New Zealand Rugby Team Watch

[Braveheart81]

Fekitoa is really on the nose by the look of it

His form has certainly slipped from where it was a couple of years ago.

 

[zer0]

Fekitoa seems to be well and truly on the outer ATM. He's not even listed as injury cover for Crotty, with the position going to Jack Goodhue instead.

Other injury covers are Liam Coltman for Coles and Vaea Fifita, Akira Ioane and the perpetually screwed over Matt Todd for the loose forwards. Luatua has also been hard done by there.

 

[Dismal Pillock]

DMac completely fucked too. If he cant even make it as injury cover after scorching the living baking cockboiled fuck out of Souprugby then he7s rooted. Jordie it is. Dmac just too liable to getting isolated after mazy run, ragdolled, turned over. Gonna be a murderously fun maori team to watch though. Skudder, Dmac and JLowe and maybe RIoane the back 3

ps fuck Dagg and his precious tenure. That hefty booting option gets him back in again ahead of allll the poor c**ts that have been carving up all bloody season. Jules too. Surely a couple more pudgy ploppy performances in black from him will usher in the R.Ioane era

 

[Dan54]

Luatua probably a bit hard done by, but Akira Ioane is starting to play some good rugby, and with Luatua going overseas, well thems the breaks, I know Cruden is going,but I think he clearly a fair bit ahead of Mounga etc who would take his place.
DMac is going to need to make a name for himself at 10 to break in to ABs . Personally I pretty content we can leave out that calibre of player.
Also a bit please for Laumape, he could be pretty ok, and I real stoked for Goodhue being a back up.

 

[Akula]

Top squad I reckon. A few blokes unlucky to miss out, but that's what happens when you have the sort of depth NZ has. Smiley Barrett probably sitting at home on the farm in Taranaki having a beer or two right now in celebration!

 

[Inside Shoulder]

His form has certainly slipped from where it was a couple of years ago.

his discipline too

 

[Braveheart81]

Here's the Maori All Blacks squad.

Forwards
Ash Dixon (captain) – Hawke’s Bay – Ngāti Tahinga (8)
Hikawera Elliot – Counties Manukau – Ngāti Awa (9)
Chris Eves – North Harbour – Waikato/Tainui (7 appearances)
Kane Hames – Tasman – Ngāi Tuhoe/Ngāti Porou (5)
Mike Kainga – Taranaki – Ngāti Kahungunu (2)
Ben May – Hawke’s Bay – Ngāti Maniapoto (12)
Marcel Renata – Auckland – Ngāti Whānaunga / Te Aupouri (4)
Tom Franklin – Otago – Ngāti Maniapoto (4)
Leighton Price – Taranaki – Waikato/Ngāti Maniapoto (3)
Joe Wheeler – Tasman – Ngāi Tahu (2)
Elliot Dixon – Southland – Ngāpuhi (9)
Akira Ioane – Auckland – Ngāpuhi/Te Whānau ā Apanui (5)
Liam Messam – Waikato – Ngāti Maniapoto (12)
Reed Prinsep – Canterbury – Te Rārawa (2)
Kara Pryor – Northland – Ngāti Awa/Ngāti Pikiao/Ngāti Rangitihi (2)
Backs
Bryn Hall* – North Harbour – Ngāti Ranginui
Te Toiroa Tahuriorangi* – Taranaki – Ngāti Pikiao
Otere Black – Manawatu – Ngāi Tuhoe/Te Whānau ā Apanui/Ngāti Tūwharetoa (4)
Ihaia West – Hawke’s Bay – Ngāti Kahungunu/Ngāti Porou (7)
Tim Bateman – Canterbury – Ngāi Tahu (12)
Charlie Ngatai – Taranaki – Ngāti Porou/Te Whānau ā Apanui/Te Whakatōhea (9)
Matt Proctor – Wellington – Ngāi Te Rangi/Ngāpuhi (9)
Rob Thompson* – Canterbury – Ngāti Kahungunu
James Lowe – Tasman – Ngāpuhi/Ngāi Te Rangi (5)
Damian McKenzie – Waikato – Ngāti Tūwharetoa/Ngāti Tahinga (3)
Nehe Milner-Skudder – Manawatu – Ngāti Porou/Tapuika (2)
Declan O’Donnell – Taranaki – Ngāti Tūwharetoa/Ngāti Porou (1)

 

[waiopehu oldboy]

Top squad I reckon. A few blokes unlucky to miss out, but that's what happens when you have the sort of depth NZ has. Smiley Barrett probably sitting at home on the farm in Taranaki having a beer or two right now in celebration!

