don't think he is/was the answer at AB level, he had one good year then fucked off - and it's not like his individual brilliance won that title.You make some good points. But he played a significant part in the way that backline operated, and he was important to their winning season. And as you said you can only think. If Razor had given him a run perhaps we might have known if he was up to it or not
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@reprobate said in All Blacks 2025:
@Chris-B said in All Blacks 2025:
@KiwiMurph It's a bit poor to just turn up for the cash.
I would have picked Plummer last year instead of Perofeta, but he still would have been third choice. In my mind he's David Hill.
Reihana is promising, but doesn't look test ready.
I don't buy that these guys were/are the missing links.
DMac or Beaudy is the question - until the second coming!
If Plummer had been staying I would have picked him over Beauden at 10 for the Blues, and he was more successful.
I don't think he is/was the answer at AB level, he had one good year then fucked off - and it's not like his individual brilliance won that title.You make some good points. But he played a significant part in the way that backline operated, and he was important to their winning season. And as you said you can only think. If Razor had given him a run perhaps we might have known if he was up to it or not
@canefan said in All Blacks 2025:
@reprobate said in All Blacks 2025:
@Chris-B said in All Blacks 2025:
@KiwiMurph It's a bit poor to just turn up for the cash.
I would have picked Plummer last year instead of Perofeta, but he still would have been third choice. In my mind he's David Hill.
Reihana is promising, but doesn't look test ready.
I don't buy that these guys were/are the missing links.
DMac or Beaudy is the question - until the second coming!
If Plummer had been staying I would have picked him over Beauden at 10 for the Blues, and he was more successful.
I don't think he is/was the answer at AB level, he had one good year then fucked off - and it's not like his individual brilliance won that title.You make some good points. But he played a significant part in the way that backline operated, and he was important to their winning season. And as you said you can only think. If Razor had given him a run perhaps we might have known if he was up to it or not
That is half my point though: you can't expect to become an incumbent AB based on one genuinely pretty good season. A frankly fucking amazing season like Hoskins had wasn't enough to even make the squad.
If you choose to leave at that point rather than back it up and press your claim, that's on you. -
@canefan said in All Blacks 2025:
@reprobate said in All Blacks 2025:
@Chris-B said in All Blacks 2025:
@KiwiMurph It's a bit poor to just turn up for the cash.
I would have picked Plummer last year instead of Perofeta, but he still would have been third choice. In my mind he's David Hill.
Reihana is promising, but doesn't look test ready.
I don't buy that these guys were/are the missing links.
DMac or Beaudy is the question - until the second coming!
If Plummer had been staying I would have picked him over Beauden at 10 for the Blues, and he was more successful.
I don't think he is/was the answer at AB level, he had one good year then fucked off - and it's not like his individual brilliance won that title.You make some good points. But he played a significant part in the way that backline operated, and he was important to their winning season. And as you said you can only think. If Razor had given him a run perhaps we might have known if he was up to it or not
That is half my point though: you can't expect to become an incumbent AB based on one genuinely pretty good season. A frankly fucking amazing season like Hoskins had wasn't enough to even make the squad.
If you choose to leave at that point rather than back it up and press your claim, that's on you.@reprobate said in All Blacks 2025:
@canefan said in All Blacks 2025:
@reprobate said in All Blacks 2025:
@Chris-B said in All Blacks 2025:
@KiwiMurph It's a bit poor to just turn up for the cash.
I would have picked Plummer last year instead of Perofeta, but he still would have been third choice. In my mind he's David Hill.
Reihana is promising, but doesn't look test ready.
I don't buy that these guys were/are the missing links.
DMac or Beaudy is the question - until the second coming!
If Plummer had been staying I would have picked him over Beauden at 10 for the Blues, and he was more successful.
I don't think he is/was the answer at AB level, he had one good year then fucked off - and it's not like his individual brilliance won that title.You make some good points. But he played a significant part in the way that backline operated, and he was important to their winning season. And as you said you can only think. If Razor had given him a run perhaps we might have known if he was up to it or not
That is half my point though: you can't expect to become an incumbent AB based on one genuinely pretty good season. A frankly fucking amazing season like Hoskins had wasn't enough to even make the squad.
