The Silver Fern

@barbarian said in Ashes 2025/6:

I can't really think of a sporting equivalent of England in the (away) Ashes. Every four years arriving with a mixture of confidence, hopefulness and at times arrogance and just getting the piss beaten out of them every time.

The Wallabies haven't won in NZ for a very long time but it doesn't provoke anguish like this. We know our place, we expect failure. It can be disappointing but it's never devastating.

But watching the Poms roll in here, tails up, only to see them go straight onto the canvas... and then the avalanche of opinions, think-pieces, fan vitriol... there's just nothing like it.

Maybe the England football team at every major tournament...?

@MiketheSnow said in Rugby World Cup 2027 Draw - LIVE:

@westie_boy said in Rugby World Cup 2027 Draw - LIVE:

@MiketheSnow said in Rugby World Cup 2027 Draw - LIVE:

@westie_boy said in Rugby World Cup 2027 Draw - LIVE:

@MiketheSnow said in Rugby World Cup 2027 Draw - LIVE:

For most fans a 2-year window is necessary to organise travel, accommodation and logistics

And raising the cash

You don’t have to wait for the draw to be made before you plan and save.

If the FIFA World Cup is drawn 7 months out from the start then there’s no excuse for the RWC to not be done in December 2026.
The FIFA World Cup is 5-10 times bigger than the RWC.

But you don’t want to be buying a ticket to Sydney if your team ends up being in Perth

I get that, but what I don’t get is that the FIFA world cup is about 8 months away, and it’s being staged across Canada, the states, and Mexico, with about 10 times more fans travelling, and the draw hasn’t been done yet. (I think it’s actually tomorrow).

Riddle me that…

Don't know.

Just know the typical UK rugby fan.

Lots travel with their clubs. Big groups.

Do they ever travel at relatively short notice, like say when their team wins a semi final and has to travel to another place for the final...?

@mohikamo said in Bokke vs Wales:

@taniwharugby said in Bokke vs Wales:

also begs the question, how did it come to Ardie to be the 'character witness'?

Did Eben text Ardie and say 'hey bru, I nd u 2 say gd stf 4 me' or did Ardie offer his power from the goodness of his heart?

Yeah, love to know the process that brought it all about.
Same as BB.
Almost seems like they are volunteering themselves (rather than being asked) to "help out."

If they are volunteering themselves, that is starting to show us something of the current "AB culture."
That'd be a bit too "huggy" for my liking.

FML the All Blacks are turning into the Black Caps under McCullum - sport's nice guys that never win anything

@taniwharugby said in Bokke vs Wales:

@mariner4life also begs the question, how did it come to Ardie to be the 'character witness'?

Did Eben text Ardie and say 'hey bru, I nd u 2 say gd stf 4 me' or did Ardie offer his power from the goodness of his heart?

I'm sure Martin Luther Savea was touched by the Holy Spirit and was compelled by God to say some nice stuff about his uso

@nostrildamus said in All Blacks 2025:

@junior said in All Blacks 2025:

@Kiwiwomble said in All Blacks 2025:

is our set piece particularly bad?....i think almost everything could do with improvement but didn;t think set piece had stood out, especially since holland came in

Lineout generally good and can be a genuine threat - although that threat seems too often to be inconsistent within games (see England a couple of weeks ago where we picked off copious England ball in the first half but barely bothered to put up a contest in the second half). Scrum, generally good but not at all a threat to opposition ball and prone to late capitulations in big matches (see Boks at Eden Park and England a couple of weeks ago).

In short, definitely room to improve the set pieces and, given the tight 5 stocks at the moment, we should really be aiming to turn the set piece into a genuine weapon rather than simply a re-start.

From your post it sounds like we have the players but not the strategy (or perhaps the brains).

We definitely don't have the strategy - which is probably good indicator that we don't have the brains either. As for the players, I think we have raw material that is not being properly harnessed (as to which, see the previous points about strategy and brains).

@Kiwiwomble said in All Blacks 2025:

is our set piece particularly bad?....i think almost everything could do with improvement but didn;t think set piece had stood out, especially since holland came in

Lineout generally good and can be a genuine threat - although that threat seems too often to be inconsistent within games (see England a couple of weeks ago where we picked off copious England ball in the first half but barely bothered to put up a contest in the second half). Scrum, generally good but not at all a threat to opposition ball and prone to late capitulations in big matches (see Boks at Eden Park and England a couple of weeks ago).

In short, definitely room to improve the set pieces and, given the tight 5 stocks at the moment, we should really be aiming to turn the set piece into a genuine weapon rather than simply a re-start.

