Geekzone Rugby (Union) Discussion Thread

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#3272061 15-Aug-2024 13:40

That's a reasonable team. Still feel like they are underpowered in the loosies, with no real enforcer there and no noted ball runners to assist Ardie in carting it up the guts. I fear a similar result to last weekends game if not a squeaky win to the AB's.

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#3272065 15-Aug-2024 13:51

I'd love to know all their reasoning. e.g. why Perenara keeps getting more chances, while ALB got 60 mins (which we won), then gets dropped.

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#3272086 15-Aug-2024 14:55

maoriboy:

That's a reasonable team. Still feel like they are underpowered in the loosies, with no real enforcer there and no noted ball runners to assist Ardie in carting it up the guts. I fear a similar result to last weekends game if not a squeaky win to the AB's.

My guess on Reiko is, that for his faults, he is still our strongest defensive centre, and we leaked a lot of points, so I imagine there is more focus on defence this week. TJP is also pretty decent defensively.

I imagine the forwards have been given a decent tune up this week, and they are expecting some of our misfiring attack to improve off the back of that.

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#3272089 15-Aug-2024 15:19

Earbanean:

I'd love to know all their reasoning. e.g. why Perenara keeps getting more chances, while ALB got 60 mins (which we won), then gets dropped.

The combination between Ioane and Barrett was mentioned in the press conference as well as Ioane having a great couple of weeks. Reading between the lines it sounds like they wanted Ioane to make some changes after the England series and that's been happening over the last few weeks.

Robertson appears to really rate Perenaras leadership and think he'll come right. He needs better ball.

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#3272182 15-Aug-2024 17:24

I don't necessarily blame TJP for those two kick charge down, his forwards weren't where they should have been to protect him. His pass and service wasn't great compared to the best he has been this year, and looked like slow old TJP, but if he has a good game this weekend, I'm there for it.

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#3272252 15-Aug-2024 20:45

maoriboy:

That's a reasonable team. Still feel like they are underpowered in the loosies, with no real enforcer there and no noted ball runners to assist Ardie in carting it up the guts. I fear a similar result to last weekends game if not a squeaky win to the AB's.

Thinking about the team a bit I do think that is a big part of picking Caleb Clarke and to some extent Rieko Ioane. They don't have power runners in the second row and if they aren't going to pick Finau or Sititi then they don't have other back row options.

Clarkes two big points of difference are generating go forward and his high ball game. Similarly Ioane runs much squarer than ALB, ALBs whole thing is footwork rather blasting with power. If they use them both first or second phase to generate go forward then can send Savea at weak shoulders it's probably a better use of resources.

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#3272315 16-Aug-2024 08:08

Yeah, I think the same goes for Williams leap-frogging into the starting line up with de Groot out. It adds another power runner.

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#3273252 18-Aug-2024 16:29

I have a question about an otherwise excellent reffing display by Italian referee Andrea Piardi in the NZ vs Argentina last night.

At 69:20 he appears to blow his whistle for a lost forward by the All Blacks and then immediately says “playing advantage” and then after the Argentinian kick “advantage over”. The whistle blow just sounds like the shortest of peeps and it’s got me wondering if I was hearing things? But he definitely put the whistle to his mouth. If he did blow it, doesn’t that mean play has to stop? Or was it just a sound artefact? I’ve replayed it about half a dozen times.

Piardi did get talked into the yellow card though I think. The head contact wouldn’t even qualify as a decent hongi and most of the hurt was to the ribs. Then followed the farcical situation of the victim of the “head clash with a high degree of danger” not even requiring a HIA until it was evident his ribs were hurting so much that he was going to have to go off anyway.

As for the game itself. Awesome display by the ABs in the first half.

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#3273274 18-Aug-2024 17:26

That was fun. It was apparent from about 2 minutes in, whatever had been preventing the forwards from fronting had been addressed during the week. It does feel a bit disappointing to need regular motivational sessions.

I think it's time to rethink Aucklands current stable of backs in the ABs. It was a pretty disappointing display by them and they can't blame the lack of forward dominance. Reiko needs to find whatever it is that made him so good for the 22, 23 season where he was approaching the best centre in the world.

He is still pretty decent on defense but there is no other element of his game that warrants his selection. His distribution which was showing good signs have disappeared, he doesn't break tackles, he seems to have lost his mojo. He hasn't looked right all season, even in SR.

I was glad to see TJP get a good performance in and same for Blackadder. It didn't take long for Cane to make his presence felt.

NGL I had my concerns that Jordan wouldn't be good after yet another injury. I hope he can stay fit for the rest of the season and build on things.

Dmac had an exceptional night from the T, but are we still defending his in game kicking? I mean, it's awful. Acres of grass and kicks it right to opposition hands, not finding touch, kicking out on the full. He needs some help.

We were pretty decent last night but we will need to better again in the forwards, and significantly better in the backs to beat SA at home.

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#3273287 18-Aug-2024 18:36

networkn: ….. I think it's time to rethink Aucklands current stable of backs in the ABs…..

Does this include Telea and (B)Barrett? Both of whom played well.

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#3273321 19-Aug-2024 01:34

Yes. BB has barely played for the Blues and is far more a Hurricane than a Blues player for me.

Te'lea was decent against England unless you consider defense, and I thought he was disappointing when he came on on Saturday night. Admittedly, he came on to a very Average second half performance by the ABs.

