'I'm hearing a bit of razzle, they are just going to throw the kitchen sink' - South preparing for an ambush of the favoured North
Saturday night’s North vs South clash, the first since 2012, has brought anticipation and intrigue around what will unfold when New Zealand’s best players go head-to-head.
Speaking on this week’s Aotearoa Rugby Pod, Blues duo Tony Lamborn and James Parsons joined Crusader Bryn Hall to discuss how intense they think the clash will be, and whether there will be fireworks despite most of the players being teammates at their Super Rugby franchises.
“I’m hearing a bit of razzle, they are just going to throw the kitchen sink,” Lamborn said of what he had heard from the South Island squad.
A highlight of the week’s lead-up was a back-and-forth in the media between Anton Lienert-Brown and his brother Dan, who have been placed on opposite teams despite growing up together in the South Island. Lamborn scored the first round to Dan over the supposed tackle discussed by the two in the media from the Chiefs-Highlanders game in Super Rugby Aotearoa.
“I did see the clip with the Lienert-Brown boys, I actually thought Daniel got the better of him there. Anton tries to put a shot on, but his brother is bigger and stronger mate. You are going nowhere,” opined Lamborn.
“I would say, knowing Anton [Lienert-Brown], he’s going to be searching for him,” predicted Blues hooker Parsons.
“There seems to be a good brotherly rivalry there but also not just between them, there has been some good banter by the coaches, the players, it does lead into quite a fierce rivalry I suppose.
“It is all tongue and cheek Monday to Thursday, but I think around Friday-Saturday it will be all business and it will be all on.”
Hall explained that playing against your club teammates adds a little bit extra, as you never want to have to deal with your teammates having one over you. The ramifications of losing could be held over you for up to a year.
“I saw Gus [North Island prop Angus Ta’avao] go into the South changing room on All Blacks TV, and getting a bit of chirp there but those competitors want to get the better of it, especially when you come up against teammates that are in different camps, any chance to get a little win in contact or cheap shot, or the W, it holds well over the next year.
“I just think it’s going to be an epic game of footy to watch,” Blues flanker Lamborn said.
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A number of young players have the opportunity to impress the All Black selectors, including Bryn Hall’s Crusader teammates Will Jordan and Tom Christie who he said were excited for the challenge ahead.
“Will Jordan’s performances probably speak for themselves, and warrant, potentially an All Blacks selection, but Tom Christie has also done extremely well to get the selection but probably a little bit down the pecking order,” said Parsons.
“It’s a massive opportunity to show his wares, in terms of his prep during the week and then playing.”
Hall predicted that Tom Christie would be one who will thrive inside the All Black-like environment.
“He’s a hard worker, he’s got leadership capabilities and obviously captained New Zealand under-20s so just his general professionalism for a young man is pretty impressive. I think for him, it was time in the saddle, playing big minutes and finding out a few things to have a good understanding of what it takes at Super Rugby level.
“He’s a guy that is going to probably flourish in that environment.”
The opportunity to impress selectors can lead to younger players trying to do too much, and Lamborn warned against trying to overplay the game. When asked about who could potentially fall into that trap, he highlighted two contenders for the All Blacks 15 jersey.
“That Will Jordan, he’s pretty sharp. If he gets a crack I think he could be one that could overplay his hand a little bit,” he said.
“I think Damian McKenzie has a lot to prove as well. He’s been out of that mix now for a long time and he’s got a jersey to play for. He could overplay, try too hard and try do things himself. I don’t see the selectors enjoying that too much.
“Other than that, it’s a good opportunity for the boys to put their hand up and give it a good crack.”
Another explosive area for competition is the loose forwards, where the North Island side held an enormous amount of depth.
“I’m looking forward to the loose forward trio of the North. There is just a lot of good guys in that squad. They are pretty stacked, that’s one selection that I’m looking forward to seeing. A lot of those Blues boys, Akira and Hoskins are deserving,” said Hall.
“You got Boshier in there, you got Ardie, it’s going to be hard-fought to get a spot,” added Parsons.
Comments on RugbyPass
Beautiful shot from Finau, end of story. Gutted for Shaun Stevenson though.
4 Go to commentsThe Chiefs definitely didn’t win ugly. They had the superior scrum, a dominant lineout, and their defence was excellent once the Waratahs scored their two tries (thanks to some lucky refereeing calls mind you). They put pressure on the Waratahs lineout throughout the game, and the mind boggles as to why the referee did not award a yellow card or a penalty try against the Waratahs for repeated scrum infringements on their own try line before Narawa’s first try. And the Chiefs were slick with their passing and running angles on attack. It was a dominant performance all round, even with many questionable refereeing decisions.
