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Rugby Direct - Episode 170 · Rugby Direct

• 0:09
  Speaker 1: You're listening to a podcast from News Talks ed B.
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: Follow this and our Wide Ranger podcast now on iHeartRadio.
• 0:19
  Speaker 2: Straight down the middle of dry Disco. Try these pocket.
• 0:29
  Speaker 1: Inside the game from every angle. It's Rugby Direct with
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: Elliott Smith and Liam Napier, powered by News Talks ed B.
• 0:37
  Speaker 3: Welcome into rugbytergtown by Excess Solutions, salivating you and your
• 0:41
  Speaker 3: business to a higher level. Elliott Smith, Liam Napier Back
• 0:46
  Speaker 3: for another week and the first All Blacks test of
• 0:49
  Speaker 3: the year in the books, and that will form a
• 0:51
  Speaker 3: large part of our podcast in this episode, and also
• 0:56
  Speaker 3: stick around for Liam's chat with Jordy Barrett towards the
• 0:59
  Speaker 3: end of the podcast about his time over in Leinster
• 1:03
  Speaker 3: and looking forward to that a bit later on in
• 1:05
  Speaker 3: the podcast.
• 1:06
  Speaker 2: But Liam, let's rip in.
• 1:07
  Speaker 3: We'll record holding the Sunday afternoon and so our takes
• 1:11
  Speaker 3: are fresh in the mind. The All Blacks thirty one
• 1:14
  Speaker 3: twenty seven winners of course over France. What's your feeling?
• 1:20
  Speaker 3: You know, just under twenty four hours removed from that performance.
• 1:24
  Speaker 4: A lot to reflect on, Eliot. I think first and
• 1:26
  Speaker 4: foremost first test of the year. Wasn't it very typical
• 1:28
  Speaker 4: in that regard from the All Blacks twelve months ago
• 1:31
  Speaker 4: their escape with a very nervy, shaky, tense one point
• 1:35
  Speaker 4: win over England at the same venue in Dunedan's and
• 1:40
  Speaker 4: we went down this year for the start of Scott
• 1:42
  Speaker 4: Robertson's second season at the Helm, and while the context
• 1:48
  Speaker 4: and the oppositions different, there were a lot of familiarities
• 1:52
  Speaker 4: in the rustiness in the All Blacks failing to finish
• 1:57
  Speaker 4: their chances. I think there were some positives in the
• 2:00
  Speaker 4: individual performances and the attacking shapes. The All Blacks scored
• 2:04
  Speaker 4: four tris had three denied by the TMO, but I
• 2:09
  Speaker 4: think given the context around France and we can dive
• 2:13
  Speaker 4: into everything around that, I expected a lot.
• 2:17
  Speaker 3: More fair to say, the All Blacks didn't deliver perhaps
• 2:20
  Speaker 3: what was expected, and like you, there was some positive
• 2:24
  Speaker 3: moments there and I felt they were one try away potentially.
• 2:29
  Speaker 3: You know, it was twenty eight, twenty seven, with half
• 2:31
  Speaker 3: an hour ago still, but it still felt like the
• 2:34
  Speaker 3: All Blacks were on top and one try might have
• 2:36
  Speaker 3: been enough to have the French surrender. Essentially for the
• 2:40
  Speaker 3: night that didn't obviously happen in the game was right
• 2:42
  Speaker 3: until the balance, until the final whistle.
• 2:46
  Speaker 5: Attack.
• 2:46
  Speaker 3: I think buying large work pretty good. There were three
• 2:48
  Speaker 3: tries denied, obviously for minor errors. You can quibble over those,
• 2:54
  Speaker 3: and we might do it in a moment or two.
• 2:56
  Speaker 3: But I think the attack showed some promising signs. The
• 2:59
  Speaker 3: defense less so, and I think that's a major worry
• 3:03
  Speaker 3: ahead of the week. It felt like the All Blacks
• 3:07
  Speaker 3: had to work harder for their point than the French did. Now,
• 3:10
  Speaker 3: the French couldn't always score and the All Blacks couldn't
• 3:12
  Speaker 3: always score, but it felt like the French tries came
• 3:16
  Speaker 3: a little bit easier, some buttoned off defense, especially early
• 3:19
  Speaker 3: in the second spell when France got back to twenty
• 3:21
  Speaker 3: one to twenty minute or two into the second half.
• 3:26
  Speaker 3: The All Blacks were making France work hard enough when
• 3:28
  Speaker 3: they did get those rare opportunities in the twenty two
• 3:30
  Speaker 3: and I was checking the stats, so the All Blacks
• 3:32
  Speaker 3: had thirteen twenty two meter entries in the French red
• 3:35
  Speaker 3: zone and average two point three points on return from that.
• 3:39
  Speaker 3: The French had just five entries but average four point
• 3:42
  Speaker 3: eight points, so essentially a try on the five occasions
• 3:45
  Speaker 3: they entered the twenty two. So that tells a little
• 3:48
  Speaker 3: bit of a story that All Blacks are only able
• 3:50
  Speaker 3: to execute half as well in the twenty two as
• 3:54
  Speaker 3: the French, so defense needs to be a focus as
• 3:57
  Speaker 3: the head to skuy Stadium this week.
• 3:58
  Speaker 6: It doesn't.
• 3:59
  Speaker 4: Just picking up further on those stats, I think the
• 4:01
  Speaker 4: All Blacks made something like eleven line breaks to three,
• 4:04
  Speaker 4: and they had something like two hundred and fifty more
• 4:07
  Speaker 4: post content meters, which is quite staggerant. It was four
• 4:10
  Speaker 4: hundred to one hundred and sixty odd, so extremely dominant.
• 4:15
  Speaker 4: They had so much ball and territory in the second
• 4:18
  Speaker 4: half and that was reflected in those tries that were denied,
• 4:24
  Speaker 4: in particular Billy Proctor's touch and go seen those given before.
• 4:29
  Speaker 4: The obstruction was an absolute nonsense. I think Pasilio Toossi
• 4:33
  Speaker 4: does make contact, but there's no way that defender gets
• 4:36
  Speaker 4: on the outside and he's barely impeded, So I think
• 4:39
  Speaker 4: that was over zealous officiating. Just I think it's important
• 4:44
  Speaker 4: to stop and look at the lens with which we
• 4:46
  Speaker 4: view this game and the context, and that's predominantly about
• 4:50
  Speaker 4: the French here. France has one of, if not the
• 4:55
  Speaker 4: best domestic competitions in the world in the top fourteen.
• 4:58
  Speaker 4: They have clearly have very good strength and depth and talents.
• 5:02
  Speaker 4: You only have to look at the fullback. I won't
• 5:04
  Speaker 4: try and say his name, Tay to thank you bon soir.
• 5:10
  Speaker 4: He's twenty years old, eighty four kg. What a talent,
• 5:14
  Speaker 4: blitz bully propped on the outside to set up the
• 5:17
  Speaker 4: French opening try and he's not even like an out
• 5:20
  Speaker 4: and out fallback in his in his day job. But
• 5:25
  Speaker 4: this French team had one genuine starter in Gaelficku. And
• 5:31
  Speaker 4: there was a lot of chat previous game about the
• 5:33
  Speaker 4: players that France had left at home and that's all
• 5:37
  Speaker 4: very relevant even now. Yes, they performed a lot better
• 5:40
  Speaker 4: than we expected, but it is a second string b
• 5:43
  Speaker 4: French side.
• 5:44
  Speaker 3: But what well, yes it was a second string French side,
• 5:47
  Speaker 3: But we're the media. Were we too harsh on what
• 5:51
  Speaker 3: we expected? Because second string doesn't automatically mean a major
• 5:54
  Speaker 3: drop off. You know a lot of these French players
• 5:56
  Speaker 3: have been playing, as you said, in the top fourteen
• 5:58
  Speaker 3: for a number of years. You see not the first pick,
• 6:00
  Speaker 3: but is there much difference between Grigory Oldriet at number
• 6:03
  Speaker 3: eight in a Michel Guillar at number eight. We last
• 6:06
  Speaker 3: night some of these elections, these players have been around
• 6:09
  Speaker 3: the French camp for a number of years. They haven't
• 6:11
  Speaker 3: had a lot of opportunity us. There were five debutants
• 6:13
  Speaker 3: and the run on side and three on the bench
• 6:15
  Speaker 3: last night, but a lot of these players probably haven't
• 6:19
  Speaker 3: been far from the international stage for it for a
• 6:21
  Speaker 3: number of years, and perhaps there shows the depth at
• 6:23
  Speaker 3: the top fourteen have and maybe not enough respect was
• 6:26
  Speaker 3: given to that.
• 6:27
  Speaker 4: Yeah, I think that's a fair point. Maybe we in
• 6:29
  Speaker 4: the media particularly underestimated them. I think that's a fair point,
• 6:33
  Speaker 4: but it doesn't detract from the fact that the vast
• 6:37
  Speaker 4: majority of France's first choice squad are not here, and
• 6:41
  Speaker 4: so that's the lens with which you view this all
• 6:43
  Speaker 4: black performance, I think from my perspective anyway, and why
• 6:46
  Speaker 4: I expected so much more so, Yes, I was guilty
• 6:51
  Speaker 4: of underestimating the French i'bstinately not alone there and they
• 6:55
  Speaker 4: surpassed expectations and the All Blacks didn't meet those And
• 6:59
  Speaker 4: you touched on the defense, but there were other areas
• 7:02
  Speaker 4: that were badly exposed under the high ball, particularly in
• 7:05
  Speaker 4: the first half, and we'll talk about a bit later,
• 7:08
  Speaker 4: but it was it's something that is an issue when
• 7:10
  Speaker 4: he's on rugby because it's not something that we here
• 7:14
  Speaker 4: are overly exposed to before the international scene. The Mauldi
• 7:18
  Speaker 4: or Blacks had a real tough time of it against
• 7:21
  Speaker 4: Scotland and Funga Ay and so it's a common theme
• 7:26
  Speaker 4: and it is an issue when you're only selecting two
• 7:28
  Speaker 4: specialist wingers in your squad, and that will touch on
• 7:31
  Speaker 4: that further when we look at sev Reese's absence going
• 7:35
  Speaker 4: into Wellington. The breakdown as well, the All Blacks conceded.
• 7:38
  Speaker 4: I think it's sixteen turnovers to six. They didn't all
• 7:41
  Speaker 4: come at the breakdown. That's handling errors and whatnot as well.
• 7:44
  Speaker 4: But I thought the All Blacks were quite slow to
• 7:47
  Speaker 4: the punch. Can re Reguard I thought played really well,
• 7:50
  Speaker 4: but he was under pressure a lot. He ran a
• 7:52
  Speaker 4: lot because he had to because France were attacking the breakdown,
• 7:57
  Speaker 4: putting on massive pressure there and he wasn't quite able
• 8:02
  Speaker 4: to wait at the ruck.
• 8:03
  Speaker 6: He didn't have that time.
• 8:05
  Speaker 4: So there's a few key areas to work on before
• 8:07
  Speaker 4: we even look at individuals.
• 8:10
  Speaker 3: If you look at a lot of the stats, the
• 8:11
  Speaker 3: All Blacks should have won and won comfortably. And we
• 8:14
  Speaker 3: talked about the defense as to reason why they didn't.
• 8:17
  Speaker 3: That was one of the stats that doesn't align with
• 8:20
  Speaker 3: their performance in that game last night. They forced the
• 8:23
  Speaker 3: French to make one hundred more tackles than the All
• 8:25
  Speaker 3: Blacks had to do themselves, two hundred and twenty versus
• 8:27
  Speaker 3: one hundred and twenty. They forced the French to do
• 8:30
  Speaker 3: a lot of work. And yet you know, and then
• 8:33
  Speaker 3: you look another stat the penalty is considered nine to three.
• 8:36
  Speaker 3: The discipline's outstanding last night, buying large from an All
• 8:39
  Speaker 3: Blacks perspective.
• 8:40
  Speaker 2: So you're right.
• 8:42
  Speaker 3: You have to look through the prism of this French
• 8:44
  Speaker 3: team and perhaps the All Blacks as well, is that
• 8:47
  Speaker 3: we know this slow starters. They've only had ten days,
• 8:49
  Speaker 3: you know, if that in camp together. But it seems
• 8:54
  Speaker 3: to be a common theme now that the All Blacks
• 8:56
  Speaker 3: have in this mind of their blueprint that they want
• 8:58
  Speaker 3: to play with, but something's just letting them down. They're
• 9:00
  Speaker 3: not quite able to click into it when they need
• 9:03
  Speaker 3: it most.
• 9:05
  Speaker 4: Yeah, and there is a positive lens you can view
• 9:07
  Speaker 4: it through that they are creating chant that they scored
• 9:10
  Speaker 4: seven tries. Now two of those were probably rightly ruled out,
• 9:15
  Speaker 4: but they are creating a lot and it was quite
• 9:19
  Speaker 4: a lot to like from my perspective about the dynamic
• 9:22
  Speaker 4: of Boden first five McKenzie at fullback and Will Jordan
• 9:26
  Speaker 4: on the right wing mat as a really potent, dynamic,
• 9:32
  Speaker 4: creative force. And Damien does seem like a waste almost
• 9:36
  Speaker 4: to leave on the bench. I thought he when he
• 9:40
  Speaker 4: made some scything runs from the backfield. Boden was largely
• 9:43
  Speaker 4: very good, some beautiful tip on pass. Some of his
• 9:47
  Speaker 4: kicking was a weaver in accurate.
• 9:48
  Speaker 2: Was that one for a touch?
• 9:50
  Speaker 4: Yeah?
• 9:50
  Speaker 5: And the little.
• 9:53
  Speaker 4: Grubbers through didn't always come off, but the intent was there.
• 9:57
  Speaker 4: And Will Jordan scored two tries shifting out to the wing,
• 10:01
  Speaker 4: could have would have probably should have had three. So
• 10:04
  Speaker 4: those three players really stood up. So they're creating a lot.
• 10:06
  Speaker 4: But this is this was the major focus from the
• 10:09
  Speaker 4: All Blacks, wasn't it that they wanted to come into
• 10:11
  Speaker 4: this year have a much greater accuracy and they're finishing
• 10:15
  Speaker 4: to nail their chances to put teams away.
• 10:18
  Speaker 6: And they didn't do that.
• 10:19
  Speaker 3: It felt like they played fast and that created some
• 10:22
  Speaker 3: of those eras, and that's probably always going to happen.
• 10:24
  Speaker 3: When you play fast, there will be eras. There as well.
• 10:27
  Speaker 3: France wanted to slow it down. France looked quite tired,
• 10:31
  Speaker 3: I thought around the half hour mark, and then halftime
• 10:33
  Speaker 3: became at a pretty good time for them. Managed to regroup,
• 10:36
  Speaker 3: got some players on the park, some new players around
• 10:38
  Speaker 3: the right time, probably pulled the trigger earlier than maybe
• 10:40
  Speaker 3: they would have usually and kick themselves into the contest,
• 10:44
  Speaker 3: which I thought was pretty smart coaching from Fabian Gualtier,
• 10:46
  Speaker 3: just to manage some of those players a little bit.
• 10:49
  Speaker 3: As you know, the tiring bodies came through. So I
• 10:52
  Speaker 3: think the French handled that game smartly. And look they
• 10:56
  Speaker 3: got into the closing stages and it was thirty one
• 11:00
  Speaker 3: to twenty seven. They were on attack inside the All
• 11:02
  Speaker 3: Blacks twenty two and looking rather threatening and they cough
• 11:06
  Speaker 3: up the ball and that's the game done there but cheap,
• 11:09
  Speaker 3: as we could be talking about in All Blacks loss. Really,
• 11:11
  Speaker 3: if something a bit different in that last couple of minutes.
• 11:15
  Speaker 4: Well the French shouldn't have been within touching distance. The
• 11:18
  Speaker 4: All Blacks should have put them away. And that's what
• 11:22
  Speaker 4: we need to see, that ruthless edge from this All
• 11:24
  Speaker 4: Black team, and they yet to display it. Maybe that's
• 11:26
  Speaker 4: because it's their first Test of the year, but that
• 11:28
  Speaker 4: is their major focus. I agree the French got some
• 11:32
  Speaker 4: real pay off the bench when they injected what was
• 11:34
  Speaker 4: it like, five forwards all at once and they scored
• 11:40
  Speaker 4: a try not long after that. Interested in your take
• 11:45
  Speaker 4: on the All Blacks bench. As you mentioned, there was
• 11:48
  Speaker 4: one point in that game. For the best part of
• 11:50
  Speaker 4: twenty thirty minutes in that second half, very low scoring
• 11:54
  Speaker 4: second half, the All Blacks needed Boden Barratt's penalty to
• 11:57
  Speaker 4: edge them home, an elate Scrumb penalty proving decisive. And
• 12:01
  Speaker 4: when you stop and look at who was in that pack,
• 12:04
  Speaker 4: it's very an experience with Takyaho, Fabian Holland and Olie
• 12:09
  Speaker 4: Norris on de Boo du See Karefi on deboo. So
• 12:14
  Speaker 4: there was a big win in that moment for some
• 12:17
  Speaker 4: young players. What about the bench as a whole. Did
• 12:19
  Speaker 4: Deal Blacks get what they want?
• 12:21
  Speaker 2: No?
• 12:21
  Speaker 3: I don't think they did get what they needed from
• 12:23
  Speaker 3: the Benjamin McKenzie had to come on early, so that
• 12:26
  Speaker 3: automatically sort of shuffles things around around. You know, last
• 12:29
  Speaker 3: thirty impact that you might get from Damien McKenzie because
• 12:32
  Speaker 3: he had to play eighty sorry, seventy nine minutes. In
• 12:35
  Speaker 3: the end, I thought Tokyo was tidy without being too spectacular. Clearly,
• 12:39
  Speaker 3: Cody Taylor is the best hooker that their team's gone.
