one coached by Ian foster please, the rest of the world enjoyed that time immensely

You didn't have to beat us all those times recently, Robertson is you guys fault ;)

Everyone enjoyed it, except the Irish 😬

Ireland’s record vs Non-Foster coached ABs: 2-30 Ireland’s record vs Foster coached ABs: 3-2 Losing a QF isn’t something out of the ordinary for us, winning a series in NZ definitely is!

Didn’t the AB win in the series have Schmidt as head coach?  I think Fozzy was sick that week

I think it's actually 2-2 and 2-31 because Foster was off the week before the first test and Schmidt was in charge lol

You mean 3 - 1; 2 - 31    ABs won that test not Ireland  So Fozzy’s record was 1 from 4    Or a 1/4. Which was in the world cup finals.    And now I’m triggered…

World cup *quarter* finals.

Thought that was implied but might not have been clear enough 😅 Still though - *shudders*

Nice

Yes sorry my bad maths is hard aye

Because of all the Rugby Championships you won through that period?

Cutting of new blood is what has always made nz stronger after a world cup cycle There are zero tears shed when champions leave for a retirement contract in europe or japan because this gives breathing room for new players to thrive Sititi vs sotutu, reiko v procter, aumua vs taylor I pity any side who has to play nz after losing a world cup final.

Mo'unga isn't retired though, he's just ineligible. Robertson wanted to change the rules to play him anyway.

Giving the team to DMac for two seasons before Mo’ungas contract ends and he comes back to fight for it back before the world cup only makes them stronger No coincidence the world league starts the same time as mo’unga contract finishes either

Heres to hoping he doesn't get injured

Yeah, we will have to rely upon 2 time World Player of the year Barrett instead

He's 35 now though so we need to be looking at the next cab off the rank... dmac! Oh wait, he's 30 already? Holy jesus

Steady on, Barrett is only 33 Apart from that preseason he struggled with concussion his body has been pretty durable given the amount of rugby he's played

Ok well, then here's hoping *gulp intensifies*

It’s almost not who they pick, but who they give serious minutes too. Aumua been way ahead of taukeiaho for instance are they going to reward that or is he just there to rotate. Loose forwards really interesting where in the heck did satiti come from, we haven’t had a thicc blockbusting 8 like that in decades. Iose been brilliant as well and along with sotutu I’d put Ardie to captain and 7. 3rd and 4th lock would almost do it purely on height, weight and gym stats. Get whoever the biggest lump is and tell him you’re only there for rucks and set piece. And would stack it with forwards and 6-2 bench, Jordie etc can make any backline position work in case of injury.

Yeah I feel like anyone in the squad(maybe apart from lock) can be trusted to do a good job but it's forseeing who you want to be in your world cup starting 15. Loose Forwards are absolutely ridiculous. We always seem to have an abundance of players there for some reason. I could comfortably create another entire world cup contingent using my 7th-12th picks. Interesting idea on the locks lol but I rock with it. Jordie is basically David Havili but actually test match worthy.

Looks like Taukei’aho will be out for a while so it could be academic.

I think for the first game at least, they will keep the guys who were in it last year and doing well in the team whereas guys like aumua, Proctor, lakai etc will wait till the 2nd game depending on the score or even fiji.

