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Transcript

Rugby Direct - Episode 171 · Rugby Direct

• 0:09
  Speaker 1: You're listening to a podcast from Newstalks EDB. Follow this
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  Speaker 1: and our Wide Ranger podcast now on iHeartRadio.
• 0:19
  Speaker 2: Straight down the middle of dry Dipney Scary.
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: Try these packet inside the game from every angle. It's
• 0:32
  Speaker 1: Rugby Direct with Elliot Smith and Liam Napier powered by
• 0:36
  Speaker 1: News Talks EDB.
• 0:37
  Speaker 3: Welcome into Rugby Direct powered by Access Solutions, elevating you
• 0:40
  Speaker 3: and your business to a higher level.
• 0:43
  Speaker 2: Back for another week.
• 0:43
  Speaker 3: In the wake of the All Blacks forty three seventeen
• 0:47
  Speaker 3: win over France in Wellington wrapped up the Dave Gallagha
• 0:51
  Speaker 3: Trophy and first time they have won it since they
• 0:54
  Speaker 3: handed over to France in twenty twenty one.
• 0:57
  Speaker 2: Joining me is always.
• 0:58
  Speaker 3: Liam Napier from the New Zealand Herald and Liam welcome
• 1:02
  Speaker 3: in first and foremost a much improved All Blacks performance
• 1:05
  Speaker 3: to reflect on this week.
• 1:06
  Speaker 4: It was Elliott's great to see was that after what
• 1:10
  Speaker 4: we witnessed in Dunedan headed to our nation's capital, great
• 1:14
  Speaker 4: place that it is, and it's the Capital curse is
• 1:17
  Speaker 4: long gone.
• 1:18
  Speaker 5: The All Blacks are back and all as well in
• 1:21
  Speaker 5: the world.
• 1:21
  Speaker 2: Well the Capital curses God.
• 1:23
  Speaker 3: Although if there's been some sticking criticism of the capital
• 1:26
  Speaker 3: at large, including in the Hera by Colleigue Gregor Paul.
• 1:30
  Speaker 3: But if we look at this performance, it was, as
• 1:34
  Speaker 3: we say, much improved. But why was it much improved?
• 1:37
  Speaker 3: What were the All Blacks able to do better this week?
• 1:40
  Speaker 3: In wet's greasy a little bit greasy conditions? It stopped
• 1:43
  Speaker 3: running mid afternoon in Wellington. Compared to what they couldn't
• 1:47
  Speaker 3: do under the roof interned, oh.
• 1:49
  Speaker 5: A lot, almost everything.
• 1:51
  Speaker 4: Look, the set piece worked really well in Dunedin and
• 1:53
  Speaker 4: their attack was strong. They scored four tries and had
• 1:57
  Speaker 4: two sorry three denied, so there were positive aspects out
• 2:00
  Speaker 4: of a very disjointed, shaky, nervous performance first up, which
• 2:05
  Speaker 4: is quite traditional from the All Blacks in Wellington, their
• 2:08
  Speaker 4: defense was much stronger. They got off the line, there
• 2:12
  Speaker 4: was real intent, an aggression and what they were doing there.
• 2:15
  Speaker 4: They started really well and largely put France to bed,
• 2:19
  Speaker 4: didn't they four first half tries? It all started for
• 2:23
  Speaker 4: me with the All Blacks pack. They were so much
• 2:26
  Speaker 4: more direct, confrontational. They went through the heart of the
• 2:29
  Speaker 4: French defense. They offloaded, they played at pace. Their kicking
• 2:34
  Speaker 4: game was mixed at times, but on the whole the
• 2:38
  Speaker 4: strategy to turn France behind, get them pirouetting, have them
• 2:44
  Speaker 4: scramble the ball into touch really did payoff. It allowed
• 2:48
  Speaker 4: the All Blacks to set up camp, to really pressure
• 2:53
  Speaker 4: France and put the heat on them there and they
• 2:57
  Speaker 4: largely took their chances.
• 2:58
  Speaker 5: You know, the second half.
• 3:00
  Speaker 4: We can touch on it a bit more, but I
• 3:02
  Speaker 4: don't think they got much payoff the bench and perhaps
• 3:05
  Speaker 4: when as ruthless as they wanted to be, but when
• 3:07
  Speaker 4: you put a score on a team like that, it
• 3:09
  Speaker 4: does tend to happen. So vastly improved across the board.
• 3:15
  Speaker 4: We'll get your thoughts before we move on and look
• 3:17
  Speaker 4: at the context to which we view this as well.
• 3:20
  Speaker 3: Yeah, I thought it was a much impro performance and
• 3:22
  Speaker 3: similar to you, it was set up by the full pack.
• 3:25
  Speaker 3: They did their work, they got into the tide exchanges
• 3:28
  Speaker 3: and were much better. I thought that the breakdown wasn't perfect,
• 3:31
  Speaker 3: but the speed to breakdown I thought was a lot
• 3:33
  Speaker 3: more efficient than it was in Dunedan. I think that
• 3:36
  Speaker 3: was still narrowly behind France and in terms of the
• 3:38
  Speaker 3: actual speed to breakdown and in terms of a matter
• 3:41
  Speaker 3: of a microsecond, but it was much improved, though a
• 3:43
  Speaker 3: lot quicker they were a lot more ruthless when they
• 3:48
  Speaker 3: had those opportunities inside the twenty two that we didn't
• 3:51
  Speaker 3: see last week in Dunedan, and we saw that probably
• 3:55
  Speaker 3: exemplified best when they had the opportunity that was finished
• 3:58
  Speaker 3: by two poy vii under the sticks. Now, that was
• 4:00
  Speaker 3: a lovely breakout All Blacks moves.
• 4:01
  Speaker 5: It was rugby from the gods.
• 4:02
  Speaker 3: Yeah, it was superb and they probably wouldn't have scored
• 4:06
  Speaker 3: that try last week they managed to finish. There were
• 4:08
  Speaker 3: players in the right places expecting the past, so they
• 4:11
  Speaker 3: had the bodies in motion that maybe they didn't have
• 4:14
  Speaker 3: Internedin last week, and everything they tried to do in
• 4:16
  Speaker 3: Deleding that didn't work kind of works. I thought. At
• 4:20
  Speaker 3: sky Stadium we all expected a bit of an aerial
• 4:22
  Speaker 3: kicking contest, and while there were plenty of kicks, it
• 4:25
  Speaker 3: wasn't for the aerial contest that maybe we expected that
• 4:28
  Speaker 3: match to be.
• 4:30
  Speaker 4: I think that's because France just didn't really get to
• 4:33
  Speaker 4: dictate terms.
• 4:34
  Speaker 5: And in Donedan, Yeah, the All.
• 4:38
  Speaker 4: Blacks kicked high a lot more, where there was much
• 4:41
  Speaker 4: more variety in their kicking game. They found the grass
• 4:45
  Speaker 4: a lot more. Even when they went to went high,
• 4:49
  Speaker 4: it was little chips over the top Boden Barrett Fiardi
• 4:52
  Speaker 4: severe but it really was tactically astute the way they
• 4:58
  Speaker 4: kept for the corners. They were looking for grass rather
• 5:01
  Speaker 4: than putting it in the air. And look, I think
• 5:04
  Speaker 4: we still saw that the All Blacks honorable under the
• 5:09
  Speaker 4: high ball. The wingers in particular. I think there's big
• 5:15
  Speaker 4: question marks about who the best wingers are for the
• 5:17
  Speaker 4: All Blacks right now and their work under the high
• 5:20
  Speaker 4: ball is still an issue.