@stodders said in Bokke vs Wales:

@W32 said in Bokke vs Wales:

@sparky said in Bokke vs Wales:

Horrific from Eben Etzebeth. Is this really the image World Rugby wants for its game?

Probably an accident

Not worth the wind up. Be that objective Bok fan that condemns thuggery

#justice4eben

@reprobate said in All Blacks 2025:

@Jet said in All Blacks 2025:

@ShaquilleOatmeal said in All Blacks 2025:

@Victor-Meldrew said in All Blacks 2025:

@antipodean said in All Blacks 2025:

@akan004 from that same article; "Personally, yeah, being in 32 hotels and going around the world a few times, but I think what’s required of me every week, how do I set the group up, the management group, the team, we talk about being all in, we talk about serving our jersey on the field and our people off the field, so how can I shape and bring the legacy along with us.

“I feel like I’ve made a real connection to that piece and personally, how can I get those simple messages across to the group? Look, I said before, it’s fine margins, and there’s a lot of expectations that come with it. So how can you refine your messages so the boys are clear and then just go and play and trust themselves.

“I feel like I’ve got a lot better in that regard.”

He's fucking delusional.

Not a pop at Coach Jesus, but am I the only one who hates the use of the word "boys"?

They're not boys, they're grown fucking men.

There's a lot of stuff said by coaches, players and the especially media that comes across as too casual and matey, matey for me.

No edge to the organisation from top down.

We have a no dickheads policy.....we actually need a few dickheads in the building and on the pitch.

Nobody needs a dickhead mate. What we need is hard professional people who don't back away from tough decisions.

We might not need dickheads, but that doesn’t mean we have to have a bunch of pussies.

@gt12 said in New All Black Coach:

If I were honest, I think it feels like how I would describe much of NZ though, but that's a much longer post and would be well off topic.

Would love for you to elaborate on this - I have felt similar, but I am so far away from NZ, and have been away for so long, that I just don't know if my impression accords with reality.

@antipodean said in All Blacks 2025:

@akan004 from that same article; "Personally, yeah, being in 32 hotels and going around the world a few times, but I think what’s required of me every week, how do I set the group up, the management group, the team, we talk about being all in, we talk about serving our jersey on the field and our people off the field, so how can I shape and bring the legacy along with us.

“I feel like I’ve made a real connection to that piece and personally, how can I get those simple messages across to the group? Look, I said before, it’s fine margins, and there’s a lot of expectations that come with it. So how can you refine your messages so the boys are clear and then just go and play and trust themselves.

“I feel like I’ve got a lot better in that regard.”

He's fucking delusional.

WTF?! That word salad was completely incomprehensible.

@mariner4life said in Wales v All Blacks:

@canefan said in Wales v All Blacks:

Love makes a great pickup at 17 mins and makes 50m on a touchfinder. A rare occurrence this season

He and DMac had some huge kicks, wonder if they might have been beneficial at a few points this year?

Especially with a dominant line out more than capable of stealing opposition ball...

@jimmyb said in Wales v All Blacks:

@akan004 said in Wales v All Blacks:

A good performance according to Jeff Wilson and Mils.

One amateur era player and the guy who got replaced by Dagg cause he can't catch a high ball? Lucky we have those two rugby geniuses on our TVs

Some serious revisionist bullshit going on here. Mils was gobbling Up the highball in 2010. He was injured for most of 2011 and Dagg’s attacking play was irresistible.

@Jet said in Wales v All Blacks:

@akan004 said in Wales v All Blacks:

A good performance according to Jeff Wilson and Mils.

These assholes are almost as, if not more culpable than Razor and co.

They are enabling if not endorsing this absolute shit show.

They put the boot in fair and square - both said that this was decent performance but didn’t take the team any further forward and plenty of questions remains, including whether Razor and / or his assistants should go.

If it truly is the case that they are just mouthpieces for HQ, then I think we can take from their comments that HQ are seriously considering their options - as they fkn should be.

@Victor-Meldrew said in All Blacks 2025:

@antipodean said in All Blacks 2025:

@KiwiMurph said in All Blacks 2025:

That's a fascinating article - confirms a lot of what has been suspected.

Mainly that Mark Robinson has a lot to answer for. That simpleton has singlehandedly ruined NZ rugby.

Not just Mark Robinson. Scott Robertson knew exactly the snake-oil he was peddling to NZR - and amplified it by threatening to coach another country if he didn't get the gig.

Been prepared to support him as I've never believed all the problems were down to the head coach (unlike many), but if that article is right, he needs to go right now for deliberately misleading people..

