Don't repeat the mistake of 2024. DMac deserves a start at 10 and it's long overdue to give Love a start at 15.
Proctor or QT at 13.

Please consign dinks and cross kicks to history.

Sparky's team to play the French in Wellington:

1. De Groot

2. Taylor

3. Newell

4. S Barrett (C)

5. Holland

6. Vaa'i

7. A. Savea

8. Lo-Willie

9. Roigard

10. DMac

11. C. Clarke

12. J. Barrett

13. Q. Tupaea

14. W. Jordan

15. R. Love

16. S. Taukei'aho

17. O. Norris

18. P. Tosi or T. Lomax

19. S. Finau

20. D. Kirifi

21. C. Ratima

22. B. Barrett

23. T. Tavatavnawai

That does raise one point - you'd like to think Williams and Lomax would have made a heck of a difference today.

@Bones said in All Blacks v France 2:

That does raise one point - you'd like to think Williams and Lomax would have made a heck of a difference today.

Would they have?

I don't the forwards had any issues to be honest. It's not like Williams and Lomax are considerably better scrum agers than the players who started either.

@Bones said in All Blacks v France 2:

That does raise one point - you'd like to think Williams and Lomax would have made a heck of a difference today.

ABs B team without our starting props, starting number 8, new midfield and back 3 combos……well that’s what I told my French mate

@Mr-Fish said in All Blacks v France 2:

@Bones said in All Blacks v France 2:

That does raise one point - you'd like to think Williams and Lomax would have made a heck of a difference today.

Would they have?

I don't the forwards had any issues to be honest. It's not like Williams and Lomax are considerably better scrum agers than the players who started either.

They carry the ball more than EDG and Newell

Don’t change a thing 1-23. Only thing that does need to be changed is decision making and ball security after a line break.

@game_film said in All Blacks v France 2:

Don’t change a thing 1-23. Only thing that does need to be changed is decision making and ball security after a line break.

Damn right. Sevu Reece can play through a concussion. Pine Tree would have.

@MN5 Apologies, I missed the first 8 seconds.

@game_film said in All Blacks v France 2:

@MN5 Apologies, I missed the first 8 seconds.

Sounds like something my other half would say

1.De Groot
2.Taylor
3.Newell
4.S Barrett (C)
5.Holland
6.Vaa'i
7.A. Savea
8.Lio-Willie
9.Roigard
10.D Mac
11.T Tavatavnawai
12.J. Barrett
13.Q. Tupaea
14.R Ioane
15.W Jordan
16.S. Taukei'aho
17.O. Norris
18.P. Tosi or T. Lomax
19.D Papali’i
20.S Finau
21.N Hotham
22.B. Barrett
23.R Love

Though our defense was accurate it was weak. Zero dominant tackles from our forwards. Is that part of the plan or did we lack intent there?

Why drop Barrett? Thought he went pretty bloody well - DMac on the other hand was rocks and diamonds.

I’d stick with the same team barring injuries (Lomax for Newell & Clarke for Reece). Proctor was poor, but one game is not a big enough sample size.

Barrett’s passing in particular was really good. Am sure Will Jordan wants him to stay at 10.

Speaking of that jammy bastard, he must be getting high up on the try count now

@ACT-Crusader said in All Blacks v France 2:

@Mr-Fish said in All Blacks v France 2:

@Bones said in All Blacks v France 2:

That does raise one point - you'd like to think Williams and Lomax would have made a heck of a difference today.

Would they have?

I don't the forwards had any issues to be honest. It's not like Williams and Lomax are considerably better scrum agers than the players who started either.

They carry the ball more than EDG and Newell

Definitely - I'm not suggesting they're not better players. I just don't think they would've made that much of difference in that game. The All Blacks issues weren't that their forwards weren't carrying effectively enough.

With a better kicking/high ball game, a tiny bit more accuracy at crucial moments or smarter defence, and NZ would've won at a canter (easier said than done, or course, but I don't think better carrying from the starting props would've fixed any of those issues).

@frugby said in All Blacks v France 2:

Why drop Barrett? Thought he went pretty bloody well - DMac on the other hand was rocks and diamonds.

I’d stick with the same team barring injuries (Lomax for Newell & Clarke for Reece). Proctor was poor, but one game is not a big enough sample size.

He did go well, and yes, I agree, those are the only changes I'd make too.

@Kirwan said in All Blacks v France 2:

Barrett’s passing in particular was really good. Am sure Will Jordan wants him to stay at 10.

Speaking of that jammy bastard, he must be getting high up on the try count now

His strike rate per test is nothing short of ridiculous and his class and calmness under pressure is extraordinary

@frugby said in All Blacks v France 2:

Why drop Barrett? Thought he went pretty bloody well - DMac on the other hand was rocks and diamonds.

I’d stick with the same team barring injuries (Lomax for Newell & Clarke for Reece). Proctor was poor, but one game is not a big enough sample size.

I'd like Beauden to draw tacklers more

This will be a much different game compared to yesterday

Swirling mid winter Cake Tin as opposed to under the roof

French ref as opposed to Nick Berry

@KiwiMurph said in All Blacks v France 2:

French ref as opposed to Nick Berry

Christophe Ridley is English despite the name. This will be his biggest test to date. He will also be younger than some of the players.

@KiwiMurph said in All Blacks v France 2:

French ref

Huh?

Scooter reportedly in doubt with an Achilles issue. Vaai might go back to lock, making room for another loosie

@Mr-Fish said in All Blacks v France 2:

I'm not suggesting they're not better players. I just don't think they would've made that much of difference in that game

That much of a difference would have been quite the difference indeed. If you're getting a lot more from your props around the field, don't you think that then slides onto what you're getting from your other players?