• 5:22
  Speaker 3: I think so, remembering as well, they had Clark ruled
• 5:25
  Speaker 3: out twenty four hours or thereabouts out from kickoff, and
• 5:29
  Speaker 3: I think he would have been a better option under
• 5:31
  Speaker 3: the high ball than I think. Nada was pretty good
• 5:34
  Speaker 3: under the high ball and he plays a lot of
• 5:35
  Speaker 3: fallback as well sometimes the Chiefs, certainly at the NPC level,
• 5:39
  Speaker 3: but I think without Clark, they you know, he's so
• 5:42
  Speaker 3: good on the hindball that and big Test matches, you've
• 5:44
  Speaker 3: got to look to someone like him, and they didn't
• 5:46
  Speaker 3: have him obviously on the weekend in the Capital. If
• 5:49
  Speaker 3: we break this down a little bit more, it was
• 5:52
  Speaker 3: the pace they played it. I felt in the first
• 5:54
  Speaker 3: half half that France couldn't stick with. It was a
• 5:56
  Speaker 3: lot of hands on hips from the French midway through
• 6:01
  Speaker 3: thirty minutes into that game. Is that when they were
• 6:03
  Speaker 3: coming back to halfway after conceding tries, there was no
• 6:05
  Speaker 3: real energy to it and they didn't look like a
• 6:08
  Speaker 3: team that could fight their way back into the contest
• 6:10
  Speaker 3: at any point in the game. So it felt different
• 6:14
  Speaker 3: to the previous week. And I think you've got to
• 6:17
  Speaker 3: congratulate the All Blacks on what they were able to
• 6:19
  Speaker 3: do and the way they're able to exploit some of
• 6:22
  Speaker 3: that French French play French defense because it probably wasn't
• 6:27
  Speaker 3: as good as the previous week. Let's touch on a
• 6:29
  Speaker 3: couple of things, and you mentioned the set piece. The
• 6:32
  Speaker 3: first try came from set Peace. First try, second try anyway,
• 6:36
  Speaker 3: cam royguards try came from set Peace.
• 6:38
  Speaker 2: Lovely we training ground play.
• 6:42
  Speaker 3: That was, you know, something that you see on a
• 6:45
  Speaker 3: training ground that you don't expect to come up in
• 6:47
  Speaker 3: the game, but it did and probably exemply that the
• 6:49
  Speaker 3: confidence that the All Blacks were playing with that night.
• 6:52
  Speaker 5: Yeah, and there's a lot to that move.
• 6:54
  Speaker 4: Bryan Evans, the Hurricanes lineout coach, got the praudits for
• 6:58
  Speaker 4: that and this was probably been glossed over in terms
• 7:04
  Speaker 4: of changes to the All Blacks this year. But I
• 7:08
  Speaker 4: spoke to Tupo Vi an immediate scrum afterwards and he
• 7:11
  Speaker 4: talked about how they stole that move from the Hurricanes,
• 7:16
  Speaker 4: and it was from the Hurricanes used against the Hollanders
• 7:19
  Speaker 4: and Wellington and Brent Evens has brought it to the
• 7:21
  Speaker 4: All Blacks and the All Blacks identified that France on
• 7:27
  Speaker 4: their defensive lineout only have their half back in the
• 7:30
  Speaker 4: front and so it worked to absolute perfection. Like you say,
• 7:34
  Speaker 4: that doesn't happen too often. You think back to Tony
• 7:37
  Speaker 4: Wilcox will try in the twenty eleven World Cup Final TV. Yeah,
• 7:42
  Speaker 4: there's been others. But Brent Evens, yeah, a real underrated
• 7:47
  Speaker 4: sort of figure in terms of changes to All Black
• 7:49
  Speaker 4: management and he was getting a lot of praise. Scott
• 7:52
  Speaker 4: Robinson spoke very highly of He talked about having an
• 7:56
  Speaker 4: interview with him that he didn't know was an interview
• 7:59
  Speaker 4: and they talked lineouts for an hour and then that
• 8:02
  Speaker 4: was all he needed to hear. And he's brought him
• 8:04
  Speaker 4: into camp this year, so you broaden that out and
• 8:07
  Speaker 4: it is very important for the All Blacks to be innovating,
• 8:11
  Speaker 4: to be trying things, particularly against this French team, because
• 8:17
  Speaker 4: I'll ask you this, what about the French strategy of
• 8:21
  Speaker 4: changing ten starting players so they well exceeded expectations in Dunedin,
• 8:28
  Speaker 4: you know, push the all Blacks to the brink.
• 8:30
  Speaker 5: The series is on the line.
• 8:32
  Speaker 4: Fabianngaltig wants to use as full thirty eight man squad
• 8:36
  Speaker 4: on this tour. But they made ten starting changes, introduced
• 8:40
  Speaker 4: six rookies, rested Gailfku the most experienced figure, and captain
• 8:45
  Speaker 4: some of their best players from the first test one
• 8:47
  Speaker 4: of their loose forwards.
• 8:49
  Speaker 5: What do you make of that strategy?
• 8:51
  Speaker 3: Well, I think it just shows that the series never
• 8:52
  Speaker 3: really meant that much to them in all honesty, because
• 8:55
  Speaker 3: if it did, you'd go, you know, absolute balls to
• 8:59
  Speaker 3: the wall, you know, put your best team out in
• 9:01
  Speaker 3: the park, and they haven't done that.
• 9:02
  Speaker 4: Boden Barratt had seventy two more caps than the entire
• 9:05
  Speaker 4: French team.
• 9:07
  Speaker 3: Well, two of the best players are coming off the
• 9:08
  Speaker 3: bench and they have done in the first two weeks,
• 9:09
  Speaker 3: Cameron Walkee and Romaine Tofafaniuer. They've come off the bench
• 9:13
  Speaker 3: in both weeks and have made a difference when they've
• 9:15
  Speaker 3: come on and have more experience than a lot of
• 9:17
  Speaker 3: these players now, whether they're under a minute's restriction, whatever
• 9:20
  Speaker 3: it might be. This wasn't a selection from Gualty how
• 9:23
  Speaker 3: to save the series. And then that you read and
• 9:25
  Speaker 3: go this series doesn't mean that much to them, and
• 9:28
  Speaker 3: you go back to the original point of the squad
• 9:30
  Speaker 3: they selected to bring down to New Zealand, is that,
• 9:33
  Speaker 3: you know, the July series just is something they're contractual,
• 9:38
  Speaker 3: tractually obliged to do.
• 9:39
  Speaker 2: They check that off. They probably would rather not do it.
• 9:42
  Speaker 3: They use they're developing a little bit of depth, but
• 9:44
  Speaker 3: the series, in terms of actually winning the series means
• 9:47
  Speaker 3: very little to the French.
• 9:48
  Speaker 4: Yeah, I had a wee bit of context to this.
• 9:50
  Speaker 4: So the Super Agby season is four months long and
• 9:55
  Speaker 4: I think teams play a maximum about seventeen games. The
• 9:59
  Speaker 4: ABS then play thirteen fourteen tests over a five month period.
• 10:03
  Speaker 4: In France the clubs play up to thirty seven games
• 10:06
  Speaker 4: in a season that's almost ten months, and then France
• 10:09
  Speaker 4: play about eleven tests. So I guess that just highlights
• 10:12
  Speaker 4: the difference in domestic to international and it's something that
• 10:18
  Speaker 4: needs to be addressed and I don't know whether it will.
• 10:21
  Speaker 4: And it's also worth noting that World Rugby actually moved
• 10:24
  Speaker 4: the international calendar largely to try and appease the top
• 10:29
  Speaker 4: fourteen clubs from June to July to try and get
• 10:32
  Speaker 4: more alignment. And there's also been a lot of chats
• 10:35
  Speaker 4: given what's happening in Australia with the Lions, that maybe
• 10:38
  Speaker 4: the lines should go on toward France. Well, they'll be
• 10:42
  Speaker 4: playing a beat team. So France, as you mentioned before,
• 10:46
  Speaker 4: just do not care from an international perspective. They've got
• 10:50
  Speaker 4: this long standing agreement with the French clubs that precludes
• 10:53
  Speaker 4: them from selecting their best players and so it really
• 10:56
  Speaker 4: does make a mockery of the elite status of the
• 11:00
  Speaker 4: international game exactly.
• 11:03
  Speaker 3: And it's not going to change because the French have
• 11:06
  Speaker 3: their Top fourteen, which is a very successful problem, the
• 11:08
  Speaker 3: best club competition in the world. It's not watched down
• 11:12
  Speaker 3: in New Zealand, much like Super Rugby probably isn't watched
• 11:14
  Speaker 3: too much in France. And when you have these two
• 11:16
  Speaker 3: things collide around what matters most to them in their game,
• 11:19
  Speaker 3: and the Top fourteen is very very important to them.
