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NZR GM backs Aussies to have ‘really strong’ Super Rugby Pacific season
It’s been almost 10 years since Australian fans rejoiced in celebration as one of their beloved Super Rugby franchises won a trans-Tasman competition against their Kiwi foes.
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Playmaker Bernard Foley nailed a long-range penalty which saw the NSW Waratahs pip the Crusaders by just one point at Stadium Australia, Sydney.
But that feels like a long time ago. New Zealand franchises – notably the Crusaders who have won seven titles in as many years – have dominated the competition, and they’ve shown little to no signs of slowing down.
The Chiefs hosted eventual champions the Crusaders in this year’s decider at FMG Stadium Waikato, and both New Zealand sides are among the favourites to take out the crown in 2024.
As for the Australian sides, they only won six games against Kiwi opposition this season, and the Wallabies went on to bow out of the Rugby World Cup in the pool stage.
But New Zealand Rugby’s general manager of professional rugby and performance, Chris Lendrum, is “confident” that the Australian sides will put up a fight next season.
“Clearly the World Cup was a low ebb for Australian rugby, but I don’t think it’s representative at all of the talent base that they have there, or indicative of how their teams will perform in Super Rugby Pacific,” Lendrum said, as reported by Stuff.
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“These things come in cycles.
“There are clubs that have largely maintained their squad base from 2023, so they’ll be able to build with some cohesion, and then there’s a club like the Reds that have got an infusion of new talent out of a pretty strong academy system.
“We’re confident that the Australian teams will play a really strong part in the competition in 2024.”
All 12 Super Rugby Pacific clubs announced their squads for the upcoming campaign earlier this week, with the Brumbies appearing to be the team to beat in Australia.
The traditional Australian powerhouse has named a familiar squad for next season, but the departures of Wallabies Pete Samu and Nic White are major talking points.
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Meanwhile, across the ditch, some New Zealand franchises will sail through unchartered waters in 2024 as they usher in a new dawn without some of their icon players.
Brodie Retallick and Brad Weber have left the Chiefs, and All Blacks captain Sam Cane will miss the season after taking up a sabbatical in Japan.
Hurricanes fans will also have to wait more than a year to see World Rugby Player of the Year Ardie Savea run out in the treasured yellow jersey in Super Rugby, with the backrower also heading abroad for a stint in Japan.
“It’s a big void. He’s the best player in the world. He’s a leader, he’s captained the All Blacks, and he’s an outstanding man,” Hurricanes coach Clark Laidlaw said about Savea’s absence in 2024.
“We’re going to miss him, but hopefully he’s not gone forever. He will be back and hopefully, he can enjoy his time in Japan with Dave Rennie and the team.”
Comments on RugbyPass
Can’t wait for the article that talks about misogyny in Ireland. Somehow.
11 Go to commentsI would like to see a rule change, when the attacking team is held up over the try line, by allowing the defensive team to restart a goal line drop out releases the pressure for the defensive team, but what if the attacking team had to restart a tap 5m out from the defensive team it gives the attacking team to apply more pressure, there are endless options for the attacking side and it will keep the fans in suspence.
2 Go to commentsLess modern South African males predictably triggered.
11 Go to commentsMy heart is with Quins, but the head is convinced Toulouse have too much. Ntamack is back, his timing and wisdom has been missed.
1 Go to commentsWow, what a starting line up for the Sharks) Tasty up front,kremer vs Tshituka or venter …fiery ,,Lavannini ,,will he knobble etzebeth? Biggest game for belleau?
1 Go to commentsIt was rubbish to watch, Blues weren’t even present. Did what they had to do, nothing more. Should be better next week against canes.
1 Go to commentsI’ve just noticed that this match has an all-French refereeing team. Surely a game like this ought to have a neutral ref? Although looking at the BBC preview of the Saints game, Raynal is also down as reffing that - so there may be some confusion about who is reffing what.
