Rugby World Cup 2011 - New Zealand.

So we are less than 3 weeks away from kick off - How do you all feel about it? Anyone actually excited about it?

Here is the AB's squad:

World Cup squad:
Forwards: John Afoa (Auckland), Anthony Boric (North Harbour), Corey Flynn (Canterbury), Ben Franks (Tasman), Owen Franks (Canterbury), Andrew Hore (Taranaki), Jerome Kaino (Auckland), Richie McCaw (captain, Canterbury), Keven Mealamu (Auckland), Kieran Read (Canterbury), Adam Thomson (Otago), Brad Thorn (Canterbury), Samuel Whitelock (Canterbury), Ali Williams (Auckland), Tony Woodcock (North Harbour).

Backs: Daniel Carter (Canterbury), Jimmy Cowan (Southland), Israel Dagg (Hawke's Bay), Andy Ellis (Canterbury), Zac Guildford (Hawke's Bay), Cory Jane (Wellington), Richard Kahui (Waikato), Mils Muliaina (Waikato), Ma'a Nonu (Wellington), Colin Slade (Canterbury), Conrad Smith (Wellington), Isaia Toeava (Auckland), Victor Vito (Wellington), Piri Weepu (Wellington), Sonny Bill Williams (Canterbury).

NZ has everything going for them in the WC, the players, the home advantage and Australia/Springbok teams that are a complete mess.

GO WALLABIES

Really excited. Only player I was a bit iffy about was the inclusion of Adam Thomson as backup number 7 :/

He had 5 penalties against SA and that ended up being 9 points from 1 player alone

I think I'll get excited when the Boks and ABs meet in the semis :>

I might get excited if someone shoots PdV in the head before he gets on the plane to NZ. Between him and John Smit they have really done a number on the Springboks in the last couple of years. I think they are 8 losses from their last 10 starts ... what a joke. No white coach would have survived that.

Pretty sure Namibia are going to take it this year though

Would've picked Gear over Sivi, and anyone over Corey Flynn but otherwise happy. Maybe Crockett over Afoa but I don't know how that efects the tighthead/loosehead mix.

Sivi is just such a terrible defender that I don't think his ball in hand ability makes up for it, whereas Gear has worked hard to improve his work rate and was always the better tackler.

Now just waiting for the inevitable injury to a key player now.

I can't see Ted tinkering too much with the starting XV as he will have learnt from past mistakes from himself and others when it comes to changing winning teams or moving starters around to cover injuries instead of just brining in a like for like replacement... The wings are probably the only starting spots up for grabs, maybe fullback too if they don't put Dagg on one of the wings.

WTF I was sure I heard Henry say Sivi's name, oh well, maybe Gear over Guildford but can see why he's there instead.

Also picking it now that Bakkies Botha gets suspended !

Heard Henry say that Dagg may be his number one fullback. That makes me wonder why he picked Muliana if he is going to be just a second stringer. Surely better to drop Muliana and pick Gear?

I am worried there is no specialist number seven. That could backfire on us.

Not really. If I understand the rules correctly if McCaw gets injured we can replace him with a specialist (Mat Todd I assume) The only trouble we would have is if McCaw is just injured for a week or two and we wanted to replace him AND bring him back. In a tournament of this length thats an unlikely scenario

Im quite fascinated by this event and it should be fun. I was in the city yesterday and saw some OS fans wandering about already. The media is obviously going to go ballistic over it all and people will be talking and the bars will be going off so Im going to make sure I enjoy it

As for the All Blacks chances I think we will win and probably win well. Despite our previous failures the A;s have nearly always been the best side in the world and man for man thats def the case now too. You can look apon our line up and say we have the world number 1 (or about equal) in most positions, and particulary in the backs. Nonu SBW Carter Dagg all superstars of the game, other sides can only dream of such quality

Obvious just one game trips us up /Lack of leadships/ night rugby etc etc so there are concerns...but I think this coaching staff and team have learned from previous mistakes. And his team and kiwis in general are not a bunch of lay down sallies they are occasionally mae out to be by michevious media . The moment will come and I have faith the boys will rise to the occasion and say fuck that not on our soil

Apart from that..... I rate the BOKS despite the idiocy of PvD, so maybe an AB/SA final if thats possible via the draw (havent actually looked)

Nah I think if both teams win their pool it'll be a AB-SA semi-final...