• 11:22
  Speaker 3: In New Zealand, the test matches are very very important
• 11:24
  Speaker 3: to them. This is a July series. It's a market
• 11:26
  Speaker 3: series for New Zealand rugby. It's an opportunity to get
• 11:28
  Speaker 3: a lot of money through the door. Well, friend, track,
• 11:30
  Speaker 3: you don't care about that. They care about the November
• 11:33
  Speaker 3: Games when they're hosting these the countries, these countries and
• 11:40
  Speaker 3: the Six Nations. They don't care about these July series.
• 11:43
  Speaker 3: They never really have and they're basically, as I say,
• 11:47
  Speaker 3: a box to be ticked.
• 11:49
  Speaker 4: So this goes back to the point I was making
• 11:52
  Speaker 4: last week about I think the overriding frustration and disappointment
• 11:55
  Speaker 4: with the All Blacks performance in Dunedin and the prism
• 11:58
  Speaker 4: with which we view the series through. So yes, the
• 12:01
  Speaker 4: All Blacks were vastly improved and impressive in a number
• 12:04
  Speaker 4: of different facets.
• 12:06
  Speaker 5: But how much can you take out this series.
• 12:09
  Speaker 3: Well, you can only take what you know, what's been
• 12:12
  Speaker 3: played in front of you. This isn't the All Blacks
• 12:14
  Speaker 3: choice to play this team. They've been put out there
• 12:16
  Speaker 3: and again going into the series. It was a case
• 12:20
  Speaker 3: of a no win situation. I think for Scott Robertson
• 12:23
  Speaker 3: is that they're playing very inexperienced international players who are
• 12:26
  Speaker 3: good at domestic level.
• 12:27
  Speaker 2: And that's the thing, as I said last week.
• 12:28
  Speaker 3: I don't think there's a big drop off from their
• 12:30
  Speaker 3: top team to their second team, but they're inexperienced at
• 12:32
  Speaker 3: test level. So regardless of when you play players that
• 12:35
  Speaker 3: are playing inexperienced at test level, you're always going to
• 12:37
  Speaker 3: be judged harshly, rightly or wrongly on that. And so
• 12:41
  Speaker 3: this whole series has been a no win situation. They're
• 12:44
  Speaker 3: poor Internedin and everyone says, well, this is a Bereat
• 12:47
  Speaker 3: French B team. They beat them in Wellington, while everyone
• 12:49
  Speaker 3: says this is a French B team, you should have
• 12:51
  Speaker 3: beat them by this much. So for the All Blacks,
• 12:53
  Speaker 3: I think it's a no win scenario.
• 12:55
  Speaker 5: It is.
• 12:56
  Speaker 4: It does allow them, it should allow them, and will
• 12:59
  Speaker 4: this week because the series is wrapped up, freedom to experiments,
• 13:04
  Speaker 4: to try things, to innovate, but they are a vastly
• 13:09
  Speaker 4: tougher tests to come this year. Let me put it
• 13:12
  Speaker 4: to you this way, would the All Blacks have beaten
• 13:15
  Speaker 4: the spring Box at the weekend?
• 13:18
  Speaker 3: No, probably not. But there's a reason they play the
• 13:22
  Speaker 3: spring Box in September rather than July. And in some
• 13:25
  Speaker 3: ways this is quite good for the All Blacks is
• 13:27
  Speaker 3: to be able to win with that expectation. I mentioned
• 13:31
  Speaker 3: before on them that they have to win and win
• 13:32
  Speaker 3: well but still be able to bring in some players,
• 13:35
  Speaker 3: which they'll do this weekend. Just before we wrap up
• 13:37
  Speaker 3: the game, any further thoughts, but I wanted to touch
• 13:39
  Speaker 3: on the second half and twenty nine to three up.
• 13:41
  Speaker 3: I mean, this always happens, doesn't that. Yet you take
• 13:43
  Speaker 3: a fifteen minute break for halftime, you lose some of
• 13:45
  Speaker 3: that momentum that you have in a contest. France brings
• 13:48
  Speaker 3: on five changes early in the second spell, as I
• 13:50
  Speaker 3: touched on Walkie and Top for Feranila to their better
• 13:53
  Speaker 3: players that are out here on this tour. France look
• 13:56
  Speaker 3: to disrupt the All Blacks a little bit more so
• 14:00
  Speaker 3: they weren't able to kick on with it maybe as
• 14:01
  Speaker 3: much as you would like in the second spell. It's
• 14:04
  Speaker 3: hard to judge because the All Blacks mate changes as well.
• 14:06
  Speaker 3: So I don't know really what to take out of
• 14:09
  Speaker 3: the second forty minutes. That's why I very much narrowed
• 14:12
  Speaker 3: down what the first ford is delivered.
• 14:14
  Speaker 4: I think the All Black the composition of the All
• 14:17
  Speaker 4: Blacks bench isn't quite right at the moment, and that
• 14:19
  Speaker 4: that's partly because you're missing guys like to Mighty Williams,
• 14:23
  Speaker 4: Tyrrel Lomax, Anthonina Brown hasn't featured in this series. Wallace
• 14:28
  Speaker 4: Attiti's still to come back, Caleb Clark's out for five
• 14:32
  Speaker 4: to six weeks. Sev Reese was had a head knock
• 14:35
  Speaker 4: in that first test. He might be available in Hamilton.
• 14:37
  Speaker 4: So the All Blacks aren't at full strength and I
• 14:40
  Speaker 4: think that's affecting that the impact that they get off
• 14:43
  Speaker 4: the bench. So we need to see more from that,
• 14:46
  Speaker 4: and just between move on again, I just want to
• 14:49
  Speaker 4: touch on some individual performances. I thought Artie severe outstanding.
• 14:55
  Speaker 4: I think I think we saw what the leadership means
• 15:00
  Speaker 4: to him. You know, we saw that with Moylan this
• 15:02
  Speaker 4: year and it does seem to really inspire him. He's
• 15:05
  Speaker 4: not a big talker. He leads to actions and we
• 15:09
  Speaker 4: saw that again in his home city that Tupo via
• 15:13
  Speaker 4: tray he fends off the French whose fire makes the break.
• 15:17
  Speaker 4: There was a couple of errors in there at times
• 15:19
  Speaker 4: as well, but he was just everywhere, wasn't he. Cody
• 15:22
  Speaker 4: Taylor consistently excellent and I think you only really appreciate
• 15:29
  Speaker 4: that when he's not there. Somasny Taky came off the
• 15:31
  Speaker 4: bench and missed his first lineout. So Cody Taylor forces
• 15:37
  Speaker 4: errors with his defense, has set pieces exemplary, He's so
• 15:41
  Speaker 4: mobile and his work rates there. Fabian Holland goes eighty
• 15:45
  Speaker 4: minutes again, Patrick two Plotu was very good for sixty minutes.
• 15:49
  Speaker 4: Big Ball carries one line out steel. He might have
• 15:52
  Speaker 4: injured his knee might not be available this week. Cam
• 15:55
  Speaker 4: Royguard is playing out of his skin, his big booming boot,
• 15:58
  Speaker 4: his running game. Billy Procter, I thought grew into the
• 16:03
  Speaker 4: game and benefited from that selection, continuity and tupu VIAI.
• 16:07
  Speaker 4: I'm not to commit to it yet, but I'm on
• 16:09
  Speaker 4: the verge of admitting that I may have been wrong,
• 16:13
  Speaker 4: that the All Blacks may be right, and that their
• 16:15
  Speaker 4: move for him at six. It was noted by one
• 16:17
  Speaker 4: of our loyal listeners, Paul Stevens, the jibe that you
• 16:20
  Speaker 4: gave me last week about when I said he's too
• 16:23
  Speaker 4: tall for a six and you said he's only a
• 16:26
  Speaker 4: couple of inches taller than Jerome Kino. So he won't
• 16:30
  Speaker 4: play in Hamilton. But because of an h he failed
• 16:34
  Speaker 4: as HIA, but.