1 Go to commentsWasnt late. Ref 2 assistants andTMO all saw it so who are you to say it was?
4 Go to commentsAre the Brumbies playing the Blues twice in a row?
4 Go to commentsBig difference from the Saders. Forwards really muscled up and laid a solid platform. Scooter brought some steel and I liked the loosie combination. Newell has been rather disappointing this season but stepped up big time - happy also to see Franks dot down. He should do that more often! Reihana had a good game and there seems to be more flair and invention with him in the saddle. McNicoll plays well from the back and is reliable plus inventive when he joins the line. Keep it up chaps!
3 Go to comments🤦♂️🤣 who cares who’s the best . All I know is the All Blacks have the star coach but have few star players now …
30 Go to commentsJe suis sûr que Farrell est impatient de jouer avec Lopez et Machenaud et d’être entraîné par Collazo… 🤭
1 Go to commentsAn on field red (aka a full red) in SRP must surely carry a bigger suspension than a red card given by the bunker as that carries a 20 minute team punishment. Had Damon Murphy abdicated his responsibility as a ref and issued both Drua players a yellow, which would have been upgraded to a 20 minute red by the bunker, that would have killed Australia and New Zealand’s push for the 20 minute red to be trialled globally from July this year.
11 Go to commentsEver so often you all post a Danny Care story that isn’t the announcement that he has finally re-signed for one more, victory tour season at Quins and I’m just like, “well you fooled me again!” My absolute favorite player ever, we need to make his final year at the Stoop (and Twickers) official already. I know he supposedly snubbed France but I won’t feel better until he signs.
1 Go to commentslate hit what late hit it wasn’t at all late and can clearly see he was committed before the tackle
4 Go to commentsChristian Lio -Willies 2 try perfomance was a standout. As was captain Scott Barrett. Up front was where the boys won it.They are a great team and players. Fantastic Crusaders , you can keep going.
3 Go to commentsI don't know how the locals feel about that? I guess if you call yourselves the Worcester Wasps that might be appease. But really we need more teams in the Premiership in my view so they are not padding it out as they are at the moment. It might curtail so many players going abroad as well
5 Go to commentsNZ 😭😭😭is certainly rivaling England for best whingers cup!😭😭😭 !!!
30 Go to commentsYup. New Zealand won 3 out of 10 world cups played. SA 4 out of 8 attempts 30 Vs 50 per cent.🤔🤔
30 Go to commentsShould've done this years ago. Change Saturday kick off times to around 11am. Up and off and back home before 3pm, limit travel time too. Allows players to actually do something else with their Saturday that's family oriented or being rugby fans they could ‘watch’ pro rugby. Increases crowds etc. How can anyone that enjoys grassroots and pro rugby have to choose between the two on Saturdays?
9 Go to commentsI bet he inspired those supporters just as much.
1 Go to commentsBen Smith Springboks living rent free in his head 😊😂
67 Go to commentsGood to hear he would like to play the game at the highest level, I hadn’t been to sure how much of a motivator that was before now. Sadly he’s probably chosen the rugby club to go to. Try not to worry about all the input about how you should play rugby Joey and just try to emulate what you do on the league field and have fun. You’ll limit your game too much (well not really because he’s a standard athlete like SBW and he’ll still have enough) if you’re trying to make sure you can recycle the ball back etc. On the other hard, you can totally just try and recycle by looking to offload any and everywhere if you’re going to ground 😋
1 Go to commentsThis just proves that theres always a stat and a metric to use to justify your abilities and your success. Ben did it last week by creating an imaginary competition and now you did the same to counter his argument and espouse a new yardstick for success. Why not just use the current one and lets say the Boks have won 4 world cups making them the most successful world cup team. Outside of the world cup the All Blacks are the most successful team winning countless rugby championships and dominating the rankings with high win percentages. Over the last 4 years statistically the Irish are the best having the highest win rate and also having positive records against every tier 1 side. The most successful Northern team in the game has been England with a world cup title and the most six nations titles in history. The AB’s are the most dominant team in history with the highest win rate and 3 world cups. Lets not try to reinvent the wheel. Just be honest about the actual stats and what each team has been good at doing and that will be enough to define their level of success.
30 Go to commentsHow is 7’s played there? I’m surprised 10 or 11 man rugby hasn’t taken off. 7 just doesn’t fit the 15s dynamics (rules n field etc) but these other versions do.
9 Go to comments