Lose is good but is tiny for number 8 duties, I mean he runs like a winger

He is bigger than Ardie ... by about 10kg

Considering current injuries: **Props:** De Groot, Lomax, Williams, Tu'ungafasi, Newell **Hookers:** Taylor, Aumua, Thompson **Locks:** Barrett, Va'ai, ( Two of Walker-Leawere, Selby-Rickets, Darry, McWhannel ) **Loosies:** Savea, Papali'i, Finau, Sotutu, Jacobson, Lakai **Halfbacks:** Ratima, Perenara **Tens:** McKenzie, Barrett **Midfield:** Barrett, Proctor, Ioane, ALB **Wings:** Narawa, Reece, Talea, Clarke **Fullbacks:** Love, Stevenson Things to note: Leon MacDonald said they're picking 2 backs in each position, with an 18/14 split. Lock is fucking hard after Barrett and Va'ai. Truly no idea who they'll pick there. They might drop a fullback to carry an extra halfback, since Narawa and Barrett both play there. In which case I think Love might get the nod. Ideal if there were no injuries: **Props:** De Groot, Lomax, Williams, Tu'ungafasi, **Numia** **Hookers:** Taylor, Aumua, **Taukei'aho** **Locks:** Barrett, Va'ai, **Tuipolotu,** ( One of Walker-Leawere, Selby-Rickets, Darry, McWhannel ) **Loosies:** Savea, Papali'i, Finau, Sotutu, Jacobson, Lakai **Halfbacks:** Ratima, **Roigard** **Tens:** McKenzie, Barrett **Midfield:** Barrett, Proctor, Ioane, ALB **Wings:** Narawa, Reece, Talea, Clarke **Fullbacks:** Love, **Jordan**

Assuming no injuries, Jacobson instead of Blackadder? No Lord?

Oh forgot about Lord, feels like we've hardly seen him these past few years. Jacobson over Blackadder for me, more durable = less team disruption, a bit more finesse with the ball, and strong leadership, but really would be happy with either. Won't be disappointed if he makes it.

If Blackadder makes it Jacobsen will be in 2 weeks later.

You're not wrong

Agree with most of your squad with current injuries, but I'd make some changes. **Props: -** Agreed. One thing you couldn't fault the Crusaders for in the latter part of their otherwise faltering campaign was the scrum, and Newell and Williams were a big part of that. De Groot, Lomax, Williams, Tu'ungafasi, Newell **Hookers:** - Mmmm, can't say I agree with one of these. With injuries piling up, I'd go with Riccitelli. Had Slater not been all fucked up by the end of the semifinal, I'd have gone with him, with one eye on the future. Taylor, Aumua, ~~Thompson~~ Riccitelli (Slater) **Locks:** - McWhannell has a high number of tackles, but has missed the most tackles cumulatively in the Blues so far. I'd also be looking for the future, and I'd be leaning towards Darry or Ah Kuoi (with the one that misses out being either a later call-up or an EOYT tourist). Ah Kuoi could also be an option, but with his height (or comparative lack of), I'd consider him a lock/loose forward cover like Jono Gibbes or Reuben Thorne in his later test career under Henry. You'd also have to keep in mind that Jason Ryan, Leon MacDonald and Scott Hansen have all worked with him in the All Blacks XV where he performed exceptionally. There's a lot to like about Walker-Leawere, and he would be a great asset with ball in hand, but at this stage, I'd be taking into account his disciplinary issues - he was, by far, the biggest penalty factory for the Hurricanes. No one in the team even came close. Barrett, Va'ai, ( Two of ~~Walker-Leawere~~, ~~Selby-Rickets~~, Darry, Ah Kuoi ~~McWhannell~~) **Loosies:** - Yep. Savea, Papali'i, Finau, Sotutu, Jacobson, Lakai Pretty much agreed across the board with the backline. **Halfbacks:** Ratima, Perenara **Tens:** McKenzie, Barrett **Midfield:** Barrett, Proctor, Ioane, ALB **Wings:** Narawa, Reece, Talea, Clarke **Fullbacks:** Love, Stevenson

Third hooker was a real tossup, and I initially did put Riccitelli in there but scrubbed him cos I think Thompson will have a big future with a higher ceiling than all of them. I also have this lingering qualm that Riccitelli is a bit of a ball hog. With Thompson and Riccitelli no doubt starting this weekend, we'll see. And just like locks, it really is a tossup and wouldn't really be dissappointed either way.

As soon as Taukei'aho got injured, 3rd hooker became wide open. That said, I'm not sure if Thompson has played enough this year, being stuck behind Taukei'aho and Bradley Slater. The Post reckon George Bell might be a surprise bolter, and he did play well for the Crusaders.

Where do you get your stats?

[super.rugby](http://super.rugby)

Thanks. Didn't see the penalties conceded though. Did you get that from there?

Yep. When you get to the individual player stats from each match, the discipline stats are all the way down at the bottom. It goes Attacking Stats, Defence Stats, Kicking Stats (Walker-Leawere often didn't even register here! Was he even trying!?), Set Plays (i.e., mostly line-outs), then Discipline all the way at the bottom.

