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New coach, new World Cup cycle, new players. With plenty of scope for change and three months of Super Rugby behind us, possibilities abound…
They used to be the laughing stock of the Six Nations. Winners of the wooden spoon 18 times in 24 years. Never escaping from…
It was the was the ultimate mix of old and new; and the greatest display of wet weather rugby we’re ever likely to see.…
So many predictions, so many expectations. The game’s greatest stage, to be graced by perhaps the greatest golden generations of its two greatest nations.…
This World Cup is a once in a generation opportunity for a mid-tier rugby nation, ranked sixth or lower in the world. First, it’s…
Rugby nations can’t truly peak for every World Cup. In any country some generations will be better than others and when those generations reach…
Gimli the dwarf and Legolas the elf assess the prospects of their their army ahead of the climactic, existential battle in JRR Tolkien’s The…
First, a burning question. Has Eddie Jones transformed his whole selection strategy based on these golden generation articles? OK that’s pretty far-fetched, but equally…
Centre Court, Wimbledon, Monday 9 July 2001. The gentlemen’s singles final between Aussie Pat Rafter and Croat Goran Ivanisevic is being held a day…
Yokohama, Japan. 7pm Saturday 26 October to 6pm Saturday 2 November 2019. For almost exactly a week, England and their charismatic Australian coach Eddie…
The “golden generation” label was made for the shiny new France team that burst onto the world stage in 2020. A decade of underachievement…
For decades the naming of the All Blacks followed the same format. In the deep dark caverns under the main grandstand of Athletic Park…
How does a rugby union in Australia build the sort of sustainable, transformational improvement that it needs? To help us find out, let’s look…
Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria 1968. Legendary Lions skipper Willie John McBride stands next to his South African counterpart Mof Myburgh in the tunnel before the…
The All Blacks went back to back with Rugby World Cup wins in 2011 and 2015 - this is how they did it
We all know about the quadrennial cycle from World Cup to World Cup in Test rugby. As soon as one World Cup ends, teams…
A family went on holiday last summer and a neighbour was tasked with looking after their grandma and cat. A few days later, the…
In 2015 a disturbing trend was identified by the great Southern Hemisphere rugby powers: the English were finally producing the standard of young player…
Happy New Year, everybody! After a refreshing Christmas I’m ready to start thinking about rugby again, how about you? We’re now halfway through the…
As we all know, the current Sydney COVID outbreak, its offspring outbreaks in other Australian states and New Zealand, and the varying responses of…
He was right to go out to bat for his team, but he went about it the wrong way. One of the strengths of his era was how united the All Blacks were in adversity.
'I had my time': Cane stands down as All Blacks captain after signing new deal in Japan
Huh?
'I had my time': Cane stands down as All Blacks captain after signing new deal in Japan
Todd was a good hard working kiwi 7 who wouldn’t have let anyone down but was four years older than Cane and didn’t have the same potential. You have to think about the future when you’re selecting the understudy to someone who will play 80 minutes of any game of consequence.
McCaw’s game moved on from getting breakdown turnovers to leading the line. More importantly though, Cane was a hard working warrior which we lacked in the loose forwards under Foster and Plumtree. Unless Barrett or an on his game Frizzel was at six he was often having to do the job of two flankers on both attack and defence which isn’t sustainable at test level.
'I had my time': Cane stands down as All Blacks captain after signing new deal in Japan
Fair point… They still must rate Gus though to give him such a big game.
The Wrap: Spare a thought for injured players as Super Rugby’s two rutting rhinos deliver an epic final preview
Huh?
'I had my time': Cane stands down as All Blacks captain after signing new deal in Japan
He played a few games in January, that’s all.
'I had my time': Cane stands down as All Blacks captain after signing new deal in Japan
Three factors did for him in the eyes of a significant portion of the NZ public.
First, he played the same position as McCaw, and nobody’s as good as him. He was the closest we’ve had though.
Second, came from the same Super franchise as the deeply unpopular Foster, and the fact that in general Chiefs players weren’t exactly over-represented under him didn’t seem to register.
Third, a lot of people couldn’t see how important he was to the balance of the team. His his sheer bravery and his ability to lead the defensive line, make a ton of tackles and quickly hit a ton of offensive breakdowns didn’t show on the highlights reel.
'I had my time': Cane stands down as All Blacks captain after signing new deal in Japan
Gus has been given SA v Ireland ahead of BOK so someone must like him!
