Carter’s back in business

Carter’s back in business

Dan Carter has returned to the All Blacks’ starting XV for Saturday’s Test against the Wallabies in Hong Kong but there’s no room for Sonny Bill Williams.

Carter missed the third Bledisloe Cup match in Sydney with an ankle injury, but has recovered from surgery to reclaim the No 10 jersey from the axed Aaron Cruden.

But Williams, a rugby league recruit who has played for Canterbury in the national provincial championship, has been overlooked by coach Graham Henry and may have to wait until the Scotland match in two weeks’ time to make his All Blacks debut.

‘We didn’t want to fire Sonny Bill into the deep end,’ Henry said. ‘We think he needs a bit of time to get accustomed to what we are trying to do out there and I think he needs clarity of what this All Blacks team are trying to do. It would have been a big ask to throw him out there in a big Test match like this without having time to get his feet under the table.’

Henry has made three other changes to the side that beat the Wallabies 23-22 with Joe Rokocoko returning to the left wing for Israel Dagg (injured), Jimmy Cowan at halfback for Piri Weepu (injured), and Jerome Kaino at blindside flanker for Victor Vito (not on tour).

New Zealand – 15 Mils Muliaina, 14 Cory Jane, 13 Conrad Smith, 12 Ma’a Nonu, 11 Joe Rokocoko, 10 Dan Carter, 9 Jimmy Cowan, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Richie McCaw (c), 6 Jerome Kaino, 5 Tom Donnelly, 4 Brad Thorn, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Keven Mealamu, 1 Tony Woodcock.
Subs: 16 Hikawera Elliot, 17 John Afoa, 18 Samuel Whitelock, 19 Daniel Braid, 20 Alby Mathewson, 21 Stephen Donald, 22 Isaia Toeava.


88 Comments

  • 1.flanka: Reply to this comment

    Sonny Bill Williams will be the all black midfields downfall….please play him asap. the rate at which he has been accelerated to the team is not proportional to his skill level at rugby union

  • 2.flanka: Reply to this comment

    otherwise it seems like graham henry finally has a settled all black line-up after half a decade of chopping and changing

  • 3.Cheetah Champs: Reply to this comment

    Saturday is working out to be a good rugby day thanks to our friends at Supersport:

    08:15 – 10:40 – Auckland vs Waikato
    10:25 – 12:40 – Bledisloe Cup
    12:15 – 14:00 – U19 Finals
    14:00 – 16:30 – U21 Finals
    17:00 – 19:00 – CC Final.

    According to my calcs, that is a solid 11 hours on the couch.

    The missus is going to LOVE me on Saturday.

  • 4.Cheetah Champs: Reply to this comment

    Oooooh, I forgot:

    19:00 – 21:00 – Gloucester Rugby v Leicester Tigers
    21:00 – 23:00 – Clermont Auvergne v Stade Francais

    It is official, rugby will end my marriage :lol:

  • 5.Taahirah: Reply to this comment

    4. He he he. My gf usually folds her arms, stands in front of me and says: “Its ok baby, you can watch rugby all day”. I then proceed to get off the couch and do whatever she desires from me.

  • 6.Tomatoboy_ralepelle: Reply to this comment

    january will cost province the game …. Sharks by 8

  • 7.Transformation: Reply to this comment

    come on father ted, Big Hit says SBW is the “real deal” what do you mean you don’t want to fire him into the deep end?!

  • 8.stormersboy: Reply to this comment

    He’s one hell of an athlete, and doesn;t shy away from contact. Not dissimilar to Nonu, who isn;t exactly the most subtle of players either. I prefer SBW athletically, but Nonu and Smith are a great partnership.

    Nice to have a situration like that. Sounds familiar. JDV/JDJ anyone?

  • 9.NZINCHINA: Reply to this comment

    Weepu and the Bokke tormentor Dagg aren’t there unfortunately otherwise a very good team attempting a 16th win on the trot an outstanding effort.Every SAFFA will be praying we lose so we don’t break the record for top tier nations of consecutive wins which from memory is 17 held jointly by us and SA.