Even if you just consider their personal contributions, those extra metres you get from Williams in close or that extra dominant hit/turnover you get from Lomax could turn a tight 4 point win into a comfortable 11 point win (and it's highly likely France wouldn't have finished with as much vigour if they were already out of the game).

@booboo said in All Blacks v France 2:

@KiwiMurph said in All Blacks v France 2:

French ref

Huh?

French first name. Christophe. Close enough....

@canefan said in All Blacks v France 2:

Scooter reportedly in doubt with an Achilles issue. Vaai might go back to lock, making room for another loosie

World-class lock moves back to lock due to injury to captain?

Un embarrasement de riches

@Bones said in All Blacks v France 2:

@Mr-Fish said in All Blacks v France 2:

I'm not suggesting they're not better players. I just don't think they would've made that much of difference in that game

That much of a difference would have been quite the difference indeed. If you're getting a lot more from your props around the field, don't you think that then slides onto what you're getting from your other players?

Even if you just consider their personal contributions, those extra metres you get from Williams in close or that extra dominant hit/turnover you get from Lomax could turn a tight 4 point win into a comfortable 11 point win (and it's highly likely France wouldn't have finished with as much vigour if they were already out of the game).

Would people have felt massively differently about an 11-point win rather than a 4-point win? I feel like exactly the same comments would be made.

But getting into semantics here - obviously semantics have absolutely no place on the Fern.

I felt the props did ok but I did feel that Williams would have more impact around the field, at times EdG looked to me like he was willing himself to get up to speed between rucks.

@Mr-Fish said in All Blacks v France 2:

Would people have felt massively differently about an 11-point win rather than a 4-point win

I can't speak for people, but I struggle to see how an 11 point win against a wilting side wouldn't be much better than a 4 point win against a team threatening to take the win themselves. Especially in the first test. So yeah, I would've felt much different, especially seeing a better functioning ABs.

After the French moral victory in Dunedin, I can't see them making many changes. Rinse and repeat from them and they'll hope they get more out of a Northern Hemisphere ref, especially one with a French first name and who was born in Paris.

@Bones there was a genuine chance we could have lost that. If so I'd be feeling as sick as a dog right now. I take the win and move on.

@BerniesCorner said in All Blacks v France 2:

@Bones there was a genuine chance we could have lost that. If so I'd be feeling as sick as a dog right now. I take the win and move on.

Right? So wouldn't you have felt remarkably better about it being out of reach in the dying minutes? Something like Savea having to do less carries and therefore having more in the tank for a big defensive play. That's the margin.

I'm not disagreeing with you. Thank goodness we won. We were a dropped pass away from losing

@BerniesCorner said in All Blacks v France 2:

I'm not disagreeing with you. Thank goodness we won. We were a dropped pass away from losing

Lomax prolly woulda dropped it.

@BerniesCorner did you think our defence was that bad? A dropped ball and we'd lose?

More from Chat GTP on the man who will have le sifflet during Saturday's test.

Here’s a detailed look at Christophe Ridley, a rising star in rugby officiating:

⸻

🧑‍️ Background & Education
• Born: 16 April 1993 in Paris, France, but is an English-qualified rugby referee .
• Education: Studied Sports Coaching at the University of Gloucestershire (from 2013), benefiting from a unique officiating scholarship run by ex-World Cup ref Chris White . He now tutors on the programme and serves as a “referee in residence” for the RFU–University Officiating Hub .

⸻

Refereeing Career
• 2016: Turned professional arena referee, debuting in Championship and quickly moving into Premiership Rugby .
• Premier Competitions: Regularly oversees Premiership Rugby, European Rugby Champions Cup and Challenge Cup, and United Rugby Championship (since 2021–22) .
• International Stage:
• Debut as lead referee in Six Nations in 2024, officiating France v Italy .
• Assistant Referee at the 2023 Rugby World Cup .

⸻

Key Milestones
• Premiership Final 2024: Assigned as the main referee for the Northampton Saints vs Bath game at Twickenham—a prestigious first for a post-Wayne Barnes official . His semi-final showing earned him broad praise:
“Been the best ref in the league this season imo…” 
“To be fair Ridley has been better and not many referees get domestic and European finals in the same year.” 
• European Champions Cup 2023: One of the Assistant Referees in the final ().

⸻

️ Personality & Style
• Mentored by Wayne Barnes and influenced by Luke Pearce for his calm, flowing style .
• Performance-driven: Adopts a rigorous review routine—waking early post-match for analysis—with a pursuit of perfection, supported by his partner Katie Nelson .
• Mindset: Describes “quiet arrogance” and a constant quest for growth, regularly consulting experts across fields .
• Life off-field: Balances intense on-field demands with renovation projects, gym workouts, and time with his dogs and partner .

⸻

Community Engagement
• Hosts local events like quiz & curry nights to share insights and support veteran programmes .
• Actively involved in mentoring upcoming referees through his role with the University and RFU Officiating Hub .

⸻

Summary

Christophe Ridley is one of England’s most promising rugby referees: a former Leicester Tigers academy player turned professional official, with a strong academic foundation and a distinguished track record across domestic and international competitions. Known for his composed, performance-driven approach.

@sparky said in All Blacks v France 2:

After the French moral victory in Dunedin, I can't see them making many changes. Rinse and repeat from them and they'll hope they get more out of a Northern Hemisphere ref, especially one with a French first name and who was born in Paris.

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Worked for them in 2011

"Mentored by Wayne Barnes" - oh, great!?!

@nostrildamus said in All Blacks v France 2:

"Mentored by Wayne Barnes" - oh, great!?!

Strange world where you can have a Georgian, a Canadian and a Saffa play for France. And someone born in Paris as the neutral referee.

At least his French will be good rather than some of the comedy attempts to speak the language we've had from referees over the years.....