The Wrap: Spare a thought for injured players as Super Rugby’s two rutting rhinos deliver an epic final preview
Because people have heard of him
'Nothing's a short-term fix': Schmidt seeks to bring 'fragmented' Wallabies together, says Beale is 'finding feet'
On a three match winning run!
The Wrap: Spare a thought for injured players as Super Rugby’s two rutting rhinos deliver an epic final preview
I’ve been thinking that about Hannah too. We have too many sub 2m top locks.
The Wrap: Spare a thought for injured players as Super Rugby’s two rutting rhinos deliver an epic final preview
Morning Geoff, thanks again for your work! A Welsh friend and Canes fan was disappointed that the tries in the big match weren’t as thrilling as days gone by, but I love that Cotter has turned the fragile Blues into a tough ship that must be battered because it can’t be finished off easily (I forget the Alistair McLean quote about cruisers from HMS Ulysses.)
A resilient Blues can only be good for our rugby, especially considering where the Crusaders are at the moment.
The Wrap: Spare a thought for injured players as Super Rugby’s two rutting rhinos deliver an epic final preview
Unique stadium, unique crowd, I love it! It would be great if the proposed Christchurch indoor stadium has rival zoo equivalents for Lincoln and Canterbury.
The Wrap: Spare a thought for injured players as Super Rugby’s two rutting rhinos deliver an epic final preview
Great that this tournament exists and let’s hope that we’re finally getting together at youth level. They need more games together through the age groups but thankfully we’re seeing potential test quality.
The Wrap: Spare a thought for injured players as Super Rugby’s two rutting rhinos deliver an epic final preview
Let’s hope that those two 21yo kids don’t get too much hype but it’s great to see them come through. Good to see Millar kicking so clinically and developing his passing game.
The Wrap: Spare a thought for injured players as Super Rugby’s two rutting rhinos deliver an epic final preview
They don’t have to get rid of the NPC, just reduce the wage bill.
'We would like him back': Razor plotting to bring back Richie as NZR open up on eligiblity, Sio staying put
WR understand that some RWCs make more than others. They don’t budget for 2023 levels every time.
'We would like him back': Razor plotting to bring back Richie as NZR open up on eligiblity, Sio staying put
You’re just supporting my point Brendan. France (& probably SA) had to pay over the odds because they had to beat each other. Australia had a free run.
'We would like him back': Razor plotting to bring back Richie as NZR open up on eligiblity, Sio staying put
They’re shifting spending from NPC to community rugby. Paying the top players isn’t the problem, it’s all those NPC players who aren’t at SR level.
'We would like him back': Razor plotting to bring back Richie as NZR open up on eligiblity, Sio staying put
He certainly looked good with good sized skilful players like the Barretts and Roigard around him. I agree, there’s a gap behind him.
'We would like him back': Razor plotting to bring back Richie as NZR open up on eligiblity, Sio staying put
You really are determined to to destroy NZ and Aussie professional rugby so that we can continue send players to Ireland to make up most of your backline 😂
'We would like him back': Razor plotting to bring back Richie as NZR open up on eligiblity, Sio staying put
That’s fair enough when it comes to Australia, considering that there’s been more than one in recent years!
'We would like him back': Razor plotting to bring back Richie as NZR open up on eligiblity, Sio staying put
It’s hard to take you seriously today Jez. In your “g’day” post you use spurious, misleading examples and when I point out the flaws you come back with childish emojis without addressing anything I said, apart from muddying the waters on Qatar. Come on mate, you’ve always been better than that.
I’m not saying that everything is ok, but the Lions and RWC should easily clear RA’s debts. We can disagree as to how they should live within their means in future – longer season, fewer teams, lower wages, domestic only etc – but you’re totally over-egging the starting point.
'We would like him back': Razor plotting to bring back Richie as NZR open up on eligiblity, Sio staying put
He’s clearly a great coach but the evidence is that he’d make a poor administrator.
'We would like him back': Razor plotting to bring back Richie as NZR open up on eligiblity, Sio staying put
Yes Boshier Jr has done a good job but he’s a level or two below Cane. I was expecting Sam to come back next year so that’s a real blow going forward. Best of luck to BoP in the NPC!
I’m surprised that you think that the Chiefs were over-represented under Foster… If anyone I’d say that the Blues were
'I had my time': Cane stands down as All Blacks captain after signing new deal in Japan