• 16:35
  Speaker 3: He can still be cleared. But I suspect the All
• 16:37
  Speaker 3: Blacks will go on. There are on the side of caution.
• 16:40
  Speaker 3: We're recording this on Monday. We haven't heard as he
• 16:42
  Speaker 3: Spadeen definitively ruled out, but as you say, failed as
• 16:44
  Speaker 3: HR on the night he was having a second one
• 16:46
  Speaker 3: on Sunday. Don't know, but most likely the All Blacks
• 16:48
  Speaker 3: won't take that risk. Why would you take that risk?
• 16:51
  Speaker 4: He exactly, And you've got guys like look Jacobson coming back.
• 16:54
  Speaker 4: So look, some very pleasing individual performances there. There were
• 16:58
  Speaker 4: some that weren't. Weren't as good. What do you make
• 17:01
  Speaker 4: of them? On the whole?
• 17:03
  Speaker 3: I thought, Yeah, those players you highlighted there were excellent.
• 17:07
  Speaker 3: I think Christian Leo Willie, he has been quiet a
• 17:09
  Speaker 3: couple of weeks. There were a couple of moments on
• 17:11
  Speaker 3: the weekend that he can be proud of. I think
• 17:14
  Speaker 3: there's one breakdown turnover of memory service right that he
• 17:16
  Speaker 3: was able to get again. Remembering he came from outside
• 17:20
  Speaker 3: the squad to be starting these first two test matches
• 17:22
  Speaker 3: of the year, may have had his opportunity to come
• 17:24
  Speaker 3: a different way, obviously giving Hi miss out on the
• 17:27
  Speaker 3: initial squad. So look, I think he I don't know
• 17:31
  Speaker 3: whether it will start him this week or not give
• 17:32
  Speaker 3: him a third test in a row. That will be
• 17:34
  Speaker 3: interesting from an All Blacks perspective. We'll get into the
• 17:36
  Speaker 3: makeup maybe of that team in a moment or two.
• 17:40
  Speaker 3: Fabing Hond I thought was improved from the first performance,
• 17:43
  Speaker 3: and that's two eighty minute performances in a row from
• 17:45
  Speaker 3: a test debutante who's come out and delivered. I thought
• 17:50
  Speaker 3: was a little bit more adaptive to Test rugby this
• 17:52
  Speaker 3: week than maybe we saw that the previous week. I
• 17:55
  Speaker 3: also just want to highlight as well, maybe the drop
• 17:58
  Speaker 3: off between Mighty Williams and Taroll Lomax and Ethan Degruten,
• 18:03
  Speaker 3: Fletcher Newell, especially as starting players. Absolutely yeah, and yes
• 18:07
  Speaker 3: the scrum hew up pretty well. From All Blacks perspective.
• 18:09
  Speaker 3: I don't think they've got any scrum penalties maybe one
• 18:12
  Speaker 3: on the weekends. But it seems now that in terms
• 18:15
  Speaker 3: of t Mighty interraal, there is a clear one and
• 18:18
  Speaker 3: two or one and three if you want to use
• 18:21
  Speaker 3: the numbers, and a clear drop off between whether the
• 18:25
  Speaker 3: players are coming off the bench. So that's interesting, I think,
• 18:28
  Speaker 3: just to point out from an All Blacks perspective as
• 18:30
  Speaker 3: we hit into this weekend. The other thing I did
• 18:32
  Speaker 3: want to highlight and I mentioned this last week. I
• 18:34
  Speaker 3: think on the pod is around the entries into the
• 18:38
  Speaker 3: twenty two and on the weekends the French. Last weekend,
• 18:43
  Speaker 3: the French averaged four point eight points per twenty two
• 18:46
  Speaker 3: entry and the All Blacks average two point three. On
• 18:49
  Speaker 3: the weekend, the All Blacks averaged four point three points
• 18:53
  Speaker 3: from their ten entries into the twenty two. The French
• 18:57
  Speaker 3: average one point four from twelve entries into the twenty two,
• 19:00
  Speaker 3: So the French actually rammed it up a little bit
• 19:02
  Speaker 3: in terms of accessing the twenty two. The All Blacks
• 19:04
  Speaker 3: defense largely held strong, but the All Blacks are a
• 19:06
  Speaker 3: bit more clinical, got more payo out of the time
• 19:08
  Speaker 3: they're the twenty.
• 19:08
  Speaker 4: Two, and that speaks to the defensive shifts, doesn't it.
• 19:12
  Speaker 4: The All Blacks did have to defend. I think the
• 19:13
  Speaker 4: opening minute they defended fifteen sixteen phases and that really
• 19:16
  Speaker 4: set the tone. And twenty seven points in Dunedin is
• 19:21
  Speaker 4: far too many for the All Blacks to be conceding.
• 19:23
  Speaker 4: They were open about the fact that hurt, that stung
• 19:25
  Speaker 4: them and they made their adjustments. Just before we move
• 19:29
  Speaker 4: on to Hamilton. Something to note from the post about
• 19:32
  Speaker 4: the crowd at the weekends. It's obviously sold out, great
• 19:35
  Speaker 4: double headed with the black Ferns as well, but interesting
• 19:38
  Speaker 4: to note that sixteen thousand people of the crowds, or
• 19:44
  Speaker 4: forty seven percent of the spectators, came from outside the
• 19:47
  Speaker 4: Wellington region. So when you talk about the competition for
• 19:53
  Speaker 4: test matches in New Zealand, and we touched on this
• 19:56
  Speaker 4: around Dunedin, they're not alone. With the new christ Church
• 20:00
  Speaker 4: Stadium coming in. Hamilton's got to test this weekend. I
• 20:05
  Speaker 4: think that highlights how much an All Black test means
• 20:10
  Speaker 4: from an economic perspective to a city.
• 20:13
  Speaker 3: Well it's an event, and as has been well documented,
• 20:15
  Speaker 3: a lot of concerts aren't coming to New Zealand anymore.
• 20:17
  Speaker 3: The All Blacks are one of the last standing events
• 20:20
  Speaker 3: that yep, we're going to book our flights, we're going
• 20:21
  Speaker 3: to book hotels, we're going to pump some money into
• 20:23
  Speaker 3: the local economy. And the stadium was rocking. It was
• 20:27
  Speaker 3: sold out. Wellington hasn't always been able to do that,
• 20:29
  Speaker 3: but perhaps with the small number of tests that we're
• 20:32
  Speaker 3: getting on New Zealand soil in the coming years, it
• 20:35
  Speaker 3: was an opportunity to spend a weekend in Wellington. The
• 20:39
  Speaker 3: waterfront was rocking on Saturday afternoon. It was pissing down
• 20:42
  Speaker 3: with rain but didn't stop the You and I are
• 20:44
  Speaker 3: walking around Lamptham Key earlier in the day. It's raining,
• 20:47
  Speaker 3: but it's packed, isn't it. Oh, we were stopping bumping
• 20:51
  Speaker 3: into people. We knew sort of every fifty meters or so.
• 20:53
  Speaker 3: No white matfoot is on the waterfront, which is something.
• 20:56
  Speaker 3: Before we leave talking about Wellington, that was made a
• 21:00
  Speaker 3: pretty tough we tripped given it was raining.
• 21:02
  Speaker 4: Yeah, devastating. It's a game day tradition. There's normally a
• 21:05
  Speaker 4: store on the Wellington waterfront. Go there, get a very
• 21:08
  Speaker 4: traditional whitebait fritteran and white piece of parrale breads. So yes,
• 21:15
  Speaker 4: walk along the waterfront was the head was down unto
• 21:19
  Speaker 4: Dame Coles to say hello, but yeah, if you could
• 21:23
  Speaker 4: did see in ZAID president Matthew Cooper after the game
• 21:29
  Speaker 4: and he's a fan of the pot actually, which is
• 21:31
  Speaker 4: nice and he is positively fizzing for the All Blacks
• 21:34
  Speaker 4: to come to Hamilton.
