Force v Blues

[taniwharugby]

@KiwiMurph ha I thought we'd only had 2 games

Where does the time go!

[mariner4life]

assuming the Force show up, the Blues should win this by a thousand if they decide this week to play with even a smidgeon of patience.

[Duluth]

Force

Tom Robertson, Feleti Kaitu'u (c), Santiago Medrano, Ryan McCauley, Izack Rodda, Fergus Lee-Warner, Kane Koteka, Ollie Callan, Issak Fines-Leleiwasa, Reesjan Pasitoa, Manasa Mataele, Bayley Kuenzle, Kyle Godwin, Toni Pulu, Jake Strachan/Jake McIntyre

Reserves: Andrew Ready, Bo Abra, Greg Holmes, Jeremy Thrush, Tim Anstee, Alex Masibaka, Ian Prior, Richard Kahui

[Tim]

Interesting that the German is playing at 8.

[African Monkey]

@Tim Its his 3rd start at 8 as well this year, so do they see him as an 8?

[Bovidae]

@Daffy-Jaffy said in Force v Blues:

Internationals Rieko Ioane, Nepo Laulala and Hoskins Sotutu are on All Blacks rest week

Hasn't he already had a few "rest weeks"?

[TheMojoman]

V.good team and really happy to see Akira Ioane back.

Blues need to get back to same form that saw them beat Chiefs & Crusaders away from home. If they do they'll put 50PTS on the Force. I think that's likely given Christie/Barrett are back running the show. Funaki/Barrett didn't gel last week.

[African Monkey]

@FakatavaFuture He'd be nowhere if he wasn't German according to our Crusaders mates.....

[KiwiMurph]

@Bovidae said in Force v Blues:

@Daffy-Jaffy said in Force v Blues:

Internationals Rieko Ioane, Nepo Laulala and Hoskins Sotutu are on All Blacks rest week

Hasn't he already had a few "rest weeks"?

4D chess. Can't get suspended if you don't play.

[Machpants]

@Duluth said in Force v Blues:

Force

Tom Robertson, Feleti Kaitu'u (c), Santiago Medrano, Ryan McCauley, Izack Rodda, Fergus Lee-Warner, Kane Koteka, Ollie Callan, Issak Fines-Leleiwasa, Reesjan Pasitoa, Manasa Mataele, Bayley Kuenzle, Kyle Godwin, Toni Pulu, Jake Strachan/Jake McIntyre

Reserves: Andrew Ready, Bo Abra, Greg Holmes, Jeremy Thrush, Tim Anstee, Alex Masibaka, Ian Prior, Richard Kahui

Who? Oh thrush and Kahui, I recognise those names!

[Daffy Jaffy]

@Machpants Old man Romano will feel right at home once Thrush (37), Holmes (38) and Kahui (36) get on for the force.

[Machpants]

@Daffy-Jaffy said in Force v Blues:

@Machpants Old man Romano will feel right at home once Thrush (37), Holmes (38) and Kahui (36) get on for the force.

Zimmer fight!

[antipodean]

This is how competitive the Force are; Kahui is old enough to play Masters and looks a class above when he takes the field. Quite why he's on the bench instead of starting is mystifying.

[KiwiMurph]

@Duluth I expected more Force players to be out - I guess the question is how many of that Force 23 are not 100% due to Covid-19.

[Duluth]

@KiwiMurph

Yeah, I guess it depends on how sick they were? Were they just positive and therefore not allowed to play or genuinely sick?

There's some updates in this article. Almost all of their squad is available this week

https://www.rugbypass.com/news/western-force-reveal-extent-of-covid-injury-afflictions/

[Duluth]

https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/super-rugby/300574849/blues-hail-akira-ioane-as-gamechanger-ahead-of-super-rugby-pacific-season-debut

Conventional rugby wisdom has that after such a long period out of the game, you bring a player back via the bench. Ease him back into the fray with 20-odd minutes off the pine.

Not Ioane though. MacDonald says what he’s seen on the training field instils confidence his ball-playing loosie is ready to give him an hour from the opening hooter before he “falls off a cliff”. 

...

“We held him back deliberately,” said the coach. “We could have pushed him out last week, but wanted to give him extra time, get a few more miles in the legs and confidence levels up. At some point he will get tired and he’s going to feel it, but we just felt this week he looks ready to go.”

[KiwiMurph]

A change in the 23: Kneepkens replaces Mark Telea on the Blues bench.

[TheMojoman]

@Duluth said in Force v Blues:

https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/super-rugby/300574849/blues-hail-akira-ioane-as-gamechanger-ahead-of-super-rugby-pacific-season-debut

Conventional rugby wisdom has that after such a long period out of the game, you bring a player back via the bench. Ease him back into the fray with 20-odd minutes off the pine.

Not Ioane though. MacDonald says what he’s seen on the training field instils confidence his ball-playing loosie is ready to give him an hour from the opening hooter before he “falls off a cliff”. 

...

“We held him back deliberately,” said the coach. “We could have pushed him out last week, but wanted to give him extra time, get a few more miles in the legs and confidence levels up. At some point he will get tired and he’s going to feel it, but we just felt this week he looks ready to go.”

Awesome. My expectations are high!

[Dice]

Pretty much 3 opensides in the 23. I would've chucked Plumtree on the bench. Still a very good team though.

[Daffy Jaffy]

Don't be surprised if this force team take longer to break down than people are expecting. They have a hard working, nuggety pack with 4 internationals in the tight five. Even when out classed, and giving up early leads, they tend to hang close to teams and still be in games into the last quarter. Also NZ teams rarely play well in those midnight kick off games in Perth when your body clock is telling you that you should be asleep. Hopefully being in Oz for the extra week will help with that adjustment. I think the experience and class of Christie and Barrett will be the difference in the end.
Edit: Then again, I heard Richard Kahui on the radio saying that they only trained once this week due to players isolating. It will be interesting to see how their energy levels are after the Covid enforced week off. The 6-2 bench should help.