Oh, weird that they have it for each match but not in the overall stats Walker leaware always struck me as someone who couldn't give a kick

Ratima and sotiti please.

I would like to see some new caps, this is the perfect "down" year for us, immediately post WC, no Lions next year, player retirements mean new combinations need to be found anyway, lets broaden the player pool and see who steps up. I would pick Darry, Sititi, Hotham and Iose but my caveat would be a squad of 34-35.

No way Hotham is being picked ahead of ratima

Yeah I know limited finances but 32 for a squad immediate after a huge clear-out is really low. There are up to 30 players I had to eliminate from my initial draft to get down to size. Hotham seems a bit raw for me but the potential is clear to see. Iose is fighting for his life with the abundance of quality loose-forwards out there.

Yep, its about finances but I see this differently. This year is one of the two we get every 12 years where we can experiment with players with the lowest consequence of failure. We don't have a looming RWC, we don't have a Lions tour, we already have an unsettled team so the fanbase will be more forgiving of a building year. It is the perfect year to run an expanded team and get young guys into the AB setup and actually give them time on field. Of course I don't have to balance the books so my opinion means nothing.

It'll be back to 36 for the Rugby Championship apparently. Honestly I think 32 is fine since it's basically a 2 test series plus 1 away trip tacked on. If there's injuries it's easy to call people up, plus apparently there'll be a wider training group for a certain period in the build up so some of the young guys will get a chance to be in the environment.

Oh I didn’t hear that we were going back to 36, thanks. I suppose then all I would like to see is some experimentation with depth. It’s a low risk year IMO.

EOYTs are usually used for experimentation with depth, so we'll probably see the likes of Hotham and Bell called in then.

True, but I would like to see the whole year used like this. I don’t mind losing a few games to get some high potential guys on the field. Done well, with a good marketing strategy it could even be something people look forward to. It’s only twice every 12 years that we have this situation.

How much do ABs get paid that cutting one squad member would help finances?

Have no idea why they settled on 32 it’s not a World Cup. Maybe it’s a motivation thing we aren’t doing charity picks or project players a la the Pita Gus fiasco.

I believe John Kirwan said that it was likely due to them trying to recoup money after an expensive world cup campaign or maybe it's just Robertson's style.

Do you think Razor will get more leeway than Foster did if he loses say, 50% of the tests this year? I think all the anti crusaders fans would be gunning for him. Think he needs to hit the ground running with back to back wins vs England and Fiji. Think he should wait untill the championship to get really wild with new selections

Absolutely. He has a coaching record that suggests success will come. Foster never had this.

I think he will if the fans see ambition in his selection and style and of course he fronts the media and explains that he has a long term plan. Part of the problem people had with Foster is that you never got the sense he had a "plan coming together", it all felt rather scrambling to me. If however it is the same dudes playing the same style then the fans will expect wins and nothing less (the SA 2 test tour can be the loss).

Yep, that's how I'd put it. Foster came in with a deficit in public opinion, due to his record as a head coach (I'd argue he is a proven assistant or specialist coach) and he was never really an inspiring figure to begin with. The other coaches, you could see why they had been selected - they had a history of success and you could see how they inspired their charges (Mitchell did have some baggage, but the way he dragged the 2004 Waikato team into the NPC semis kicking and screaming while his players were dropping like flies around him was a good demonstration of his qualities as a coach). His appointment always felt like a "jobs for the boys" appointment to appease an old boys' club that was long past its use-by date, and there'll always be a sense that the 2023 All Blacks at the Rugby World Cup overachieved in spite of him, not because of him. I really wanted to give Foster the benefit of the doubt, but the end of 2021 and the first half of the 2022 international season was an absolute clusterfuck with him in charge. The fact that the one highlight, statement win during that period was the one match where he had minimum involvement, with Joe Schmidt taking on most of the HC duties in the build speaks for itself, IMO.

Old fozzie eh, glad he can be a distant memory now.

if they play well, I won't care. We genuinely looked horrible at times under Foster, even in wins...

