@pakman said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@nostrildamus said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@cgrant said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

Lack of physicality up front for the AB XV. Christie was everywhere but he is not strong enough to be effective. Jacobson was outmuscled by Mercer. Gardiner was good in open play but was nowhere to be seen in the tight exchanges. Tamaiti Williams is not a tight head prop. Even in the NPC, he was not at ease on this side of the scrum. He should concentrate on the loose head IMO but with Jager out, I fear the Crusaders will use him on the tight head as they have Moody (?), Bower and Brewis for the Nr.1 jersey. McAllister had a game to forget. Makalio did better when he came in. Dickson was very good during the first spell before fading during the second. I was expecting more from PT. A few strong carries though. Aidan Ross was solid but failed to show that he is AB material. Cortima brought his dynamism and strength when he came in. He was pretty good. DMac tried too much at times, but we are used to it. He showed a few moments of sheer brilliance, such as his pass for the first try and his kick for Stevenson. The latter again showed his class but seemed lost at times. His positioning was caught badly a few times. He is a better wing than fullback IMO. Nankivell was outstanding till his injury. Sullivan did well when he came in and showed his pace. Aumua and Heem were mostly anonymous. All in all, it seems that the team lineup against Ireland A was far better, particularly in the loose forwards.

Well summarised. MMT more impactful than Jacobson at 8 IMO.
NZ XV did well considering they were so behind with 2 yellow cards.
Ngatai waddles like a burst duck but still made incisive 'runs' - weird to watch.
Also weird-Christie looked like a boy AND an old man!
Yes Razors team looked better coached - did he really only have 2 weeks?

From time Maori Jesus did reply haka we woz doomed.

What a loss to NZ rugby he was....

68 minutes.

Thomas chips over the top of the defence. Bridge chasing, DMac and Stevenson both caning it back, both look over at the same time and see Bridge chasing and immediately slow down.

71 minutes.

Razor is whisked out of the stadium and the Baabaas shit themselves. Great pressure from Aumua and determination from Sullivan to run in a try.

74 minutes.

Pearce really isn't a good fit for Baabaas games.

80 minutes.

Immediate elevation to the ABs - Levi Aumua, DMac, Stevenson. In that order. Hand over your jerseys Havili, Clarke...and ummm.someone else.

More please - Nankivell, Dickson, Weber, Sullivan, Gardiner.

So long and thanks for all the shoes - Tuipulotu, Christie, Williams, Jacobson.

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

DMac and Stevenson both caning it back, both look over at the same time and see Bridge chasing and immediately slow down.

Dontcha just love it when players show respect to each other on the field?

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

80 minutes.

Immediate elevation to the ABs - Levi Aumua, DMac, Stevenson. In that order. Hand over your jerseys Havili, Clarke...and ummm.someone else.

More please - Nankivell, Dickson, Weber, Sullivan, Gardiner.

So long and thanks for all the shoes - Tuipulotu, Christie, Williams, Jacobson.

Great commntary - thanks! Made me smile.

Only seen the highlights but that massive hit by Levi was impressive. Good to see DMac's pace is still there and his cover defence is still awesome. Genius kick to Stevenson in space. Nankivell was impressing the commentators as well.

I like the AB XV idea. Lets up and coming players mix with more experienced players on tour, coaches can spend with the players to assess and develop them, and players can be tested against some decent opposition. Think there's some deep-ish problems with the game on NZ but credit to NZR for this tour which is great for developing depth above SR level.

@Victor-Meldrew Aumua looked very Riekoish. Definitely someone to get more involved.

Stevenson has the Jordan mystique, but a better boot. Back 3 of him, Jordan and Telea is certainly worth a look.

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Victor-Meldrew Aumua looked very Riekoish. Definitely someone to get more involved.

Stevenson has the Jordan mystique, but a better boot. Back 3 of him, Jordan and Telea is certainly worth a look.

Aumua seems to have snuck under the radar so great the selectors spotted him. Surprised to see he's 28. Bit more physical than Reiko from what I saw.

@Bones He must be the silent type or problems with the coms. I'm sure there will be some learnings.

@Victor-Meldrew word on a forum I frequent is he had an outstanding NPC.

Didn't think he looked more physical than Rieko, he's a touch bigger though (and didn't seem hindered by that when stepping).

@Bones
You are a bit harsh on Williams who was playing tight head where he was uncomfortable even in the NPC. He is a very good loose head. This was not a gift for him to play against a seasoned LH like Marler in a position where we knew he would struggle. Aumua was powerful but slow. I was more impressed by Nankivell.

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Victor-Meldrew Aumua looked very Riekoish. Definitely someone to get more involved.

Stevenson has the Jordan mystique, but a better boot. Back 3 of him, Jordan and Telea is certainly worth a look.