• 12:42
  Speaker 3: I thought he was very, very good in his time
• 12:44
  Speaker 3: on the park. Female I thought was rather anonymous when
• 12:48
  Speaker 3: he came on. He came on early for Scott Barrett
• 12:50
  Speaker 3: around the fifty seven minute mark, could I thought, try
• 12:55
  Speaker 3: his hard out on his time on the field. I
• 12:57
  Speaker 3: was actually quite impressed by what he was able to
• 12:58
  Speaker 3: do in the twenty god minutes that he got. So
• 13:01
  Speaker 3: there were some promising signs there, but it felt you know,
• 13:05
  Speaker 3: Takeyahu and Tupai hadn't played test level, you know, takeyos
• 13:08
  Speaker 3: and World Cup to by three years. It felt like
• 13:11
  Speaker 3: that felt like it. You know, they felt like they
• 13:13
  Speaker 3: were just a little bit slow to the punch in
• 13:15
  Speaker 3: terms of their test match intensity. And You'll said, you know,
• 13:19
  Speaker 3: a couple of debutants on there, so give them a
• 13:22
  Speaker 3: week to sell and potentially change it in then you
• 13:25
  Speaker 3: know it may be a little bit different.
• 13:28
  Speaker 4: I think the composition of that of their benches was
• 13:31
  Speaker 4: not right. You need some experience. Guys like a Patrick
• 13:34
  Speaker 4: two Polotu coming on would make a big difference.
• 13:37
  Speaker 3: But do you know, I see what they're going for
• 13:39
  Speaker 3: in terms of the two loose forwards and the explosiveness
• 13:42
  Speaker 3: of female and Kadifi in particular, and they had three
• 13:46
  Speaker 3: locks in the starting side.
• 13:47
  Speaker 2: What would too POLITI have added.
• 13:49
  Speaker 4: Well, I think we disagree on this, but I don't
• 13:54
  Speaker 4: see to provide as a long term six. I didn't
• 13:58
  Speaker 4: see enough out of him at the weekend. It's not
• 14:00
  Speaker 4: a knock on him. He tried hard, he scored that try.
• 14:04
  Speaker 5: He was.
• 14:07
  Speaker 6: Prevalent on All Blacks ball.
• 14:09
  Speaker 4: But I don't think the All Black's got the pay
• 14:11
  Speaker 4: they were looking for in terms of lineout steals for
• 14:14
  Speaker 4: having three locks. I think his he to me, just
• 14:20
  Speaker 4: doesn't look like a six. He's too tall, he doesn't
• 14:23
  Speaker 4: quite have the speed to the breakdown. I think that
• 14:25
  Speaker 4: contributed to the All Black struggles at the breakdown as well.
• 14:28
  Speaker 4: So I would be more traditional and have two locks,
• 14:33
  Speaker 4: find another six and have a toy below to or
• 14:38
  Speaker 4: a Holland coming off the bench.
• 14:40
  Speaker 3: I'm not overly sold on it as yet, but I
• 14:43
  Speaker 3: am keen to see how it plays out, and I
• 14:45
  Speaker 3: think it's worthy of sticking again. I think the All
• 14:48
  Speaker 3: Blacks mister trick by not attacking the French lineout too often.
• 14:51
  Speaker 3: I got penalized once for going across and so that
• 14:55
  Speaker 3: didn't necessarily work. But I don't know on the basis
• 14:59
  Speaker 3: of what we saw last night that it's worth completely
• 15:03
  Speaker 3: writing off. There's a lot of work to do to
• 15:06
  Speaker 3: provide in that role, and it's it's a different role
• 15:09
  Speaker 3: to lock Well.
• 15:10
  Speaker 4: That's one point I'd make is that I feel for
• 15:12
  Speaker 4: him because he was, if not the best, right up
• 15:17
  Speaker 4: there with Stizi last year as the All Black's best performer.
• 15:21
  Speaker 4: He outperformed Scott Barrett's Scott Barrett his injury troubles and formed.
• 15:25
  Speaker 4: But tupu v was so consistent from South Africa and
• 15:29
  Speaker 4: then he carried that through to the Chiefs and then
• 15:31
  Speaker 4: he comes into the All Blacks environment and he's got
• 15:33
  Speaker 4: ten days to become a blindside flanker.
• 15:35
  Speaker 6: So it's a big ask.
• 15:36
  Speaker 3: It is a big ask. I think it's worth sticking
• 15:39
  Speaker 3: with for at least another test. And you mentioned his height.
• 15:42
  Speaker 3: He's only two centimeters taller than during Cana, so you know,
• 15:47
  Speaker 3: similar frame potentially to one of the greatest to wear
• 15:51
  Speaker 3: the All Blacks number six.
• 15:52
  Speaker 2: Tusey.
• 15:53
  Speaker 4: Yeah, I'm just of a mind that some of Penny
• 15:55
  Speaker 4: female make a decision on him. What are you going
• 15:58
  Speaker 4: to learn bringing him off the bench for fifteen minutes stardom,
• 16:00
  Speaker 4: give him a crack, let's find out whether he's there
• 16:03
  Speaker 4: or not.
• 16:04
  Speaker 3: Yeah, I take your point on that, but I also
• 16:06
  Speaker 3: think you've got to have a bench strategy, and so
• 16:12
  Speaker 3: he's your bench guy, then you know they've got to
• 16:16
  Speaker 3: fix the bench from because they've talked about it. They
• 16:18
  Speaker 3: threw away some leads last year. So do your pigeonhole
• 16:21
  Speaker 3: him as as a bench guy or do you start him?
• 16:23
  Speaker 3: And if they see that as the path to fixing
• 16:27
  Speaker 3: the bench by having Foena come on for twenty five
• 16:28
  Speaker 3: to thirty minutes at the end and you know being
• 16:32
  Speaker 3: able to you know not with stuffing out of opposition
• 16:34
  Speaker 3: tens and various things, is that the better corridor for
• 16:37
  Speaker 3: him to play and then starting and playing fifty minutes
• 16:40
  Speaker 3: at the front of the match.
• 16:42
  Speaker 6: I'd prefer him starting and find out about him.
• 16:45
  Speaker 4: Now, just one other point I want to touch on,
• 16:47
  Speaker 4: which I think has been a bit lost, maybe glossed
• 16:50
  Speaker 4: over to me. It was very clear that the All
• 16:52
  Speaker 4: blacksmissed to Mighty Williams and Tyrell Lomax, and that's not
• 16:56
  Speaker 4: from a scrummaging perspective. Fletcher Newell and Ethan the Grew
• 17:00
  Speaker 4: are great scrummagers, but there were a couple of times
• 17:03
  Speaker 4: it was very noticeable their comparative clunkiness with those soft
• 17:09
  Speaker 4: hand back door plays that the All Blacks love to
• 17:12
  Speaker 4: create space for their playmakers. It's not really in their
• 17:17
  Speaker 4: repertoire a new or a degree and to Mighty Williams
• 17:21
  Speaker 4: and Tyrol Lomax are far superior in that regard. So
• 17:25
  Speaker 4: it really did stand out to me those two guys'
• 17:28
  Speaker 4: absence in particularly Yeah.
• 17:29
  Speaker 3: I agree, and sort of went under the radar a
• 17:31
  Speaker 3: bit letting into the match that Lomax had been ruled
• 17:34
  Speaker 3: out with a calf injury, which is apparently week to week.
• 17:37
  Speaker 3: Obviously we knew to Mighty Williams had been ruled out
• 17:39
  Speaker 3: at the start of last week before we recorded that podcast,
• 17:43
  Speaker 3: but that sort of went under the radar given the
• 17:45
  Speaker 3: four debutantes and the tub of Ice shift in the
• 17:47
  Speaker 3: Rico U Warne shift. Wood brings me to the Rico
• 17:50
  Speaker 3: Varney shift to the left wing Billy Proctor at center. Rico,
• 17:54
  Speaker 3: you only made the most line bracks out of the
• 17:56
  Speaker 3: All Blacks in that game last night in Dnedon. Jury's
• 18:01
  Speaker 3: still out on him. I think jury is still out
• 18:03
  Speaker 3: on Billy Proctor at center. Bad miss for the first
• 18:07
  Speaker 3: French try attackle Wise, it's a couple of times at
• 18:10
  Speaker 3: Testleville now he's been left on the outside and been burned.
• 18:15
  Speaker 2: Yeah.
• 18:15
  Speaker 3: I can't really so much more than jury still out,
• 18:17
  Speaker 3: which applies to a lot of the scenarios in this team.
• 18:20
  Speaker 4: I agree about Billy, which is disappointing because he has
• 18:23
  Speaker 4: waited a long time for that chance and I think
• 18:25
  Speaker 4: they do need to persevere with it, give him another crack.
