A new era for All Blacks locks?

A new era for All Blacks locks?

So much can happen in one week is the sentence that All Blacks coach Steve Hansen might be mumbling to himself after his most experienced available Test lock by some margin - Ali Williams with 77-Tests - announced his international retirement, while perhaps New Zealand's leading second row forward Sam Whitelock was ruled out with a finger injury from facing the incoming French.

So now, Brodie Retallick stands to be potentially the leading lock for the World Champions, and form and recent selections point towards Luke Romano getting a nod in the starting XV.

Size is the vogue at the moment for the All Blacks locks, and the loss of Whitelock cannot be underestimated as he has been close to being the form second rower of Investec Super Rugby.

Retallick has been a typical beacon for the Chiefs, while there is a hint that Dominic Bird could make the grade to get into the 22 - even if an uncapped and departing (to Ireland) Craig Clarke remains on some armchair selector's pages.

Thrush, the replacement for Williams, is the 2004 IRB Under-19 Player of the Year, and the Hutt Valley giant is a big chance of debuting for his country.

why are they even bothering to mention craig clarkes name??? hes leaving NZ for connacht at the ned of the spXV, so wish him all the best but dont waste an opprtunity to bleed someone else for the All Blacks jersey.
brodie retallick and lukje romano are now the incumbents with whitelock injured, those three make up the top 3 NZ locks easy.

next in the pecking ordetr is big "dominic" bird, a real moster that no one outside of NZ knows too much about thanks to the fact thats hes on the bench for the crusaders.

i dont know why they wasted their time with thrush either something that mikey mentioned elsewhere, until he learns to get in there and do the hard stuff, he is at best a hurricanes bench player, broadhurst is way better then both him and eaton but hammet is too much of a cockhead to do anything about it.

after dominic bird who i rate as NZs 4th best lock, i would have to say callum retallick is prob the 5th in the pecking order, what the chiefs and highlanders failed to do with his career, the blues have not as hes been in great form for the blues, making team of the weeks bith mine and other more official mediums a number of times, really impressed with callum reatllick who is brodies cousin (retllick genes aye, lolz) and what i like about him even more is hes more a romano type of a lock, not a nrodie/sam type.

Sasue

A bit thin on the ground I think.   You are not breeding locks tough enough in New Zealand.   Different in SA though- here a potential lock at five years of age are given lead pills and told to kill hares by spitting at them,  Tough life for them is making them move All Blacks Mauls like they are not even being resisted.  LOL

 It looking like an era where the All Black locks get slapped around properly by Ezebeth and PSDT.

Hieneken Meyer has promised that our ruck play and quick recycling will be improved, so that our lock enforcers and other carriers like Alberts will smash the line of advantage.  

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Latest on Ezebeth

More SA fan forward fantasy. Like I have queried in past, when has an AB pack ever been intimidated by a Bok pack? Even with your "super" locks the Bok team continue to play 2nd fiddle to AB's. You think the AB's r just going to sit back and not tweak their playing strategy for this season. And remember you don't have to have the worlds best players in your pack, but players that do a good enough job, to provide a platform for the team to win....ask the AB's. 

yup there really is unfounded conjecture from the saffa fans regarding the state of the locks in NZ and in SA, but each to their own, were all entitled to our opinons.

no one is denying the talent that is du toit and lady elizabeth, but in NZ we look at them as, pffffffft so what, dont wake me up for something so unimportant.

just take a look at how awesome lady elizaebth was against the All Blacks when he got his ass subbed off, LMAO, :oD

hmmm when i get home, i might play that game again and take a screenshot fo when elzabeth was subbed of, that look of angst frustration was classic, :o)

You must bear in mind that we have had a moron in De Villiers (affirmative selection) “coaching” the Bokke since Jake’s expulsion and by the looks of things we could be forced to endure another period with Meyer’s absurdity.

We have the talent to challenge the current world champs and perhaps even surpass them  … of that I have no doubt. Problem is getting the talented youngsters selected. They need to be bled properly and exposed to international rugby as early as possible if we’re to take our rightful spot at the top of world rugby.

Whether Meyer is the man for the job is yet to be seen. So far the signs are not looking favourable.

Regarding your locks ... New Zealand and the surrounding islands have always managed to produce a class pack of forwards for the Al Blacks, however you guys are a little light with potential 2nd rowers blowing the world away.

From what I've seen your picks will be merely to make up the numbers.

Whitelock, Romano, Bird and Retallick are good rugby players but nothing quite like what we've seen you produce in years past.

Mentioning the likes of Thrush and Broadhurst show the desperate situation you guys find yourselves in.

We on the other hand have a potent pair coming to the fore (if selected) and whether you hide your head in the sand or not ... they are going to cause you problems.  For many a year.

Say what you want ... right now I do not see any world beaters taking the 4 & 5 All Black jersey. None that will trouble us currently any ways.