Stevenson did look good, didn't he, but much more a winger than a fb I suspect. Looks bigger than the reported 90kg. Suspect he and Zarn Sullivan may be competing for a place (unless a future AB coach sees the even bigger Sullivan as a 10).
Will still make mistakes but the upside is exciting.
I thought DMac has most of his pace back but didn't see the crazy acceleration he used to have? Will have to go back and watch again. Looks better on attack to me than BB.
I thought Jacobson toiled on occasion but he doesn't seem an opportunistic Ardie type of loosie and unlikely to be selected again (he can tackle but I haven't seen dominating ones at the top level).
That French winger was classy.
Aumua is interesting, could have represented 3 countries.

This game showed that you cannot field at the same time two diminutive players in the 9 and 10 jerseys. They were simply brushed off by Mercer for his try after a five meter scrum. This defensive weakness was probably identified before the game by Razor. Ratima brought some welcome energy and strength when he came in.

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Victor-Meldrew Aumua looked very Riekoish. Definitely someone to get more involved.

Stevenson has the Jordan mystique, but a better boot. Back 3 of him, Jordan and Telea is certainly worth a look.

Aumua looked a little slow and heavy to me, like running in quick sand or post injury NMS. Happy to be wrong of course but I have not seen a lot of him prior.

@chimoaus said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Victor-Meldrew Aumua looked very Riekoish. Definitely someone to get more involved.

Stevenson has the Jordan mystique, but a better boot. Back 3 of him, Jordan and Telea is certainly worth a look.

Aumua looked a little slow and heavy to me, like running in quick sand or post injury NMS. Happy to be wrong of course but I have not seen a lot of him prior.

Is he not better suited to 12? He's certainly built more like an inside centre .

@Frye For MP he played all his games at 13. For Ta$man, he played one game at 12, all other games at 13.

@chimoaus @cgrant I don't really know what you were watching, I saw him race up brilliantly on defence a couple of times and at no stage looked slow, so I'm lost.

@cgrant I'm only going off what I watched, I'm not going to go through everyone's history before I comment. Williams was cake.

@chimoaus said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Victor-Meldrew Aumua looked very Riekoish. Definitely someone to get more involved.

Stevenson has the Jordan mystique, but a better boot. Back 3 of him, Jordan and Telea is certainly worth a look.

Aumua looked a little slow and heavy to me, like running in quick sand or post injury NMS. Happy to be wrong of course but I have not seen a lot of him prior.

Yep Chim, I can't claim to be a real big fan of Aumua above NPC, not knocking him or anything, but feel maybe Super rugby is his ceiling.

@Dan54 said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@chimoaus said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Victor-Meldrew Aumua looked very Riekoish. Definitely someone to get more involved.

Stevenson has the Jordan mystique, but a better boot. Back 3 of him, Jordan and Telea is certainly worth a look.

Aumua looked a little slow and heavy to me, like running in quick sand or post injury NMS. Happy to be wrong of course but I have not seen a lot of him prior.

Yep Chim, I can't claim to be a real big fan of Aumua above NPC, not knocking him or anything, but feel maybe Super rugby is his ceiling.

To be fair he was very good for MP in SR rugby, so maybe a higher ceiling than NPC.Not sure about a higher step though.

@Chris He looked a bit limited when he played for Chiefs before. I think both he and Nankivell are strong enough to have their moments in super rugby but may get exposed by the quicker pace at international level. Both maybe not with a wider skillset to fit all conditions either. But hey some midfielders get better with age...

@Chris said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Dan54 said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@chimoaus said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Victor-Meldrew Aumua looked very Riekoish. Definitely someone to get more involved.

Stevenson has the Jordan mystique, but a better boot. Back 3 of him, Jordan and Telea is certainly worth a look.

Aumua looked a little slow and heavy to me, like running in quick sand or post injury NMS. Happy to be wrong of course but I have not seen a lot of him prior.

Yep Chim, I can't claim to be a real big fan of Aumua above NPC, not knocking him or anything, but feel maybe Super rugby is his ceiling.

To be fair he was very good for MP in SR rugby, so maybe a higher ceiling than NPC.Not sure about a higher step though.

Well this throws the cat amongst the pigeons....was this game only super level? Or above? Below?

Careful you don't upset any Razor supporters...

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

30 minutes.

Interesting contrast. ABXV backline looking handy as, forwards getting worked.

Thanks Jase, it would have been good if we had a few others there, but sadly Hodgman and others just aren't as good as the Saders second XV.

@gt12 Harmon and Aumua would probably have made a big difference too.

But yeah, ABXV backline might look even sharper with a forward pack...let's just roll them out as the AB backline this weekend. Caution to the wind!

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Chris said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Dan54 said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@chimoaus said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Victor-Meldrew Aumua looked very Riekoish. Definitely someone to get more involved.

