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The last-minute 'phenomenal' pick-up for the Crusaders

Abraham Pole. (Photo by Kai Schwoerer/Getty Images for NZR)

While each New Zealand Super Rugby side named 38-man squads late last year for the 2022 season, already a significant number of additional players have received call-ups ahead of this weekend’s opening round of action.

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A glut of additional players have been training with each of the six NZ-based sides, from fan favourite NPC star D’Angelo Leuila with Moana Pasifika to former Highlanders Freedom Vahaakolo and Waisake Naholo with the Crusaders.

Long gone are the days where a team would need just 28 players to get through a 12-team competition, as was the case during the years of Super 12.  In 2021, the Chiefs used 45 players throughout their injury-ravaged campaign while even the least injury-affected side, the Crusaders, handed minutes to 36 players during the season (while the likes of Tom Christie and Andrew Makalio were invalided right from the get-go).

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Although the bulk of injury replacements are brought in to boost the numbers at training and then drift back into their regular lives, some use the only slightly ajar door to force their way into a bigger role and go onto thrive, such as Tupou Vaa’i, who was a late addition to the Chiefs in 2020 but had earned his first caps as an All Black by the end of that season.

The Crusaders will be hoping it’s the latter case for many of their recent call-ups and one additional player, in particular, has already made a big mark on forwards coach Jason Ryan.

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Former All Black Naholo, Bay of Plenty pivot Lucas Cashmore, Taranaki midfielder Daniel Rona, Tasman loose forward Jacob Norris and Hawke’s Bay flanker Josh Kaifa have all spent time in Crusaders camp this season, with Vahaakolo, Inga Finau, Macca Springer, Ricky Jackson and Antonio Shalfoon all featuring in the team’s latest pre-season match, a loss against the Hurricanes.

It’s a little known front-rower from Otago who’s perhaps been the biggest mover and shaker during the pre-season, however, prop loosehead Abraham Pole.

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Pole made six appearances during last season’s NPC but was likely on few coaches’ radars heading into 2022. It’s safe to say that the 20-year-old has made a big impression on Crusaders forwards coach and scrum aficionado Jason Ryan.

“He’s been outstanding,” Ryan said of the young loosehead. “His growth has been quite phenomenal.

“We hooked him out of Otago, did a little bit of homework on him. He’s gone from strength to strength.”

The nature of the beast this year, with Covid still causing significant disruptions, means that some injury call-ups could very well feature for multiple teams throughout the season. At present, the Crusaders are well stocked with looseheads, with All Blacks Joe Moody and George Bower on the roster, as well as the multi-talented Tamaiti Williams. As such, there are no guarantees that Pole will feature for the Crusaders during the season – but Ryan is confident he will still make an impact on the competition at stage or another in 2022.

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“I’ve got no doubt he’ll play Super Rugby this year,” Ryan said. “If it’s not for us, it might be for someone else. Obviously he’s in for us as injury cover and that sort of thing with a bit of depth but he’s unreal, going well.”

Pole notched up a solid half-hour of action in the Crusaders’ final pre-season against the Hurricanes – the side the Crusaders will again face off with this weekend – and scored one well-taken try in the first stanza. It would be a surprise if Pole is given a run on Saturday, given Moody had his first taste of action for the year against the Hurricanes, and George Bower is fit and ready but hasn’t managed any minutes this season, but it’s certainly not out of the realms of possibility, especially given Ryan’s obvious interest in what Pole brings to the table. The young prop is certainly one for the future, however, and could become a household name by the end of the season.

The Crusaders will face off with the Hurricanes at Forsyth Barr Stadium on Saturday evening.

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J
JW 44 minutes ago
Three former All Blacks assess the playing style adopted against France

Yep Wilson at least does a lot of such research but I think it’s only when it revolves around the All Blacks etc, like he go and find out why Ireland whipped our butt etc, and come back with a view we need to imrpove and do x y z like such and such is.


But none of them are individuals that are a) any sort of quality coach/analyst of the game (NPC the highest), or b) seem to consume stupids amount of rugby for the love of it like people in a similar profession in other top leagues. Johnson is probably the only one I would say comes close to that but is a pure fan, I don’t think he has any pro knowledge.


To be fair to them, the best in say soccer or american football would get paid a hundred times what these guys do, but it’s so hard in those markets that all panelists have to be students of the game just to get a shot. And in the case of Beaver, he is like the Ian Smith of cricket, he’s a knowledgable gu, enough to lead people down the wrong track (they would believe him), but they’re both very obvious in their more parochial opinions that you know to take what Beavers saying with a grain of salt. Wilson, Marshall, and even Mils go off like they think theyre the bees knees,


Admittedly things are changing globably, i’ve glimpsed enough football shows to know the Britsih media are happy, and the fans too soaking it up, getting the most high profile ex players on a show as the best way to increase ratings.

13 Go to comments
J
JW 1 hour ago
Beauden Barrett weighs in on controversial yellow card

It’s an interesting question because a normal diberate knock on is just a penalty offense, an normal infringement like any other, so that’s deemed where the was not a reasonable chance to catch the ball.


But it’s a ruling that can also be upgraded to a foul, and by association, a yellow card, when it’s it was also deliberately trying to deny the ball to another player. For instance, that is why they are just given penalties up the field, because the player has just made a bad decision (one where he had no reasonable chance) and he doesn’t really care if the pass had gone to hand for his opponents or not (he was just thinking about being a hero etc).


So the way the refs have been asked to apply the law is to basically just determine whether there was an overlap (and not to try and guess what the player was actually thinking) or not, as to whether it’s a penalty or a YC.


This is the part Barrett doesn’t like, he’s essentially saying “but I had no idea whether they were likely to score or not (whether there was an unmarked man), so how can you tell me I was deliberately trying to prevent it going to someone, it could have been a blind pass to no one”.


It’s WR trying to make it clear cut for fans and refs, if at the players expense.

But yes, also you must think it entirely possible given both were foul plays that they could both go to the bench. Much the same as we see regularly when even though the play scores a try, they have started sending the player off still.


And while I agree Narawa didn’t knock it on, I think the ball did go forward, just off the shoulder. As his hands were up in the air, above the ball, basically like a basketball hope over his right shoulder, I guess you’re right in that if it did make contact with his hands it would have had to be deflected backwards onto his shoulder etc. Looking at the replay, Le Garrec clearly lost control of the ball forward too, but because Barrett was deemed to have committed a deliberate act, that overrides the knockon from 9.


I just don’t understand how they can consider it a deliberate attempt to block a pass when he actually lost the ball forward!

45 Go to comments
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