  • 10.stormersboy: Reply to this comment

    @9. NZINCHINA(NZINCHINA): Didn;t Clive Woodawrd’s WC winning team break that record? I seem to remember something like that….

  • 11.NZINCHINA: Reply to this comment

    10 Don’t think so wait for Big t it he’ll have his rugby almanac strapped to his a*rse

  • 12.NZINCHINA: Reply to this comment

    These successes would also ensure the New Zealanders overshadow the efforts of the 1965-69 All Blacks and the 1997-98 Springboks, who won 17 matches straight.

  • 13.Brads: Reply to this comment

    Woodward’s team had several good runs, but the best was only 14.

    The sequence started against Wales in March 2003 and ended when they lost to France in August 2003.

  • 14.Transformation: Reply to this comment

    10. STORMERSBOY(STORMERSBOY):

    Up until the 26th of April 2010 the record
    for most consecutive wins by any
    international team in Test Rugby was
    held by the All-Blacks from New Zealand
    and The Springboks from South Africa,
    which was 17. This record was eclipsed
    on the 26th by Lithuania, when they
    recorded their 18th win in a row when
    they wrote their name into Rugby’s
    history books after beating Serbia 77-5
    on Saturday to record an 18th
    consecutive Test victory and surpass the
    previous record in the men’s Game held
    by New Zealand and South Africa.
    Lithuania’s run began on May 27, 2006
    with a 23-17 away win over Hungary in
    Esztergom and has as of this answer
    seen them beat 12 different countries
    across Europe.

  • 15.stormersboy: Reply to this comment

    @13. Brads(Brads): Thanks for that. Kind of glad really.

  • 16.NZINCHINA: Reply to this comment

    14 so the Lithuanians go beaten in their 19th game?

  • 17.Brads: Reply to this comment

    The effort by the AB’s in the 60′s was far more noteworthy.

    Their wins were only against genuine Test playing nations who wanted to win. Not development teams sent South for experience while resting their first choice players.

    Plus, the time span is far more impressive.

    5 Years is a massive time to hold a streak together.

  • 18.Brads: Reply to this comment

    My bad on the English sequence I stated in 13. Typo’s are a *****.

    They started their run in March 2002.

  • 19.Brads: Reply to this comment

    Lithuania deserve their current status as World Record holders.

    The way of international rugby is to promote teams to stronger competition as they win. The same way they do in most other sports.

    On that basis, thay had to beat teams ranked more or less on a par to their status.

    Just as the AB’s rate a win against easy beats like Samoa, Tonga and England in their record sequence.

  • 20.NZINCHINA: Reply to this comment

    17 In this run which teams were development sides, were Ireland and Wales not the best sdies they could send?

  • 21.NZINCHINA: Reply to this comment

    19 You’ll get in trouble with the KEO police talking about England like that…

  • 22.puff: Reply to this comment

    It’s prudent of Henry to try Williams against Scotland first and not Aus.
    I’m waiting for him to be yellow or red carded for tackling with no arms!
    And finally Daniel Braid makes the 22!
    And so the plan to manage McCaw leading up to RWC begins.
    If McCaw goes off in the second half, who will captain the team?
    Mealamu, Read, Muliaina?

  • 23.Brads: Reply to this comment

    20 – I was hinting at Mallet’s team actually.

  • 24.Brads: Reply to this comment

    22 – Williams hasn’t had a problem adapting to the requirement to use your arms when tackling as far as I am aware. I agree he was definitely a shoulder charge merchant when playing league though, which was is, for some ***** reason, permitted.

  • 25.Brads: Reply to this comment

    22 – The AB’s Circa 2011 have a look about them of the England 2003 squad.

    The number of tests racked up by the likely run on 15 will be huge.

    Ask your same question about what England would have done if Johnson had been injured and who would have taken over during the 2003 fianl and whether the result would have been different.

    Impossible.

