Why the Blues' triple playmaker experiment wasn't successful despite victory over Bulls
The Blues will be counting down the days, and probably the minutes, until the coming of Beauden Barrett.
Despite some media claiming the ‘experiment’ of fielding three playmakers against the Bulls in Pretoria was a success, a close review of the tape showed that not to be the case.
Individually, Stephen Perofeta at fullback and Otere Black played well, the latter slotting the late winning goal. But Harry Plummer’s impact at second five was negligible. Not that he played poorly, but he is just not suited to the No 12 jersey, even if he can tackle well enough and pass well.
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Black was unavailable due to injury for the Blues’ opening three games. His forte is his goalkicking, and he came up trumps in the clutch at Loftus on a return of three from five off the tee. However, his kicking for touch, like Plummer’s, is iffy. That was the case at Loftus, but why this should be so is as mysterious as why the Blues have made the playoffs just twice in the last 16 seasons.
That said, Black did several good things against the Bulls. His crosskick for Matt Duffie, superbly taken by the wing, led to Stephen Perofeta’s try, and his thrust and pass ignited the Blues on their final play before he stepped up and silenced the Loftus faithful.
But let’s be clear: Otere Black is not going to fire this Blues backline, which has speed merchants such as Joe Marchant and Mark Telea champing at the bit for space. Black has never passed fluently, but his kicking off the tee means he will have to wear the No 10 jersey until Barrett’s return in around six weeks.
Plummer was used as a sub in the first three games before slotting into the No 12 jersey. In theory, the move made sense as the rain fell in Pretoria, but we saw no wipers kicking from Plummer and just the one high ball/bomb. He did, however, save a try with his commitment on the tackle.
His all-round play has not kicked on since he played a mature role in Auckland’s 2018 Mitre 10 Cup triumph. His goalkicking, once such a strength of his game, tailed away in 2019, and he has three from five in 2020, as first Perofeta, and now Black, have been given the primary responsibility ahead of him.
Perofeta was this scribe’s pick as the man at No 10 to see the Blues through until the advent of Barrett, but there were always question marks around his game management and tactical and goal kicking. Despite some nice patches in most outings – his first three were at first five – Perofeta’s kicking and generalship is again under the blowtorch. He did well, though, at fullback against the Bulls, away from the burden of too much decision-making, and this is where he must continue.
The Blues are cruising along ok at the moment, but adding Beauden Barrett to the mix will only improve things. #SuperRugbyhttps://t.co/VlCq5Kb8Lc
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) February 24, 2020
The two (or even three) playmaker option seems to be in vogue. The Highlanders have used it with Mitch Hunt and Josh Ioane, but it is doing Ioane’s game no good, even though, again, the idea seems sound in theory.
It works better for England with George Ford and Owen Farrell because the latter is a robust defender, when he is tackling legally, kicks accurately out of hand and off the tee.
It worked well for Auckland and the All Blacks in 1993 with Grant Fox and Lee Stensness, because the latter had an effective short kicking game and could step off either foot and break the line.
The 2020 Blues would be better off reinstating the rugged TJ Faiane, who is strong over the ball and direct in his lines, at second five, rather than persevering with the so-called two playmakers.
Even with Perofeta at fullback, it is a stretch to call him a playmaker just because he can slot in at first five. Stick with Black, let him kick the goals, and get the team to work the blind and attack from the set-piece, if stable.
The Blues must just suck it up until Barrett suits up. But Loftus was a mirage if they think they have unlocked the key to their backline fluency.
In other news:
Comments on RugbyPass
Did footballs agents also perform the scout role at some time? I’m surprised more high profile players haven’t taken up the occupation, great way to remain in the game and use all that experience without really requiring a lot of specific expertise?
1 Go to commentsSuper rugby is struggling but that has little to do with sabbaticals. 1. Too many teams from Aust and NZ - should be 3 and 4 respectively, add in 2 from Japan, 1 possibly 2 from Argentina. 2. Inconsistent and poor refereeing, admittedly not restricted to Super rugby. Only one team was reffed at the breakdown in Reds v H’Landers match. Scrum penalty awarded in Canes v Drua when No 8 had the ball in the open with little defence nearby - ideal opportunity to play advantage. Coming back to Reds match - same scrum situation but ref played advantage - Landers made 10 yards and were penalised at the breakdown when the ref should have returned to scrum penalty. 3. Marketing is weak and losing ground to AFL and NRL. Playing 2 days compared with 4. 4. Scheduling is unattractive to family attendance. Have any franchises heard of Sundays 2pm?
10 Go to commentsAbsolutely..all they need is a chance in yhe playoffs and I bet all the other teams will be nervous…THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN IM THE PLAYOFFS..
2 Go to commentsI really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.
1 Go to commentsI think we are all just hoping that the Olympic 7s doesn’t suffer the same sad fate as the last RWC with the officials ruining the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsPersonally, I’ve lost the will to even be bothered about the RFU, the structure, the participants. It’s all a sham. I now simply enjoy getting a group of friends together to go and watch a few games a year in different locations (including Europe, the championship, etc). I feel extremely sorry for the real fans of these clubs who are constantly ignored by the RFU and other administrators. I feel especially sorry for the fans of clubs in the Championship who have had considerable central funding stripped away and are then expected to just take whatever the RFU put to them. Its all a sham, especially if the failed clubs are allowed to return.
9 Go to commentsI’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
10 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
4 Go to comments“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
22 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
4 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
9 Go to commentsWell that’s the contracts for RG and Jordie bought and paid for. Now, what are the chances we can persuade Antoine to hop over with all the extra dosh we’ll have from living at the Aviva & Croke next season…??? 🤑🤑🤑
31 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
31 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
14 Go to commentsIf someone like Leo Cullen was in O’Gara’s place I don’t hear Boo-ing. It’s not just that La Rochelle has hurt Leinster and O’Gara is their Irish boss. It’s the needle that he brings and the pantomime activity before the game around pretending that Munster were supporting LaRochelle just because O’Gara is from Cork. That’s dividing Irish provinces just to get an advantage for his French Team. He can F*ck right off with that. BOOOOO! (but not while someone is lying injured)
4 Go to commentsDid the highlanders party too hard before the game? They were the pits.
1 Go to commentsWhat a player! Not long until he’s in the England side, surely?
5 Go to commentsHe seems to have the same aura as Marcus Smith - by which I mean he’s consistently judged as if he’s several years younger than he actually is. Mngomezulu has played 24 times for the Stormers. When Pollard was his age he had played 24 times for South Africa! He has more time to develop, but he has also had time to do some developing already, and he hasn’t demonstrated nearly as much talent in that time as one would expect. If he is a generational talent, then it must be a pretty poor generation.
6 Go to commentsThe greatest Springbok coach of all time is entirely on the money. Rassie and Jacques have given the south african public a great few years, but the success of the springbok selection policy will need to be judged in light of what comes next. The poor condition that the provincial system is currently in doesn’t bode well for the next few years of international rugby, and the insane 2026 schedule that the Boks have lined up could also really harm both provincial and international consistency.
22 Go to commentsJake White is a brilliant coach and a master in the press. This is another masterclass in media relations and PR but its also a very narrow view with arguments that dont always hold water. White wants his team to win, he wants the best players in SA and wants his team competitive. You however have to face up to the reality of a poor exchange rate and big clubs with big budgets. SA Rugby cant compete and unless it can find more money SA players will keep leaving regardless of Springbok eligibility and this happened in 2015 - 2017. Also rugby is not cricket. Cricket has 3 formats and T20 cricket is where the money is at. When it comes to club vs country the IPL is king but that wont happen because the international calendar does not clash with the club calendar in rugby. So the argument about rugby going down the same path as cricket is really a non-starter
22 Go to comments