• 21:35
  Speaker 3: Well The Cowboys cow bells were banned for the stadium
• 21:38
  Speaker 3: of the Super Rugby Final in christ Church. I'm sure
• 21:40
  Speaker 3: there'll be a few Cowboys around Hamilton, which brings us
• 21:43
  Speaker 3: to a good point because this could be a very
• 21:45
  Speaker 3: chief oriented team on the weekends. There is a license,
• 21:52
  Speaker 3: I guess from the All Blacks to change things up
• 21:53
  Speaker 3: a little bit. That they have now won the series.
• 21:56
  Speaker 3: They said they were going to bring in and give
• 21:58
  Speaker 3: opportunities to plays. Everyone in the squad was going to
• 22:01
  Speaker 3: play during the series. How far do they change things
• 22:05
  Speaker 3: this weekend? Liam and how much do they look for continuity?
• 22:08
  Speaker 3: We talked to Bovi probably not going to play. Do
• 22:10
  Speaker 3: you look at it, christianly O Willie again at number eight?
• 22:12
  Speaker 3: Do you look at again putting Billy Procter in thirteen
• 22:16
  Speaker 3: just to get those reps under the belt.
• 22:18
  Speaker 2: How would you approach this weekend.
• 22:20
  Speaker 4: I'd like to see Billy Proctor get another go, and
• 22:24
  Speaker 4: it's almost like what they did with Damian McKenzie last year.
• 22:27
  Speaker 4: I think he started the first seven tests of the
• 22:29
  Speaker 4: year and that was about like you say, reps and
• 22:33
  Speaker 4: I think we saw at the weekend Billy Proctor got
• 22:35
  Speaker 4: better as the game went on. So Antonlina Brown is
• 22:40
  Speaker 4: available and you would think comes back from his broken
• 22:42
  Speaker 4: collar bone, he's equally a depth adept at twelve and thirteen.
• 22:47
  Speaker 4: They could easily play him alongside Quintapaire, but I would
• 22:51
  Speaker 4: like to see Billy Procter made his debut against Fiji
• 22:56
  Speaker 4: outside Antonlina Brown and actually played exceptionally well together, so
• 22:59
  Speaker 4: I'd like to see that combination. But I agree there
• 23:01
  Speaker 4: will be a lot of chiefs, so I think McKenzie
• 23:03
  Speaker 4: starts at ten, kem royguard at halfback. I think you'll
• 23:08
  Speaker 4: see Ruben Love possibly at fullback. Is obviously a hurricane,
• 23:12
  Speaker 4: but Ammonia Narawa not too sure of. Seva Reice probably
• 23:18
  Speaker 4: been available. Somersoni Takayaho will probably come in at hooker
• 23:22
  Speaker 4: if Patrick two Plotu.
• 23:23
  Speaker 5: Is not available.
• 23:24
  Speaker 4: They're really light on locks, so Natoora Koi, who has
• 23:28
  Speaker 4: been training with the team since I think Scott Barrett's
• 23:32
  Speaker 4: was ruled out through injury. You're only going to have
• 23:34
  Speaker 4: two foot locks with our Koi and Fabian Holland.
• 23:38
  Speaker 3: That's gonna be interesting to see what they call anyone
• 23:40
  Speaker 3: through this week, isn't it. I'm just while we've been
• 23:43
  Speaker 3: on any of the All Blacks have done their media
• 23:45
  Speaker 3: opportunity and sounds like Terrell's Alble Torollomex is available for selection,
• 23:49
  Speaker 3: which is a positive for the All Blacks for this
• 23:51
  Speaker 3: week to provide a no go look Jacobson, Anton Lennet Brown,
• 23:54
  Speaker 3: no mention of Patrick two Piloti, So I guess we
• 23:56
  Speaker 3: wait to see how this week goes on. So what
• 23:59
  Speaker 3: would your loose forward make up be? We mentioned the
• 24:01
  Speaker 3: locks there. For me, I'd probably go Jacobson at blindside
• 24:05
  Speaker 3: flanker could he fee this starts at open side, and
• 24:10
  Speaker 3: then Savia at number eight potentially, And I mentioned I
• 24:14
  Speaker 3: willing maybe getting some more reps under his belt. But
• 24:16
  Speaker 3: you've also got the added complication in Vita Commas that
• 24:19
  Speaker 3: Ardie sav is your captain for the rest of the series.
• 24:21
  Speaker 4: Now, yeah, I would leave Ardi at seven because he
• 24:25
  Speaker 4: is the captain needs to start. I would play Jacobson
• 24:28
  Speaker 4: at eight, and I'd start female at six who's come
• 24:32
  Speaker 4: off the bench the past two weeks and give le
• 24:35
  Speaker 4: a weird spell. I agree he was reasonably anonymous. I
• 24:39
  Speaker 4: think in Wellington. I was impressed by him in Ternedin
• 24:42
  Speaker 4: and then that allows carefe. I think at the moment
• 24:46
  Speaker 4: that bench roll, I think he could be the All
• 24:48
  Speaker 4: Blacks Quaga Smith type guy, so keep him in those reps.
• 24:53
  Speaker 4: Guys like Noah Hotham Brody McAllister, who is the vulture
• 24:56
  Speaker 4: of the squad, Chiefs Hooker via the Crusaders, Antelena Brown
• 25:01
  Speaker 4: and Ruben Love. They will all come into the mix
• 25:03
  Speaker 4: because they haven't featured.
• 25:05
  Speaker 3: I'd say that'll come off the bench at this point,
• 25:08
  Speaker 3: I think to Pie and maybe starts something field with
• 25:10
  Speaker 3: Procter just thinking mccallist. I can't see him starting, so
• 25:15
  Speaker 3: I put them on the bench room and Loved potentially
• 25:17
  Speaker 3: off the bench. I mean they could start them at
• 25:18
  Speaker 3: fullback maybe again, it's that continuity versus getting the right combinations.
• 25:25
  Speaker 3: I mean Will Jordan's clearly the All Blacks fullback. He's
• 25:27
  Speaker 3: only played one test there this year because you can
• 25:30
  Speaker 3: discard the first you know, the first minute that he
• 25:32
  Speaker 3: played there internedin. So does he give him a second
• 25:34
  Speaker 3: test at fullback just to again build that fullback role
• 25:37
  Speaker 3: for him. It's going to be a very interesting team
• 25:39
  Speaker 3: when it's named on Thursday.
• 25:40
  Speaker 4: It is, and I expect the French to be better.
• 25:42
  Speaker 4: I think this team will be much stronger than the
• 25:45
  Speaker 4: one they put out in Wellington.
• 25:46
  Speaker 5: They'll bring back Fiku and.
• 25:49
  Speaker 4: The suggestion out of the French camp from people we
• 25:52
  Speaker 4: know around the team is that Gualtier has targeted this
• 25:56
  Speaker 4: third Test, and with the All Blacks potentially making a
• 26:00
  Speaker 4: lot of changes, some injury enforced, some not, there is
• 26:04
  Speaker 4: a real risk that you that you lose a degree
• 26:06
  Speaker 4: of continuity. So I expect the French to be better
• 26:10
  Speaker 4: than they were in Wellington.
• 26:12
  Speaker 2: I would say they would be.
• 26:13
  Speaker 3: It was interesting that was put to Scott robertson that theory,
• 26:16
  Speaker 3: and I think the words were around with retargeted the thirties. Well,
• 26:20
  Speaker 3: they'll have to now because they're tourning it down the
• 26:22
  Speaker 3: series and I'm going to leave with something in Hamilton.
• 26:24
  Speaker 2: They'll have to have to win there.
• 26:25
  Speaker 5: That's right.
• 26:25
  Speaker 4: It's also worth noting we're at the post match press
• 26:28
  Speaker 4: currents and Fabian Goaltier was not happy with the All Blacks.
• 26:33
  Speaker 4: I'm not sure if they were singing their victory song
• 26:35
  Speaker 4: or doing the Hawker to Tavanawa on debut, but there's
• 26:39
  Speaker 4: certainly a lot of noise emanating from their changing room
• 26:42
  Speaker 4: and Gualtier actually I think requested to one of the
• 26:46
  Speaker 4: news on Arabi staff members that the press currency stopped
• 26:49
  Speaker 4: because it was too noisy.
• 26:50
  Speaker 5: Come on, mate, I.
• 26:52
  Speaker 3: Think it was the victory song that they were singing.
