Are The Kiwis Losing Their Edge?

After 2011 there were many games that the ABs just scraped through ,but they still remain the only  team to stay on top after a world cup win .

Even after 2011 we hear the same arguments about the ABs losing their edge and wot-not but they find a way to innovate and maintain.

The only reason sides like Ireland and other NH teams are catching up is through imports ,Ireland in particular have aggresively head hunted players and groomed them like Bundi O'Aki to replace BOD.Not to forget the coaches imported from the SH either.

5 year rule would stop that to some extent.

AO

Frankly one can never believe what you write on site.  Meyer's sides were never really competitive against the AB's - after all winning 1 test out of 8 played was not something to brag about.  They could have been - but Meyer's team selection was a nightmare making a better record impossible. 

Erasmus came very near to 2 played 2 won and ended up by winning 1 out of 2 played..  So the team is on an upward curve under Erasmus - totally absent when Meyer was coach,

Wardad

I made n historic mistake according to some when I mentioned some players whose performances have gone backwards over the last three years,   I specifically mentioned -

*   Ben Smith,

*   SBW

*   Crotty; and

*   Read

I mentioned advancing age and multiple injuries as a result of decline in performances.

One player I did not mention was Sam Whitelock,  Others referred to him as having gone backwards as well.   At his prime he was for me the best lock in NZ, but there was no doubt a decline in his performance, so I took a look at his situation.  

Whitelock in his prime weighed 114 kgs and was extremely mobile.  When checking I found at 30 years of age his mobility seems to be largely gone and on checking I find he is now weighing 120 kgs,  Unfortunately another player who would have to be replaced after the RWC in 2019.

What do you think?  

WD

My feeling is that rugby in the NH has improved for the reasons you state but also because it's growing in popularity.

It's no longer as confusing to the casual fan as it was years ago. 

Plays are clearer, players faster and bigger and the game is more warlike. All of this combined with the game's growth has culminated in more interest in the game.

The NH was only ever worse than the SH because it was less interested. It was a toffs game. You'd struggle to find an Isish, English, Welsh or French player that didn't have a degree. Average kids never picked up a rugby ball.

My hypothesis is that ruby's popularity up north somehow correlates to growth in interest in contact sports like MMA. Just an idea though.

I think the rise in NH rugby is also due in part to ,

-Predatory recruiting practises 

-Bigger markets ,more money .

Less distance/travelling.

In England and  the other home county sides they basically play only in one stadium and maximise profits with mega stadiums bigger than the space in beandorks skull,so massive .

SH teams play in more than one stadium and in some cases could easily fill larger stadiums,thankfully they dont.

And having an inordinate say in the way laws are formulated tend to make them to suit themselves.

Have I said how much I hate the bastards ? I did remember to have a whack at Beandork though.

I will support all SH teams playing the north no probs at all.

Forgot to add NH clubs pressured to not release key players like De Klerk .Underhanded to say the least.

Geez you really dislike our brothers north of the equator huh?

I spent a lot of time in England and learnt my trade from some wonderful guys. Also had some good scraps...the best one being in Wales. Myself and some London lads vs a few local Welsh boys. All because they didn't appreciate our use of the English language.

My dislike is more reserved for the French than anyone else haha

Just the rugby teams ,and their WW 1 generals.

Scotland and Wales are OK not much time for the rest.

Wardad

What about my comments on Sam, Whitelock?

There is always the story that Lord Kitchener - the retard cruel bastard who implemented the concentration camps in SA  in which 26 000 women and children died during the Anglo Boer War - was killed on a warship during a German attack on the ship.  There is a persistent reports that a South African informed the Germans of Kitchener's presence on the ship - causing the attack which resulted in the bastard's death.   Hope it was true.  

Maaik, I hope alot of other innocents did not get killed because of that filth being on the ship. To this day, I think Hitler got his idea from what Kitchener did to the Boers. It would be another tragedy if his presence got people killed even greater tragedy if angry Boers had a hand in it.

One thing Maori and South Afrikaans have in common is fighting a long vicious war against the English,Kitchener deffo got what he deserved.

Its why we love beating them so much 

Draad

Yes there was  a lot of deaths (over 700) in fact.  Amongst them was Kitchener's homosexual lover.   Bad for the innocent guys obviously.

The fact is that there was a German - who fought in the Boer War on the side of the Boers - who at the time lived in Cape Town - and allegedly was spying for the Germans.   He tipped them off about the Kitchener ship issue after he was informed of it by South Africans.   He was subsequently arrested - managed to escape and ended up in the USA - where he was arrested during the 2nd World War as a German spy.     

Guys, Hansen is tweaking/adjusting/fine tunning afew things. Anyone noticed he played Barrett as a number 6 instead of a lock but then who jumped like a lock at the front of the line-out and won a ball off Brad Shields. So we had 3 locks playing instead of 2.

Can anyone tell me why instead of setting up for a drop goal infront of the sticks England decided to go wide in the last minutes of the Test?

Can anyone tell me why Hooper went for the corner against Wales when the Wallabies were given a penalty infront of the sticks?

Can anyone tell me why Max and Faf (the 2 most influential player in that Test) were taken off in Newlands when the Test hanged in a balance?

Brother Hakwa ,a 9-9 draw was all that Wales vs Australia test deserved .One of the most boring things my eyes have witnessed and that includes watching Geoffrey Boycott in the flesh padding up and dead-batting for a whole fecking innings [ my eyes glazed over and I could feel the will to live draining outta me .......

Hi Hakwa, yes teams are preparing for the RWC - Hansen included. Allcoaches wanr to win but they also need to refine selections, test new ideas and harden their boys. So no worries as far as the ABs are concerned.

The game against Ireland this weekend will be a real indication of where we stand. Hansen will want to win it but he will still be pushing developmental goals, e.g. giving Mo'unga more time.

Wales vs Australia always descends into a cripple fight. The best test between the two I can remember in the past 20 years was the World Cup group game. I don't know what it is about the fixture that brings the very worst out of either nation.

Yes JW, it's a big test. A loss will leave the scent of death upon the All Blacks. You don't want to go into a WC with sides generally feeling like they have a chance to beat you. That kind of confidence can quickly get out of hand. A win will leave the rugby world with a sense of reaffirmed All Black dominance. I believe they'll win. 

There was an interesting video on reddit showing the number of foreign born players in this Autumn series.

SA and Arg tie first with 0%

NZ 3rd with 12.5%

Scotland had the most with 46.3%

Ireland were 6th, 26.1%

These were in the squads and the bloke who di d the research only used the countries of their birth to go by.

Wonder if the All Blacks are wishing they kept Al Bundi

This has been a down year for New Zealand. That performance against Ireland was shocking, they looked scared, rattled and bereft of ideas. This is not a typical All Black side.