  • 26.Nils: Reply to this comment

    Record sequence – great. Unbeaten until WC – even greater. A loss to keep feet firmly on the ground – probably priceless. The question is – when and against who.

  • 27.Nils: Reply to this comment

    @25 Valid question, keeping in mind that Watson did his best to help hosts in the final, despite them being monstered in the scrums all day.

    England was fortunate to have all their best players on field when it mattered and deservedly squeezed out a win.

  • 28.Big Hit: Reply to this comment

    25. perhaps a similar number of caps (although not sure about that), but how many NZ players would make that England forward pack?

    One. Richie McCaw ahead of Neil Back. None of the others would make it.

  • 29.Brads: Reply to this comment

    @28 I was not trying to compare the two teams to each other, as that would involve endless speculation.

    I was comparing the two teams to their “maturity” compared to their respective contemporaries.

    SA had it in 2007.

  • 30.Nils: Reply to this comment

    @29. Only during WC time unlike England who were dominant force for a year before WC.

  • 31.Brads: Reply to this comment

    @Nils(Nils) : Isn’t that what counts?

  • 32.Nils: Reply to this comment

    @31 It definitely counts. No doubt.

    The only difference is the path to the comp. English way was a very impressive one, keeping in mind that they are an average team most of the time – they trounced all before them, be it 6 Nations, Australia or New Zealand (with 13 men!). You cannot say anything like that for much more fancied South Africans, they were poor in that year overall and fortune really helped them when it mattered.

  • 33.Brads: Reply to this comment

    @Nils(Nils) :
    Okay, you convinced me, SA didn’t deserve to win RWC07!

  • 34.logie_Jumpbuck: Reply to this comment

    @flanka(flanka) : i cannot agree more. i’ve watched him in the ITM cup games and he is as lost as Lassie in a greyhound race.

  • 35.Nils: Reply to this comment

    @33. Hey, that was uncalled for. Why twist my words?

  • 36.logie_Jumpbuck: Reply to this comment

    Henry messed around with the AB midfield just before and during the 07 world cup as well. Played Leon Macdonald instead of Mauger. He’s making the same mistake…..so much for learning from your mistakes. History tends to repeat itself to the T when it comes to ALL BLACK WORLD CUPS. ;-)

  • 37.Black Panther: Reply to this comment

    Brad @ 33

    it’s taken you a bit longer than the rest of us but atleast we can now agree on the blindingly obvious.

  • 38.Black Panther: Reply to this comment

    Logie @ 36

    so please enlighten us. How is Henry “messing around with midfield combinations” ?

    Don’t confuse the medias obsession with SBW with Nonu & Conrad being selected together on every occasion when both are fit. As in Hong Kong.

  • 39.fantasticbarnsmell: Reply to this comment

    i recently watched a few “highlights” of SBW’s league career on youtube – i for one cannot wait until he unleashes his “big hits” on the rugby world and spends half his career in the sin bin.

  • 40.Frankly speaking: Reply to this comment

    @fantasticbarnsmell(fantasticbarnsmell) : How many of those hits involved the use of arms? :) (as required by the IRB)

  • 41.poppa69: Reply to this comment

    @logie_Jumpbuck(logie_Jumpbuck) is that like the history of the 3ns that continually sees SA add another one to the burgeoning cutlery set of wooden spoons..

    still, have to feed the clowns I spose.. :mrgreen:

  • 42.poppa69: Reply to this comment

    @fantasticbarnsmell(fantasticbarnsmell) : hope Bakkies keeps the seat warm for SBW, surely he’d still get the first card…

    cant help himself..

  • 43.Panzer Chief: Reply to this comment

    @fantasticbarnsmell(fantasticbarnsmell) :

    You seem to have forgotten that the Anzac Cartel now controls the IRB Referees Panel.

    Sonny Bill will be just fine.

    8)

  • 44.logie_Jumpbuck: Reply to this comment

    @Black Panther(Black Panther) : Mate, do you really think NZRU would have paid over $1m for SBW only for Henry not to pick him? Seriously? The writing is on the wall i’m afraid.

