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Roger Tuivasa-Sheck could return to NRL next season

By Ned Lester
Roger Tuivasa-Sheck /Photo by Hannah Peters/Getty Images

Roger Tuivasa-Sheck may have at least one NRL contract on the table for next season, Sir John Kirwan reported on Sky’s The Breakdown on Sunday night.

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The former Daley M (the NRL’s MVP award) winner could elect to leave rugby union should he continue to struggle for meaningful minutes on the All Blacks‘ northern tour.

The Blues midfielder earned an All Blacks selection in his debut Super Rugby campaign but has managed to take the field just twice on the international stage, both being in short appearances off the bench.

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The panel were discussing consistency in selection when Kirwan revealed the “whisper”:

“Little whisper is that there is a contract on the table for Roger Tuivasa-Sheck back at the Roosters,” Kirwin said. “If he feels at the end of the northern tour that maybe…”

The panel then speculated that there would be more than one contract on offer if NRL clubs sniffed a potential return for the star fullback.

“Well that’d be disappointing if that’s the case,” Jeff Wilson replied. “I can understand there’d be frustration around this.

“We certainly haven’t seen the best of him on a rugby field yet because he hasn’t had the opportunity.

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“But like you say, time is running out and where do those opportunities lie?”

Tuivasa-Sheck has made 12 appearances for the Blues in addition to his five recent NPC caps with Auckland.

The All Blacks will name a 36-man squad for their Northern Tour with four tests against tier one nations to be played over late October and November.

“I think the hardest thing is, we’re just running out of time, so I want to see Roger get a decent crack,” Kirwan continued.

“I understand why he didn’t get on last night… bonus point… there’s a lot going on, we’ve got to win the [Rugby Championship].

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“But the northern tour, he probably shouldn’t play against Japan, we need to see him against Scotland or Wales where it’s a big test match.

“If you picked him as your midfield right now, he’s probably the last on the bus. Anton Lienert-Brown you know, Jordie [Barret] is now playing 12, David Havili’s back…”

Tuivasa-Sheck’s place in the pecking order took another hit last week when Jordie Barrett was named to start at second five in the second Bledisloe test.

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Barrett’s stellar performance could see him battle David Havili for the starting role while experienced campaigner Anton Lienert-Brown-Brwon is expected to return from injury in time to join the team for their trip to Asia and Europe.

Mils Muliaina had sympathy for the situation.

“The circumstances haven’t helped Roger,” Muliaina said. “Because ideally Fozzie would have wanted to win, to get him some time during that Irish series, the thing that he’s lacking at the moment, is time.

“Time in terms of, not having to second think where he has to go over the ball, where all our second fives are doing that, he hasn’t played rugby for a long time, those are sorts of stuff, when he has to kick.

“At the moment, his attacking game is outstanding but it’s just those little things that you don’t have to think about when you’ve been playing the game for years and years and unfortunately he needs time in the saddle and he hasn’t had that.”

The initial plan for Tuivasa-Sheck was to join Super Rugby and compete for a spot in next years’ Rugby World Cup side.

At the time of his decision, Roger didn’t have a position in mind to play in his return, that call was made by Blues coach Leon McDonald (potentially with some consultation from Ian Foster).

The landscape of midfielders in New Zealand is a rapidly evolving one.

“What I’ve noticed,” Kirwan further added. “Is that our kicking game, our short kicking game, our manipulative attacking game has now gone to the foot of 12, so he’s going to have to show us that on the northern tour as well, that kicking game, we know he can step.

“It’s a timing issue, I mean I hope he doesn’t go back to the Roosters, I hope he stays for a few more years yet.”

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Jon 7 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

This is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?

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j
john 10 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

But here in Australia we were told Penney was another gun kiwi coach, for the Tahs…….and yet again it turned out the kiwi coach was completely useless. Another con job on Australian rugby. As was Robbie Deans, as was Dave Rennie. Both coaches dumped from NZ and promoted to Australia as our saviour. And the Tahs lap them up knowing they are second rate and knowing that under pressure when their short comings are exposed in Australia as well, that they will fall in below the largest most powerful province and choose second rate Tah players to save their jobs. As they do and exactly as Joe Schmidt will do. Gauranteed. Schmidt was dumped by NZ too. That’s why he went overseas. That why kiwi coaches take jobs in Australia, to try and prove they are not as bad as NZ thought they were. Then when they get found out they try and ingratiate themselves to NZ again by dragging Australian teams down with ridiculous selections and game plans. NZ rugby’s biggest problem is that it can’t yet transition from MCaw Cheatism. They just don’t know how to try and win on your merits. It is still always a contest to see how much cheating you can get away with. Without a cheating genius like McCaw, they are struggling. This I think is why my wise old mate in NZ thinks Robertson will struggle. The Crusaders are the nursery of McCaw Cheatism. Sean Fitzpatrick was probably the father of it. Robertson doesn’t know anything else but other countries have worked it out.

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Adrian 12 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

Thanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause

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