• 18:30
  Speaker 4: He had some good moments, but it wasn't his best Test,
• 18:34
  Speaker 4: wasn't his best game, and that's probably the reflection of
• 18:37
  Speaker 4: the step up from Super rugby to Test rugby and
• 18:40
  Speaker 4: his lack of experience. And I think a knock on
• 18:44
  Speaker 4: the All Blacks coaches for not giving him more opportunities
• 18:47
  Speaker 4: last year. I know he wasn't on the India tour
• 18:49
  Speaker 4: because he and his partner welcomed their baby, but earlier
• 18:53
  Speaker 4: in the year they had they had opportunities and so
• 18:56
  Speaker 4: they have stunted his development. So I would give him
• 18:59
  Speaker 4: another crack and en Rico. It didn't really work for me.
• 19:05
  Speaker 4: And there was one moment which really stood out, and
• 19:08
  Speaker 4: that was when well a, I didn't see him contest
• 19:12
  Speaker 4: one kick and he wasn't alone in that regard, but
• 19:15
  Speaker 4: it was noticeable him going back to the wing for
• 19:18
  Speaker 4: his first test there, his first.
• 19:20
  Speaker 6: Game there in three years.
• 19:23
  Speaker 4: When Roygarb put up box kicks or anyone, Rico seemed
• 19:27
  Speaker 4: quite reluctant to get off the ground and can test
• 19:29
  Speaker 4: the ball. And maybe that's just because he hasn't really
• 19:32
  Speaker 4: done it in recent times, but so's one moment. Boden
• 19:35
  Speaker 4: Barratts is near the All Blacks twenty two and he
• 19:38
  Speaker 4: puts in a little dinky chip and it wasn't perfect,
• 19:42
  Speaker 4: but Rico just sort of looked at it and didn't
• 19:45
  Speaker 4: really make an effort to run and chase it down.
• 19:48
  Speaker 4: And I was half expecting Boden to give him a
• 19:50
  Speaker 4: bit of a spray for not doing that, and there
• 19:52
  Speaker 4: was a bit of a look of confusion, and yeah,
• 19:56
  Speaker 4: RecA made a couple of handling eras the one glaring
• 19:58
  Speaker 4: one after the second half restart that directly led to
• 20:02
  Speaker 4: a French try and one of those line breaks he's
• 20:05
  Speaker 4: gone through and while it was a tough path if
• 20:09
  Speaker 4: he had to throw on a long ball out to
• 20:11
  Speaker 4: his right hand side, Will Jordan was marked. So yeah,
• 20:16
  Speaker 4: jury very much out. I expect you Rico to go
• 20:19
  Speaker 4: back to the wing and flourish and he didn't.
• 20:22
  Speaker 3: Well, he talk with the game on social media with
• 20:25
  Speaker 3: the compilation of his greatest triers at eleven and look,
• 20:29
  Speaker 3: I love that. I think it's great for the game,
• 20:31
  Speaker 3: I really really do. But probably just didn't quite get
• 20:35
  Speaker 3: to the heights that he needed to on the pitch
• 20:38
  Speaker 3: in that jersey. One other thing before we leave the game,
• 20:40
  Speaker 3: and it's the TMO interference, And we are getting to
• 20:45
  Speaker 3: the point now where clearly the referees have been told
• 20:50
  Speaker 3: that they need to really comb through everything for each tribe.
• 20:57
  Speaker 3: But the message hasn't got through to World Rugby that
• 21:00
  Speaker 3: this is absolutely ruining the spectacle as a sport. Whether
• 21:03
  Speaker 3: the decisions are right or wrong, I couldn't really care less.
• 21:08
  Speaker 3: It is detracting from an entertainment product. And that is
• 21:13
  Speaker 3: the point that World Rugby doesn't seem to get through
• 21:16
  Speaker 3: their heads that interruptions and games are not fun for anyone.
• 21:20
  Speaker 3: No one wants to see three blokes in green jerseys
• 21:23
  Speaker 3: or whatever they're weiring last night looking at footage on
• 21:26
  Speaker 3: a big screen.
• 21:28
  Speaker 2: This isn't a jury trial.
• 21:29
  Speaker 3: This is an entertainment product, and World Rugby seems to
• 21:31
  Speaker 3: have basically washed its hands because they're so fearful of
• 21:34
  Speaker 3: lawsuits up north. Now, last night wasn't about head knocks
• 21:37
  Speaker 3: or anything like that. It was about tries and we've
• 21:40
  Speaker 3: just let this charade go on too long around basically
• 21:44
  Speaker 3: having the TMO given too much power in the game,
• 21:47
  Speaker 3: and World Rugby has let it get out of control
• 21:49
  Speaker 3: and they don't seem interested in fixing it. And I
• 21:51
  Speaker 3: didn't see a lot of the wartars Lines game last night.
• 21:53
  Speaker 3: I sattle bits of it, caught up a few highlights,
• 21:56
  Speaker 3: but it was a blight on that game as well.
• 21:58
  Speaker 3: And the is becoming I've seen this on the podcast
• 22:00
  Speaker 3: before and people are probably sick of it, but the
• 22:01
  Speaker 3: TMO is becoming a blight on the international sport.
• 22:05
  Speaker 7: It is, and.
• 22:09
  Speaker 4: It just needs to come in when it's absolutely blatantly
• 22:12
  Speaker 4: obvious and necessary, because it really does stop the spectacle
• 22:17
  Speaker 4: for three to five minutes every time, and it just
• 22:22
  Speaker 4: sucks the wind out of the contest, out of the atmosphere,
• 22:25
  Speaker 4: and the other point to make is at the venue
• 22:27
  Speaker 4: in to needing. None of the decisions or the decision
• 22:30
  Speaker 4: making process was explained, and that needs to be audible
• 22:35
  Speaker 4: for the crowd. It's not good enough that it's just
• 22:38
  Speaker 4: broadcast to the TV audience. These are people that pay
• 22:41
  Speaker 4: good money to come to the venue. You want people
• 22:45
  Speaker 4: there and the clueless as to what's going on.
• 22:48
  Speaker 3: Say what you like about Super Rugby, but they've tightened
• 22:50
  Speaker 3: it up to the point where it's entertainment first, it's
• 22:54
  Speaker 3: product first, and then according to our quality Greg Apaul. Basically,
• 22:58
  Speaker 3: the Super Raby officials were told in a conference called
• 23:01
  Speaker 3: before the semi finals by Joel Jut the World rug
• 23:04
  Speaker 3: we are free that they needed to be on the
• 23:05
  Speaker 3: lookout for more things and that's why you saw more
• 23:07
  Speaker 3: cards in the playoffs. So we're getting to the point
• 23:10
  Speaker 3: where Super Ruby's puttingentertainment first. World Rugby is putting its
• 23:13
  Speaker 3: rule book first and the precision first. And you are
• 23:17
  Speaker 3: never going to win new fans by that World Rugby
• 23:19
  Speaker 3: talks about, you know, getting USA getting into other markets. Well,
• 23:24
  Speaker 3: if that's your show piece product, then you're sorely, sorely
• 23:27
  Speaker 3: lacking and I just do not see them interested in
• 23:30
  Speaker 3: fixing it and it's just absolutely doing my heaven to
• 23:33
  Speaker 3: be quite honest, the way that Test rugby is officiated.
• 23:37
  Speaker 4: Now, yeah, I think you need to put the power
• 23:39
  Speaker 4: in the officials on the field and there's a responsibility
• 23:44
  Speaker 4: that goes then to the fan and media and everyone
• 23:49
  Speaker 4: to accept that there is going to be some mistakes.
• 23:51
  Speaker 3: Yeah, absolutely, and I think people yeah, yeah, you talk
• 23:56
  Speaker 3: about wrong referring decision, that's part of the game and
• 23:58
  Speaker 3: you're still getting things wrong at TMI level. We're debating
• 24:01
  Speaker 3: whether that abstruction will was correct. Last night the assistant referee,
• 24:05
  Speaker 3: Christoph Ridley of England disagreed with what Nick Barry was
• 24:10
  Speaker 3: seeing on the screen. So did we get a perfect
• 24:13
  Speaker 3: call there, No, we didn't. The TMOS come down and
• 24:15
  Speaker 3: said it substruction, but we're still disagreeing over it. So
• 24:20
  Speaker 3: we're adding a fourth set of eyes by something that
• 24:22
  Speaker 3: wasn't captured by three set of eyes on the park.
• 24:26
  Speaker 3: It wasn't clear and obvious, so it just it was
• 24:29
  Speaker 3: cleared by Nick Berry, I think on the park and
• 24:31
  Speaker 3: he said it was fine with it. Get shown some
• 24:33
  Speaker 3: evidence of the big screen changes his mind. But we're
• 24:36
  Speaker 3: adding more sets of eyes in the game's getting worse,
• 24:38
  Speaker 3: so I really don't know what to think. Let's stop
• 24:40
  Speaker 3: talking about it because I'm get skinned for you annoyed
• 24:43
  Speaker 3: changes for this week the third Test, sorry, second Test,
• 24:46
  Speaker 3: getting hit myself in Wellington, sever Us will not be there,
• 24:51
  Speaker 3: Scott Barrett has and Achilles issued not sure whether it's
• 24:54
  Speaker 3: serious or not. We'll probably find out Monday Tuesday as
• 24:58
  Speaker 3: to that, or maybe Thursday when the team is named.