• 26:54
  Speaker 3: I was quite close to that wall at that point
• 26:56
  Speaker 3: in time, next to Jamie Wall who was trying to
• 26:59
  Speaker 3: sop the coffee the hot water machine from working. Yeah,
• 27:04
  Speaker 3: there's a lot going on in that post match media conference,
• 27:06
  Speaker 3: both the All Blacks and the French. It's just it
• 27:08
  Speaker 3: that way. Let's take a break here on Rugby Direct.
• 27:10
  Speaker 3: We'll come back with the Final four after this.
• 27:13
  Speaker 1: This is Rugby Direct, a podcast for real rugby fans.
• 27:20
  Speaker 3: Every try try and sixty sec every tackle, pack tackles.
• 27:24
  Speaker 1: Get up again.
• 27:28
  Speaker 2: Before I'm not. It's Rugby Direct.
• 27:31
  Speaker 3: You're back with Rugby to Direct. Time now for the
• 27:33
  Speaker 3: Final four. Four rugby topics, myself and Liam debate them.
• 27:37
  Speaker 3: Where we've just come off the Australia New Zealand Invitational side,
• 27:40
  Speaker 3: which I was quite looking forward to spoke with he'd
• 27:43
  Speaker 3: go surr assistant coach Ian Foster last week about it.
• 27:46
  Speaker 3: There was a sense that they were building something in camp,
• 27:48
  Speaker 3: there wasn't a lot of time to implement things. Well,
• 27:51
  Speaker 3: they didn't really deliver. The lines are very very good,
• 27:54
  Speaker 3: mind you, and this was not the Lions Test team
• 27:56
  Speaker 3: that we expect to be rolled out this weekend, but
• 27:59
  Speaker 3: it was rather shambock from the a U n Z
• 28:02
  Speaker 3: side and pretty disappointing given the hype that had emanated
• 28:07
  Speaker 3: around this team in this camp and this concept, and
• 28:11
  Speaker 3: just didn't quite deliver.
• 28:13
  Speaker 5: It was awful, wasn't it.
• 28:14
  Speaker 4: I think they made something like sixty six percent of
• 28:17
  Speaker 4: their tackles. The jerseys were grim, the performance was grim.
• 28:21
  Speaker 4: I personally don't want to see that team again.
• 28:25
  Speaker 2: Well it was put too.
• 28:26
  Speaker 3: I'm trying to think it was on the TV coverage
• 28:28
  Speaker 3: or not, Like, wouldn't this be a great concept to
• 28:30
  Speaker 3: have in twenty twenty nine when the Linds to New Zealand.
• 28:33
  Speaker 4: Yeah, no, no thanks, you don't reckon. I don't like
• 28:36
  Speaker 4: it at all. Let's be blunt. A New Zealand Super
• 28:42
  Speaker 4: Rugby team would have been vastly more competitive. And perhaps
• 28:48
  Speaker 4: we read into some of the names on paper, but
• 28:50
  Speaker 4: I think it does speak in the modern age too.
• 28:53
  Speaker 4: The challenges are bringing a team like that together and
• 28:56
  Speaker 4: inside a week it was it. A week previous we
• 28:59
  Speaker 4: saw the spring Box absolutely pace the bar Bars in
• 29:02
  Speaker 4: South Africa. Test teams these days are so organized and
• 29:08
  Speaker 4: so much analysis. You know, generally pretty cohesive beasts, and
• 29:14
  Speaker 4: to expect an invitational team that's smacked together inside a
• 29:17
  Speaker 4: week to be competitive as maybe a bit of.
• 29:21
  Speaker 3: I've seen Barbers seem to be competitive though in matches
• 29:24
  Speaker 3: before and they have been.
• 29:24
  Speaker 2: Largely on the piss for a week.
• 29:26
  Speaker 3: So look to me underlined how good the Lions are
• 29:29
  Speaker 3: and unfortunately this is turning into one of the worst
• 29:32
  Speaker 3: lines tours in history through no fold of the Lions.
• 29:35
  Speaker 3: It's the fold of Australian teams being utter crap.
• 29:38
  Speaker 4: This is the first time that the Lions have kneeled
• 29:40
  Speaker 4: an opponent since beating the Melbourne Rebels thirty five nil
• 29:43
  Speaker 4: on the twenty thirteen tour. So in Australia, yeah again.
• 29:47
  Speaker 4: And I read a column from Quaig Cooper. I'm not
• 29:49
  Speaker 4: sure watch publication it was in, you know Quaig Cooper,
• 29:54
  Speaker 4: Great New Zealander. But he actually made a very salient
• 29:58
  Speaker 4: point that the the AARU have missed this track by
• 30:03
  Speaker 4: not allowing the Wallabies players to play in their for
• 30:08
  Speaker 4: rugby teams, because the perception in Australia now is switching
• 30:14
  Speaker 4: off because of how uncompetitive they have been. And for
• 30:18
  Speaker 4: guys like Tom Lioner, how much would have he benefited
• 30:22
  Speaker 4: from playing for the Reds against the Lions, rather than
• 30:27
  Speaker 4: potentially making his Test taboot having not played for five
• 30:31
  Speaker 4: or six weeks, and it does really illustrate the lack
• 30:34
  Speaker 4: of depth in Australia when you take the half a
• 30:38
  Speaker 4: dozen best players out of those teams and you have
• 30:41
  Speaker 4: sucked the life out of that tour because you know
• 30:44
  Speaker 4: the Test matches aren't all sold out yet. And this
• 30:47
  Speaker 4: is unless we see something from the Wallabies. This is
• 30:51
  Speaker 4: on the verge of being the most overhyped, under delivered
• 30:56
  Speaker 4: tour rugby tour in history.
• 30:59
  Speaker 2: It is do you see Australia firing?
• 31:02
  Speaker 4: I give him a crack in the first Test, but no,
• 31:07
  Speaker 4: I see the Lions winning three And because it's so
• 31:10
  Speaker 4: contingent on for me, guys like Will Skelton and Rob
• 31:15
  Speaker 4: Valentini just having some punch in that pack, and it
• 31:20
  Speaker 4: just feels the lines actually haven't been that good.
• 31:22
  Speaker 5: I saw.
• 31:23
  Speaker 4: I think it was Crishast on the BBC podcast talking
• 31:28
  Speaker 4: about how criticizing them for their performances against the Warrita
• 31:35
  Speaker 4: and the Brumbies in particular, and how he expected them
• 31:38
  Speaker 4: to get better and better, but they it doesn't matter
• 31:41
  Speaker 4: because of how poor the opposition they've been.
• 31:44
  Speaker 2: That's right.
• 31:45
  Speaker 3: I thought they were better than perhaps the British media
• 31:47
  Speaker 3: gaving credit for against the Brumbies, who are a good
• 31:49
  Speaker 3: team and the kind of the team we saw in
• 31:51
  Speaker 3: Super Rugby that can stay on the contest, that can
• 31:53
  Speaker 3: niggle you, that can almost play that lion style of rugby.
• 31:58
  Speaker 3: So I thought they were about harshing some of the
• 32:00
  Speaker 3: reporters around that, and it felt like there was a
• 32:03
  Speaker 3: lot of a happier note from what they delivered on
• 32:05
  Speaker 3: the weekend. There's been some criticisms criticism as well of
• 32:08
  Speaker 3: the Australian build up to the series, as you mentioned,
• 32:12
  Speaker 3: around not parachuting some players and to their Super Rugby sides.
• 32:16
  Speaker 3: One criticism from Christy Dorian, who did a podcast last
• 32:20
  Speaker 3: week last year with Before the Bledisloe in Sydney, was
• 32:25
  Speaker 3: around not perhaps making James O'Connor available for the Australian
• 32:28
  Speaker 3: New Zealand team and giving him an opportunity there. Nicknamed
• 32:34
  Speaker 3: Joe Schmidt Sleepy Joe, I mean that would have been
• 32:38
  Speaker 3: the obvious thing is that you know you could have
• 32:39
  Speaker 3: had in theory James O'Connor at ten and his Super
• 32:43
  Speaker 3: Rugby team mate David Avilli at twelve, and instantly that's
• 32:45
  Speaker 3: a better combination, a better team.