Stevenson has the Jordan mystique, but a better boot. Back 3 of him, Jordan and Telea is certainly worth a look.

Aumua looked a little slow and heavy to me, like running in quick sand or post injury NMS. Happy to be wrong of course but I have not seen a lot of him prior.

Yep Chim, I can't claim to be a real big fan of Aumua above NPC, not knocking him or anything, but feel maybe Super rugby is his ceiling.

To be fair he was very good for MP in SR rugby, so maybe a higher ceiling than NPC.Not sure about a higher step though.

Well this throws the cat amongst the pigeons....was this game only super level? Or above? Below?

Careful you don't upset any Razor supporters...

Not talking about this performance but what came before .
As for the level of this game fuck knows as for Amua playing higher than SR level as I said not sure either way.

@Chris I reckon this was higher than SR level. He was one of the best on the park for ABXV.

@gt12 said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

30 minutes.

Interesting contrast. ABXV backline looking handy as, forwards getting worked.

Thanks Jase, it would have been good if we had a few others there, but sadly Hodgman and others just aren't as good as the Saders second XV.

Throwing Razor a bone?

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Chris I reckon this was higher than SR level. He was one of the best on the park for ABXV.

Along with Gardiner yeah he was.
I like his power game which we need so worth a look for sure.
Levi at 2nd five wouldn’t be bad.

@Chris said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Chris I reckon this was higher than SR level. He was one of the best on the park for ABXV.

Along with Gardiner yeah he was.
I like his power game which we need so worth a look for sure.
Levi at 2nd five wouldn’t be bad.

Gardiner and Dickson only forwards worth a shout. Dmac, Nankivell, Aumua, Stevenson the best.

Baabaas peaky blinders night.

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@chimoaus @cgrant I don't really know what you were watching, I saw him race up brilliantly on defence a couple of times and at no stage looked slow, so I'm lost.

@cgrant I'm only going off what I watched, I'm not going to go through everyone's history before I comment. Williams was cake.

He was cake in the scrums, but you should have taken in consideration that he was not playing on his best side.

@cgrant said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@chimoaus @cgrant I don't really know what you were watching, I saw him race up brilliantly on defence a couple of times and at no stage looked slow, so I'm lost.

@cgrant I'm only going off what I watched, I'm not going to go through everyone's history before I comment. Williams was cake.

He was cake in the scrums, but you should have taken in consideration that he was not playing on his best side.

Nah, I'm taking into account the side he was selected for. Where he was playing.

I don't give Beauden a free go at 10 just because he's a better 15.

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

Baabaas peaky blinders night.

View image

looks like some likely lads just robbed a Guy Richie dressup party..

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@chimoaus @cgrant I don't really know what you were watching, I saw him race up brilliantly on defence a couple of times and at no stage looked slow, so I'm lost.

@cgrant I'm only going off what I watched, I'm not going to go through everyone's history before I comment. Williams was cake.

Only saw the highlights but he seem to have good acceleration which is probbly more important than raw top-end pace at 13.

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

Careful you don't upset any Razor supporters...

Just. Stop. It.

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@cgrant said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@chimoaus @cgrant I don't really know what you were watching, I saw him race up brilliantly on defence a couple of times and at no stage looked slow, so I'm lost.

@cgrant I'm only going off what I watched, I'm not going to go through everyone's history before I comment. Williams was cake.

He was cake in the scrums, but you should have taken in consideration that he was not playing on his best side.

Nah, I'm taking into account the side he was selected for. Where he was playing.

I don't give Beauden a free go at 10 just because he's a better 15.

I was referring to "So long and thanks for the shoes" : it's harsh to say "no more of him" about a player who was not playing in his best position. I would like to see him on the LH side against a strong opposition before condemning him once for all.

@cgrant said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@cgrant said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Bones said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@chimoaus @cgrant I don't really know what you were watching, I saw him race up brilliantly on defence a couple of times and at no stage looked slow, so I'm lost.

@cgrant I'm only going off what I watched, I'm not going to go through everyone's history before I comment. Williams was cake.

He was cake in the scrums, but you should have taken in consideration that he was not playing on his best side.

Nah, I'm taking into account the side he was selected for. Where he was playing.

I don't give Beauden a free go at 10 just because he's a better 15.

I was referring to "So long and thanks for the shoes" : it's harsh to say "no more of him" about a player who was not playing in his best position. I would like to see him on the LH side against a strong opposition before condemning him once for all.

Would you select him at TH?

@Bones
Certainly not. He was cake there even in the NPC matches (as far as scrummaging is concerned). He is a pure LH IMO.

@cgrant said in All Blacks XV v Barbarians:

@Bones
Certainly not. He was cake there even in the NPC matches (as far as scrummaging is concerned). He is a pure LH IMO.

Then so long and thanks for all the shoes!

Until he gets selected at LH.