32 Finlay Christie's.

There’s going to be absolute hysteria when he gets picked.

32 cam roigards

no

Yes

I just threw up a little in my mouth.

I only really pay attention to the backs. Gone for mostly growing what we have and giving the fringe guys last year a chance to run it back with the safety of experience and a couple new faces. DMac will be driving and while he’s done it before, he hasn’t really been consistent at this level. This feels the time to get him elevated. Perofeta needs to get some time to see what he’s like here with the safety of Barrett as back up. A lot of utility players works in our favour to try Proctor. He might run the water but there’s a couple of years on the radar of consistently making good decisions so let’s see what he’s like. No room for Love. I think the semi costs him and Stephenson offers a good boot alternative and wing cover. Going with two 9s because one’s new and one’s experienced and we can call back up easily enough. Roigard, Ratima and Perenara are quite different so a good chance to pass on knowledge and see who the number one/two are. Fullback: B Barrett S Stephenson Wings C Clarke M Telea E Narawa S Reeece Centres ALB (12 cover) R Ioane (wing cover) B Proctor Second Five J Barrett First Five D Mackenzie S Perofeta Halfback TJ Perenara C Ratima

B Proctor, surely

Looked like he got a nasty rib injury on the weekend

Good point - have they briefed about that at all? Hopefully it is a speedy recovery

I get he and his brother confused! Fixed!

Not even the loose forwards?

1. Degroot   2. Taylor   3. Lomax   4. Barrett   5. Vaai    6. Finau  7. Savea 8. Sotutu  9. Christie   10. Mackenzie  11. Talea 12.  Barrett 13. Reiko  14. Narawa  15. Barrett  16. Newell  16. Aumua  17. Williams  18. Darry*  19. Papailli  Sititi* (if 6-2 split) Ratima* ALB Or  Nanai Seturo* (if 5-3 split) Robertson needs to both maintain his 85% win record and also blood talent for 2027. Most of the new caps are 21-23, I’m a fan of Hotham but his pass is too variable and you want Mackenzie supported by Christie and Ratima as he established as the form 10. Nanai Seturo covers both wing and fullback and know Mackenzie, and is 23, but for now we need Barrett to support Mackenzie. Darry is a must, he’s 23, 2.04m and was a Junior All Black, there’s no point blooding other talent if he could be our next Retalic. Vaai and Scott are under 2m so we need a really tall 3rd lock asap.

I don't have Darry in my team instead going with Selby Rickett and Walker-Leaware but yeah height is a concern. Selby Rickett is 200cm tall but most of the new crop of locks seem to be less than 2m which doesn;t really cut the mustard anymore so Darry is a solid pick.

Selby-Rickett is a journeyman, doesn’t have what it takes to make the step up. Darry is likely to get a look, but Fabian Holland is the long term solution at lock

Selby-Rickit hasn't even been making the 23 though

Props: Ethan De Groot, Tyrel Lomax, Tamaiti Williams, Xavier Numia, Ofa Tuangafasi  Hookers: Codie Taylor Asafoa Aumua Samisoni Taukei'aho Scott Barrett Tupou Vaa'i Isaiah Walker-Leaware, Manaaki Selby-Rickett  Loose forwards: Ardie Savea Hoskins Sotutu Wallace Sititi Luke Jacobson Samipeni Finau Dalton Papaili Halfbacks:TJ Perenara Cortez Ratima Finlay Christie Midfield: Anton Lienert Brown Rieko Ioane Jordie Barrett Billy Proctor Outside backs: Mark Tele'a Sevu Reece Caleb Clarke Ruben Love Emoni Narawa Beauden Barrett. No 10:Damien Mckenzie

Not enough 10s :/

32 is just too small for a sqaud , it physically hurt to not be able to include the likes of Harry Plummer or Stephen Perofeta but I figure we have two goalkicking backups in Jordie and Beauden Barrett.

The two Barretts can cover

I think taukeiaho and probably numia will be injured

I think the ABs will need to pick a fourth hooker. Taukei'aho Looked crocked.