I am not sure he did think he was selling snake oil - let alone that he knew he was. I just don't think he's that smart. I think he genuinely believes in his own genius. Dunning-Kruger Effect in full effect.

@sparky said in Ashes 2025/6:

England have blown this since they were 60-1. They look a ragged rabble.

Baz's British Bottlejobs

@Tim I think I am going to vom

But Robertson’s vision was never for him to undertake the tasks that most would agree constitute the role of head coach – setting the overall playing vision for the team and then overseeing the delivery of that plan.
Instead, Robertson pitched himself as a culture coach, responsible for theming campaigns, communicating one-on-one with players to manage their expectations and career progression.

@mariner4life said in All Blacks 2025:

Incidentally, my youngest son, himself an openside when he plays rugby, spent a couple of weeks going on every Ardie social media post he could find posting variations of "tiktok player, hit a ruck you cat" and reveling in the abuse he received in reply.

While i can't condone rage baiting randoms on social media, i thought that was fucking hilarious.

Why are you hacking your youngest son's social media?

@mariner4life said in All Blacks 2025:

@African-Monkey said in All Blacks 2025:

@kiwiinmelb said in All Blacks 2025:

@African-Monkey said in All Blacks 2025:

@MN5 said in All Blacks 2025:

@ShaquilleOatmeal said in All Blacks 2025:

@MN5 said in All Blacks 2025:

Ardie proving the fern wrong yet again

Beauden unlucky to miss out.

Has Savea even had a good season by his own standards?

I'll check his instagram

Has he still got that stupid pic of him sitting against the goalpost looking into the sky contemplating life after the England test?

I did it and went into the comments section of that pic on instagram ,

Most of it was along the lines of ,

if everyone tried as hard as him we wouldnt lose a game , or - this poor bugger busts his guts out every game, he deserves better

im probably not as anti Ardie as some on here , but I do think there is some serious delusional stuff going on with the general public

He has good parts to his game, but he's really starting to annoy me. He's playing for his own image and is playing like a glory hunter. He knows what he's doing.

i am not willing to go that far. To me he is a victim of a distinct lack of accountability. A hard nose coach in teh video session shows us losing that ruck on the line with him standing at first receiver and tells him if it happens again then someone will be found who will hit that ruck.

In the 2023 RWC Ardie played tight as shit. Hard carries, hit rucks, and we were so much better for it. He was given a job and did it. This coaching panel has decided the best use of him is for Ardie to do what he wants. The great unwashed only watch who has the ball anyway, so to them he's killing it (despite an enormously reduced effectiveness this year).

Hit a ruck you cat!!

I shudder at the thought of how the idiotic masses would view McCaw in this day and age...

@Jet said in England v All Blacks:

This is why we are where we are.

There is no edge.

I listened to a podcast recently where Conor Murray told an anecdote from his new book of how he tried to go into the Allblacks dressing room to get a jersey swap and Ma'a Nonu was stood outside eating.

He turns to Murray and says "where are you going?" "eh I was going in to swap a shirt" "you're not going in there mate".

Thats Henry Pollock. Englands youngest player, shithouse in chief, and Cortez Ratima is gurning with him for a photo after a rubbish performance himself.

I know im a dinosaur, but I preferred when our boys were aloof, unapproachable, hard nosed, miserable looking bastards.

You are giving Pollock an inch there. It's all cosy. "These Allblack lads are sound".

Imagine Austin Healy sat beside Tana Umaga in the dressing room...........

I don't mind the jersey swapping and beers with the opposition in the changing sheds - it's kinda part of the game. But the photo displaying the back of his jersey showing his name and number proudly screams "teenage fanboi", not "professional competitor".
Notable that Pollock isn't holding up Ratima's jersey and is instead wearing it like he owns it...

Some immediate comments on that vid:

1. I am not sure we are the most efficient counter-attacking side anymore.
2. Even if we were, most counter-attacks these days come from the ball being in the air; so, the main "strike play" for counter attack in the modern game is in an area of weakness for us meaning that we are now much more on the receiving end of counter-attacking tries.
3. The post-contact metres point has been made for years on here. Nice to see him, in a round about way, call out those in the team most obsessed with getting PCMs. But, it does beg the question why the coaching team haven't identified that PCMs might actually be helping the defence and hindering our attack.
4. I can't believe that Parkes said the defence has been very good this year.
5. I do not listen to these guys every week or even that often but when I do it is usually after a loss; one of the constant refrains from them is "it's only [e.g. a missed tackle]... that's a simple fix". But the problem is none of these so-called simple fixes ever get fixed.