 Cleancut, why is SA deserving of the "rightful spot at top of world rugby"? Concerning the AB locking stocks, yep they look a little thin, but you don't necessary need world best players to win, just a cohesive competitive pack surrounded by a world class backline who provide foundation for winning.... The AB are able to adapt their game it's why they win so often.

each to their own, but IMO sam whitelock is worldclass and in the stormers v crusaders game, both he and romano took bekker school.
theres no lock in SA i would pick over sam whitelock, retallick and romano, IMO lady elizabeth is better then all three, but hes way too duuuuuumb and ill disciplined for my liking and ive seen nothing to suggest otherwise.
smarts and discipline is a big issue for the All Blacks, one of the ,ost underrated rugby players in NZ was rua tipoki, but he was too easily baited opponents and IMO that fudged his AB career big time.

saSue allow me to school you yet again. No one in world rugby can beat Bekker. No one - provided only that the ball is thrown in properly.

If you had even half a clue and had you paid attention you would be aware Fourie was the hooker throwing in the ball at lineout time. Fourie got it all wrong. One of the many reason we desparately missed the excellent Bok hooker Tiaan Liebenberg - highligted by me before the season began as a key player for us.

Of course dont allow me to disturb your fantasies if you are so set on them. 

polyboy ...

New Zealand is an awesome rugby nation. They have dominated world rugby for a few decades now and I personally have a great deal of respect for your rugby crazy nation. Always have.

However you seem to be ignorant of what we've had to endure since readmission.

You guys are strutting your stuff, mouthing off as to how good you are, beating your chests, not realizing that all you had to do was raid whichever island of its rugby talent for inclusion in the All Blacks team.

We on the other hand have been fighting against a racist government who have pressured and forced quotas down our throat, the appointment of morons like De Villiers as Bok coach, hanging on as best we can to our beloved Springbok emblem and the rich history of our beloved sport, while still trying to put together the best team we’re permitted to do, to compete against the likes of you and the best the world has to offer.   

We did not find ourselves in a luxurious position where we could solely focus our attention on rugby issues. You conveniently forgot about that, huh??

Political interference has tainted Bok rugby, slowed us down to a stroll, and allowed you guys to get ahead of us.

That is the only reason you are ahead of us.Not cause your better than us. Give me a break!!!

If we were allowed to focus as you have, on rugby and rugby alone then I believe you would not be strutting your stuff right now.  You in fact would be looking at us in awe.

Know this … your strut is an unjustified strut and I sincerely hope it will be corrected shortly.

That is why I say that we will take our rightful spot back as top dog of world rugby.

Kapeesh??

Sasue

Sorry to differ from you.  The dumb bunny in lock position is Retallick - the spear tackler and boxer.   Since he plays like a loosie insofar as tackling stats are concerned - he seems to be reasonable.   However, his performance in line outs and maul situations is below par.   I do like Sam Whitelock - but he also has his limitations - and Romano is a hard worker.   The problem of Whitelock and Romano are both that they are not strong enough in maul situations.   Bird I do not know enough of to form an opinion.

Be it as it may - not one lock of the four mentioned is to my mind really top of the world and I agree with beeno - that one-off problem Bekker had against the Crusaders were due to poor line-out throwing by Fourie.    

Polyboy … I answered your question … did I not??

So what your saying is that the vast amount of talented players available to the All Blacks, many born and raised on surrounding Islands, are not scouted and lured into the country. They in fact come across the big waters themselves … in their masses … merely in search of work … and if an All Black jersey happens to cross their path then … well … what a pleasure?? Right??

Hmmmmm …. So that’s how you guys get around explaining it, huh?. Haaahahahahaaaa!!! Ok poly … if you say so!!

Yes, I’m afraid you are ignorant regarding what goes on here.

The 95 WC united a nation. Indeed. For awhile that is. Much has changed since that time I’m afraid. We’ve had 2 presidents since Mandela. Both of them as weak and incompetent as the next. This country of ours is running downhill at a rapid rate.

All I can tell you is that the pretty picture the media has painted of the ”rainbow nation” is a crock of shit.

From raw sewerage on our city streets, to potholes the size of cars, heavy taxation, fraud and corruption in governmental departments, corrupt police, nonexistent qualified medical practitioners to probably the worst governmental educational system on the planet.

It’s miracle we can even compete with you and your Polynesian "acquisitions" !!!  

@ Clean Cut... Don't make excuses for your Boks not performing! The ABs have owned you since 1992 and the political stuff wore thin years ago. If you haven't been able to beat the ABs consistently in the last 21 years then it is highly unlikely it's going to happen in the near future.

That's what irks me the most; you guys just can't handle being 2nd (and more often than not 3rd) best. There's always multiple excuses why your not No.1, never that the ABs are just better and have more depth despite far less players to choose from.

Just accept you're not up to it until you start beating us on a regular basis and continue to do it for at least 3-4 years! Then you can start chest beating! You had a little time in the sun in 2008 before normal service resumed. Consistency is the key and something the Boks haven't had for decades.