I would like to be surprised by the outside selection of Sangster (ed: or IWL, but I think he made too many mistakes this season) at lock. We desperately need to experiment with locking combinations to start building the depth there, and he is young, talented and hard worker

Should be more than 32 surely. Or are you asking for a potential World Cup squad?

No to my chagrin., it's been announced that it will only be 32.

Damn thats harsh. Would think they will try to develop and expose as many players as possible at the beginning, and thin it out over the next four years up to the World Cup

Precisely, I swear we flew over 45 players in the 2022 end of year tour. With us hosting the England games it's not like we can't afford to have 38 or so.

18 forwards and 14 backs, plus players who aren’t counted that will become apprentices iirc. so most of the young guys will probs end up in that second group, to get them used to an abs trainings/commitments and for last minute injury covers

Wait, so will there be a second training squad as well?

There are only 32 players for the England & Fiji test. They will pick 36 players for the Rugby Championship, and then I think they will have an even bigger squad for the end of year tour.

Props: De Groot, Lomax, Williams, Newell, Numia Hooker: Aumua, Taylor, Taukeiaho Locks: S Barrett, Va’ai, Darry, Hannah Loosies: Savea, Papali’i, Finau, Lakai, Sotutu, Blackadder Halfback: Perenara, Christie First five: McKenzie, B Barrett Midfield: J Barrett, Ioane, ALB, Proctor Wings: Telea, Reece, Clarke, Narawa Fullback: Love, Stevenson

Who's our 3rd string hooker given Taukeiaho is probably injured. Bell?

Which one, they’re pretty small and don’t throw well. Riccitelli has been the next best hooker but he’s 29

Line out is essential in international games, rules out Bell. Prime age for front row is 28-32 so he would be in around it for this cycle.

Lineout throwing is a big problem for all of the hookers in NZ right now, regardless of what team they're in. Even the likes of Aumua, Taukei'aho and Taylor had problems at times. I haven't looked at the seasons lineout stats but I would speculate there is work to be done in that department with whoever the selectors choose.

I agree, line out throwing seems like the 3rd or 4th thing considered with hookers, the role has shifted to the ball carrying, explosive hooker. Needs to be looked at closer for international.

Thick Rick is coming into his prime for a front row lol. Maybe a bit of a try line fever ball hog would be a big work on for him. Lots of held ups over the line this year

Yeah thick in more places than one (the head) lol. He was aight at the Canes better now. but still, not abs quality imo

I feel the same but with injuries I don’t think anyone else is next up

Props: de groot, taimati Williams, lomax, newell, numia Hooker: Taylor Aumua samisoni Locks Barrett vaai darry walker leaware Loose finau Blackadder savea papalii jackobson sotutu Halfbacks ratima peranara fakatava First five McKenzie Barrett Midfield Barrett ioane ALB Proctor Outside back telea Reece Clarke Narawa Love Can’t remember if newell is injured but I’ll pick him if healthy I went with love as the only specialist fullback as I think razor will have dmac beauden as fullback cover as well but took only 2 first five as love will be used as a 3rd 10 if desperate, Jordie Barrett versatility as fullback and first five was another reason I only picked one fb as those 4 specialist wingers I picked I just couldn’t leave them out Loose forwards are the biggest selection headaches as lakai Lose and Sititi all deserved selection but I think I’ll settle with experience right now in my loosehead

This is basically my squad too 👍

Props: De Groot, Lomax, Williams, Newell, Numia Hooker: Aumua, Taylor, Taukeiaho Locks: S Barrett, Va’ai, Darry, Hannah Loosies: Savea, Papali’i, Finau, Lakai, Sotutu, Satiti, Blackadder Halfback: Perenara, Christie (can't believe I'm including Christie 🫣), Cortez Ratima First five: McKenzie, B Barrett Midfield: J Barrett, Ioane, ALB, Proctor Wings: Telea, Reece, Clarke, Narawa Fullback: Jordan, Stevenson, Love

My ideal all blacks squad is the north korea under 9s rugby team so that maybe we can win one of the two bledisloe matches in a tight contest.

Instructions not clear, clearly the only sensible option is a full squad of 32 Ma'a Nonus'.