If you choose to leave at that point rather than back it up and press your claim, that's on you.Perhaps he saw he had no shot, and took the money. I could understand, DMac arguably outplayed BB last season and he can't get a start
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@reprobate said in All Blacks 2025:
@canefan said in All Blacks 2025:
@reprobate said in All Blacks 2025:
@Chris-B said in All Blacks 2025:
@KiwiMurph It's a bit poor to just turn up for the cash.
I would have picked Plummer last year instead of Perofeta, but he still would have been third choice. In my mind he's David Hill.
Reihana is promising, but doesn't look test ready.
I don't buy that these guys were/are the missing links.
DMac or Beaudy is the question - until the second coming!
If Plummer had been staying I would have picked him over Beauden at 10 for the Blues, and he was more successful.
I don't think he is/was the answer at AB level, he had one good year then fucked off - and it's not like his individual brilliance won that title.You make some good points. But he played a significant part in the way that backline operated, and he was important to their winning season. And as you said you can only think. If Razor had given him a run perhaps we might have known if he was up to it or not
That is half my point though: you can't expect to become an incumbent AB based on one genuinely pretty good season. A frankly fucking amazing season like Hoskins had wasn't enough to even make the squad.
If you choose to leave at that point rather than back it up and press your claim, that's on you.Perhaps he saw he had no shot, and took the money. I could understand, DMac arguably outplayed BB last season and he can't get a start
@canefan said in All Blacks 2025:
Perhaps he saw he had no shot, and took the money
Exactly. He got 2 mins under Razor all on defence and only got that because Beauden came down with an illness in the days leading up to the game. He knew he had no shot.
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Personally feel like Plummer didn’t get a shot, because it was quite clear he didn’t have the tools to go any further than he had shown.
He was limited - and I think Reihana sits more in this camp.
One could argue Love and Jacomb possess the X-Factor skills that mean they could be a long-term solution, but one seems to favour fullback at every turn, and the other has yet to be consistent at Super Rugby level.
Leaves the coaches still with DMac and Barrett - and I personally think neither is up to the task, but for all the criticism of BB last night, I encourage people to watch the game again, because there was 3-4 moments of quality in key moments, that in my opinion DMac is not capable of doing.
It’s a tough conundrum, because at the end of the day every option is floored, so whoever they select will look like the wrong option.
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Bit left field but I wouldn’t mind seeing Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens on one wing once he’s fully fit post injury. Hes very good under the high ball and has a great skill set. IMO the ABs have always looked best with one hybrid wing/full back on one wing
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So Taylor will be out for Springboks II. We will have to bring in another hooker into the squad.
Will Patty T be back? We only used Holland very late in the piece given how well our starting locks were playing. I think if Patty was available and with his impact, we may have seen a change earlier to one of our loosies.
Narawa will almost certainly be out.
Sititi copped a bad knock, but passed his HIA. They’ll be keeping an eye on him for any delayed symptoms.
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So Taylor will be out for Springboks II. We will have to bring in another hooker into the squad.
Will Patty T be back? We only used Holland very late in the piece given how well our starting locks were playing. I think if Patty was available and with his impact, we may have seen a change earlier to one of our loosies.
Narawa will almost certainly be out.
Sititi copped a bad knock, but passed his HIA. They’ll be keeping an eye on him for any delayed symptoms.
@ACT-Crusader said in All Blacks 2025:
So Taylor will be out for Springboks II. We will have to bring in another hooker into the squad.
Will Patty T be back? We only used Holland very late in the piece given how well our starting locks were playing. I think if Patty was available and with his impact, we may have seen a change earlier to one of our loosies.
Narawa will almost certainly be out.
Sititi copped a bad knock, but passed his HIA. They’ll be keeping an eye on him for any delayed symptoms.
Bell will obviously come in to cover.
The reserve lock becomes a bit of a useless position now with Pat not there. Lord and Holland are more starters than impact of the bench. Handy if there's an early injury, but their roles don't really suit making an instant impact off the bench.
I hope to see Jordan pushed out wide and McKenzie at the back.
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@ACT-Crusader said in All Blacks 2025:
So Taylor will be out for Springboks II. We will have to bring in another hooker into the squad.
