Scotland v All Blacks

[pakman]

@Bovidae said in Scotland Vs All Blacks, 8th November 2025:

@nostrildamus

Where the locks pack in a scrum is often dependent on who the combination is, and what their relative strengths are. Take the AB locks:

Retallick (TH), Whitelock (LH)
Whitelock (TH), Barrett (LH)
Vaa'i (TH), Barrett (LH)

But when Retallick was with the Chiefs, Vaa'i switched to LH. I'd have to check but Holland has been used on the LH side in the scrum with Barrett moving to TH. Yeah, confusing.

I think teams have a pecking order in terms of scrummaging, with best on TH side.

So for ABs this year Patty T/Vaa’i/Scooter/Lord/Holland.
So Tupou would be LH when packing down with Patty T or TH when with Lord or Holland.
Confusing thing was that in Boks 1 Scooter was at TH and Vaa’i at LH, but in a Boks 2 they swapped around which worked better.

[No Quarter]

I'd go for Leicester 12 Quinn 13 with Rieko on the bench for insurance if we are struggling defensively. E.g. could move Leicester to wing and finish with 12 Quinn 13 Rieko if we needed to.

[MN5]

@No-Quarter said in Scotland Vs All Blacks, 8th November 2025:

I'd go for Leicester 12 Quinn 13 with Rieko on the bench for insurance if we are struggling defensively. E.g. could move Leicester to wing and finish with 12 Quinn 13 Rieko if we needed to.

They could do the old left and right centres like Carling and Guscott used to do. Whichever way you look at it the defence has a hard runner coming at them.

[mohikamo]

Top 14 clubs make the tighthead lock distinction, and they get paid more.

[mohikamo]

@MN5 said in Scotland Vs All Blacks, 8th November 2025:

Apparently Brad Thorn was bloody good at this facet of the game

He was.
And I saw a comment he made that rugby league players had no conception of the amount of power that was generated in a rugby union scrum.

[hikastags]

Believe the Rugby Championship Twitter account has leaked the team an hour early

[Grooter]

@hikastags cheers stags, if true what's the point of Luke Jacobson being included in the ABs this year?

[taniwharugby]

Thats some small loosies

[Number 10]

[ploughboy]

@Grooter said in Scotland Vs All Blacks, 8th November 2025:

@hikastags cheers stags, if true what's the point of Luke Jacobson being included in the ABs this year?

on that team too big

[Bovidae]

@Grooter said in Scotland Vs All Blacks, 8th November 2025:

if true what's the point of Luke Jacobson being included in the ABs this year?

We can't be having a loose forward clean at a ruck.

[pakman]

Seems like we’ve already bitten on Scottish propaganda!

[nostrildamus]

Yeah the loosies aren't big, the only thing they're bigger than is the bench loosie to replace them! I wouldn't have had him on the bench or in the 23 at all TBH.

[nostrildamus]

Given Lord has had injury problems I'd have preferred a 6/lock on the bench. You have 2 7s on the starting sides, and all 3 loosies can play 6/8. (Well, would rather not have Lakai or Savea at 6 but they'd be better there than Kirifi).

[jimmyb]

Sititi, Lakai, Savea, and Kirifi in the same team? Ahhh yes, the four 7s/under sized 8s trick

[KiwiMurph]

Pleased with the midfield and Proctor on the bench.

You have to wonder what the point of Finau and Jacobson in the squad are if they cant crack the 23.

[jimmyb]

@KiwiMurph said in Scotland Vs All Blacks, 8th November 2025:

Pleased with the midfield and Proctor on the bench.

You have to wonder what the point of Finau and Jacobson in the squad are if they cant crack the 23.

Finau is bin juice as the poms would say. Agree with Jacobson. His defensive work rate is v good

[MN5]

He made the tough call at six, got rid of the invisible giant for the busy short guy

[MN5]

@jimmyb said in Scotland Vs All Blacks, 8th November 2025:

Sititi, Lakai, Savea, and Kirifi in the same team? Ahhh yes, the four 7s/under sized 8s trick

It's only Scotland

[KiwiMurph]

If Razor was a little more daring - he could have Beehre as a lock/6 option in the 23 by now.