Only the fourth instance of three All Black brothers after the Brownlies & Nicholls' back in the 1920's & more recently the Whitelocks (George played a Test in 2009, Luke one in 2013). In all 43 sets of brothers have worn Black.

 

[Braveheart81]

From that, your team could be:

1. Hames
2. Dixon
3. May
4. Franklin
5. Wheeler
6. Dixon
7. Pryor
8. Ioane
9. Hall
10. Black
11. Lowe
12. Thompson
13. Ngatai
14. Milner-Skudder
15. McKenzie

16. Elliot, 17. Eves, 18. Renata 19. Price 20. Messam 21. Tahuriorangi 22. Proctor 23. Bateman

Hell of a team!

 

[waiopehu oldboy]

^^^^^^^^^ I think Messam will start, partly because I think Ioane will be in Auckland not RotoVegas (see below) but moreso because he's Messam & where the Maori All Blacks are concerned mana sometimes counts for more than form.

Read pretty much says he's a non-starter for Samoa Test:

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=11872353

With Squire & Kaino also injured I'm thinking Ardie Savea will start at 8 with Ioane on the bench as he covers 6 & 8, plus it's Samoa so he can probably cover 7 if Cane (c) goes down. Hoping they go with JSav & Naholo and it doesn't quite work (again) so we get a better-balanced back three (sorry, Dismal, but that by definition means Dagg at 14) for Lions T1.

 

[waiopehu oldboy]

^^^^^^^^^^^ Messam is apparently playing with a broken nose but has put off surgery until after the MAB v B&IL match. Risky but it does how much it means to him to be there & it's the kinda thing his team will draw inspiration from. Not much in NZ rugby is quite as old-school as the NZ Maori.

 

[waiopehu oldboy]

John Plumtree won't be applying for the AB coaching vacancy:

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/rugby/news/article.cfm?c_id=80&objectid=11873884

Almost certainly means it'll be Scott McLeod, I can't see them suddenly pulling someone in from o/s & not sure who'd be available even if they wanted to.

 

[waiopehu oldboy]

Big day in Te Kuiti today with the unveiling of a 2.9m statue of Colin Meads, and the opening of a Meads Brothers exhibition also honouring 15-Test AB Stan (Colin played 55 which I think was about double anyone else up until that time).

http://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2017/06/sir-colin-meads-statue-unveiled-in-hometown.html

I'd planned to go down to TK for it but wasn't able to. A bit gutted as it would've been my last chance to see the man. I shook his hand as an awestruck 9yo after his Athletic Park testimonial & again ~8 years ago after a deer/ pig shooting comp run out've the Dinsdale Tavern that he's somehow or other Patron of.

I know there's people on here who will never forgive him for the Catchpole incident, and I respect those people's feelings, but to me he remains a genuine legend of the game and while it doesn't make what happened right, the game was different back then.

 

[Dan54]

Actually WOB, I glad you mentioned how the game was back a few years, it gives me a chance to say how much I enjoyed the programme on Gareth Edwards on BEIN sports on Sunday, and it was interesting to hear how some Welsh were upset in one test against Ireland because they had put the boot into some of the Irish boys that played in the Lions with them, they weren't upset at the fact they were kicking the Irish, but just said the Lions players shouldn't kick each other. All expected to have a few punch ups etc in Tests.

Also agree that regardless what other here think of Meads, he really is a true great of the game, and always remember hearing Barry John the great Welsh 10 say that in 100 years Meads will still be getting named in the top 10 players to have played the game.

 

[Dismal Pillock]

11. R.Ioane

Flight RIOANE011 has been cleared for take off.

Thanks for everything Jules oh ok bye then

 

[Dismal Pillock]

 

[Brumby Runner]

http://www.superxv.com/fekitoa-set-leave-super-rugby-toulon/

Fekitoa to Toulon? Haven't seen this reported elsewhere.

 

[waiopehu oldboy]

^^^^^^ it kinda fizzled out when there was no big announcement from Toulon on Tuesday. He'll probably end up there or elsewhere in UK or France, just not yet.

 

[Akula]

Would be surprised to see Fekitoa stay. Big Tongan family and taking a big contract would help his family out as much as possible. I think he's one of 14 siblings and his father passed away at an early age as well.

 

[waiopehu oldboy]

Great news re: BSmith, the dizziness & nausea he's been having aren't the result of concussion but an inner-ear issue that's now being treated:

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/rugby/news/article.cfm?c_id=80&objectid=11886801

Should be good to go for Bledisloe 1