AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?

[Tim]

@Nepia Also see the two tries he scored while playing 11, before getting injured, in the first round game against the Chiefs this year.

[Bones]

@Crucial said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

Good defensive coaches pour over tapes to find these flaws and neutralise good players.

No.

[Billy Tell]

@Bones said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

@Crucial said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

Good defensive coaches pour over tapes to find these flaws and neutralise good players.

No.

That’s a pore error.

[taniwharugby]

@Bones they may pour something over them after they are done to stop them falling into the wrong hands?

[No Quarter]

@Snowy said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

@sparky said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

@taniwharugby I guess, but for previous tours for a very long time there have always been confirmed fixtures before the squad's named.

This is not like previous years. The biggest winner of the 2020 year is the word "unprecedented".

We are still able to have an All Blacks squad.

I'd like to see them name a team on Thursday as well regardless of whether there is a game on.

[Crucial]

@Billy-Tell said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

@Bones said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

@Crucial said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

Good defensive coaches pour over tapes to find these flaws and neutralise good players.

No.

That’s a pore error.

I was time poor

[MN5]

@Billy-Tell said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

@Bones said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

@Crucial said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

Good defensive coaches pour over tapes to find these flaws and neutralise good players.

No.

That’s a pore error.

Dog goes into an old western bar and says......

‘I’m looking for the man who shot my pore’

[junior]

@Crucial said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

@DMX said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

@sparky said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

Sparky's 23 to take on Whoever:

Moody, Taylor, Laulala, Whitelock, Tuipulotu, Frizell, Cane (c), Sotutu, A. Smith, Mo'unga, C. Clarke, ALB, R. Ioane, Jordan, J. Barrett

Coles, Hodgman, Ofa T, Strange or Grace, A. Savea, TJP, B. Barrett, Goodhue

Nothing really screams Fozzie about this squad, I am still of the opinion he will be very conservative with first match
Moody, Taylor, Laulala, Whitelock, Tuipulotu, Frizell, Cane (c), Savea, A. Smith, Mo'unga, Bridge, ALB, Goodhue, Reece, B. Barrett
Coles, Hodgman, Ofa , Strange. Sotutu, TJP, J. Barrett, R. Iaone

New blood will be introduced via the bench or through injury as usual.
The locks will rotate on the pine and I can see Savea playing cover while the likes of Sotutu are given a start.
Lomax and Hodgman will get some bench roles too.
The starting changes should be ditching Bridge and Reece (who have been fizzers IMO) and establishing Clarke and Jordan.

First, I hope this is the case, but based on Plum's comments yesterday I think they'll start conservatively with Ardie at 8 and then look to bring in Hoskins after that (maybe in test 2, 3 or 4 depending upon how Ardie goes). To my mind, a lot depends upon how Frizell / Akira go at 6. If they're not doing the business then we may be forced to play Ardie there, which leaves us no choice but to throw Hoskins in.

Second, couldn't agree more. Clarke and Jordan could not have been more dynamic the other day when compared to what we've had to our up with Reece and Carthorse Mark II.

[junior]

@Nepia said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

@MN5 said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

@Gunner said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

@nzzp @Crucial Bridge = Ralph v 2.0

I'll be pissed if they go with the safe boring option. Clarke should be the starter every day of the week ending in a y.

Well seeing as tests are often on a Satdee or a Sundee I can see them going with Bridge on occasions.

So he'll get the odd Bledisloe but nothing else.

My preferred back three are Barrett (the good one), Rieko and Clarke, with Goodhue and ALB in the midfield.

How's that going to happen - Clarke and Rieko both play left wing?

[Nepia]

@junior said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

@Nepia said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

@MN5 said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

@Gunner said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

@nzzp @Crucial Bridge = Ralph v 2.0

I'll be pissed if they go with the safe boring option. Clarke should be the starter every day of the week ending in a y.

Well seeing as tests are often on a Satdee or a Sundee I can see them going with Bridge on occasions.

So he'll get the odd Bledisloe but nothing else.

My preferred back three are Barrett (the good one), Rieko and Clarke, with Goodhue and ALB in the midfield.

How's that going to happen - Clarke and Rieko both play left wing?

I didn't know there was a rule that wings are only ever allowed to play one side.

[KiwiMurph]

@junior both have played right wing before.

[junior]

One thing that people seem to missing in the debate about whether Rieko should be a centre / wing or a wing / centre, is that the midfield mix currently chosen. There's not specialist 12 there, which suggests to me that ALB (at least) and Goodhue (probably) may be seen as primarily 12s for this current squad and Rieko and Ennor as primarily 13s.

What this means for the match day squad, I'm not sure, but the selectors may be leaning towards the ALB-Ioane or Goodhue-Ennor midfield combinations rather than the one that started last year's RWC semi (which they've seen and which I think we can all agree was a bit meh).

[junior]

@Nepia said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

@junior said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

@Nepia said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

@MN5 said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

@Gunner said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

@nzzp @Crucial Bridge = Ralph v 2.0

I'll be pissed if they go with the safe boring option. Clarke should be the starter every day of the week ending in a y.

Well seeing as tests are often on a Satdee or a Sundee I can see them going with Bridge on occasions.

So he'll get the odd Bledisloe but nothing else.

My preferred back three are Barrett (the good one), Rieko and Clarke, with Goodhue and ALB in the midfield.

How's that going to happen - Clarke and Rieko both play left wing?

I didn't know there was a rule that wings are only ever allowed to play one side.

You must have missed the comments yesterday about picking specialists.

[Bones]

Sooo....why the fuck can't Ennor play 12? He's not exactly busting down doors at 13 and Goodhue is suffering as a result...

[junior]

@Bones said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

Sooo....why the fuck can't Ennor play 12? He's not exactly busting down doors at 13 and Goodhue is suffering as a result...

I don't know, TBH. Maybe he's always played 13 or wing and they feel a shift in one spot is too much at this relatively early stage of his career? To me, he doesn't look like a 12 but, then again, he doesn't look like a 13 (yet) either.

[mariner4life]

Ardie at 8? Yuck

[junior]

@mariner4life said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

Ardie at 8? Yuck

Yep. That's particularly concerning when we've got two big, quick and skilful guys who are specialists in that position in the squad.

[mariner4life]

@junior said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

@mariner4life said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

Ardie at 8? Yuck

Yep. That's particularly concerning when we've got two big, quick and skilful guys who are specialists in that position in the squad.

He's a fucking 7.

Talk about ignoring lessons

[cgrant]

Last Saturday, Laulala was a different beast. During the SRA, he was underwhelming, to say the least. He has cemented a starting spot IMO, which was seriously threatened after his RWC semi-final.

[Bovidae]

@shark said in AB squad for the Bledisloe Cup?:

For what it's worth, my 23:

Moody Ofa T

With the 6 props named I don't think you will see much of Ofa at LH again. Cron and Hansen seemed to want to move him there with varying results.

Late in the North-South game when Ofa returned to play LH with Ta'avao at TH and Scrafton at lock, the NI scrum was going backwards.