Gutted to hear John Smit was named as captain. Obv like the guy and everything but Bismark du Plessis is a fkn beast and having him on the bench for 60min is retarded

All about the NRL and finals season for me (obv to those who know me) but also like GB, I'll probably get excited when the knock out stage begins.

Can't wait for it to begin!

ABs squad isn't as strong as usual IMO, our 1st 15 is SICK but we're definitely lacking quality backups in key positions

I'm picking a NZ vs ENG final

The Wallaby backline is sick, more stable and arguably better than ours.

I suppose....a little bit over rated though imo. Plus Quade in the cold and wet doesnt really inspire me. Im not really worried about the Aussies

When I say I suppose I mean the sick part, dont agree at all they are more stable or better. We have SBW

Don't agree that they are more stable or better AT ALL!



gc.

I don't think they can replace players like that once the tournament begins. Why would they stress so much about cover for positions when selecting the squad then?

The same backline that was torn apart by the 1st choice stable All Blacks backline a couple of weeks ago?

I think the Wallaby's will probably be exposed through their lack of experience and defence. Lots of attacking potential, but games are mostly going to be won through defending and shutting down the opposition.

Yep how often have we gone into a WC with some damaging backline that has ultimately been shut down in every important game by stout defence.



gc.

SBW is probably our least inspiring/proven backline player. We have the best midfield axis in the world (IMO) of Carter->Nonu->Smith and some killer outside backs to choose from (though we haven't chosen a big scary cunt like Sivi or Gear which is a bit of a worry). Weepu is all-class and our best halfback by a mile but with Slade proving to be a flake on the weekend, is he better off as our backup 1st 5?

But for the Wallabies- Will Genia, Berrick Barnes and Quade Cooper would waltz into the ABs squad and others like James O'Connor, Drew Mitchell, Kurtley Beale and Digby Ioane would be strong contenders (I'd have O'Connor over Guildford any day).

Hopefully we play our strongest 15 this weekend to get some combinations going, surely we've learnt from 2007 but I wonder at times with Ted and co!

They were torn apart by our forwards.

Surely injured players who will take no further part can be replaced? Im not really sure tbh just thought that seemed logical. I assume the need for utility value is magnified once the games actually begins ie bench players covering several spots

On that point...the Nonu vs SBW situation is somewhat perplexing. Can we AFFORD to select either on the bench given they both only cover one position

Also....can Dagg play wing?

Yes, Dagg can play wing. He's played on the wing for the ABs before.

SBW and Nonu have both played 13 before as well though? Nonu has also played wing before ...but yeah, not ideal.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_Rugby_World_Cup

So I guess you can replace players in the squad who get injured then. So all this nonsense and stressing over cover for various positions doesn't matter so much.

South Africa World Cup squad:

Forwards: Willem Alberts, Bakkies Botha, Heinrich Brüssow, Schalk Burger, Bismarck du Plessis, Jannie du Plessis, Francois Louw, Tendai Mtawarira, Johann Muller, Chiliboy Ralepelle, Danie Rossouw, Pierre Spies, Gurthrö Steenkamp, CJ van der Linde, Victor Matfield, (v/c) ,John Smit (c)

Backs: Gio Aplon, Juan de Jongh, Jean de Villiers, Fourie du Preez, Jaque Fourie, Bryan Habana, Francois Hougaard, Butch James, Pat Lambie, Odwa Ndungane, Ruan Pienaar, JP Pietersen, Francois Steyn, Morné Steyn.

Still can't get over the fact that John Smit is stillin there and the captain to boot after what we saw from the scrum on the weekend. With a proper coach we could have defended this WC.

They would waltz into the squad and sit the fuck on the bench where they deserve to be.

They might be better than our backups, but our #1 backline is still the most damaging in the world, and can also TACKLE. I rate Kurtley Beale. The others less so.



gc.

genia is best scrumhalf in the world hands down :>

bah. maybe on this years Super Rugby form, Id still rather Du Preez in my team

I'd still have Piri every time. And As Maestro says Du Preez is probably the best.



gc.

