Latest / Early Edition with Ryan Bridge / Elliott Smith: Newstalk ZB Rugby Commentator previews the All Blacks v Australia clash

Transcript

Elliott Smith: Newstalk ZB Rugby Commentator previews the All Blacks v Australia clash · Early Edition with Ryan Bridge

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: We've got the final round of the Rugby Championship this weekend.
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: The All Blacks take on the Wallabys in Perth to
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: sold out Optics Stadium. It's ten forty five pm our time,
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: Saturday night. Elliott Smith News Talk saib's voice of rugby
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: is the Elliott.
• 0:11
  Speaker 2: Good morning, morning, Ryan.
• 0:13
  Speaker 3: So what's the vibe like over there?
• 0:15
  Speaker 2: He has been a big build up. Obviously, the Wallaby's
• 0:17
  Speaker 2: gone with a little bit of confidence given the way
• 0:19
  Speaker 2: they are able to pressure the All Blacks this last week.
• 0:23
  Speaker 2: It wasn't quite enough to win the bleders Low Cup,
• 0:26
  Speaker 2: but the Wallaby since there is an opportunity to get
• 0:29
  Speaker 2: first win over the All Blacks since twenty twenty ten
• 0:32
  Speaker 2: straight the All Blacks have won. But you know, the
• 0:35
  Speaker 2: Wallaby's certainly knocked off, not knocked off by the defeat
• 0:39
  Speaker 2: last week in Auckland and sensing there is a chance
• 0:41
  Speaker 2: to cause some kiwi pine this weekend.
• 0:44
  Speaker 3: We've got a few other injuries. Boden Barrett's out. Any
• 0:46
  Speaker 3: concerns there.
• 0:48
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I think you'll be up a two to three weeks. Well,
• 0:50
  Speaker 2: the sound of it should be okay for Chicago. Damien
• 0:53
  Speaker 2: McKenzie comes in. He's been the understudy all year long
• 0:57
  Speaker 2: for Boden Barrett came off the bench instead for an
• 1:00
  Speaker 2: hour last week, so not a huge drop necessarily, but
• 1:05
  Speaker 2: Boden Barrett certainly the first choice and that All Blacks
• 1:08
  Speaker 2: set up. They lose Ethan de Groot as well up
• 1:10
  Speaker 2: front to Mighty Williams comes through. This is all about
• 1:14
  Speaker 2: finding that depth, of course, ahead of the twenty twenty
• 1:16
  Speaker 2: seven World Cup. Couple of other selections as well, with
• 1:19
  Speaker 2: Peter Lukey coming in at number eight, which is a
• 1:22
  Speaker 2: real surprise when that was named yesterday here in Australia,
• 1:26
  Speaker 2: and also Quente Pie at center, so a couple of surprises.
• 1:30
  Speaker 2: Just as the All Blacks try to find a little
• 1:32
  Speaker 2: bit of depth. There's not many opportunities to build those
• 1:35
  Speaker 2: depths with such a congested schedule and everyone being so
• 1:38
  Speaker 2: even around the world at the moment, so trying to
• 1:41
  Speaker 2: find those opportunities to learn a little bit more about
• 1:43
  Speaker 2: some of these players few and far between. But that's
• 1:46
  Speaker 2: what Scott Robinson's done this week. Not quite as conservative
• 1:49
  Speaker 2: maybe as we expected it to be.
• 1:52
  Speaker 3: Very even Stevens. Assuming we beat the Wallabies in Perth,
• 1:55
  Speaker 3: then we're onto this Grand Slam Tour. What do we
• 1:58
  Speaker 3: need to do there.
• 2:00
  Speaker 2: I think that any inconsistency is the focus for the
• 2:03
  Speaker 2: All Blacks. If they went on Saturday night, that's two
• 2:06
  Speaker 2: in a row, first time I've been able to do
• 2:07
  Speaker 2: that in the Rugby Championship. And then as you said,
• 2:10
  Speaker 2: the Ireland, who are always tough, that's in Chicago. England
• 2:14
  Speaker 2: a really really tricky at home, Scotland having never beaten
• 2:17
  Speaker 2: the All Blacks in Edinburgh, but will fancy their chances,
• 2:20
  Speaker 2: and then Wales surround out the year. The All Blacks
• 2:22
  Speaker 2: need to win and keep winning and building that momentum
• 2:25
  Speaker 2: because there are still so many questions around this All
• 2:28
  Speaker 2: Blacks team and until they start stringing wins together, these
• 2:31
  Speaker 2: questions are going to remain. So once we sit back
• 2:34
  Speaker 2: at the end of the year, over the summer and
• 2:37
  Speaker 2: can look back at the record for the year, that's
• 2:40
  Speaker 2: probably when we'll know how on track this All Blacks
• 2:43
  Speaker 2: team is ahead of twenty twenty seven.
• 2:44
  Speaker 1: Here's hoping Elliott Smith News Talks they'd be Voice of
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: Rugby and Perth.
• 2:48
  Speaker 2: For more from early edition with Ryan Bridge. Listen live
• 2:51
  Speaker 2: to news Talks they had been from five am weekdays,
• 2:54
  Speaker 2: or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio,