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'We’ll pick our best team available': All Blacks confirm they want to dominate Boks
All Blacks assistant coach Jason Ryan has no qualms about sending out the best players against the Springboks this week as the team prepares in London for the Twickenham Test.
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As the rugby world processes the fallout from warm-up matches that has seen key injuries and red cards to star players, Ryan has reiterated the sentiment shared by Ian Foster that a full strength All Black team will take the field.
The Springboks can expect ‘the best team available’ from the men in black which means the sellout crowd will be treated to a spectacle.
The All Blacks are searching for their fifth win this year from five Tests, the 12th game in this undefeated streak and a third straight win over South Africa.
“We’ll pick our best team available… we’re looking forward to a good physical contest against the Springboks,” Ryan said.
“It’s exactly what we need heading into our first World Cup game.”
There does not seem to be any concerns from the All Black coaches over potential injuries despite Brodie Retallick and Shannon Frizell already sidelined for this fixture.
France have lost key playmaker and No 10 Romain Ntamack to an ACL injury before a ball has been kicked at the Rugby World Cup, while England are yet to know the fate of Owen Farrell and Billy Vunipola after red cards.
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Head-to-Head
Last 5 Meetings
Wins
2
Draws
0
Wins
3
Average Points scored
20
23
First try wins
60%
Home team wins
40%
The All Blacks assistant coach said that they team wants to maintain a mental edge ahead of the World Cup campaign and keep a ‘dominant’ mindset.
“You’re always going to get injuries and your squad is always going to get tested,” Ryan said.
“You’ve just got to have a dominant mindset.
“If you’re hesitant in anything you do, that’s when you get injuries. That’s how we’re going to prepare.”
“We’ve shown plenty of our game, as other teams have.
“You’ve still got to get those momentum shifts and those big pressure moments which are quite important in Test matches, especially at this time of year heading into that World Cup which is right here now.”
The former Crusaders assistant was cut and dry on the latest controversy surrounding England’s high tackles, saying the rules are ‘obvious’ and must be adhered to.
“There have been a lot of cards, clearly, but the rules are pretty obvious aren’t they? You’ve just got to stay away from the head,” he said.
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Comments on RugbyPass
I can see how some of the Irish players would have said”see you in the final” as a gentle comment after a victory. It’s open to interpretation but it’s clumsy language. I don’t know the fella but I assure you Eben doesn’t have an axe to grind with Ireland. He has never been the media seeking pro. Oh and BTW it is I’ll be our winter in July so won’t be wet.
5 Go to comments*McCloskey*: _I saw this clip. Like, I wasn’t playing that game; I was in the stands…so you don't know sh!t in other words, infact you know just as much as Goode on this matter. I will believe the guy who was on the pitch when things were said as appose to two people speculating over what was said._
5 Go to comments@ turlough dream on buddy. Your boys are in for one tough time down in sa this summer…
5 Go to commentsI think Goode is looking to establish a platform for himself. Eben said “Probably” so that suggests he wasn’t counting. It’s an estimate Goode. I think even with your short and uneventful experience with the Sharks you probably realise winding up Saffas will get you some airtime. It’s a none event. Move on
5 Go to commentsRugby has never been as structured and synthetically pleasing as it is at this moment. The game is simply beautiful and messing with it too much will ruin it for everyone. I can't help but feel that over the past decade or so many rules have been changed to accommodate a certain hemisphere and counter another. Perhaps I am wrong but I somehow don’t think so.
2 Go to commentsNoted some excellent defensive steals from the Rebs last week against the Reds, largely J Canham, I think. It’s not a Rolls Royce but they are a real threat with their defensive line out at the beginning matches. What do you make of Canham Nick, WBs squad material?
80 Go to commentsCoin flip between Ardie and Scott Barrett. Both have their pros and cons, and both would probably be decent. Ardie has way more passion on the field, but that hasn’t always translated into the best decisions. They will both turn 34 at the next World Cup, so both will most likely have their best days a few years behind them. It’s hard to imagine now, but looking at young players coming through Ardie will probably be under the most pressure to retain his place in the team. Beauden Barrett also an outside chance if Razor sees him as the first choice 10.
5 Go to commentsQuality stuff from Flats. Rugby can’t replace football nor should we want it to. I think the ‘product’ (awful term sorry) now is absolutely fantastic. Growing the game shouldn’t be at the expense of losing its brutal beauty.
2 Go to commentsI think they’ll choose Scott Barret as captain, Ardie 7, Hoskins 8, Finau at 6.
5 Go to commentsSo what were saying is if you make it through to the play offs in Europe you’re likely to suffer at the tail end of the prem. No extra cash for playing in Europe, more chance of injury, fatiguing the team…while others not through rest up. whats the point??