  • 45.logie_Jumpbuck: Reply to this comment

    @Panzer Chief(cane) : @poppa69(poppa69) : @Black Panther(Black Panther) : @Nils(Nils) : to all the Kiwi’s on the blog. Mark my words, SBW will be another Andy Farrel. With rush defence or defending inwards teams will shut him down quickly on phase ball. Loose play might see him flurish, but World cups are not played that way…..as we all know.

  • 46.Panzer Chief: Reply to this comment

    This is a very strong AB Team.

    Backs: Very experienced and will be very difficult to contain.

    Loose forwards: Our strongest possible combination. And the equal of any in World Rugby.

    2nd row: Workman like, but have been doing the business.

    Front Row: All in good form.

    Bench: Solid if not star laden.

    NZ by 11.

  • 47.Frankly speaking: Reply to this comment

    @Panzer Chief(cane) : You mind telling us who those “stars” on your bench may be?…

  • 48.fantasticbarnsmell: Reply to this comment

    @Frankly speaking(Frankly speaking) : approximately 0

    @poppa69(poppa69) : too true, i could not agree with you more.

    @Panzer Chief(cane) : haha

  • 49.Panzer Chief: Reply to this comment

    @logie_Jumpbuck(logie_Jumpbuck) :

    I agree logie, the moment Sonny Bill signed to come home. He was in the AB’s.

    Not sure we need him anyway…………………………but we may as well see him at the highest level after dishing out a mil.

    In Nonu, Toeava, Fruen, Smith, MacAlister and Kahui we have plenty of mid field options.

  • 50.Panzer Chief: Reply to this comment

    @Frankly speaking(Frankly speaking) :

    Read my Lips……………”Solid IF NOT star laden”.

    ;)

  • 51.Transformation: Reply to this comment

    did anyone hear, Father Ted got pinged for speeding but the cop didn’t give him a ticket…cos the cop is not authorised to issue speeding fines :D

  • 52.logie_Jumpbuck: Reply to this comment

    @Panzer Chief(cane) : if he’s fit i would play Toeava evey time. Probably your most dangerous runner amongst the backs.

  • 53.Panzer Chief: Reply to this comment

    @Transformation(Transformation) :

    True.

    Ted was doing 81kph in a 50kph zone.

    When asked about it, at todays Press Conference, he replied………”I’m not commenting on that”.

  • 54.logie_Jumpbuck: Reply to this comment

    @Panzer Chief(cane) : compare it to with boks strongest side and we have much to look forward to.

    Backs: very good center pairing, good kicking 10 and wingers to burn.

    loosies: on par with nz with brussouw back

    locks: best in the world

    front row: with smit on the bench they are as good as any.

  • 55.Panzer Chief: Reply to this comment

    @logie_Jumpbuck(logie_Jumpbuck) :

    Over the last year or so, Toeava has grown in confidence and is now realising his potential.

    Myself, I’d stay with Nonu and Smith at this point, but have Toeava on the bench for sure. Good impact player and can cover any backline slot.

  • 56.fantasticbarnsmell: Reply to this comment

    @logie_Jumpbuck(logie_Jumpbuck) : you forget that NZ have a far superior coach and game strategy / tactics.

  • 57.logie_Jumpbuck: Reply to this comment

    @Panzer Chief(cane) : i’d still play toeava. i’m basing that on my own fear when we play nz…..i’d rather have the boks fave nonu.

    @fantasticbarnsmell(fantasticbarnsmell) : very true. but if, by some miracle, the team can gel and buy a decent game plan on the blackmarket we may be title contenders ;-)

  • 58.Panzer Chief: Reply to this comment

    @logie_Jumpbuck(logie_Jumpbuck) :

    Captain Smit will not be on the bench logie.

    Victor’s 2nd tenure as Cappy, will end the same way as his first tenure……………….in failure.

    So they will stay with Jon next year.