Moolaa

I do not want to get involved in this argument - but there is one factor that always count in favour of the  All Bklacks and for that matter all other opponents.   By some miracle we always with rare exceptions manage to have the worst coaches any team has to contend with.   The coaching of the Springboks over the past two decades with rare exceptions like Christie, Du Plessis and White  were atrocious - and the present coach is no better.   The All Blacks would do well to sing a song to the tune of "Thank heavens for little Girls" - but change the wording to "Thank Heavens for SA Coaches"   -   it would be a smash hit.   

polyboy

The issue is partly to do with the way in which SA Rugby is administered and partly with Government inteference.   However, this could also have to do with politicians wanting to worm their way into the Rugby set up.   It is found in all codes od sport in SA and is causing major problems.   The Government has in the past appointed Commissions of Enquiry into sports organisations.  In the case of Rugby it was the result of a whimsical political scheme - but in the case of Cricket amd Soccer - it had more to do with financial mismangement.   Be it as it may - we have had poor coaches - because of ambitions of individuals as well.   Take for instance the case of Meyer.   He was the Bulls coach - and the Bulls wanted to have him as SA Coach.  So they form an alliance with the Watsons and the smaller unions  to get rid pof Jake White in 2007.   They succeeded in their iniitial effort - but when it came to selection of the coach - the allies parted ways and Meyer lost out to De Villiers - which was a disaster in any event.

De Villiers lost the support of the Watsons and their confreres - because he refused to make Luke Watson the Springbok Captain.  However, he was so poor that he had to go eventually.   That gave Meyer his present chance and he has been repaying the Bulls for their support - by favouring selection of Blue Bulls contracted players and ignoring claims for selection of players from other franchises - even if the Buls players are poor, they are virually assured of selection.    That type of thing is pulling our rugby down the drain. 

Moolaa -

I am not the type of person who points fingers elsewhere, blaming others for my teams loss. Quite prepared to take it on the chin. Give me a little credit will ya!!

I am however trying to explain the "why's" and the "howcomes" to you but clearly your either too thick to understand me or you refuse to look things in the eye or I suck at getting the explanation across to you. Somehow I do not think it's the latter. ... so pick one of the remaining two.

Either way ... Th Bokke and the All Blacks were neck and neck all the years up and untill readmission where you guys moved ahead of us. Now tell me moolaa ... if you don't mind ... you mentioned 1992 ... when were we readmitted to the sporting world?

Hmmmm??

Do the maths for yourself ...

Feeling a little stupid now hey moolaa ???

Thought so!!

.

Polyboy -  I seem to have touched a nerve.

I do not mean you, nor your people any disrespect, so take a deep breath and chill. 

I do not have an issue with the Polynesians’ inclusion in the All Blacks rugby team either. The sport has substantially been improved because of it and that gets a big thumbs up from me.

It has allowed me to see decades of wizardry on the field I would otherwise have missed.

However this wizardry came from a people that were not native to New Zealand and that is my point.

I will not be posting any websites addresses or various other forms of written literature to prove my point … reason being … I have none … and besides I am not that desperate to prove you wrong ... but will however accept your word as fact … (it was interesting by the way)

Your disrespect of the Bokke is however irritating me … especially when we both know that of all the global teams competing at test level, the Springbok is the strongest challenge the All Blacks has and can ever hope to face.

I have a few Kiwi mates who have a great deal of respect for the Bokke and truth be told that really does it for me. Mutual respect.

I’ll say it again … if we were given a proper shot, without Govermental interference, we would push you to a limit you never thought possible ... and ... perhaps even surpass you.

My hope is that we will one day find ourselves competing on equal footing again. Where each test is met with a great deal of excitement and expectation ... like it used to be.

I remember as a young lad how my grandafther would invite farmers and their families from many miles away to gather together on his farm to listen to the test match against the All Blacks via the radio and the commotion that went with it ... and later via the telly.  It left a favourable impression I shant forget.

Those were the days when men were men.

Now what we have is ... well ... saffex and beano!!

That would be an awesome day in my life again 

@ Clean Cut...Funny how you say you're 'taking it on the chin" and then proceed to blame all your losses on the "system". That's not taking it on the chin, that's looking for excuses because you can't handle not being the best!

The "system" didn't make your players cock up the QF in 2011. Nor did it make the Boks choke in the last 20 mins last year in Soweto! No, it was your professional rugby players that let  you down simply because they weren't fit enough and good enough to foot it with the opposition.

The big difference from pre 1992 to post 1992 is that we now have neutral refs. Funny how that coincided with your slide down the slippery slope!

So I've done the Maths, I don't feel stupid and unlike you, I passed.  

@ Clean Cut...Funny how you say you're 'taking it on the chin" and then proceed to blame all your losses on the "system". That's not taking it on the chin, that's looking for excuses because you can't handle not being the best!

The "system" didn't make your players cock up the QF in 2011. Nor did it make the Boks choke in the last 20 mins last year in Soweto! No, it was your professional rugby players that let  you down simply because they weren't fit enough and good enough to foot it with the opposition.

The big difference from pre 1992 to post 1992 is that we now have neutral refs. Funny how that coincided with your slide down the slippery slope!

So I've done the Maths, I don't feel stupid and unlike you, I passed.  

Ok moolaa ... you have now confirmed your stupidity and I have assigned you to the same shelf as that of saffex and beano.

Nice comeback! I'll build my own shelf thank you.