All Blacks 2026
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@nostrildamus said in All Blacks 2026:
It would be interesting to get some inside oil on Evans opinion on the current and potential 10s. I've enjoyed what I've read of his comments, unsure on what his social skills and emotional intelligence are like.
Interesting in the All Blacks 15 match he was full of praise for Etene Nanai-Seturo and chose him as man of the match. Hope this means Etene Nanai-Seturo will hang around rather than thinking he has no chance.
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Ardie and Beauden are interesting in that there is a real disconnect between the general public and those that really watch rugby. I don't think I've really seen that before to this extent. Both are freakish athletes who can pull off insane acts on the field, so their highlight reels are amazing, but they hard to pin down as rugby players as they don't really naturally fit into any position.
Ardie is way better suited to 8 as it gives him more freedom to roam, which is why previous AB coaches preferred him there, especially if you pair him with someone like Cane or Dalton at 7 to do the grunt work. Moving him to 7 this season is just another absurd decision in a long list of absurd decisions from these coaches. He would also likely be a real weapon off the bench.
I actually think Beauden is best suited to the 23 jumper at this stage of his career, and that's where some of his most influential performances have come from. Though he has dominated games from 10 in his heyday, it wasn't through traditional 10 play, it was through pulling off freakish acts scoring and/or setting up a bucket of tries. If not on the bench, then he's much better at 15 where he has more space and his weaknesses are not nearly as apparent.
Playing Ardie at 7 and Beauden at 10 all season were probably the two most critical selection errors the coaches made. It meant that we had an unbalanced loose trio, so we mostly lost the battle of the breakdown, putting us on the back foot. Then we paired that with a 10 that has relied on his pace in the past, so doesn't do well with limited space on the back foot. An obvious recipe for disaster that were persisted with all year.
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Oh and on those awards, it should have gone to Jordie who was by far our most consistent AB this season. But he wasn't even short listed? Tupea on the back of a single match against the bloody Wallabies? LOL to that as well. TBF though it was bloody slim pickings this year, and giving it to Ardie will keep his followers on social media happy.
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@taniwharugby said in All Blacks 2026:
@reprobate big moment for me was seeing him walk from the scrum in the 2nd test v SA and them scoring moments later, obviously single him out because he usually doesnt stop, but in this case, seeing him basically 'giving up' summed up the team for me.
Probably suffered from being overplayed too
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@No-Quarter i think how Ardie plays, he will unbalance most trios he is part of at international level.
Phenomenal athlete, huge ticker, has been an awesome player for us over the years, but for me, we need him to play a different game, or as many have said for several years, we need to have a 6 and 7 (or 8 depending where you start him) that compliment him, whether he is still good enough to dictate that we pick 2 loosies to suit his game, who knows.
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@taniwharugby said in All Blacks 2026:
@No-Quarter i think how Ardie plays, he will unbalance most trios he is part of at international level.
Phenomenal athlete, huge ticker, has been an awesome player for us over the years, but for me, we need him to play a different game, or as many have said for several years, we need to have a 6 and 7 (or 8 depending where you start him) that compliment him, whether he is still good enough to dictate that we pick 2 loosies to suit his game, who knows.
Yeah, this is where I sit. He does amazing things. But, he very much does not do some things.
If you set him in stone (it doesn't matter which position), that sets the requirements for the other two loosies - and if we don't have 2 players who can between them do all of those tasks at a world class level, the group will never work. -
@taniwharugby said in All Blacks 2026:
huge ticker
As determined by all the work he's doing? Or the hard shoulder he puts on people?
It's no secret I've never been his biggest fan, but I have given credit when it's been due. For me unless you have a Cane type player in the loose trio you can't afford to have Ardie starting.
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@taniwharugby couldn't agree more. In my mind the most balanceed trio we could have would be Scooter at Six. Papalii or Jacobson at Seven, Ardie at Eight with Sititi on the Bench. But would be interested in your thoughts.
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Scooter? Fuck lol. Slow as a wet week.