  • 59.logie_Jumpbuck: Reply to this comment

    @Panzer Chief(cane) : we’ll see. with bismark on form i cannot see smit playing hooker, and after the failed conversion to prop last year he will end up as an advisor in the coach’s box.

  • 60.Black Panther: Reply to this comment

    @logie_Jumpbuck(logie_Jumpbuck) :

    oh, so he’s gone from “messing around with the midfield” – its unchanged for HK, the same combination all season – to now surmising that “the writing is on the wall”.

    I suppose not picking 1 other midfielder would have sent out a stronger message. At this stage, and Im guessing for another 2+ weeks, SBW wont even feature on the bench.

    Competition for places is key in any squad. Besides, your eg’s of McDonald and Cullen at previous RWCs are irrelevant as neither were midfielders. SBW is.

  • 61.Black Panther: Reply to this comment

    @logie_Jumpbuck(logie_Jumpbuck) :

    schucks, thanks for the advice oh wise one.

    You may have missed my previous posts on the subject. Im NO fan of ex-leaguies and certainly dont buy in to the SBW-hype machine.

    Having said that, he’s an incredible athletic talent. My guess is he would need 2 Super seasons to be ready. But then he has been a pro rugby player since he was 15yrs old so if he cant adapt in an AB touring environment then he never will.

    Funny tho – Big Hit must have sensed NZers reluctance to fall for the SBW hype machine because he’s – all of a sudden – backing him. SBW is a NZer, dont forget…..

  • 62.Frankly speaking: Reply to this comment

    @Black Panther(Black Panther) : What would your bench look like if SBW were picked as a replacement?

    Weepu, SBW, Dagg?

  • 63.mshiniwami: Reply to this comment

    SA Best 22

    1.Guthro
    2.Smit(c)
    3.Du Plessis
    4.Bakkies
    5.Matfield
    6.Brussow
    7.Smith
    8.Spies

    9.Du Preez
    10.M.Steyn
    11.Habana
    12.De Villiers
    13.Fourie
    14.JPP
    15.F.Steyn

    16.Bismark
    17.Beast
    18.Rossouw
    19.Burger
    20.Hougaard
    21.De Jongh
    22.Aplon

    NZ Best XV

    1.Woodcok
    2.Mealamu
    3.Franks
    4.Thorn
    5.Donnely (forget about Williams-he’s done)
    6.Kaino
    7.McCaw(c)
    8.Read

    9.Cowan
    10.Carter
    11.Rokocoko
    12.Nonu
    13.Smith
    14.Jane
    15.Mils

    16.Hore
    17.Franks
    18.Whitelock
    19.Braid
    20.Weepu
    21.Donald
    22.Toeava

    Those are the 2 best teams in the world.No doubt

  • 64.Mighty Horua: Reply to this comment

    Israel Dagg?

  • 65.Black Panther: Reply to this comment

    Mish Mash

    not giving up on Comical Ali just yet. I read here that “Dan Carter will never play again” just a few months before he did. He looks OK…

    Ali has apparently secured himself a short contract to play in UK and will then roll right in to Super Rugby. Not counting ON him but certainly not counting him OUT either.

  • 66.mshiniwami: Reply to this comment

    @Black Panther(Black Panther)

    Fair enough,but the whole Carter thing was wishful thinking on whoever’s part.He has lost a yard of pace though as achillies tend to do.But he’s still class

    Ali hasnt played in almost 2 yrs..24 months is a lifetime in rugby.Remember Andre Snyman??? never returned the same after such a long lay off.I doubt even if he comesback he’ll be anywhere near the region of world class as before.Have a look at Chris Jack as well who was affected by injuries a lot during his NH stint.watched him play for Tasman..not the Jack that was an AB superstar.

    I fear the same for Ali

  • 67.mshiniwami: Reply to this comment

    @Mighty Horua(Mighty Horua) :

    Dagg will miss out as he covers only back 3.Toeava will trump him there in 22 where Toeava covers 11/12/13/14/15 and 10-at a push.Unless Dagg starts above Roko,which wont happen.

