@Rugbyman said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@jimmyb I suppose we lack big loosies since Flanders and Finau have gone. I don't think Frizell's form has been very good in Japan but he has experience and he has done it before. He is 1 of the few 6 foot 5, 115kgs loosies we have to combat the Bok monsters.
I believe Dave can take Finau to SA if he wants.
@jimmyb said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@Rugbyman why the hell would be want Frizell? The guy never strung together 4-5 games in a row and usually goes missing when you need him most
We need some cannon fodder for the midweek games.
@Canes4life said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@Rugbyman said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
10 extra players to come in: Norris, G Bell, Mafileo, Holland, Frizzell, Kirifi, Hotham, Mounga, Ioane, Hutchinson.
Is what I am hoping for.I had the same but had Lauaki over Mafileo and Harkin over Hutchinson as he can also cover 10
You ok hun? Haig over Frizzel, Delaney over Holland, Godfrey over Mounga.
@Bones said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@Canes4life said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@Rugbyman said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
10 extra players to come in: Norris, G Bell, Mafileo, Holland, Frizzell, Kirifi, Hotham, Mounga, Ioane, Hutchinson.
Is what I am hoping for.I had the same but had Lauaki over Mafileo and Harkin over Hutchinson as he can also cover 10
You ok hun? Haig over Frizzel, Delaney over Holland, Godfrey over Mounga.
Close… Shields over Haig
@Canes4life What’s the word on Hutchinson’s knee injury.? Is he back in training for NPC? Exciting young prospect
@SecFid said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@Canes4life What’s the word on Hutchinson’s knee injury.? Is he back in training for NPC? Exciting young prospect
Not too sure sorry but he looks like a very good prospect for the ABs moving forward. I think the injury was 4-6 weeks so he could be ready to play again. If he's named for South Africa I certainly wouldn't be displeased about it.
@SecFid said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
I can’t read anywhere whether he re-injured the same knee (right) that was badly damaged in 2025. If he did it could be 6 weeks minimum
He was at Canterbury training yesterday,No contact training.
Re injured his shoulder again, he has had a couple of shoulder injuries as well as the knee,
@Rugbyman said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@jimmyb I suppose we lack big loosies since Flanders and Finau have gone. I don't think Frizell's form has been very good in Japan but he has experience and he has done it before. He is 1 of the few 6 foot 5, 115kgs loosies we have to combat the Bok monsters.
Frizell is close to 190cm than 196cm.
Rassie will release some Springboks from the squad to play for the franchises if they need match fitness. SFM is an example.
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@Rugbyman said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@jimmyb I suppose we lack big loosies since Flanders and Finau have gone. I don't think Frizell's form has been very good in Japan but he has experience and he has done it before. He is 1 of the few 6 foot 5, 115kgs loosies we have to combat the Bok monsters.
Frizell is close to 190cm than 196cm
Frizell is around 195cm no where near 190cm he is quite a big unit.
@Duluth said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@rugbyman He's better than Bell
I don't know if that's true or not because I've only seen Oudenryn play less than 90 minutes of Super Rugby. No doubt he's a rare raw talent but Bell had a better SRP season than Taylor.
Statistically Bell's season was basically as good as Aumua and Taukei'aho across the board on a per 80 minutes basis.
@Chris said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@Rugbyman said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@jimmyb I suppose we lack big loosies since Flanders and Finau have gone. I don't think Frizell's form has been very good in Japan but he has experience and he has done it before. He is 1 of the few 6 foot 5, 115kgs loosies we have to combat the Bok monsters.
Frizell is close to 190cm than 196cm
Frizell is around 195cm no where near 190cm he is quite a big unit.
Here he is recently next to old man Blackadder who has probably shrunk a bit compared to his playing days of 193cm. I'm giving Frizell 192cm. I've noticed in many photos a difference between him and players listed as 195 and 196.