1 Go to commentsIf Havili can play anywhere in the back line, why not first 5. #10.
11 Go to commentsThe dressing room had already left for their summer break before they ran out in Dublin that year, and that’s on the coach. Franco Smith has undoubtedly made progress, particularly their maul, developing squad players and increasing squad depth. And against a very tight budget too. That said they were too lightweight last year and got found out against both Toulon and Munster in consecutive games. Better this season so far but they’ve developed something of a slow start habit occasionally, most notably losing at home to Northampton who played them at their own game. Play offs will ultimately show whether there has been tangible progress on last year, or not…!
2 Go to commentsAustralian Rugby has been a disaster, by not incorporating learning from previous successful campaigns. QLD Reds 2011 - Waratahs 2014. Players, coaches and administrators appoint there representatives for scheduled meetings, organisation’s agreement’s assessments and correspondence. This why a unified Rugby Union under one entity works. Every Rugby nation has taken that path. Was most difficult in the Northern hemisphere with over 100 years of club rugby before the game become professional. Took a lot of humility for those unions to eventually work together.
7 Go to commentsThough Wilson’s sacking was pretty brutal, it wasn’t just down to that Leinster game; Glasgow had a lot of 2nd half collapses that season, in the URC and Europe, and only just scraped into the playoffs. Franco Smith has definitely been an improvement, some players are delivering far more than they did under Wilson.
2 Go to commentsjesus - that front 5!
1 Go to commentsShould be an absolute cracker of a game! Will be great to see DuPont & Ntamack in tandem once again🔥
1 Go to commentsBest team ever…. To have played? These guys are still pressure chokers. Came nowhere when it counted. What a joke
81 Go to commentsMusk defends anonymous terrorism, fascism, threats against individuals and children etc etc But a Rugby club account….lock ‘em up!!!
1 Go to commentsActually the era defining moment came a few years earlier. February 2002 to be precise, when Michael D Higgins as finance minister at the time introduced his sports persons tax relief bill to the dial. As the politicians of the day stated “It seems to be another daft K Club frolic born in Kildare amongst the well-paid professional jockeys with whom the Minister plays golf” and that the scheme represented “a savage uncaring vision of Ireland and one that should be condemned”. The irfu and Leinster would be nowhere near the position they are in today without this key component of the finances.
5 Go to commentsIt is crystal clear that people who make such threats on line should be tried and imprisoned. Those with responsibility in social media companies who don’t facilitate this should be convicted. In real life, I have free speech to approach someone like Reinach and verbally threaten him. I am risking a conviction or a slap but I could do it. In the old days, If someone anonymously threatened someone by letter the police would ask and use evidence from the postal system. Unlike the Post, social media companies have complete instant and legal access to the content in social media. They make money from the data, billions. Yet, they turn a blind eye to terrorism, Nazi-ism and industrial levels of threats against individuals including their address and childrens schools being published online all from ananoymous accounts not real people. They claim free speech. Free speech for anonymous trolls/voilent thugs threatening people under false names? The fault is with the perps but also social media companies who think anonymous personas posting death threats constitutes free speech.
2 Go to commentsSo if this ain’t the best Irish team ever then who exactly is? I don’t remember any other Irish team being this good & winning a series in the Land of the Long White Cloud. Yes I may rip them often for 8 X QF RWC exits & twice not even making it to the QF, but they’re a damn good team who many think can only improve, including me!
81 Go to commentsNot a squeek out of Leinster for weeks about this match. So quiet. The first team have been quitely building for this encounter under Nienaber’s direction. All fresh, all highly motivated. They are expecting a season’s best performance from Northhampton. They will match that. They will be fresher and apparently they will have 80,000 out of the 83,000 shouting for them. I do expect Northhampton to turn up big time. Not to be missed. On a tangent it is evident how the loss of a few Premiership teams has in some respect helped other Premiership teams and England. More quality over less teams makes the teams better, which has a knock on effect on England. Not the only factor contributing to England’s rise but one of them.
5 Go to commentsOur very own monster teddy bear Ox😍💪
17 Go to comments