• 32:48
  Speaker 5: Yeah, yeah it is.
• 32:49
  Speaker 4: I don't know whether James o'conn's a game change, and
• 32:51
  Speaker 4: I think from what I've heard, there are insurance challenges
• 32:56
  Speaker 4: around guys that are thirty five years and older, which
• 32:59
  Speaker 4: is a groom, isn't it for I'm thirty five? Bogu
• 33:03
  Speaker 4: well for our future premiums. But I wonder whether that's
• 33:07
  Speaker 4: why guys like Aaron Smith he was in Australia but
• 33:10
  Speaker 4: didn't play Sam Caine. Yeah, it didn't get cover for
• 33:15
  Speaker 4: their Japanese deal because of the more higher risk of injury.
• 33:19
  Speaker 5: Yeah, I don't know.
• 33:22
  Speaker 4: That team probably needed three weeks to prepare and that's
• 33:25
  Speaker 4: pretty unrealistic in the current climate.
• 33:27
  Speaker 3: We'll see you in twenty twenty nine. Black Funds fire
• 33:30
  Speaker 3: and the second spell to beat Australia. First half was
• 33:34
  Speaker 3: really scrappy, mehan. The Black Fans scored after fifty seven
• 33:37
  Speaker 3: seconds through Portia Woodman Wickliffe, but just couldn't get going
• 33:41
  Speaker 3: for a lot of that seconds at first spell. But
• 33:43
  Speaker 3: after halftime Australia fatigued they couldn't stay with the Blackfounds
• 33:48
  Speaker 3: when they lifted up at level. But as a last
• 33:51
  Speaker 3: test before the Rugby World Cup, it was anything but
• 33:54
  Speaker 3: vintage from the Blackfunds.
• 33:56
  Speaker 5: I agree.
• 33:57
  Speaker 4: It was not a tough watch, but it was a
• 34:00
  Speaker 4: real grind for forty five to fifteen minutes, wasn't it.
• 34:03
  Speaker 4: And it's you know, the Black Fans have never lost
• 34:06
  Speaker 4: to the Wallaroos, and they haven't. The Walleries have improved.
• 34:10
  Speaker 4: They got some notable results in the WXV. I think
• 34:14
  Speaker 4: they beat Canada and finished ahead of the Black Fans
• 34:17
  Speaker 4: even from memory, so look that improving. But on that's evidence,
• 34:23
  Speaker 4: I would say if the Black Ferns played Canada, France, England,
• 34:28
  Speaker 4: they'd lose to them all tomorrow. There were some impressive
• 34:31
  Speaker 4: individual performances. Porsha Woodman was good, Sylvia Brunt as class
• 34:36
  Speaker 4: and Georgia Miller what a talent she is to go
• 34:39
  Speaker 4: from the seventh scene to a bona fide open side flankerd,
• 34:42
  Speaker 4: to get turnovers at the breakdown, to roam on the
• 34:45
  Speaker 4: edge to score that brilliant individual try man, She is
• 34:48
  Speaker 4: a weapon. But collectively the attack was pretty poor and
• 34:53
  Speaker 4: there's some big question marks over that team.
• 34:55
  Speaker 3: Hiaden North, Yeah, I agree. In the players you've highlighted
• 34:58
  Speaker 3: the Wooden Wickliff. Her return to this team out of
• 35:01
  Speaker 3: retirement has been a game changer. We scored a score
• 35:04
  Speaker 3: seven against the USA hat trick on the weekend. It
• 35:06
  Speaker 3: was a birthday she is and you know, but with
• 35:10
  Speaker 3: single out players, two of them aren't full time Black
• 35:14
  Speaker 3: Funs fifteens players there. Sylvia Brunt is, Borceawyn Wickliffe is retired.
• 35:20
  Speaker 3: Georgia Miller is a sevens player, and these are the
• 35:22
  Speaker 3: kind of players that are elevating the Black Funds fifteens.
• 35:25
  Speaker 3: So I think that is a worry, maybe not for
• 35:26
  Speaker 3: the World Cup, maybe the you know, these players are
• 35:28
  Speaker 3: going to be the ket the World Cup. With the
• 35:30
  Speaker 3: long term health of fifteens in New Zealand, I think
• 35:31
  Speaker 3: it is a warrior. Georgia Miller was outstanding once again
• 35:34
  Speaker 3: on the weekend. Is a big difference maker. Her ability
• 35:36
  Speaker 3: to find time and space. I mean she's playing like
• 35:38
  Speaker 3: a center as an openside flanker, and that try she scored.
• 35:41
  Speaker 3: I saw Addie Savia and the comments of that trial
• 35:44
  Speaker 3: on Instagram, you know, giving her a bit of praise.
• 35:46
  Speaker 3: That was kind of the things that he does when
• 35:49
  Speaker 3: he can find those space. So she is absolutely electric
• 35:51
  Speaker 3: at the moment. So but as I say, it is
• 35:54
  Speaker 3: slightly worrying to me. If I take the World Cup
• 35:57
  Speaker 3: head off that these players that are in preasing are
• 35:59
  Speaker 3: not the regular fifteens players.
• 36:02
  Speaker 4: It does shine a light on the next gen coming through.
• 36:07
  Speaker 4: And yeah, they're World Cups in forty days, so you're
• 36:11
  Speaker 4: not going to get a lot of shifts between now
• 36:13
  Speaker 4: and then. They don't have another game, I don't think no,
• 36:16
  Speaker 4: and so it's going to be a huge ass to
• 36:19
  Speaker 4: go up there and defend that title.
• 36:21
  Speaker 3: That is a huge ask. They don't have another game,
• 36:22
  Speaker 3: You're right. They play Spain first up, and then they
• 36:26
  Speaker 3: play Japan, and then they've got Ireland, who they lost
• 36:29
  Speaker 3: to last year. So they do have two games that
• 36:31
  Speaker 3: they would expected to be win and win comfortably to
• 36:34
  Speaker 3: get them into what will then basically need to be
• 36:37
  Speaker 3: winning four games in four weeks to win the Rugby
• 36:39
  Speaker 3: World Cup. So luckily it's hope it's enough. Topic number
• 36:43
  Speaker 3: three spring Box trickery, genius or against the spirit of
• 36:47
  Speaker 3: the game. There were two instances that I'm sure our
• 36:50
  Speaker 3: listeners have caught up with the kickoff at the start
• 36:53
  Speaker 3: of the game that deliberately didn't go ten. It was
• 36:56
  Speaker 3: reclaimed by a Springbox player because they wanted to set
• 36:58
  Speaker 3: a scrum in midfield, and then there was the mini
• 37:01
  Speaker 3: or mock line out in the middle of the park,
• 37:03
  Speaker 3: which they attempted twice. From my understanding during that game
• 37:07
  Speaker 3: it scored a try off one. They've just go to
• 37:09
  Speaker 3: try off one of it. Yeah, absolutely one of those lineouts.
• 37:12
  Speaker 3: So I know the whole acy Breakfast and I met
• 37:15
  Speaker 3: Heats an occasional listener of the podcast, they had a
• 37:17
  Speaker 3: segment called penis or genius. Which way do you feel
• 37:20
  Speaker 3: was this genius from Russy Erasmus or whatnot?
• 37:22
  Speaker 2: Oh?
• 37:22
  Speaker 4: Look, I love innovation of any kind, so more power
• 37:26
  Speaker 4: to them, and I wonder how much of it is.
• 37:32
  Speaker 5: Diversion in a way.
• 37:33
  Speaker 4: It's like, look look at what we can do, and
• 37:36
  Speaker 4: we've got this in our back pocket.
• 37:37
  Speaker 5: Be wary of it.
• 37:38
  Speaker 2: You know.
• 37:38
  Speaker 4: It does force teams to think about ways to counter
• 37:41
  Speaker 4: their and to devote certain amount of time in their
• 37:45
  Speaker 4: build up to playing the spring box, two things that
• 37:48
  Speaker 4: they might pull out of their pocket even if they don't.