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@Chris said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@Rugbyman said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@jimmyb I suppose we lack big loosies since Flanders and Finau have gone. I don't think Frizell's form has been very good in Japan but he has experience and he has done it before. He is 1 of the few 6 foot 5, 115kgs loosies we have to combat the Bok monsters.
Frizell is close to 190cm than 196cm
Frizell is around 195cm no where near 190cm he is quite a big unit.
Here he is recently next to old man Blackadder who has probably shrunk a bit compared to his playing days of 193cm. I'm giving Frizell 192cm. I've noticed in many photos a difference between him and players listed as 195 and 196.
Here’s a stat, the internet has four different heights for Todd Blackadder.
@act-crusader said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@Chris said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@Rugbyman said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@jimmyb I suppose we lack big loosies since Flanders and Finau have gone. I don't think Frizell's form has been very good in Japan but he has experience and he has done it before. He is 1 of the few 6 foot 5, 115kgs loosies we have to combat the Bok monsters.
Frizell is close to 190cm than 196cm
Frizell is around 195cm no where near 190cm he is quite a big unit.
Here he is recently next to old man Blackadder who has probably shrunk a bit compared to his playing days of 193cm. I'm giving Frizell 192cm. I've noticed in many photos a difference between him and players listed as 195 and 196.
Here’s a stat, the internet has four different heights for Todd Blackadder.
Make that five: He's 182cm tall.
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
I don't know if that's true or not
Because you rely too much on stats. I've seen plenty of him play at various levels. I am comfortable making that judgement right now
@Duluth said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
I don't know if that's true or not
Because you rely too much on stats. I've seen plenty of him play at various levels. I am comfortable making that judgement right now
I don't know if its true because I've watched every minute of his 87 minutes and its still not enough to form opinion if he's better than George Bell right now. If we go by SRP stats on a per 80 minute basis Oudenryn is already the best hooker in New Zealand - so no I don't just go by stats.
There is no doubt that he's an awesome talent and you've seen him play at other levels more than me. SRP is still a step up and Lucas Casey as an example showed glimpses of his ability but he didn't have close to the same impact as he did at NPC level.
I still watch the players playing. I watch a lot of games. Every Blues game and most NZ games of SRP. I form opinions of players by watching them and then look to the stats to see if it provides evidence of my thinking.
I watched Bell this year and his season was top draw for a hooker. By far the best I've seen him play. I too was disappointed when he was selected over Riccitelli however I don't think Bell should be tarred with Razor's brush for his career.
He's a talented player and he has a few more years of SRP experience under his belt.
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
Here he is recently next to old man Blackadder who has probably shrunk a bit compared to his playing days of 193cm. I'm giving Frizell 192cm. I've noticed in many photos a difference between him and players listed as 195 and 196.
I'd be wary of that photo, you can't see their legs so they may be slouching, he is furthest away and the photo seems to be at angle judging by the background.
@mariner4life said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
Todd Blackadder had the vertical leap of Peter Dinklage
Eitri wouldn't need to jump in a lineout even against the superhuman Springboks...
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
SRP is still a step up and Lucas Casey as an example showed glimpses of his ability but he didn't have close to the same impact as he did at NPC level.
NPC ain't Super Rugby but 'glimpses'?
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
I don't know if its true because I've watched every minute of his 87 minutes and its still not enough to form opinion
I've seen more of him play. I am not as limited as you in my ability to judge players. You keep talking about stats as a single source of truth when in reality its a substitute for thinking
@nostrildamus said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
SRP is still a step up and Lucas Casey as an example showed glimpses of his ability but he didn't have close to the same impact as he did at NPC level.
NPC ain't Super Rugby but 'glimpses'?
There is a massive difference between Super Rugby and NPC. Casey showed had some mostly solid performances and 1 outstanding game against the Chiefs. So yes he showed glimpses of his potential at Super Rugby level. His season wasn't close to Lakai's for instance.
