On the box kicks, in particular post AB kick offs from around 60 to 70ish, Boks regathered four in a row. Noticeable that e.g. Hooker rushed almost beyond where the kick was likely to land and owned the space. I suspect the wind was playing ball back towards them as it came down. A skill which can be learned.
Jump a bit early and get into the space before the opposition - turn sideways or present your back to the opposition to deny them a fair crack, and reduce the chances of you knocking it on.
Looks like a fair contest; is anything but.
Saffers had a tactic a few years ago of going into that space early and flooding the zone with multiple people. Was very effective as most refs didn't seem to care - knocking people away from the all
So good seeing Casey going from carving up at club level to doing it NPC too.
Him and Pledger have just gone straight in as key guys. Both them need to play big minutes.
Those face balls from Millar are his nicest attacking moves. He has done it plenty of times with Hurley as well. Good to play to his strength with those plays.
Extraordinary! But if bones set wrong initially it is very difficult to correct. Hope he gets back to 100.
I remember in the post game he said he just had a dead leg and was confident he would be right but then it was actually worse once the dust settled. Not sure if it was a fracture or a break but he’s been out for a while now and it didn’t sound like he was returning this NPC. A shame because our midfield is mud with Savea at 12.
@Canes4life I used to really dislike him as a player, thought he was a bit dirty and didn't have much going on, but I'm a convert now. He's got a great attitude: a great super season meant he got a taste of the top level where he didn't set the world on fire, and his response is to come back early and get training.
Yeah he’s turned into one of the best leaders in Nz rugby. I think he even admitted himself he was a bit of a ratbag when he first came onto the scene, but he’s really flourishing. Unfortunately his size means his international experience will be limited but you can’t knock his character and willingness to give everything for the teams he plays for.
Bryn Hall claimed that the Brumbies got 6 breakdown turnovers vs zero for the Hurricanes. Quite a reversal.
Watching the game, it felt that they were in control of the breakdown for the majority of the game. We hammered away at their line three or so times during the game only for the Brumbies to get a turnover
Nine rookies for the Argentineans. Emiliano Boffelli and Thomas Gallo are out injured. Matías Moroni, Tomás Lavanini, and Gonzalo Bertranou have missed selection.
@reprobate wait.... what do you mean? You're posting and it's not centred around the hurricanes? Unbelievable! Hurricanes is life and now I can't wind back from my first comment so I'll try brush it off by rolling out my favourite "well it's been let go before" bunk argument.
IMO I'm happy with the ref anouncing things like 'ruck' 'that's a maul' 'use it' but there should be no coaching. Takes me back to kiddies rugby, these guys are pros, the ref shouldn't be saying that.
As to thanking or praising players for pulling back from offending when told to do so by the ref - FFS
Ref coaching has been increasing massively. Ref should assess if it affects and penalise if it does.
TBH when watching live I thought White was closing down the space so thought the pass was the right idea, the execution not so much.
Harkin could have definitely made that, White may have got to him but he wouldn't have prevented the try. A shame, as Harkin was probably the form back of the night for me until that blunder.
That'll have to go down as MP's best-ever performance. Not the first time they've taken the scalp of a bigger team (not even the first time they've bested the Canes), but it's the strongest performance they've put on the park by some margin.
C