He was too slow in 2019 FFS
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@antipodean said in All Blacks 2026:
@taniwharugby said in All Blacks 2026:
huge ticker
As determined by all the work he's doing? Or the hard shoulder he puts on people?
It's no secret I've never been his biggest fan, but I have given credit when it's been due. For me unless you have a Cane type player in the loose trio you can't afford to have Ardie starting.
Agreed. Sam Cane was an absolute warrior. I don't go with much of the Ardie criticism, but a warrior he ain't. Probbly best off the bench with the current set-up.
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@antipodean his work rate and energy with the work he did (super this year and most of his international career prior to this year) ticker probably not the right way to define him.
He is hugely talented, but certainly not getting the best use out of him, especially with who we put alongside him
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The Herald understands feedback from players and staff presents a deeply concerning picture of the All Blacks environment, with multiple sources pointing to widespread internal frustrations.
Two assistant coaches, Leon MacDonald and Jason Holland, voluntarily departing in the last two years sparked red-flag concerns with how the All Blacks are being run. But the fresh, stinging feedback from within – with communication, trust, strategy and selection all believed to have been raised – cannot be ignored.
All teams have unhappy players with selection, but concerns with the All Blacks environment are believed to spread well beyond individuals alone.
Support from senior players proved powerful in Ian Foster retaining his position as All Blacks head coach in 2022 – as the players approached then NZ Rugby chief executive Mark Robinson in his Johannesburg hotel room to strongly voice their views.
This time around, the opposite could be true.
At this stage, NZ Rugby is likely to allow Robertson further time to deliver significant improvements but if the players aren’t satisfied with the initial post-season All Blacks review findings and solutions – which could range from changes in coaching personnel to roles and responsibilities – they may request a second review is conducted.
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@Tim said in All Blacks 2026:
The Herald understands feedback from players and staff presents a deeply concerning picture of the All Blacks environment, with multiple sources pointing to widespread internal frustrations.
Two assistant coaches, Leon MacDonald and Jason Holland, voluntarily departing in the last two years sparked red-flag concerns with how the All Blacks are being run. But the fresh, stinging feedback from within – with communication, trust, strategy and selection all believed to have been raised – cannot be ignored.
All teams have unhappy players with selection, but concerns with the All Blacks environment are believed to spread well beyond individuals alone.
Support from senior players proved powerful in Ian Foster retaining his position as All Blacks head coach in 2022 – as the players approached then NZ Rugby chief executive Mark Robinson in his Johannesburg hotel room to strongly voice their views.
This time around, the opposite could be true.
At this stage, NZ Rugby is likely to allow Robertson further time to deliver significant improvements but if the players aren’t satisfied with the initial post-season All Blacks review findings and solutions – which could range from changes in coaching personnel to roles and responsibilities – they may request a second review is conducted.
Sounds like the players aren't holding back, which is good. But if they allow him further time to improve I guess the NZRU aren't that interested in RWC27....
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@canefan well is a decent core of those that came out in support of Fozzie, is good if they are being open and honest about it now too, especially when there has been alot of talk, particularly about the senior under-performing players being all about self preservation.
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@tubbyj said in All Blacks 2026:
But senior players not being up to it is half the problem with selection. If they are just complaining that their spots maybe under jeopardy next season then that is going to be worse for the team.
I don't think the senior players such as Ardie and BB have much to complain about because they got picked for every match that they were fit to play in!
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@Tim said in All Blacks 2026:
But the fresh, stinging feedback from within – with communication, trust, strategy and selection all believed to have been raised – cannot be ignored.
If true, that's a damning indictment of Scott Robertson - or any head coach. Sounds like he has lost the dressing room. Schmidt in a Director of Rugby role supervising things would be good but would Coach Jesus accept that or would he walk?
What a fucking mess.
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@tubbyj said in All Blacks 2026:
If they are just complaining that their spots maybe under jeopardy next season then that is going to be worse for the team
If they simply wanted to keep their spots, they wouldn't be complaining about poor communications and trust issues though. The last thing they would do would be to rock the boat and get in Robertson's and Head Coach Hansen's bad books.