  • 68.logie_Jumpbuck: Reply to this comment

    @Black Panther(Black Panther) : No he’s not, he’s a rugby league player mate…..but my point remains. NZ rugby forked out $1 bar for him to warm a bench.

  • 69.Frankly speaking: Reply to this comment

    @mshiniwami(mshiniwami) : I’d ahve Dagg on my bench as he’s another goal-kicker. That’s if **** Weepu isn’t covering 9/10 already

  • 70.Black Panther: Reply to this comment

    SBW has had 1.5 seasons for Toulon and 1 for Canterbury.

    all at 12.

    His only experience in Union is at 12. In most peoples eyes that would make him a ‘midfielder’ but continue clutching at straws in your desperation to compare apples and oranges.

  • 71.logie_Jumpbuck: Reply to this comment

    @Black Panther(Black Panther) : have you followed him in the itm cup? he doesn’t impress me that much so far.

  • 72.WP Till I Die: Reply to this comment

    NEW ZEALAND EMBARRESSED BY FAKE CV

    Wellington – New Zealand’s military chief admitted on Thursday the defence force was “seriously embarrassed” after a top scientist who made wild claims about his background was granted high security clearance.

    The head of the Defence Technology Agency Stephen Wilce quit last month after it was revealed he falsely claimed he was an ex-Marine combat veteran and an Olympic bobsledder who raced against Jamaica’s “Cool Runnings” team.

    A government inquiry released on Thursday found the recruiting process that led to Wilce’s appointment was “flawed in significant respects”, prompting moves to tighten procedures.

    “Some dumb decisions were made,” Defence Force chief Lieutenant General Jerry Mateparae told reporters.

    British-born Wilce resigned from the agency, which provides technology support to New Zealand’s military, after commercial broadcaster TV3 alleged he padded his resume and made a string of fanciful claims about his past.

    They included being a combat veteran and a member of Britain’s bobsleigh team at the 1988 Calgary Olympics, where he supposedly competed against the Jamaican team which inspired the 1993 film “Cool Runnings”.

    “I know them all,” Wilce said in footage filmed by an undercover reporter. “I know all the Jamaican guys… mad, absolute nutters.”

    No record

    TV3′s “60 Minutes” reported that no record existed of Wilce serving in Britain’s Royal Marines or having combat experience and that no one on the 1988 British bobsleigh team had heard of him.

    Previous employers and colleagues told the programme Wilce had claimed he designed guidance systems for Britain’s Polaris nuclear missiles, a defunct system launched 50 years ago during the Cold War.

    Wilce headed 80 staff at the Defence Technology Agency for five years.

    Mateparae said that while screening procedures had proved inadequate, most of the failings lay with Wilce.

    “He represented his work history, military career, achievements, academic qualifications and activities in other fields in a way that was neither honest nor complete.

    “Not only have his actions damaged his reputation, they have damaged the morale of those he led at the Defence Technology Agency, and they have damaged the reputation of the New Zealand Defence Force.”

    Mateparae said the report, which found that Wilce had not posed a threat to national security, had been passed to police for further action if warranted.

    - AFP

  • 73.mshiniwami: Reply to this comment

    @Black Panther(Black Panther) :

    If im not mistaken he played the majority of his rugby at 13 at Toulon.He did have stints at 12 as you say.But i stand to be corrected.Saw a lot of clips of him with 13 on his back Toulon days.

    And league players always have trouble in union,esp acclamitising to intricacies of the game.And midfield defensive patterns esp at international level aint no joke.Seen many a veteran mess up.

    But jury is still out I guess.We shall see,because when he played in Barbarians game a couple of yrs back he had sum nice touches but that was as close international test level as he has come close to.He was bullied in contact offense & defense by Mortlock that day.

  • 74.Black Panther: Reply to this comment

    @logie_Jumpbuck(logie_Jumpbuck) :

    great with ball in hand, poor without it.

    The comparisons with Jonah look rather relevant dont they.