@Duluth said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
I don't know if its true because I've watched every minute of his 87 minutes and its still not enough to form opinion
You keep talking about stats as a single source of truth when in reality its a substitute for thinking
That is untrue. Ive already commented that on a per 80 minute basis Eli Oudenryn is statistically the best hooker in Super Rugby.
If I thought stats were a single source of truth then I would have no doubts that he should be in the ABs but as it stands I've said I'm uncertain and that I don't know if he's better than George Bell. It means I'm not 100% confident in stats.
If I thought stats were a single source of truth wouldn't I be certain that he should be involved?
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@nostrildamus said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
SRP is still a step up and Lucas Casey as an example showed glimpses of his ability but he didn't have close to the same impact as he did at NPC level.
NPC ain't Super Rugby but 'glimpses'?
There is a massive difference between Super Rugby and NPC. Casey showed had some mostly solid performances and 1 outstanding game against the Chiefs. So yes he showed glimpses of his potential at Super Rugby level. His season wasn't close to Lakai's for instance.
Lakai's first Super Rugby campaign was similar to Casey this year - to be expected from Lucas in his first Super season
@KiwiMurph said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@nostrildamus said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
SRP is still a step up and Lucas Casey as an example showed glimpses of his ability but he didn't have close to the same impact as he did at NPC level.
NPC ain't Super Rugby but 'glimpses'?
There is a massive difference between Super Rugby and NPC. Casey showed had some mostly solid performances and 1 outstanding game against the Chiefs. So yes he showed glimpses of his potential at Super Rugby level. His season wasn't close to Lakai's for instance.
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@nostrildamus said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
SRP is still a step up and Lucas Casey as an example showed glimpses of his ability but he didn't have close to the same impact as he did at NPC level.
NPC ain't Super Rugby but 'glimpses'?
There is a massive difference between Super Rugby and NPC. Casey showed had some mostly solid performances and 1 outstanding game against the Chiefs. So yes he showed glimpses of his potential at Super Rugby level. His season wasn't close to Lakai's for instance.
Lakai's first Super Rugby campaign was similar to Casey this year - to be expected from Lucas in his first Super season
I'm not questioning Casey's talent. That is undoubted as is Oudenryns. There has been plenty of talented players over the years that didn't amount to much as ABs or even get selected as ABs for a variety of reasons.
On the one hand I'm mindful of players like Love and Plummer who play for years at SRP and get minimum chances until their mid 20's. ( Too long )
On the other hand I'm also mindful of talented players like Toeava who get chucked in early with little Super experience and can struggle to find themselves. ( Too early )
A tour of South Africa is a baptism of fire even against the mid week teams. I'll support Oudenryn if he's chosen I just personally haven't seen enough of him to know if he's ready.
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@KiwiMurph said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@nostrildamus said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
SRP is still a step up and Lucas Casey as an example showed glimpses of his ability but he didn't have close to the same impact as he did at NPC level.
NPC ain't Super Rugby but 'glimpses'?
There is a massive difference between Super Rugby and NPC. Casey showed had some mostly solid performances and 1 outstanding game against the Chiefs. So yes he showed glimpses of his potential at Super Rugby level. His season wasn't close to Lakai's for instance.
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@nostrildamus said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
SRP is still a step up and Lucas Casey as an example showed glimpses of his ability but he didn't have close to the same impact as he did at NPC level.
NPC ain't Super Rugby but 'glimpses'?
There is a massive difference between Super Rugby and NPC. Casey showed had some mostly solid performances and 1 outstanding game against the Chiefs. So yes he showed glimpses of his potential at Super Rugby level. His season wasn't close to Lakai's for instance.
Lakai's first Super Rugby campaign was similar to Casey this year - to be expected from Lucas in his first Super season
I'm not questioning Casey's talent. That is undoubted as is Oudenryns. There has been plenty of talented players over the years that didn't amount to much as ABs or even get selected as ABs for a variety of reasons.