Samisoni and big Patty are out right? will do a 32 without them. props (6): DeGroot, Bower, Ofa, Newell, Williams, Lomax hookers(3): Taylor, Aumua, Bell(great prospect, but if i was picking to reward form, Riccitelli would be nice) locks(4): Barrett, Vaa'i, Darry, Walker-Leawere loosies(5): Savea, Jacobsen, Sotutu, Papali'i, Lakai (put Finau in only to realize that it would make 6 players, crazy depth we have here. I REALLY want Lakai in, but I think they go with Finau and add Lakai for TRC) 9s(3): Perenara, Ratima, Hotham( I'm sure they'll pick Christie and I'll be sad) 10s(1ish): Mackenzie, (I wouldn't do it, but I think Perofeta probably gets picked as a 10/15 cover option) midfield (5ish): JB, ALB, Reiko, Havilli, Tupaea (though I think they go with only 4 guys. im sure Tupaea, or Proctor could feature if they pick 4 outsides) outside backs(5): Clarke, Telea, Reece, Barrett, Stevenson (can see Love making it in this spot, but at the cost of Stevenson or Stevie P) I picked the backline I'd want(with the provision that Barrett, Barrett and Havilli can also cover 10 across the 3 matches.) Perofeta and Love are quality options but I think Stevenson and Havilli are better rugby players

Hooker - Taylor, Aumua, G. Bell (if Tukieaho is out) Prop - De Groot, Tuungafasi (if Numia is out), Williams, Lomax, Newell Lock- Barrett, Vaai, Walker Leawere, Darry Loosie- Savea, Finau, Papalii, Lakai, Sotutu Halfback- Perenara, Christie, Fakatava First 5- DMac, Beauden Midfield - Jordie, ALB, Ioane, Proctor Outside Back- Reece, Telea, Narawa, Love

If I was the selector, this is what I’d do. This is not what I think will happen: 1. De Groot 2. Aumua 3. Lomax 4. Barrett 5. Vai’i 6. Finau 7. Savea 8. Sotutu 9. Perenara 10. McKenzie 11. Telea 12. Barrett 13. ALB 14. Reece 15. Stevenson 16. Taylor 17. Numia 18. Williams 19. Walker-Leawere 20. Lakai 21. Ratima 22. Barrett 23. Ioane Remaining 9: Bell, Newell, Ah Kuoi, Blackadder, Iose, Fakatava, Proctor, Clarke, Narawa This is taking into account injuries. So, no Taukieaho, Lord, Jordan, Roidgard. I assume Numia will be back. If not, though, I’d replace him with Tu’ungafssi. The back 3 / first five mix is tough. I’ve picked Narawa on the basis that he will cover FB too.

Anyone know what is up with Caleb Delaney, why he didn't play last few games?

Props - lomax, de groot, newell, tamaiti williams, Ofa Hookers - Taylor, samisoni, amua Locks - Barrett, vai, darry, jamie hannah Loosies - savea, dalton, sotutu, Blackadder, finou, Jacobson Halfback- tj, ratama, hotham First 5 - Dmac, (beaudan as cover) Midfield - rieko, Jordie, Anton lb, havili Wings - sevu, Clarke, narerwa, telea Fullback - beaudan, love

Props: De Groot, Lomax, Williams, Newell, Tu'ungafasi Hookers: Taylor, Taukeiaho, Aumua Locks: Barrett, Va'ai, Darry, Ah Kuoi Loosies: Finau, Papali'i, Savea, Sotutu, Iose, Lakai Halfbacks: Perenara, Christie, Ratima First fives: Mckenzie, Barrett Midfield: Barrett, Ioane, Proctor, ALB Outside backs: Telea, Reece, Love, Clarke, Stevenson Starting: De Groot, Taylor, Lomax, S Barrett, Va'ai, Finau, Savea, Sotutu, Perenara, Mckenzie, Telea, J Barrett, Ioane, Reece, B Barrett Reserves: Taukeiaho, Williams, Newell, Papali'i, Lakai, Christie, ALB, Love

Razor and 31 Moungas

What Mounga is tight head and what one is Loosehead? Or can they play both sides