What's Rugby?

But in all seriousness, I'll watch the All Black and England games and that's about it. It may give me a nice repreive from Arsenal though.

Worst ABs squad ever
What's the average age, 95?

So you think we have no chance vadz>?

Please be providing us with your usual baffling opinions on who should have been picked

Younger players, maybe?
Maybe not Boric or Vito?
Seriously.. we used to be world class everywhere. Now, apart from Carter and McCaw, where are we obviously the world's best/

Graham Henry is a shit coach who said "judge me on the 2007 wc", lost, and kept his job. nice for some

Boric and Vito are too old? What are they....27?

We are best or equal best in all positions the backline, except halfback. We the best number 8.... best or equal best props, and at least one lock everyone else wants

This All Black side is as good in relation to the opposition as just about any of our generation, and pretty much the whole country agreed the squad was cut and dried as our best with just a few quibbles about the wings. Im really not sure what your on about tbh

Boric is 27.

Vito is 24.

For me the big question mark is leaving out Wyatt Crocket and taking John Afoa. Is this only to do with Afoa playing both sides of the scrum? Cos to my eyes Wyatt has been out performing him in every other area of the field.

Our 2007 squad was the one. Back then we were fielding 2x 15s that competed with any other side in the world.

We have some of the best players in the world in this squad, most notably Dan Carter...but is the Carter/Slade combo really better than Quade/Berrick Barnes or Flood/Wilkinson?

I just realised the final is at 9pm on a Sunday night - finishes at 11pm. If the All Blacks win, i predict mass absenteeism and week's worth of hard-luck sackings featuring on Close Up and Campbell Live.

9pm Sunday wtf lol

Monday is a public holiday.

I assumed it wasn't, because some insane half wit around here has decided the go live date for a huge database project is going to be on the Friday.

Yay.

Surprisingly enough they had put some thought and planning into it.



gc.

No, older players and Boric/Vito were separate points

This Abs team ISNT as good as past ABs teams

Compare... Cullen to Muliana, Dagg to kirwan/lomu, smith/nonu to stanley, innes, even stensness, weepu/cowan to kirk/bachop...

Our locks are Brad Thorn, a cripple, and a journeyman.
Loosies - I rate McCaw and Kaino, but Read is good at best, not world class

Weepu and cowan can't compare to Genia
In general though the other teams are even shittier

Current jaapie team is a DISGRACE to the bok jersey

BTW does anybody else remember that in the 87 WC, Grant Fox was making only his SECOND ever test appearance?

So basically a debutante, but he raped the other teams so hard their anuses were still bleeding four years later.

nothing like a good anal rape metaphor to err.... "drive the point home"

vadzz...you didnt name a team that is wildy better than this one. You just named a dream team of the best players scattered across different decades. Most of those players didnt play in the same side. Way to make your point!

That also sprung to mind when I read that.



gc.

In fantasy-land as per

Or a parallel universe

hee hee he is so awesome

In one respect I agree that there might be a tendacy to go with experience which could get out of hand. Im very suprised Muliana has been selected ahead of Dagg for this weekends game. Dagg was electric and looked dangerous everytime he touched the ball, how long has it been since we have been able to say that about Mils? If Mils doesnt play well tonorrow it could be the end for him. 100 tests be damned

Also Tony Woodcock doesnt look the player he was, he looks fat. Perhaps he is not quite back to his best yet though

Some team ratings from tonights test:

Mulians 4/10- he is past it. Dagg should be the number one full back, Mills should be "injured" and replaced by Gear, especially as...
Jane and Guilford 4/10- Jane was invisible, Guilford was targeted and needs to improve.
Smith and Nonu 9/10
Carter 7/10 quiet night, not helped by Wayne Barnes by now usual liberal "refereeing" of the offside of teams playing us.
Weepu 5/10 to slow. Cowan was really missed in the first twenty minutes.
Thompson 3/10 out of his depth at this level. Drop him and call in a specialist backup for McCaw.
Ali Williams 8/10 stood up and was counted.

The top All Blacks were underdone in a big match, yet again. Henry seems to choke and chicken out approaching the RWC, he just won't play his top players and it comes back to bite us.