• 25:01
  Speaker 3: So first and foremost, who you're putting on the right
• 25:04
  Speaker 3: wing in place of sever Res.
• 25:07
  Speaker 4: I'm sticking well with what we saw for seventy nine minutes.
• 25:11
  Speaker 4: I'd put Jordan to the wing and I'd have Damien
• 25:14
  Speaker 4: McKenzie at fullback. I quite like that combination. I think
• 25:16
  Speaker 4: it's got a lot of strike and Jordan is very
• 25:22
  Speaker 4: good in the air, and France are going to kick
• 25:24
  Speaker 4: a lot again, that's them, o they That's how they play.
• 25:30
  Speaker 4: So whoever you pick on the wing is going to
• 25:33
  Speaker 4: be peppered with kicks. So if you're looking at some
• 25:36
  Speaker 4: of the other options are a lot more risky. Rico
• 25:39
  Speaker 4: Owani and Caleb Clark are almost exclusively left wingers. Ruben
• 25:47
  Speaker 4: Love has played ten minutes of Test rugby on the
• 25:49
  Speaker 4: wing and is quite short, and that's a risk and
• 25:55
  Speaker 4: amani that I would love to see get a crack,
• 25:58
  Speaker 4: but he's in the squad as injury cover, so I
• 26:00
  Speaker 4: don't see them going that way.
• 26:03
  Speaker 6: What do you reckon?
• 26:04
  Speaker 3: I suspect you're probably right. Look, I would love to
• 26:07
  Speaker 3: see Reubin Love get a crack on the right wing.
• 26:11
  Speaker 3: I do think he's got the attributes to be a
• 26:13
  Speaker 3: test make sing. You are right, he is short, but
• 26:16
  Speaker 3: I think he has the pace and the ability to
• 26:18
  Speaker 3: do that. But it would be a big risk to
• 26:20
  Speaker 3: do it, because Scott Robinson said at the media conference
• 26:24
  Speaker 3: last night was it was you know, we've seen the
• 26:26
  Speaker 3: way they play. There wasn't a lot of innovation. Put
• 26:29
  Speaker 3: it that way. They were clearly kicking a lot. You
• 26:32
  Speaker 3: wouldn't expect to change that too much for test too.
• 26:34
  Speaker 3: So I suspect you're probably right, but I would like
• 26:37
  Speaker 3: to see Ruben Love getting go.
• 26:39
  Speaker 6: Regardless of who starts on the right.
• 26:40
  Speaker 4: I'd be starting Caleb Clark on the left because he
• 26:43
  Speaker 4: is your best winger in the air and so that's
• 26:46
  Speaker 4: one very easy fix. And yeah, yeah, he didn't have
• 26:50
  Speaker 4: a good a great Super Rugby campaign. Some of that's
• 26:53
  Speaker 4: down to the Blues and their style. Didn't score a try,
• 26:56
  Speaker 4: but they put faith in them. He's one of two
• 26:58
  Speaker 4: specialist wingers in the squad and I'd give him a crack.
• 27:03
  Speaker 3: Okay, we'll take a break here on Rugby Dick come
• 27:05
  Speaker 3: back with the second half of the podcast after this
• 27:08
  Speaker 3: could to save our friends SAT Access solutions.
• 27:11
  Speaker 1: This is Rugby Direct, a podcast for real rugby fans.
• 27:18
  Speaker 3: Try try and sixty sec every tackle, Get up again?
• 27:25
  Speaker 2: Take him before a times.
• 27:26
  Speaker 5: It's Rugby Direct.
• 27:28
  Speaker 1: Badies talks to me.
• 27:31
  Speaker 3: You're back with Rugby Direct. Time now for the second
• 27:33
  Speaker 3: half of the podcast. Stick around as well. Jordy Barrett's
• 27:36
  Speaker 3: Limbs interview with him coming along very shortly as well.
• 27:40
  Speaker 3: First and foremost results for the year. There's thirteen tests
• 27:43
  Speaker 3: for the All Blacks. They've got one on the board.
• 27:46
  Speaker 3: So how many wins do they end with? How many losses?
• 27:50
  Speaker 4: I'm going to say they win eleven Elliotts. It's a
• 27:54
  Speaker 4: tougher schedule than many All Black fans would probably perceive.
• 27:59
  Speaker 4: Straight off the baut I think there'd be an expectation
• 28:01
  Speaker 4: that the All Blacks will go to Argentina and do
• 28:04
  Speaker 4: that reasonably comfortably I think the context of that tour
• 28:09
  Speaker 4: has changed in recent years that the Pumas are a
• 28:11
  Speaker 4: team that.
• 28:11
  Speaker 2: Have knocked off not England this morning.
• 28:14
  Speaker 4: No, no, the Pomaers did make a few changes blooded
• 28:17
  Speaker 4: a few rookies in that game as well. But the
• 28:20
  Speaker 4: Pumers have knocked off the Wallabies, the Spring Box, the
• 28:23
  Speaker 4: All Blacks, England and the British and Irish Lions, so
• 28:27
  Speaker 4: that they are they are a real team and it
• 28:29
  Speaker 4: will be a tough tour. I can see the All
• 28:31
  Speaker 4: Blacks going one on one with the Box in New
• 28:33
  Speaker 4: Zealand's I think maybe when I eaton Park maybe losing.
• 28:37
  Speaker 2: Wellings Yeah be new, wouldn't it?
• 28:41
  Speaker 4: And I will back the All Blacks to get better
• 28:43
  Speaker 4: throughout the year and I think they can go unbeaten
• 28:46
  Speaker 4: on the Northern tour.
• 28:50
  Speaker 3: I have the same school line, the same yeah, eleven
• 28:53
  Speaker 3: and two. I think for the year. The loss I
• 28:58
  Speaker 3: think comes against South Africa and you know what, I
• 29:03
  Speaker 3: think they might actually drop the Wallabies test potentially maybe
• 29:07
  Speaker 3: in Perth.
• 29:09
  Speaker 2: This year.
• 29:11
  Speaker 3: The reasoning for that is they played the first game
• 29:13
  Speaker 3: at eden Park, Blitzslow Cup might be safe by that
• 29:16
  Speaker 3: point go over to Perth. They've lost there before, That's
• 29:21
  Speaker 3: what I've got at this point. South African Waraby's which
• 29:23
  Speaker 3: you know there could be more, but it is a
• 29:26
  Speaker 3: tricky year in Argentina is an interesting one, isn't it
• 29:28
  Speaker 3: because there is almost the final frontier for this Argentina
• 29:31
  Speaker 3: team in terms of outside of a World Cup, you know,
• 29:34
  Speaker 3: beating the All Blacks on their home you know, on
• 29:37
  Speaker 3: Argentina's home soil. They've managed to do it in Australia once,
• 29:41
  Speaker 3: in New Zealand twice. There was a lot of expectation
• 29:45
  Speaker 3: maybe in twenty twenty three that they could do it
• 29:47
  Speaker 3: there the All Blacks boom off the park. A couple
• 29:49
  Speaker 3: of track, tricky tests you know for the All Blacks
• 29:52
  Speaker 3: and building Argentina team under flippecontopomy, could happen.
• 29:57
  Speaker 6: Could happen?
• 29:58
  Speaker 4: Yeah, the Poops probably struggle with expectation, don't they. They're
• 30:02
  Speaker 4: a motive beast and that probably doesn't help them at home,
• 30:06
  Speaker 4: but it will certainly be right up there for them
• 30:11
  Speaker 4: in terms of make or break of the year. And yeah,
• 30:13
  Speaker 4: the All Blacks have the capacity to be complacent against
• 30:17
  Speaker 4: the Wallabies when you look at their test calendar and
• 30:20
  Speaker 4: what they want to achieve, a Grand Slam, defending Eden Park,
• 30:24
  Speaker 4: going to Argentina and maintaining your being status over there.
• 30:29
  Speaker 4: Winning the bledders Low is important, but the Wallaby's.
• 30:34
  Speaker 5: Given the or.
• 30:35
  Speaker 4: Black's recent record, I think, yeah, there is real risk
• 30:38
  Speaker 4: in that there's.
• 30:39
  Speaker 3: Me on top or two in the final four. Was
• 30:41
  Speaker 3: certainly a busy weekend of rugby around the rest of
• 30:44
  Speaker 3: the globe. We had the Maldi All Blacks and Action,
• 30:46
  Speaker 3: the Black Friends Black Fans fifteen. We've had the aforementioned
• 30:50
  Speaker 3: Argentina England game. We had Japan continuing Wales losing street.
• 30:55
  Speaker 3: I think last week you see that Wales would have
• 30:58
  Speaker 3: anyone left on the.
• 31:00
  Speaker 6: I need to make an apology, public apology to.
• 31:02
  Speaker 2: Wales because I think they've still got one two.
• 31:08
  Speaker 3: Yeah, the open side, Yeah, Jack Morgan, Well they couldn't
• 31:12
  Speaker 3: win in Japan.
• 31:13
  Speaker 6: No eighteen losses in a row looking good.
• 31:18
  Speaker 3: What's stood out, I guess from the rest of the
• 31:19
  Speaker 3: Wartor is pushing the British and Irish lines of the
• 31:21
  Speaker 3: fifteen to one outsiders at the tab. There's a lot
• 31:24
  Speaker 3: to catch up on in the last twenty four hours.
• 31:26
  Speaker 3: Didn't see a great deal of it, but what stood
• 31:28
  Speaker 3: out to you results.
• 31:29
  Speaker 4: Was, Yeah, the black Fern said the undersquad trial didn't
• 31:33
  Speaker 4: catch a lot of that on a very busy Saturday
• 31:35
  Speaker 4: saw but some pieces of the Mauldy All Blacks in
• 31:39
  Speaker 4: between walking a foresyth bar that was quite an engrossing
• 31:43
  Speaker 4: encounter went eighty five minutes and a surprise results because
• 31:49
  Speaker 4: that Scotland team's missing eight players with the British and
• 31:51
  Speaker 4: Irish lines and it's probably a game that the Mouldy
• 31:53
  Speaker 4: All Blacks.
• 31:54
  Speaker 6: Should have won. And really bad finish to that game.
• 31:59
  Speaker 4: They Scotland went down one man, they had two or
• 32:03
  Speaker 4: three rolling all opportunities and just blew it and really
• 32:07
  Speaker 4: struggled under the highball as I mentioned earlier.
• 32:09
  Speaker 6: So yeah, big ups to Scotland.
• 32:11
  Speaker 4: There was a great result for a development team that
• 32:16
  Speaker 4: Gregor towns ends is brought out here.
• 32:18
  Speaker 5: Yeah.
• 32:18
  Speaker 4: I think that the WATA surprised didn't see them being
• 32:21
  Speaker 4: that competitive, but I wouldn't read too much into that
• 32:24
  Speaker 4: in the context of the lines story though.
• 32:26
  Speaker 5: No.
• 32:27
  Speaker 3: Yeah, the Motorle Week's definitely struggle around the high ball,
• 32:30
  Speaker 3: including t K Howden. I don't know if you saw
• 32:32
  Speaker 3: quit up with this, but yeah Rivers Rayharnah with the
• 32:34
  Speaker 3: clearing crossfield bomb from inside his ingole that didn't really
• 32:38
  Speaker 3: go any weird tk hout and smacks it dead, which
• 32:40
  Speaker 3: of course you cannot do yellow carded. So yeah, it
• 32:44
  Speaker 3: wasn't the best in the Maldi All Blacks and that's
• 32:47
  Speaker 3: the end of their season. You know, two games, one
• 32:48
  Speaker 3: in Japan, one in Scotland. They're in a trickle.
• 32:52
  Speaker 2: Player excuse me. The Mauldi All Blacks as well.
• 32:53
  Speaker 3: I know they want more international fextures, but they're very
• 32:55
  Speaker 3: much consigned to playing Japan and you know, weakend tourading teams.
• 33:01
  Speaker 3: It'd be great to have them part of the Pacific
• 33:02
  Speaker 3: Nations Cup, for example against Fiji and some more and
• 33:06
  Speaker 3: things like that, but sort of hasn't quite happened for
• 33:10
  Speaker 3: them as yet.
• 33:11
  Speaker 2: Topic three.
• 33:12
  Speaker 3: Interesting comment in the Godt that we're musing over in
• 33:17
  Speaker 3: one of the local cafes, Vocal Street Kitchen, which very
• 33:20
  Speaker 3: very good reading Hayden Mikaels, Colin and the oly T
• 33:24
  Speaker 3: on a Saturday saying that he suspects that Daneeda may
• 33:26
  Speaker 3: not get another test for the next three years, so
• 33:28
  Speaker 3: back until twenty twenty eight and you go cheapest three years.
• 33:32
  Speaker 3: But when you break it down, there is a possibility
• 33:35
  Speaker 3: Liam that they don't get a test rug test game
• 33:37
  Speaker 3: for the next three years. There'll be four test matches
• 33:40
  Speaker 3: at home from our understanding, our reporting next year with
• 33:44
  Speaker 3: the to be confirmed it is happening. South Arien too
• 33:49
  Speaker 3: be three in the nation's cut window in July. Then
• 33:51
  Speaker 3: a blue islow so christ Church comes online next year,
• 33:56
  Speaker 3: Auckland will get at least one, maybe two. Where does
• 33:59
  Speaker 3: the other one go? Does it go to Wellington? Does
• 34:01
  Speaker 3: it go to Dunedin, does it go to Hamilton? Real
• 34:04
  Speaker 3: squeeze on there. And then twenty twenty seven there's probably
• 34:07
  Speaker 3: going to be only two home tests before the Rugby
• 34:09
  Speaker 3: World Cup, so that does leave twenty twenty eight. So
• 34:13
  Speaker 3: hater meekle might be right there and that'd be a
• 34:15
  Speaker 3: real shame for Dunedin if it is the case.
• 34:17
  Speaker 4: It would indeed, because I'm going to steal your line
• 34:20
  Speaker 4: here that that Dunedin is one of the last true
• 34:23
  Speaker 4: New Zealand test cities. You know, being there this week
• 34:25
  Speaker 4: it is clear how much it means having the all
• 34:28
  Speaker 4: Blacks in town. All the shop windows have got go
• 34:31
  Speaker 4: all Blacks written in tape. Flags are displayed prominently. Merchandise,
• 34:36
  Speaker 4: you know, the Octagon and Emerson Spury is packed on
• 34:40
  Speaker 4: game day. I have no doubt it brings an immense
• 34:44
  Speaker 4: amount to the local economy and the Test was sold
• 34:46
  Speaker 4: out long in advance despite all the noise around the
• 34:50
  Speaker 4: status of this French team. But yeah, you're right that
• 34:53
  Speaker 4: the squeeze is on and the new christ Stadium is
• 34:56
  Speaker 4: going to be a destination by all accounts.
• 34:59
  Speaker 6: It's a head to schedule.
• 35:00
  Speaker 4: It's going to be a great venue for concerts and
• 35:03
  Speaker 4: sporting fixtures alike. So fortunately for Dunedin, I think, yeah,
• 35:09
  Speaker 4: they are going to miss out because one of the
• 35:10
  Speaker 4: big issues of Dunedin is accommodation as well.
• 35:13
  Speaker 6: It's quite a small city.
• 35:15
  Speaker 3: It certainly is, so you need to figure out for
• 35:18
  Speaker 3: Dunedin some more accommodation Christ which she's got plenty more
• 35:21
  Speaker 3: coming online with that stadium as well. So if there's
• 35:24
  Speaker 3: something that Dunedin's gonna have to figure out and until then,
• 35:27
  Speaker 3: well they're going to have to perhaps, I guess, take
• 35:30
  Speaker 3: what they're given. And there is a small schedule and
• 35:32
  Speaker 3: you think of that after this year, the All Blacks
• 35:34
  Speaker 3: have maybe only got sick, have only got six home
• 35:36
  Speaker 3: tests before the World Cup, barring it in the extras
• 35:39
  Speaker 3: in the lead up to twenty twenty seven, which could
• 35:42
  Speaker 3: well happen given it as an Australia they could play
• 35:44
  Speaker 3: your home game before they go to Australia at some point,
• 35:47
  Speaker 3: so maybe an extra one there and top.
• 35:49
  Speaker 2: Of number four and the final four.
• 35:51
  Speaker 3: Good story from our colleague Rob van ryin around Rob
• 35:55
  Speaker 3: Henny re signing. Perhaps not a surprise given he decided
• 35:59
  Speaker 3: to basically straight batts and to you see he wouldn't
• 36:02
  Speaker 3: go anywhere else and everything like that, But sounds like
• 36:06
  Speaker 3: he's sticking around for at least one more see at
• 36:08
  Speaker 3: the Crusaders. But there is some other movement as well.
• 36:10
  Speaker 3: You want to need more none who on the move
• 36:13
  Speaker 3: potentially back to the Blues. Is that the rumor doing
• 36:16
  Speaker 3: the rounds leam, I guess your action to both of
• 36:18
  Speaker 3: those pieces and.