1 Go to commentsClaims that Finau is a risky proposition are hyperbole. His tackles have been mostly perfectly timed and executed except for the Lynach one and that was a split-second out, certainly not 2 seconds. Social media criticism shows opposition fans are nervous about Finau’s impact. I see Jacobson and Blackadder as no.7s, they don’t have the power, size or dynamism to be 6 or 8 at Test level. Akira has shown he lacks the intuition and technique to play Tests. If he learnt to bend his back more and hit breakdowns and tackles low and hard, it would do wonders for his game. Finau is the standout option for 6 with Grace or Shields as his backup. I’d like to see Finau, Sotutu and Jacobson as an experimental back-row combo; lineout nous, dynamic ball carrying, hard defence, etc.
41 Go to commentsI find these articles so very interesting, giving a much more in depth series of insights than one can ever gain from “desktop” research. It is very significant that it is this English man that Joe Schmidt has turned to build the basement stability and reliability from the WB forwards that was so shredded during the Jones debacle. With his long period in Ireland, with both Leinster and Ireland, Schmidt will know Geoff Parling’s qualities as a player well, and he will have gone over, with a fine tooth comb, the mans time in Australia. This, one feels, will prove to be a shrewd decision. I’m particularly interested in Parling’s comments about the lineout, especially the differences in approach between the hemispheres. He talks about the impact of weather conditions on the type of lineout tactics employed. He is the right man to have preparing for a wet and windy game at Eden Park, the “Cake Tin”, or in Christchuch, or for that matter in Capetown. I must confess to being surprised by this comment though re Will Skelton: “ Is he a lineout jumper? No. But the lineout starts on the ground – contact work, lifting, utilising that massive body at the maul.” Geoff is spot on about the work Will does on the ground. But I would contest the view that he is not a lineout jumper. I think I have commented before on this one, so won’t go further than referring to the end of the last Cup Final in Dublin, LAR using Will on maybe 3 occasions at No 2 in the lineout. And I have seen him used by LAR in Top 14, and never seen him beaten to the catch…but in reality that would only be a total of 10 times max.
80 Go to commentsDaltons a great guy and can lead at any level with that humility
5 Go to commentsWell if Parling is an Australian citizen then I suppose that’s OK. It’s more than can be said for The Hobbit in Absentia. I’m guessing Jordan Useless won’t be getting a call up to the Wallabies then because the Melbourne Rebels lineout coached by Parling has been a complete disaster. Parling had better prove himself or it’s out. He’ll be flattered by having one of the best lineout operators in world rugby in Rodda hopefully. If Parling can teach the Wallabies one thing it would be to also teach Australian players to make a serious effort on charge downs. Only Frost and Rodda make an effort. The rest are half hearted and lazy, bar Harry Wilson’s effort last week. There are lots of big missed opportunities.
80 Go to commentsGreat read thanks and glad he’s committed to Aus rugby! The comment from the no 8 saying he’s never done lineouts before doesn’t surprise me. There often isn’t the same upbringing with rugby here as there is in nz and parts of Europe. Seems like he’s doing a great job at the Rebels
80 Go to commentsScott Barrett. End of story.
2 Go to commentsDu Plessis Kirifi will not be selected by the All Blacks. He is nowhere near 6’0” tall. He looks good in Super Rugby in wide open , fast pace rugby. That is not Test rugby. He would be rag dolled by South Africa, Ireland, France, and England.
7 Go to commentsIt’s Razor so Blackadder and Grace for starters. Although on second thoughts K Read looked in great shape on TV the other day.
41 Go to commentsGreat piece Nick, plenty to chew on. Loved this ‘biases’ line from Geoff, shows he is a thinker - “If you asked me for a shortlist of coaches who appealed to my biases, he would be on it.” I think Schmidt is towing a similar line to Rennie in regards to OS players, he is publicly saying he prefers local talent, but almost certainly will be fighting to have the likes of skelton in the team. Interesting to hear the backroom on the rebels and what a cockup that is, just when you think RA admin has hit rock bottom it digs deeper. Other bit that caught my eye was his skills focus on things like passing from 7s at the base of the lineout, great little details. but also scary that a SR level 8 didn’t know how to operate within a lineout - telling!
80 Go to commentsThoroughly enjoyed this thanks Nick. ‘The lineout starts on the ground…’ wish I’d thought of that line when discussing Will’s place in the Wallabies.
80 Go to comments