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#3273325 19-Aug-2024 06:19

Sometimes I feel like I'm in a parallel universe. I didn't watch a lot of the game live but felt McKenzie played really quite well and kicked effectively. Based on the posts above I went and looked at every kick McKenzie made.

Given the absolutely terrible conditions it was a clear tactic to tray and get Argentina to run back and make errors. I struggle to see how this is a bad kicking game in pretty terrible conditions. New Zealand played the game at the right end of the pitch and avoided mistakes in their own end.

Kickoff received 10m from NZ goaline. Kick to touch on 40m. Net gain 30m
Chip 5m from half way. Regathered on 30m by Savea. 25m net gain and possesion.
Ruck 15m from NZ goaline from kickoff. Kick from 3m line to 3m from halfway on outside tramline. Tackle made 35m from goaline. net gain of 20m Arg ball.
Kick from 15m from halfway out on full around 22. Clear mistake.
Ruck on 22 from kickoff. Kick from 5m to tramlines 12m from halfway (Argentinian side). Bomb return from pumas. Error forced on 30m from NZ goaline. 8m net gain penalty on NZ blocking chase.
Set play kick from 30m from scrum to 25m from Argentinian goal line midfield running fullback around. Argentinian kick charged twice on Argentinean 30m. net gain 40m before charge down.
Ruck on 19m from NZ goal line from kickoff. Kick from 5m for touch on 35m from NZ goal line. 20m net gain.
Set play. Lineout 15m from halfway (nz side. end) Kick from 30m from NZ goal line. Ball finds grass 15m from Arg goal line. Kick to touch 9m from half way (argentinean side). 24m net gain
Ruck on NZ 15m from kickoff. Kick from 5m. Kick to touch on 40m line. 25m net gain
Ruck on 30m from NZ line from turnover. Jordan calls for long kick down tram line. Kick from 15m. Kick to inside tramline 20m from halfway. Tackle made on 15m from halfway (nz side) forcing turnover. 8m net gain and regains possession.
Ruck 12m from halfway after kickoff. Kick from 25m from NZ line to 18m Arg line midfield turning winger. Kick back to NZ 15m. Barrett kicks to 15m from Arg halfway. Return to 5m from halfway. 7m net gain.
Kick reception by J Barret 10m from halfway NZ side. 50:22 attempt Kick from 10m. Caught on full 30m, Turnover on halfway buy Argentinian winger. 10m net gain and possesion.

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#3273327 19-Aug-2024 07:26

Dingbatt:
I have a question about an otherwise excellent reffing display by Italian referee Andrea Piardi in the NZ vs Argentina last night.

At 69:20 he appears to blow his whistle for a lost forward by the All Blacks and then immediately says “playing advantage” and then after the Argentinian kick “advantage over”. The whistle blow just sounds like the shortest of peeps and it’s got me wondering if I was hearing things? But he definitely put the whistle to his mouth. If he did blow it, doesn’t that mean play has to stop? Or was it just a sound artefact? I’ve replayed it about half a dozen times.

Piardi did get talked into the yellow card though I think. The head contact wouldn’t even qualify as a decent hongi and most of the hurt was to the ribs. Then followed the farcical situation of the victim of the “head clash with a high degree of danger” not even requiring a HIA until it was evident his ribs were hurting so much that he was going to have to go off anyway.

As for the game itself. Awesome display by the ABs in the first half.

Yeah that was a weird incident. No idea what happened.

The yellow can be easily justified under the the HCP. It was a very hard hit, Aumua was upright, there was head contact. If he’s made an effort to bend it would have been a different story. Unlike the rogue Gardner decision from last week it was by the book.

Under the current process the Gardner decision was a farce. The Blackadder high tackle last week was an open and shut yellow. Aumua had more of a case that could be argued but still entirely justified under the process.

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#3273493 19-Aug-2024 14:40

I'm still not convinced by Blackadder in the #6 jersey. He was busy, his tackles were effective, but I don't recall any dominant tackles made, nor anything of note in attack. For me, Cane provided more in the stinging defence department coming off the bench. Jordan made a few telling runs while on the wing, but once he moved to fullback he looked decidedly average. Poor option taking to run at times and that fluffed kick was not great. Overall though I'm happy with how the team responded. They now need to build on this to face the mighty Springboks twice at home. Challenges don't get much bigger than that.

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#3273528 19-Aug-2024 16:14

maoriboy:

I'm still not convinced by Blackadder in the #6 jersey. He was busy, his tackles were effective, but I don't recall any dominant tackles made, nor anything of note in attack. For me, Cane provided more in the stinging defence department coming off the bench. Jordan made a few telling runs while on the wing, but once he moved to fullback he looked decidedly average. Poor option taking to run at times and that fluffed kick was not great. Overall though I'm happy with how the team responded. They now need to build on this to face the mighty Springboks twice at home. Challenges don't get much bigger than that.

I thought he was very good. His lineout has been very good the last two games. He's winning lineout ball on opporsition throws which is really useful. He was much better this week with not making mistakes that led to penalties. They used him as the right wing forward on attack I thought he was very effective there feeding around the corner.

He's not a big hitter but he makes a lot of tackles. If Cane returned he'd come in for Papailii rather than Blackadder. He's not perfect and I still don't like the forward mix all that much but he was very good this week.

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