• 36:19
  Speaker 4: Use Yeah, it's not often you win a championship and
• 36:23
  Speaker 4: get turfed out, is it. Verncotta was re signed for
• 36:28
  Speaker 4: a further year, staying on for two so three all
• 36:32
  Speaker 4: up with the Blues and yeah, but what a turn
• 36:37
  Speaker 4: of events for Rob Penny. You know, you and I
• 36:40
  Speaker 4: and many others were calling for him to be turfed
• 36:43
  Speaker 4: out after the low of twenty twenty four and gets
• 36:47
  Speaker 4: a few players back and hangs tough and wins the
• 36:50
  Speaker 4: title and interesting to see how long he sticks around
• 36:53
  Speaker 4: for and what the succession plan is there. But yeah,
• 36:57
  Speaker 4: hopefully they can do a Blues and crash out next
• 37:02
  Speaker 4: to here.
• 37:03
  Speaker 3: Thanks for your optimism on that front. You wanted more
• 37:05
  Speaker 3: not who as well going to Blues and.
• 37:07
  Speaker 4: A great up for the Blues, And it does make
• 37:09
  Speaker 4: sense he's stuck behind Taylor and George Bell.
• 37:11
  Speaker 3: Yeah, there's a bit of oiled in the runs that
• 37:13
  Speaker 3: Bradley Slater might be on the way back up as well,
• 37:16
  Speaker 3: a way up rather to Auckland.
• 37:18
  Speaker 2: I don't add to the Blues.
• 37:19
  Speaker 3: I don't know how that shack and down that was
• 37:20
  Speaker 3: doing the rounds a couple of months ago now, haven't
• 37:23
  Speaker 3: checked in on that. But Stanley Solomon as well im
• 37:26
  Speaker 3: pressa player in the under twenties. You'd think would be
• 37:29
  Speaker 3: naturally fitting for the Hurricanes. He's from that region, but
• 37:31
  Speaker 3: maybe not.
• 37:32
  Speaker 4: Yeah, it sounds like Jamie Joseph swooped there to pick
• 37:35
  Speaker 4: him up for the Highlanders, which would be a good pickup.
• 37:38
  Speaker 4: And it sort of fits the Honders brief targeting young
• 37:41
  Speaker 4: guys and giving them opportunities. Stanley Solomon's a guy that's
• 37:46
  Speaker 4: stuck behind Reuben Love and Brit Cameron and many others
• 37:52
  Speaker 4: who's the Hawks Bay first five have got injured god
• 37:54
  Speaker 4: Free Godfree and so has passed blocked essentially at the Hurricanes,
• 37:59
  Speaker 4: he can play wing, fall back and first five. So yeah,
• 38:05
  Speaker 4: it would be a good pickup for the Honders and
• 38:09
  Speaker 4: our friend that we saw in Toned and Pool Cully,
• 38:13
  Speaker 4: I'm sure it's give him some advice and welcome with
• 38:16
  Speaker 4: open arms.
• 38:17
  Speaker 3: I'm sure he would do that absolutely absolutely. Excuse me,
• 38:21
  Speaker 3: has been very long week, quite tired. That'll do us
• 38:24
  Speaker 3: for another week on Rugby Direct. But before we go,
• 38:27
  Speaker 3: you caught up with Jordy Barrett, fresh back home back
• 38:31
  Speaker 3: in the All Blacks Jersey after his time in Leinster.
• 38:34
  Speaker 2: Let's hear that chat now.
• 38:35
  Speaker 5: Yeah, right just before December and left. There was a
• 38:40
  Speaker 5: late late June, so that was great.
• 38:43
  Speaker 4: Was it everything you expected anticipated? Because I guess it
• 38:49
  Speaker 4: was quite turriblizing because when you talk about sabbaticals, most
• 38:54
  Speaker 4: players previously had largely gone to Japan and you obviously
• 38:57
  Speaker 4: set your sights on Leinster and it was it everything
• 39:00
  Speaker 4: you hoped and dreamed.
• 39:01
  Speaker 7: Yeah, that's to be honest, I didn't really know what
• 39:04
  Speaker 7: to expect. Yeah, as you alluded to, before me had
• 39:10
  Speaker 7: done it for quite some time. I think Dan was
• 39:13
  Speaker 7: the last when he went to Perpignon, but no one
• 39:15
  Speaker 7: had really gone for an Irish experience or a Lenk
• 39:18
  Speaker 7: stuff for that matter.
• 39:19
  Speaker 5: So yeah, I was, I guess walking down to the.
• 39:24
  Speaker 7: Deep water for a bit at the start, But in
• 39:27
  Speaker 7: terms of as an experience as a whole, it exceeded
• 39:32
  Speaker 7: my I guess the expectation and what I wanted to
• 39:34
  Speaker 7: get out of it, which was great. It doesn't always
• 39:37
  Speaker 7: happen that way. I mean, it was available body wise
• 39:42
  Speaker 7: the whole time, was there and and I mean although
• 39:48
  Speaker 7: I didn't get what we wanted in Europe when in
• 39:52
  Speaker 7: the UC and some silverware was great.
• 39:56
  Speaker 6: Links the had in one silverware for a number.
• 39:58
  Speaker 5: Of years now with the squad and coaches I've.
• 40:01
  Speaker 4: Had, So that was pleasing your real student of the game, right,
• 40:05
  Speaker 4: that was a big part of going Yeah, yeah, it
• 40:07
  Speaker 4: would have taken from from a rugby point of view,
• 40:11
  Speaker 4: from stylesfer coaching players arenas.
• 40:15
  Speaker 7: Yes, Yeah, like you said, it's not just one thing
• 40:20
  Speaker 7: pretty much learning through experience. I mean, one week you
• 40:24
  Speaker 7: can be playing in LaRochelle in the European Cup match
• 40:28
  Speaker 7: sold out in January, freezing cold, and then a couple
• 40:32
  Speaker 7: of weeks later you might be heading to Pretoria for
• 40:36
  Speaker 7: the u r C and then your back home again
• 40:39
  Speaker 7: in an Irish derby.
• 40:43
  Speaker 5: Against Munster.
• 40:44
  Speaker 7: So the game and the dynamic can change so quickly,
• 40:49
  Speaker 7: So the team has to adapt to different conditions, different
• 40:54
  Speaker 7: time of the year, different referees in different styles, and ultimately,
• 41:01
  Speaker 7: like the UC starts in September I think, and finishes
• 41:05
  Speaker 7: in June, so you've got to be playing your best
• 41:07
  Speaker 7: rugby later on in the air.
• 41:08
  Speaker 5: So it's a bit of the mouth on.
• 41:11
  Speaker 8: What are some of the things specifically I guess that
• 41:13
  Speaker 8: you can take away from and bring back here. I
• 41:16
  Speaker 8: think believe preference.
• 41:17
  Speaker 4: Before the defensive line speeds. You know, you've always had
• 41:22
  Speaker 4: the tactical mind to your game, but what nuggets of
• 41:27
  Speaker 4: gold or things will you bring home is and add
• 41:31
  Speaker 4: to your as well.
• 41:32
  Speaker 7: Yeah, individually, I think like walking into a different environment
• 41:38
  Speaker 7: and chatting to.
• 41:39
  Speaker 9: Different coaches, different players and trying to I guess, to
• 41:44
  Speaker 9: gather a different understanding of playing the game, a way
• 41:48
  Speaker 9: of thinking, a way of preparing.
• 41:50
  Speaker 5: And challenging yourself and.
• 41:53
  Speaker 7: There are some things that I would have left at
• 41:55
  Speaker 7: the door and the other things that I really took
• 41:57
  Speaker 7: on from other players, And I guess like leaving, I
• 42:03
  Speaker 7: feel like I got a better understanding of my own
• 42:05
  Speaker 7: game and broader understanding the game of rugby, but in
• 42:10
  Speaker 7: some ways almost refining that and working out what's importance
• 42:13
  Speaker 7: and what's nelton what.
• 42:16
  Speaker 5: I guess equates to performing well on the weekend and
• 42:19
  Speaker 5: getting your team across the line.
• 42:21
  Speaker 4: Do you think you know they're a punta who knows
• 42:25
  Speaker 4: anything different about the way you play?
• 42:27
  Speaker 5: Yeah, I'm not sure, hopefully. I mean.
• 42:32
  Speaker 7: It's different because I'm walking into a team now where
• 42:36
  Speaker 7: you know you've just got to do your job. There's
• 42:39
  Speaker 7: fourteen other world class players on the field, and maybe
• 42:45
  Speaker 7: at Leinster at different times of the year you lose
• 42:47
  Speaker 7: the international guys and you're playing with ten twelve academy
• 42:53
  Speaker 7: boys and.
• 42:55
  Speaker 5: You might have a bigger role to play.
• 42:57
  Speaker 7: There's an expectation there to perform and take on a
• 43:00
  Speaker 7: whole lot more load, whereas in here.
• 43:02
  Speaker 5: You just got to do your job and do it well.
• 43:05
  Speaker 7: So in some ways, coming back in here, I've just
• 43:09
  Speaker 7: got to narrow my focus and pretty much just try
• 43:11
  Speaker 7: and nail what I can.
• 43:13
  Speaker 5: Obviously bring a real physical edge.
