@canefan said in Wales v All Blacks:
@Canes4life said in Wales v All Blacks:
I’m hoping Love and Jordan gel together nicely at the back. That’s our strongest back three IMO. Hope it fires.
I hope they play well enough to force the coaches to take a second look (I wish they'd played that back three months ago)
Yep, especially considering our woeful high ball exploits this year.
@Landers92 said in Wales v All Blacks:
ALB and Ioane the midfield…. Sevu on the bench. Wtf are we trying to achieve
Hopefully a last hoorah for these guys.
@Canes4life said in Wales v All Blacks:
@Landers92 said in Wales v All Blacks:
ALB and Ioane the midfield…. Sevu on the bench. Wtf are we trying to achieve
Hopefully a last hoorah for these guys.
Ticking a box and getting everyone a game. At least Will Jordan is in his best position. Would rather see Tangitau wearing 14 though
@Landers92 said in Wales v All Blacks:
ALB and Ioane the midfield…. Sevu on the bench. Wtf are we trying to achieve
Giving Wales a collective orgasm.
The injuries certainly limited the options in the 23 based on who was left in the squad.
That is the backline Cully was predicting, except Reece and Jordan swapping roles.
@Landers92 said in Wales v All Blacks:
I’m glad razor managed to get his 6 Crusaders on the bench. So inspiring
His way of saying goodbye?
That backline is a wasted opportunity for me. Looking forward to 2026, we aren’t going to learn anything useful from ALB and Rieko.
One could argue that it gives DMac a great chance to show at 10, and Love gets a go at 15 with experience all around, but hard to see anything done for cohesion.
And, if the backline DOES set the house on fire, where does that leave us going forward?
@pakman said in Wales v All Blacks:
That backline is a wasted opportunity for me. Looking forward to 2026, we aren’t going to learn anything useful from ALB and Rieko.
One could argue that it gives DMac a great chance to show at 10, and Love gets a go at 15 with experience all around, but hard to see anything done for cohesion.
> And, if the backline DOES set the house on fire, where does that leave us going forward?
Give ourselves an uppercut and remind ourselves it’s only Wales
Two players that I would love to see in the ABs are Tangitau and Flanders. A fit Flanders is better than Parker IMO and Tangitau is just a gun, noting he has a bit to work on defensively.
I think this guy exists just to wind @Tim up
Well, this side is a real fullstop on the end of the season.
Gives the vibe of waking up after smashing an entire pack of darts on a night out. Just a bit grim.
@reprobate said in Wales v All Blacks:
Jesus, we are a real mess aren't we?
What are we hoping to achieve with that selection? It's just 'make sure everyone gets a go' day in what is supposed to be a high performance environment, when we have not made the progress we need to and have a heap of unanswered questions.
Another wasted opportunity
@Number-10 said in Wales v All Blacks:
Kirifi, ALB, Reece, Christie. It's like a fucking nightmare.
The only bright aspect is no Savea wasting a position on the field and Damien has to make a turd sandwich palatable.
@hikastags said in Wales v All Blacks:
Not sure i've seen anything from Dyer that justifies him being an All Black.
Who is your alternative?
I would've had Marcel Renata ahead of Mafileo. Renata can also play both sides which is why Mafileo was picked.
I know he's 31 so on the older side, but props age like wine these days.
So both these dude's in front of Dyer? Cool. Not sure I can add any value to that.
But when we're down to numbers 4, 5, and 6 in any position it's getting somewhat subjective.
Appreciate your response. But what have you seen in Renata and Mafileo that justifirs them as All Balcks? (Genuine if somewhat smart arse question.)
@KiwiMurph said in Wales v All Blacks:
A missed opportunity if you dont include Tangitau (which I dont expect them to). A perfect chance to debut him.
yes - it's a pretty dick move by Razor to not give him a debut considering he missed the final All Black XV game against Uruguay to train with them, I mean we've really got nothing left to lose - the England test was all that mattered and Wales are essentially a tier 2 nation at this point...
@antipodean said in Wales v All Blacks:
@Number-10 said in Wales v All Blacks:
Kirifi, ALB, Reece, Christie. It's like a fucking nightmare.
The only bright aspect is no Savea wasting a position on the field and Damien has to make a turd sandwich palatable.
8/9/10/12 are Chiefs. Will be interesting to see how it goes 
@booboo said in Wales v All Blacks:
@Number-10 said in Wales v All Blacks:
Nit a fan of Sevu ... but otherwise quite happy with that.
Oh yeah ... and Kirifi ...
@stodders said in Wales v All Blacks:
Ardie Savea and Beauden Barrett aren’t playing. Now we get to see how things go without them.
Except we don't, because everything else has changed too.
@reprobate said in Wales v All Blacks:
@stodders said in Wales v All Blacks:
Ardie Savea and Beauden Barrett aren’t playing. Now we get to see how things go without them.
Except we don't, because everything else has changed too.
Page out of Fozzie's playbook. Empty the bench and learn zero
@sparky said in Wales v All Blacks:
@Number-10 said in Wales v All Blacks:
Worst ever All Blacks test team.
I've seen worse
when was the most recent year we didn't cap anyone on a end of year tour? I know last year Love debuted against Japan and 2022 Telea debuted against Scotland but anything beyond that my mind is fuzzy
@booboo said in Wales v All Blacks:
@sparky said in Wales v All Blacks:
@Number-10 said in Wales v All Blacks:
Worst ever All Blacks test team.
I've seen worse
In the context of the tour and 2025 season, players we needed to develop/cut, it's pretty bad.
It says something of our newly-found ability at times to simply give up, that I'm pleased Christie is on the 23.....
@canefan said in Wales v All Blacks:
@reprobate said in Wales v All Blacks:
@stodders said in Wales v All Blacks:
Ardie Savea and Beauden Barrett aren’t playing. Now we get to see how things go without them.
Except we don't, because everything else has changed too.
Page out of Fozzie's playbook. Empty the bench and learn zero
Like Foster, he now has his back against the wall every bloody game.
And yet he's had 2 seasons to avoid being in this position
@Victor-Meldrew said in Wales v All Blacks:
@canefan said in Wales v All Blacks:
@reprobate said in Wales v All Blacks:
@stodders said in Wales v All Blacks:
Ardie Savea and Beauden Barrett aren’t playing. Now we get to see how things go without them.
Except we don't, because everything else has changed too.
Page out of Fozzie's playbook. Empty the bench and learn zero
Like Foster, he now has his back against the wall every bloody game.
And yet he's had 2 seasons to avoid being in this position
He had a shit ton of goodwill when he came in, whereas Foster took over on the back foot from the go. Just wasted all that capital
I hope they dump the shitty game plan. Try to carry the ball up the field in the forwards, try to give DMac some decent ball and try to make solid decisions and set up his midfield
Lots of stuff to really like there - Love gets a go with the two wings he should have been starting tests alongside, and.. um, and, um.... um.
@pakman said in Wales v All Blacks:
I saw quite a lot I liked of Tupaea and Proctor on Saturday.
This week would have been a chance to see how they went with a match together under their belt.
Just why?
This is the all blacks, these pro athletes don't need participation medals. But Razor is making sure everyone gets one