• 37:50
  Speaker 4: So look, I do not expect the spring box to
• 37:54
  Speaker 4: hand the ball over to the all Blacks on the
• 37:57
  Speaker 4: halfway line from a kickoff A You could argue it
• 38:02
  Speaker 4: was cynical because he's offside, but It's one thing to
• 38:05
  Speaker 4: do it against Italy, it's another to give the all
• 38:08
  Speaker 4: Blacks and attacking scram on halfway. What a platform that
• 38:12
  Speaker 4: is the setting up of the malls. I think that
• 38:16
  Speaker 4: is something we will see more from the spring Box
• 38:19
  Speaker 4: because it does suit their game. But that is much
• 38:23
  Speaker 4: easier to defend than a line out drive because you're
• 38:25
  Speaker 4: a lot further from the line generally, and if you
• 38:28
  Speaker 4: don't engage, it's truck and trailer and I'm pretty sure
• 38:32
  Speaker 4: you can collapse it because it's not from a lineout
• 38:34
  Speaker 4: as well, So there are ways to defend it. But innovation, Look,
• 38:39
  Speaker 4: this is russy. Whether it's the bomb squad or these
• 38:45
  Speaker 4: sorts of things, I love to see it.
• 38:47
  Speaker 3: I think, yeah, I think the innovation's ideal for the game.
• 38:50
  Speaker 3: And I think rugby Union and rugby League, if we
• 38:53
  Speaker 3: expand it, there is starved of innovation. It's become very homogenized,
• 38:57
  Speaker 3: very same same and South Africa Persson the boundaries and
• 39:00
  Speaker 3: when you see things like that, and when you see
• 39:01
  Speaker 3: things like can Roygards stray on the weekend, you stand
• 39:04
  Speaker 3: up on a plure because this is rugby being played
• 39:06
  Speaker 3: outside the norms and pushing the bound the lineout one
• 39:10
  Speaker 3: I would have an issue with. I know from a
• 39:12
  Speaker 3: line out the lift of the player's been lifted has
• 39:14
  Speaker 3: to come to ground immediately. Don't know if that's the
• 39:17
  Speaker 3: same if they're being held in midfield in open play,
• 39:20
  Speaker 3: so that would be something that needs to be clarified.
• 39:22
  Speaker 3: But I don't think it's a coincidence that they have
• 39:25
  Speaker 3: Yucco Piper and their staff that these sort of things
• 39:28
  Speaker 3: are happening, because he would know the law book like
• 39:31
  Speaker 3: the back of his hand. I know that Christoph Ridley
• 39:34
  Speaker 3: is involved with English rugby in a similar role, not
• 39:37
  Speaker 3: quite as embedded in the team as Yucko Piper. I'm
• 39:40
  Speaker 3: sure other unions are doing it. The All Blacks aren't,
• 39:43
  Speaker 3: but I wonder whether there's perhaps a recently retired referee
• 39:47
  Speaker 3: or someone that maybe they need to get on staff
• 39:48
  Speaker 3: and could be pushing that. I'm sure the ideas aren't
• 39:51
  Speaker 3: probably coming from Yucko Piper, but the sign off and
• 39:53
  Speaker 3: the actually, if you did it this way it is
• 39:55
  Speaker 3: legal probably is.
• 39:57
  Speaker 5: Yeah.
• 39:57
  Speaker 4: I know the All Blacks have referees in camp to
• 40:00
  Speaker 4: come in and police them in training and look at
• 40:03
  Speaker 4: areas they want to improve, but to have someone on
• 40:06
  Speaker 4: staff full time would be would be very valuable. Just
• 40:09
  Speaker 4: something to note about the Springboks as well. They made
• 40:12
  Speaker 4: seventeen changes to their twenty three for the second ten
• 40:16
  Speaker 4: second Test against Italy, won forty five nil and they
• 40:19
  Speaker 4: played one man short for twenty minutes. No, it was
• 40:24
  Speaker 4: fourteen through fifteen for fifteen minutes. So while they're innovating,
• 40:29
  Speaker 4: their strength and depth as phenomenal.
• 40:31
  Speaker 3: As well, springbox second string team in July like the French.
• 40:36
  Speaker 5: Oh yeah, I've got depth, don't they they do?
• 40:40
  Speaker 2: Indeed?
• 40:41
  Speaker 3: Topic number four David Kidwell appointed to the Highlanders in
• 40:46
  Speaker 3: a coaching role under Jamie Joseph came as a bit
• 40:49
  Speaker 3: of a surprise. I mean he's been around Argentina, they
• 40:52
  Speaker 3: went to Japan under Eddie Jones. Has been at Leicester
• 40:55
  Speaker 3: in the UK for a bit now coming to coach
• 40:58
  Speaker 3: as part of the Highlander stuff.
• 41:00
  Speaker 2: Really liked this appointment.
• 41:02
  Speaker 3: David Hill was probably unfeely best, had a great rugby
• 41:05
  Speaker 3: league playing Korea, probably in New Zealand, though remembered as
• 41:09
  Speaker 3: the coach of the Kiwison that diabolic or twenty seventeen
• 41:13
  Speaker 3: World Cup campaign. Is there still the mural and you're
• 41:16
  Speaker 3: all still there? The key is in the WII. They
• 41:18
  Speaker 3: lost to Fiji quarter finals utterly. Shambollock the head coaching
• 41:22
  Speaker 3: of international league team may not have been for him,
• 41:24
  Speaker 3: but he has found his niche as an assistant coach,
• 41:29
  Speaker 3: a defense coach at rugby union level. And I think
• 41:33
  Speaker 3: this is a pretty inspired performance from Jammie jose appointment
• 41:36
  Speaker 3: rather than Jammy Joseph.
• 41:37
  Speaker 5: Yeah, I think we've seen.
• 41:40
  Speaker 4: League tendancies come into rugby union and vice versa.
• 41:44
  Speaker 5: But you look at the back door plays.
• 41:46
  Speaker 4: A lot of professional teams used to create space for
• 41:49
  Speaker 4: their playmakers. That's stock standard in rugby league. And David
• 41:54
  Speaker 4: Cabwell I think was a big part of the Puma's
• 41:58
  Speaker 4: first one on New Zealand soil when christ Church that
• 42:02
  Speaker 4: defensive line, speed pressure had a lot of success alongside
• 42:06
  Speaker 4: Michael Checker.
• 42:08
  Speaker 5: So yeah, I think that's a great appointment for the Haunas.
• 42:10
  Speaker 5: I think it'll be a point of difference and super Rugby.
• 42:13
  Speaker 4: He replaces Dave Dylan, so good to see the hand
• 42:18
  Speaker 4: is making some moves and really intrigued to see what
• 42:20
  Speaker 4: kid Well can bring to that team.
• 42:22
  Speaker 3: Yeah, look, he wouldn't look out a place I don't
• 42:24
  Speaker 3: think in the future. All Black set up potentially David
• 42:26
  Speaker 3: Kibbles on the staff somewhere. As I say, I've been
• 42:30
  Speaker 3: very impressed by what he's done in the roles he's had,
• 42:32
  Speaker 3: so we'll onn't see. Maybe Jamie Joseph's lining up his
• 42:36
  Speaker 3: future team twenty twenty eight, who knows, who knows? We've
• 42:39
  Speaker 3: been through this before, haven't we. That'll do us for
• 42:43
  Speaker 3: Rugby Direct for another week. Thanks as always for those
• 42:45
  Speaker 3: of you that get in touch via social media. Dave
• 42:48
  Speaker 3: Paul being one of those big fans, always enjoy his
• 42:51
  Speaker 3: responses to episodes. Mcgheran as well bumped into mcindlading. Meant
• 42:54
  Speaker 3: to say this last week, but it's always good to
• 42:56
  Speaker 3: catch up with mc and get his thoughts on things
• 42:58
  Speaker 3: as well. So that'll do us for another week of
• 43:00
  Speaker 3: Rugby Direct. It's Pat cow Bells for the tron exactly.
• 43:04
  Speaker 2: I know you'll have yours, I will not have mine.
• 43:06
  Speaker 3: My thanks for the last and Bars English as well
• 43:09
  Speaker 3: for producing and thanks to Excess Solutions elevating you and
• 43:13
  Speaker 3: your business to a high limit.
• 43:18
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