New Bledisloe fixture sends Aussies to Eden Park twice

Totally agree mate. I've been on the Force band wagon since day 1. The only drama I have every year is the Force v Hurricanes game (I support the home team that week). I still remember sitting on the platform at Perth train the night of first ever Force home game that was at Subi Oval. Now that was a sea of blue! While we were all waiting for the train out west there were calls of "where are you from" and of course Perth being Perth the answers were Sydney, Brisbane, Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Cape Town, Johannesburg, Dublin, Edinburgh and London. One pommy yelled "how good is this? All of us in the same jumper"

Yep, full Kiwi refereeing crew with Paul Williams. It's simply not good enough. And yes, the ABs do not like being penalised. You can tell by there body language, shocked faces, and frustrating when pinged by a neutral/better referee outside of NZ who understands the breakdown. aBs are used to a certain standard of ruck play under relaxed refereeing standards, and these laced standards will continue with Paul Williams, who will no doubt put his whistle away in the final 10 unless ABs are behind and need a crucial penalty to escape a loss. Disappointed in NZRU. They needed to do better to install neutral referees instead of relying on their substandard referees

Probably Richie McCaw. I seem to remember him reffing a few games there over the years.

Good to know #8. You are not all bad then. :silly: And on that point, the sooner Oz gets some sort of regular tribal national footprint, whether it be a watered down SuperAU, or a beefed up NRC, or one of the other permutations being banded about, the better. Then expats, such as yourself will have an OZ tribe to support and love, and defend against invaders. Better for OZ rugby. And better for Internationals like the Bled, because we may one day give you lot some competition.

easier to counsel 'flightless birds' (as you call them) than 2 animals with rear ends bigger than their heads....

but that is what Aussies do....well..

just waiting for the decision - all games to be played in NZ...who the heck wants to play in a country infested with CV19....go figure

Totally agree we need a neutral ref team, I wasn’t advocating for a hometown one. What I was saying is that I, personally, would not have an issue if NZ and Aus had home town refs. I think our refs are good enough not to be bias, but it still wouldn’t stop the complaints. Hence, I think we need neutral ones - if only to stop the noise. “Kiwis do not like being reeled in with penalties they usually get away with.” I will call you on this one though - how do you know what the ABs feel about being penalised? What normally happens is the ABs get penalised a lot at the start of the game, this shows the line the ref is going to rule on. Then they pull it back to be just inside the refs tolerance. It’s about adapting your play to how the ref is ruling it. There has been plenty of talk on here about playing the ref and preparing for different styles/interpretations. The early infringements are part of that.

When is a full Kiwi (or any hometown) referee crew considered ok? And of course having neutral referees cancels the bias argument. Explain how it would not? It’s a shocking look especially for an international test match, and the varied (and skewed) interpretations around ruck infringement, speed, breakdown, and most importantly, offside (especially deliberate infringements on defending own goal line). It’s simply not good enough. If NZRU respect the game they would have arranged with World Rugby to organise neutral referees. Not at blaming it on the ref, just a horrid outlook for the game. The Kiwis do not like being reeled in with penalties they usually get away with. And with the first two tests in NZ with Bledisloe at stake, all the advantage is in their favour. It’s hard enough winning there without having a neutral refereeing crew… No Paul Williams!

Shall we also bring up Colin Meads thuggery on Ken Catchpole, or Richard Low on Paul Carozza, or even Andy Hayden jumping out of a lineout? Come on, give it a rest.

I must admit it was an All Blacks Jumper with a Force cap!

I'd have said that it was roughly thirds - Gold, Black and Blue; there was still a lot of ill-feeling towards RA from the Sea of Blue faithful.

My tip: going to be about 150 points total in two games. To the mighty All Blacks! The Cadbury Easter bunnies might manage a few five pointers at the end.

I'd have to say almost an All Blacks home game. Last time all of the seats where decked out with Wallaby and Aussie flags but a goodly amount of the crowd (including you're truly) were wearing black. Pretty similar to an Wallabies/Boks crash in Perth really but a great atmosphere though.

now you are digging the bottom of the barrel....he's a NZer given AUS won't give him Citizenship...why is that?? and of course he will be booed...but he's a big boy.... what I want next is all games in AUS to move to NZ...your Covid 19 is now rife and spreading....NZ is safe and clean...

Unfortunately having neutral refs doesn’t stop the bias narrative. But you’re right, it would reduce it or at the least, change the story a bit. While I think a full Kiwi ref team would still be ok, just as I would for an Aussie one in Perth, it is a bad look especially if a 50/50 call is made a particular way. Not sure they are getting, but will certainly be an interesting factor given the differences around breakdown interpretations this season.

I feel like it will be when DC joined the Blues for a season and ran water; there was all this hype but nothing happened. I haven’t seen him on a field for a while so can’t comment on his form, but his rugby IQ and Mana will still be priceless for the team, especially for Noah if he is at #10. I wouldn’t expect him to come on unless there are a few injuries, I would say Noah, Matt T, and Hodge are all a head of him – not that I agree with that order mind you. It funny though, his ‘x-factor’ (and I hate using that term), might be exactly what the Wallabies need to shock the ABs, and this first game is the one to do it in. With ABs being notoriously slow to start and ‘motivation’ being the biggest excuse for poor performances in recent history, this first one is the one to target.

Not complaining, just wanting to know who will be refereeing. A neutral referees eliminates the bias argument. Happy the Bledisloe is happening, but Paulo, even you have to admit it would be vastly unfair having a full hometown refereeing crew, especially for two consecutive matches at the so-called House of Pain. I just don't want a repeat of Paul Williams failing to use his whistle in favour of the Wallabies during that 7 mins of overtime rugby last year!

Frankly Paulo, I wish the dialogue drifted away from all this Quade stuff. I’m getting over excited, and it may all come to nought. :happy:

Thank you, Paulo. Appreciate your turning about. (And to be fair, I was being a smart a r s e,:happy: )