On the one hand I'm mindful of players like Love and Plummer who play for years at SRP and get minimum chances until their mid 20's. ( Too long )
On the other hand I'm also mindful of talented players like Toeava who get chucked in early with little Super experience and can struggle to find themselves. ( Too early )
Yeah there's a sweet spot in the middle
@antipodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@act-crusader said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@Chris said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@brodean said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@Rugbyman said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@jimmyb I suppose we lack big loosies since Flanders and Finau have gone. I don't think Frizell's form has been very good in Japan but he has experience and he has done it before. He is 1 of the few 6 foot 5, 115kgs loosies we have to combat the Bok monsters.
Frizell is close to 190cm than 196cm
Frizell is around 195cm no where near 190cm he is quite a big unit.
Here he is recently next to old man Blackadder who has probably shrunk a bit compared to his playing days of 193cm. I'm giving Frizell 192cm. I've noticed in many photos a difference between him and players listed as 195 and 196.
Here’s a stat, the internet has four different heights for Todd Blackadder.
Make that five: He's 182cm tall.
The greatest lineout forward in AB history at 5’11
@ACT-Crusader 6' sir!
@ACT-Crusader said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
Harmon
This obsession with Canterbury is getting out of control.
@ACT-Crusader said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@Bones 182.2cm…..
In terms of possible additions for the AB squad, Kemara could be a smokey to make the squad. I think he is a better 1st 5 than Harkin, but Harmon does have that versatility.
Trouble with picking Kemara is would ( if Richie is somehow available) top heavy with tens. Maybe if injuries
Love
Dmac
BB
Moguna
@kidcalder said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@ACT-Crusader said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@Bones 182.2cm…..
In terms of possible additions for the AB squad, Kemara could be a smokey to make the squad. I think he is a better 1st 5 than Harkin, but Harmon does have that versatility.
Trouble with picking Kemara is would ( if Richie is somehow available) top heavy with tens. Maybe if injuries
Love
Dmac
BB
Moguna
At this stage Mo'unga isnt eligible for South African tour
@KiwiMurph said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@kidcalder said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@ACT-Crusader said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@Bones 182.2cm…..
In terms of possible additions for the AB squad, Kemara could be a smokey to make the squad. I think he is a better 1st 5 than Harkin, but Harmon does have that versatility.
Trouble with picking Kemara is would ( if Richie is somehow available) top heavy with tens. Maybe if injuries
Love
Dmac
BB
MogunaAt this stage Mo'unga isnt eligible for South African tour
One injury to anyone and he in just like leciester last season
@KiwiMurph said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@kidcalder said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@ACT-Crusader said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@Bones 182.2cm…..
In terms of possible additions for the AB squad, Kemara could be a smokey to make the squad. I think he is a better 1st 5 than Harkin, but Harmon does have that versatility.
Trouble with picking Kemara is would ( if Richie is somehow available) top heavy with tens. Maybe if injuries
Love
Dmac
BB
MogunaAt this stage Mo'unga isnt eligible for South African tour
Maybe Moguna is though
@kidcalder said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@ACT-Crusader said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@Bones 182.2cm…..
In terms of possible additions for the AB squad, Kemara could be a smokey to make the squad. I think he is a better 1st 5 than Harkin, but Harmon does have that versatility.
Trouble with picking Kemara is would ( if Richie is somehow available) top heavy with tens. Maybe if injuries
Love
Dmac
BB
Moguna
That's 2 tens & 2 x 15s
@KiwiMurph said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@kidcalder said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@ACT-Crusader said in All Blacks Tour of South Africa 2026:
@Bones 182.2cm…..
In terms of possible additions for the AB squad, Kemara could be a smokey to make the squad. I think he is a better 1st 5 than Harkin, but Harmon does have that versatility.
Trouble with picking Kemara is would ( if Richie is somehow available) top heavy with tens. Maybe if injuries
Love
Dmac
BB
MogunaAt this stage Mo'unga isnt eligible for South African tour
That's why he said he'd pick Moguna.