Will Patty T be back? We only used Holland very late in the piece given how well our starting locks were playing. I think if Patty was available and with his impact, we may have seen a change earlier to one of our loosies.
Narawa will almost certainly be out.
Sititi copped a bad knock, but passed his HIA. They’ll be keeping an eye on him for any delayed symptoms.
Bell will obviously come in to cover.
The reserve lock becomes a bit of a useless position now with Pat not there. Lord and Holland are more starters than impact of the bench. Handy if there's an early injury, but their roles don't really suit making an instant impact off the bench.
I hope to see Jordan pushed out wide and McKenzie at the back.
@African-Monkey said in All Blacks 2025:
Bell will obviously come in to cover.
Aumua injured? (Haven't been following.)
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@African-Monkey said in All Blacks 2025:
Bell will obviously come in to cover.
Aumua injured? (Haven't been following.)
@booboo said in All Blacks 2025:
@African-Monkey said in All Blacks 2025:
Bell will obviously come in to cover.
Aumua injured? (Haven't been following.)
Im sure he is.
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So Taylor will be out for Springboks II. We will have to bring in another hooker into the squad.
Will Patty T be back? We only used Holland very late in the piece given how well our starting locks were playing. I think if Patty was available and with his impact, we may have seen a change earlier to one of our loosies.
Narawa will almost certainly be out.
Sititi copped a bad knock, but passed his HIA. They’ll be keeping an eye on him for any delayed symptoms.
-
@ACT-Crusader said in All Blacks 2025:
So Taylor will be out for Springboks II. We will have to bring in another hooker into the squad.
Will Patty T be back? We only used Holland very late in the piece given how well our starting locks were playing. I think if Patty was available and with his impact, we may have seen a change earlier to one of our loosies.
Narawa will almost certainly be out.
Sititi copped a bad knock, but passed his HIA. They’ll be keeping an eye on him for any delayed symptoms.
Bell will obviously come in to cover.
The reserve lock becomes a bit of a useless position now with Pat not there. Lord and Holland are more starters than impact of the bench. Handy if there's an early injury, but their roles don't really suit making an instant impact off the bench.
I hope to see Jordan pushed out wide and McKenzie at the back.
@African-Monkey as you say they need insurance as well as impact if a starting lock go down in the first minute of play.
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@booboo said in All Blacks 2025:
@African-Monkey said in All Blacks 2025:
Bell will obviously come in to cover.
Aumua injured? (Haven't been following.)
Im sure he is.
@African-Monkey said in All Blacks 2025:
@booboo said in All Blacks 2025:
@African-Monkey said in All Blacks 2025:
Bell will obviously come in to cover.
Aumua injured? (Haven't been following.)
Im sure he is.
Failed an HIA in the loss to Auckland last week.
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@Chris-B said in All Blacks 2025:
@KiwiMurph It's a bit poor to just turn up for the cash.
I would have picked Plummer last year instead of Perofeta, but he still would have been third choice. In my mind he's David Hill.
Reihana is promising, but doesn't look test ready.
I don't buy that these guys were/are the missing links.
DMac or Beaudy is the question - until the second coming!
If Plummer had been staying I would have picked him over Beauden at 10 for the Blues, and he was more successful.
I don't think he is/was the answer at AB level, he had one good year then fucked off - and it's not like his individual brilliance won that title.@reprobate said in All Blacks 2025:
@Chris-B said in All Blacks 2025:
@KiwiMurph It's a bit poor to just turn up for the cash.
I would have picked Plummer last year instead of Perofeta, but he still would have been third choice. In my mind he's David Hill.
Reihana is promising, but doesn't look test ready.
I don't buy that these guys were/are the missing links.
DMac or Beaudy is the question - until the second coming!
If Plummer had been staying I would have picked him over Beauden at 10 for the Blues, and he was more successful.
I don't think he is/was the answer at AB level, he had one good year then fucked off - and it's not like his individual brilliance won that title.Plummer is actually a good option in a game like yesterday. He runs more direct, is a more physical tackler and is better at securing ball it the breakdown. These are requirements in the modern game for a 10.
His option taking is also better than both BB and Mckenzie.