• 43:15
  Speaker 7: That's something I'm going to look to try to do
• 43:17
  Speaker 7: this year, coming back from Leinster and being under Jark
• 43:21
  Speaker 7: and bit of South African influence, and yeah, just trying
• 43:25
  Speaker 7: to nail all those individual sorry not individual, those one
• 43:31
  Speaker 7: on one moments in a game where you might have
• 43:33
  Speaker 7: forty of them, whether it's a ball carrier breakdown at
• 43:35
  Speaker 7: tack where you got so many chances to influence a game,
• 43:38
  Speaker 7: and just trying to win as many as those as
• 43:39
  Speaker 7: I can.
• 43:40
  Speaker 4: I mentioned Jack, what about I guess others who had
• 43:43
  Speaker 4: an impression on you, contributed to something to your Leinster
• 43:49
  Speaker 4: players or coaches or.
• 43:50
  Speaker 5: Yeahler, Tyler Blandel.
• 43:52
  Speaker 7: I've been very lucky to be coached by Tyler since
• 43:55
  Speaker 7: he moved back from Ireland and joined the Canes. And yeah,
• 44:00
  Speaker 7: coincidentally he moved to Leinster last year, and his game
• 44:06
  Speaker 7: understanding and his ability to get a team to attack
• 44:11
  Speaker 7: and strike off set pieces great and I mean in
• 44:15
  Speaker 7: the last yeah, I guess how many maybe five years now,
• 44:18
  Speaker 7: I've learned so much through him and so he was
• 44:22
  Speaker 7: very influential for me last year and then just certain
• 44:27
  Speaker 7: conversations with senior players. I was so lucky to be
• 44:30
  Speaker 7: Robin Shoulders with twenty two or twenty three captain internationals
• 44:34
  Speaker 7: in Leinster and the IRA set up. So yeah, picking
• 44:38
  Speaker 7: their brains and just having conversations has been great.
• 44:41
  Speaker 8: Did it?
• 44:41
  Speaker 5: I guess?
• 44:42
  Speaker 4: You know there's been a real rivalry in recent times
• 44:44
  Speaker 4: between the All Blacks and Island.
• 44:47
  Speaker 8: Did it give you an insight to their mentality?
• 44:49
  Speaker 4: And I guess it's a different dynamic being on that
• 44:53
  Speaker 4: side of the fence as well.
• 44:54
  Speaker 5: Yeah, certainly, like I wasn't sure just in terms of the.
• 44:58
  Speaker 7: Way they prepare their psyche and what makes them tack.
• 45:03
  Speaker 7: But it was clear there was a few little differences
• 45:08
  Speaker 7: as to what we.
• 45:09
  Speaker 5: Had rightly or wrongly back home.
• 45:11
  Speaker 7: And also there were some things that we'd be doing
• 45:13
  Speaker 7: better here that it was nice to confirm and say, yep,
• 45:19
  Speaker 7: we need to continue doing that at home, or little
• 45:21
  Speaker 7: things in the week where I think I might take
• 45:22
  Speaker 7: that home and shake, shake a few trees and see
• 45:25
  Speaker 7: if we can change.
• 45:26
  Speaker 5: Which is great and.
• 45:29
  Speaker 7: That was the whole point of my decision of moving
• 45:33
  Speaker 7: moving to Ireland and just trying to get a greater
• 45:36
  Speaker 7: understanding of individuals and the way to play the game
• 45:40
  Speaker 7: and ultimately become a better rugby player myself, and I.
• 45:44
  Speaker 4: Guess from the outside there was a bit of a concern
• 45:47
  Speaker 4: about fatigue, you know, you Gues you went over there
• 45:49
  Speaker 4: and it was in December, and then yeah, there's a
• 45:53
  Speaker 4: perception that you're playing the whole time and come back
• 45:55
  Speaker 4: and you join the All Blacks and that's a big
• 45:57
  Speaker 4: run out about a break. But from what I can gather,
• 46:01
  Speaker 4: it was really particulously playing. You're well managed and obviously
• 46:04
  Speaker 4: come and starting here if you like, you're in a good, good.
• 46:06
  Speaker 5: Place at place.
• 46:10
  Speaker 7: I mean a fluid conversations with Leo and guy from
• 46:15
  Speaker 7: the Leinster side and then with Gilly and ends that
• 46:19
  Speaker 7: are here. So like I was managed so well. Like
• 46:22
  Speaker 7: I said, I was lucky. I was healthy and available
• 46:25
  Speaker 7: for seven months I was there, So that's number one.
• 46:30
  Speaker 7: I played fifteen games so over the course of that period.
• 46:34
  Speaker 7: And there's a time during six Nations where I didn't
• 46:37
  Speaker 7: play for nine weeks and treated that as a mini
• 46:40
  Speaker 7: pre season block where I was able to get some
• 46:42
  Speaker 7: condition on, get into the gym, get a little bit
• 46:46
  Speaker 7: of a rest as well, which is important, take a
• 46:48
  Speaker 7: bit of a mental and physical break, and then come
• 46:51
  Speaker 7: bouncing back into that environment around March, and I'm feeling
• 46:54
  Speaker 7: really good at the moment, but as the.
• 46:56
  Speaker 5: Final series with Leinster, but yeah, there was always chad.
• 47:00
  Speaker 7: Around my workload and going up to Europe and getting
• 47:03
  Speaker 7: bashed up. But ironically I'm almost feeling better than sometimes
• 47:09
  Speaker 7: when you come out of Super Rugby season, so I'm
• 47:12
  Speaker 7: obviously grateful. You need a little bit of luck with
• 47:14
  Speaker 7: that too, your injuries, and but I come bouncing back
• 47:20
  Speaker 7: into this environment, which is great.
• 47:23
  Speaker 4: Obviously it wasn't just about rugby, you know, you went
• 47:25
  Speaker 4: up the early partner and experience Europe and golf and
• 47:29
  Speaker 4: travel and all those sorts of things. That's great for
• 47:32
  Speaker 4: the mind to when you've been in one place in
• 47:34
  Speaker 4: terms of the knes and stuff as well.
• 47:36
  Speaker 8: That was a big part of the desire to go
• 47:38
  Speaker 8: up there.
• 47:39
  Speaker 5: Yeah for sure.
• 47:40
  Speaker 7: I mean we are ruggy players, but we're also people
• 47:43
  Speaker 7: and you got a life to live as well, so
• 47:47
  Speaker 7: there's an opportunity for an unbelievable experience and I'm certainly
• 47:52
  Speaker 7: glad I did it.
• 47:53
  Speaker 5: I've got no regrets.
• 47:54
  Speaker 7: The people in Ireland as a whole were great, Dublin
• 47:59
  Speaker 7: as well, and.
• 48:02
  Speaker 5: I had opportunities.
• 48:03
  Speaker 7: To get away for the odd weekend and take Elis
• 48:06
  Speaker 7: with me and just enjoy life outside of rugby and
• 48:11
  Speaker 7: walk back through the doors at Leinster and with a
• 48:13
  Speaker 7: smile on my face and just enjoy the challenge.
• 48:15
  Speaker 5: Of preparing for a week again. So I couldn't be
• 48:19
  Speaker 5: happy with the way I went.
• 48:20
  Speaker 4: Well, there mixed emotions in some ways. Imagine there's a
• 48:24
  Speaker 4: party that wanted to stay and you know continue and
• 48:28
  Speaker 4: obviously you know coming back and play for your vacs, yes,
• 48:31
  Speaker 4: when desire.
• 48:33
  Speaker 5: What what was that like? Yeah, it's a funny one,
• 48:36
  Speaker 5: it was.
• 48:36
  Speaker 7: It was a bittersweet actually, Yeah, over a short period
• 48:40
  Speaker 7: of time develop some great friendships, ones that will carry
• 48:44
  Speaker 7: through for the rest of my life. But you wonder
• 48:48
  Speaker 7: if if I was there any longer with the nulty
• 48:50
  Speaker 7: of worn off, But I guess we'll never know. So
• 48:52
  Speaker 7: I'm just grateful that the whole time I was there,
• 48:55
  Speaker 7: I absolutely enjoyed it. But even throughout the season that
• 48:59
  Speaker 7: iron super rugby. There's guys playing well, your mates and
• 49:04
  Speaker 7: brothers are they're playing and playing well, and I still
• 49:08
  Speaker 7: burns inside. You just want to get back and ideally
• 49:13
  Speaker 7: earn yourself an opportunity into wearing the black Jusey again,
• 49:16
  Speaker 7: so I'm grateful I've done that.
• 49:18
  Speaker 3: Jordy Barrett's on RAGB Directs with Liam Napier. That will
• 49:22
  Speaker 3: do us for another week on Rugby Direct. Thanks to
• 49:25
  Speaker 3: our friends at Access Solutions. We will see you next
• 49:28
  Speaker 3: week as we build into Test three.
• 49:34
  Speaker 1: For more from News Talks at B Listen live on
• 49:37
  Speaker 1: air or online, and keep our shows with you wherever
• 49:40
  Speaker 1: you go with our podcast on iHeartRadio