    1 AB tour and a Super season will give us more of an idea, I will judge him then. But Id far rather stick to a Kahui or Toeava as midfield cover.

    Bench players HAVE to add something tho. They are primarily there to turn around a losing position if required. In this case, only, he may fit the bill because he can make things happen. But I dont see him as a starting midfielder against the Top 5 opposition.

    Im no fan of ex-leaguies tho, so lets agree about that.

  • 75.Black Panther: Reply to this comment

    @WP Till I Die(WP-Forever) :

    Im surprised

    I didnt know we had any armed services left.

  • 76.mshiniwami: Reply to this comment

    @logie_Jumpbuck(logie_Jumpbuck) :

    Seen some footage in ITM-a few games of SBW.He is very good ball in hand,esp in contact when he keeps ball alive.His best attribute is the ability to pull off some fantastic offloads.sublime-keeps continuity on attack.Solid defender.

    But hasnt done enough to be an AB.

    Robbie Freuan had a fantastic season & deserved a place(yes I know he is a 13)

    But with Donald & Toeava able to cover 12,SBW is a luxury

  • 77.Black Panther: Reply to this comment

    @mshiniwami(mshiniwami) :

    Offensive weapon; defensive liability.

    Leaguies arent paid to THINK.

    Theres the wall; now run through it !

  • 78.mshiniwami: Reply to this comment

    @Black Panther(Black Panther) :

    Whoa….BP…comparisons of Jonah with SBW

    Sheesh..thats sacrilege…

    Find urself mate…LOL

  • 79.Frankly speaking: Reply to this comment

    @Black Panther(Black Panther) : What exactly is the NZRU’s plan with SBW if he’s not gonna feature in next year’s World Cup?

  • 80.Black Panther: Reply to this comment

    @mshiniwami(mshiniwami) :

    steady on, that comparison was made by others here, not moi. For which I duly mocked them !

  • 81.Black Panther: Reply to this comment

    @Frankly speaking(Frankly speaking) :

    do you really think a hard-nosed b@stard like Lord Ted is stupid enough to pick SBW for RWC if he hasnt come up to the standard by Sept’11 ?! He strikes me as not answering to anyone on selection, he has been ruthless in the past and will continue to be.

    Forget about the dosh NZRFU have, supposedly, thrown at him – they threw a more significant amount in a failed attempt to bring Hayman back to NZ but then threw a few spare parts and created Franks’enstein Monster instead.

  • 82.captain fantail: Reply to this comment

    I think the Wallabies are going to be Honked and then Konged!!
    They are saying that the AB’s by 5 points but I think we will see a bit of a higher difference. AB’s by 15+

  • 83.stew: Reply to this comment

    Hello all ! Back from service still alive – cant wait to see Sonny Bill play in the black – Saders are going to be unstoppable next S14 – see Daag is on board too

  • 84.Black Panther: Reply to this comment

    @captain fantail(captain fantail) :

    disagree. The Wallabies have been in camp for 3 weeks already and the ABs, by’n'large, will be coming in to this Test completely underdone having only assembled this week. This is – by far – the Aussies best chance to topple the Men in Black.

  • 85.Dawn: Reply to this comment

    What time is this game?

    I mean local SA time, not middle earth time.

  • 86.Black Panther: Reply to this comment

    @Dawn(Dawn) :

    10:30am Saturday SA-time

    Peaches.

  • 87.Muttonbird: Reply to this comment

    @mshiniwami(mshiniwami) : Does the same apply to Fourie du Preez?

  • 88.captain fantail: Reply to this comment

    @Black Panther(Black Panther) : I hear what your saying- but do you thing GH and Richie will be coming to lose? There is alot on this game as the beginning of the EOYT and I reckon they maybe better prepared than what some think!

Keo.co.za has always promoted uncensored views, but has never tolerated racist or crass outbursts. Come on guys and girls. If you can't moderate yourselves or each other then I am going to be forced to regulate the posts and enforce a registration process for comments. The choice is yours.

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