Some team ratings from tonights test:

Mulians 4/10- he is past it. Dagg should be the number one full back, Mills should be "injured" and replaced by Gear, especially as...
Jane and Guilford 4/10- Jane was invisible, Guilford was targeted and needs to improve.
Smith and Nonu 9/10
Carter 7/10 quiet night, not helped by Wayne Barnes by now usual liberal "refereeing" of the offside of teams playing us.
Weepu 5/10 to slow. Cowan was really missed in the first twenty minutes.
Thompson 3/10 out of his depth at this level. Drop him and call in a specialist backup for McCaw.
Ali Williams 8/10 stood up and was counted.

The top All Blacks were underdone in a big match, yet again. Henry seems to choke and chicken out approaching the RWC, he just won't play his top players and it comes back to bite us.

the only good thing in this game was nonu running to get a try and quade cooper just moving out of his way... :o

also victor vito did really well I thought :>

I was wrong about Woodcock, he was immense and just hadnt got up to speed yet after his layoff. Perhaps its just the jersey that makes him look fat

Ummmm maybe we should drop the ball more? Good to get that one out of the system, and since when can All Blacks not tackle ramapaging 34 year old Fijians?

Picking Guilford ahead of Gear is looking ridiculous. And no SBW even on the bench is just crazy, he was exactly what we nededto break up the Aussies midfield defence, I didnt rate Nonu THAT much, he was good but a couple of times tried to pass when he had steam up and should have just been looking to smash his way through

I think it is clear this morning that the All Black management completely bungled the past few weeks, and have handed an unnecessary edge to the Boks and Aussies.

Still, I think last nights game illustrates an important point for the All Blacks - exactly WHY it is so hard for them to win the RWC. Every team they play will play with the frenzy the Aussies showed in the first half. For the All Black's every game is a final for their opponents, whose most desperate want is to beat New Zealand. Everyone else has to play a sudden death quarter-final and a semi-final before the actual final - we also have to play three fanatical opponents in a row to win.

And to say again - Muliana is over the hill. Late in the second half he got a half gap. A younger Muliana or Israel Dagg would have put the foot to the pedal. Muliaa showed no explosive pace and instead looked to off load. Now, if Dagg is to be the number one fullback then to my mind that calls into question Mulianas place in the whole squad. Jane and Toueava can cover fullback. Getting rid of Muliana allows Gear to come back in to the team.

But what worries me is we have still not played our number one squad, and players like Toueva and Woodcock and Boric and Dagg are all coming in with low game time. Why the hell does Graeme Henry prevent thee guys playing?? Dagg for instance wasn't in the squad for this game - he should be running out for Hawkes Bay this afternoon. Same for SBW, he should have played for Canterbury yesterday, and McCaw and Carter are underdone and they should have had a run for Canterbury last week. Same for Kieran Read - he has played very little rugby recently and what appens when suddenly he gets thrown into a huge game? SURPRISE! He gets injured.

Aussies just wanted this win more. ABs looked uninterested, even when they started playing in the second half. I would never suggest that ABs have lost this game on purpose, but fuck me it looked that way.

What's more worse is that Aussies weren't that good. Apart from Genia and couple of break outs by Samo, the rest of the team didn't really fire at 100%.

ABs lost so many opportunities with shit handling. I have no idea why Gear wasn't picked. What was Henry thinking?! Unfortunately Henry is stuck in his old ways and his old players. Every other team in the world fields their best 1st 15. All Blacks seem to have different selection policy. Dagg should have started, Gear should have been on one of the wings and I think Slade should have been given a start. He's going into the world cup with his confidence dented, as well as very little game time. If Carter gets injured, we're fucked.

Overall I think we needed to lose the Tri Nations. Henry and co might rethink their selection policies.

I still think that we will win the world cup. Why? Wel, that is going to be the last time we will play the Wallabies this year. I think that England will beat Australia in the semi-finals. When we changed our game plan and kept the game tight we were quite effective; England LOVE that sort of game and will do it all day and Wilkinson will slot all the penalties - England's style is almost made to thawt the Wallabies.

I think that we will beat the Springboks - a badly coached team relying on a core of players whose best days are behind them - and then in the final we still have a big psychological edge over the northern teams that will be sure to see us home.

Oh don't get me wrong, I still think we'll win the world cup. I just also think that the loss of Tri Nations will be a wake up call Henry and co in regards to their selection policies. It's a good time to have a wake call and will give us an advantage going forward.

WTF is the point of a judiciary if Cooper gets away with that? What a cowardly piuece of shit, I wish Thorn had've broken his jaw and put him out of the World Cup. At least we all got to laugh when he ran away from Nonu instead of being a man and actually trying to make a tackle, what a scrote I hope the Irish do him a serious injury... He deserves it.

Guildford was terrible, can he please get injured to so we can put Gear back in? Zac is worryingly poor in big games and after the group staes they're all big. Also Thomson *facepalm* is a professional team sport you are responsible for knowing when you are too injured to continue and doing the rest of your team a disservice. At least we showed that Aussie are really clueless when teams keep it tight, the northern hempishere would have watched that second half with delight, Aussie to go out in the quarters.

Chris Rattue in today's Herald signals NZ fans will write a blank cheque to anyone who gets Quade Cooper - "...And my World Cup wish: some Brian Lima-type gets a legal shot on Cooper that knocks him into oblivion. This cheap shot merchant deserves it..."

The fucked thing about all this, is that Weepu posted a tweet wishing Cooper luck for the judiciary hearing...

And once again the backs that got front-foot ball from their forwards, dominated.

The Wallaby backline was player-for-player much better than ours apart from maybe the exceptional Conrad Smith and Ma'a Nonu (Sonny Bill Who?)

Guildford and Toeava as suspected by many are looking to be poor RWC selections. We could've done with a wing with physical presence on Saturday - eg. Gear or Sivi.

And god we missed Kaino at ruck time!

does anybody have any footage on the incident. Cause I would like to see if it's as bad as you guys make out or whether it's just typical hysterical ABs fans

It was pretty blatant bro... a second before he knees him he looks at his head and there's no way he makes that kinda deliberate forward movement as part of getting up.

Dude is a fkn grub but I think it's all pretty calculated so gotta give him props imo :>

Heh. Reactionism against reactionism. Funny.


It was pretty blatant bro.

Yeah, that is pretty blatant.

But, to be fair, old Richie does deserve a knee to the head. Cause he is a bit (a lot) of a cunt.

A few days out from the WC and does anyone else feel utterly underwhelmed? The lack of hype/excitement is deafening...

I'm more interested in how the tigers are going ...

I can feel the excitement building. It is still 9 days out after all, and this is just how kiwis promote_undersell

The CBD already has kitted out fans wandering about, soon they will flock en mass. My local pool has French Flags everywhere as Takapuna is "hosting" the French (and they will be training there) 200 kids welcomed the French with a haka (which seemd a bit weird to me but w/e good for the kids)

Its happening. And make no mistake heaps of kiwis care A LOT about the result. If we lose.....watching the wailing will be entertaining. The sheer knife edge the country will be on will kind of amuse me. This will be fun

Not sure which rock you are living under gummi - WC has been absolutely everywhere for the past 3 months and is about to go ballistic -

This is going to be fun

if we lose, it's lots more business for me - I'm happy!

what do you expect from a dirty low-down burglar

definitely getting a sense of excitement now.... thanks Tongans! :>

Reckon...shit is heating up big time and has been for a while!

Just had first proper look at Boks' pool... not that confident that they'll win all their pool games lolz

Just seen the Tonga team selection for the All Blacks, and all I could think was - here we go again... players picked out of position, and a perverse refusal to pick the best team for every game that almost amounts to some kind of a mental issue.

Are the All Black selectors the biggest world cup chokers of them all?

hahahahaha just looked up starting XV... so confusing!

Anyone catch Steve Hansen fronting the media yesterday? What an asshole!

Sick All Blacks team!!

cant wait to see SBW/Nonu pairing :>

The UK press are a bit pissy about an obvious mismatch like NZ Tonga being the opener after Argentina beat France 4 years ago but what better way to start a World Cup in Polynesia's biggest city than with the Sipi Tau then the haka?

Do you think Kahui played 'alright' at wing?....based on that performance, consideration should be given to starting him in the top XV.

Did anyone notice the incredible difference in quality between the "HD" images of TV1 and Sky Sports on Friday night? If I was a Sky HD subscriber I'd be fkn pissed tbh... they aren't providing anything close to HD quality :/

Fuck, thank god someone else thinks that gummi. I'm pissed, cause I'm paying extra to have HD. Wankers.

wtf..how do they miss a clear goal

dirty cheatin world cup safas strike again!

I really think a case can be made to the commerce commission about this... they've obviously been skimping on bandwidth (or whatever techy term is right here) for ages...

Yah, Sky is pretty short on satellite transponder bandwidth. I guess at least rugby viewers are now suffering the same kind of degradation in quality league viewers have been suffering with for years?

Awesome RWC so far!!!

Wales vs South Africa last night was immense, with Wales putting together the best 80 minute performance of the entire tournament so far. South Africa were way off the pace and either very lucky or completely robbed whichever way you choose to look at it.

Argentina vs England also went right down to the wire and was a great watch. If the Pumas had nailed their kicks it could've been a blow-out. Even Jonny Wilkinson had a shocker… England VERY lucky to scrape away with a win there.

Japan and Romania both played courageously, putting in commendable performances and threatening to cause major upsets against France and Scotland respectively. Entertaining games both of them

All Blacks vs Tonga – a decent physical workout/smash-up. Thankfully we came through with no injuries, and great to see Kahui, Dagg and SBW have blinders. Safe to say Guildford won't be required later in the tournament thank fuck.

Wallabies vs Italy – the Aussies were off the pace for much of the game, 6-6 at half-time and it wasn't until the second half where they started firing. Is everyone in here still denying their backline is up to it??? Jesus they are a real worry.

a) It wasn't that clear, it didn't go through the posts as people are claiming it passed over the top of the upright before bending back late hen it was well past the post.
b) If it was given the whole match afterwards is completely different, anyone claiming Wales were robbed of the win is an idiot. They had two clear chances to win at the death and bottled it, that's why they lost not becaue a kick might have gone over in the first half.

Agreed though, sick WC so far.

ya...as much as I like to climb into the dodgy safas for lols, Wales blew that. I ciuldnt believe it when they missed that droppie.....whats was he.... 20 metres out? It wouldnt have gone through 2 sets of posts! Horrible duff

You seem pretty convinced of that, given that the world press, the players, and pretty much everyone who watched it thinks otherwise.

Agree though, Wales had some chances later on (the droppie, and the penalty) and blew them. SA should be relieved!

Starters for the Japan Match - Taking into account Dan Carter's injury:

Mils Muliaina, Cory Jane, Conrad Smith, Ma'a Nonu, Richard Kahui, Colin Slade, Andy Ellis, Adam Thomson, Richie McCaw (capt), Jerome Kaino, Sam Whitelock, Brad Thorn, Owen Franks, Keven Mealamu, Tony Woodcock. Reserves: Andrew Hore, John Afoa, Ali Williams, Victor Vito, Piri Weepu, Jimmy Cowan, Sonny Bill Williams.

Will be good to give Colin some experience after a shocker in SA.

Apparently Japan are going to field a B team so this should be a wash out in favor of the All Blacks.

Mils, Richie, Dagg... "Injured"



gc.

"Don't worry we won't rotate like last world cup"

Here's the starting lineup - same day - dan carter is injured, next day mccaw, mils and dagg are injured.

We are not rotating....

I hope we fucking lose.

lol, why do you hope we lose?

That line up is far from second string, apart from maybe couple of players. Slade needed game time bad, McCaw and Carter needed rest. Why risk your top two players when they carrying small injuries?

Epic games this week.

SA looked pretty dominant against Fiji, definitely more of a threat than the wallabies now.

I do now believe that there's a problem with the ball. Seeing the SA guys miss kicks was weird.

Will the All Blacks break the curse of never beating the Aussies in a world cup when they play them in the Semi's? Assuming SA don't beat them in the quarters.

If SA and AUS do meet in the QFs, surely the Boks have to be favourites against that useless pack of canary yellow wearing cocksmokers after last night's games?

no comments about the refs in the aussie vs ireland game, eh resist?