Mils to join 100 club
7 Oct 2011
Mils Muliaina will earn his 100th cap for New Zealand when he starts against Argentina in Sunday’s quarter-final at Eden Park.
Israel Dagg has been omitted from the match 22 due to a thigh injury. Graham Henry has also opted for Cory Jane and Sonny Bill Williams on the wings, with Ma’a Nonu returning to partner Conrad Smith in midfield. Piri Weepu is favoured as the starting No 9.
Richie McCaw will lead the side, while Brad Thorn and Keven Mealamu return to bolster the pack.
Aaron Cruden will make his first World Cup appearance from the bench.
New Zealand - 15 Mils Muliaina, 14 Cory Jane, 13 Conrad Smith, 12 Ma’a Nonu,11 Sonny Bill Williams, 10 Colin Slade, 9 Piri Weepu, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Richie McCaw (c), 6 Jerome Kaino, 5 Sam Whitelock, 4 Brad Thorn, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Keven Mealamu, 1 Tony Woodcock.
Subs: 16 Andrew Hore, 17 Ben Franks, 18 Ali Williams, 19 Victor Vito, 20 Jimmy Cowan, 21 Aaron Cruden, 22 Isaia Toeava.
40 Comments
6 Oct 2011, 21:09 pm
These Dragons don’t look quite as mean without Dan the man. Strong team though.
6 Oct 2011, 21:10 pm
100th test Dragon. Well done Willy Hyena!
6 Oct 2011, 21:13 pm
I think they giving Mils his 100 and then Dagg to close out WC. But omitting Dagg totally, without a plan, is just like dropping Bismarck out of the match day 22.
6 Oct 2011, 21:14 pm
Congratulations Mils. Helluva player, really great man. Good for the game, good for his country. Bravo.
6 Oct 2011, 21:17 pm
Mils… respect!!!
6 Oct 2011, 21:18 pm
@SodaJoe(SodaJoe)-4:
Agreed. Do you remember his speech after the 2009 Super 14 Final? Gotta respect the guy. Deserves his moment in the sun.
6 Oct 2011, 21:23 pm
@SexyTime(SexyTime)-6: aye. I remember.
6 Oct 2011, 21:23 pm
Well done mils – he has never let the AB’s down.
I don’t think Dagg is being rested, I think the injury he got against Canada was more serious than they have let on. Assuming we beat the Argies, against the Boks in the SemiI think Dagg will be on the wing, Mils at 15 to cover the high ball and tidy up Bok breaks, and SBW will be on the bench in place of Toeava.
It’s a strong team, tho lacking some x factor without Carter in particular but also Dagg. Will have too much for the Argies. Will it be enough to beat the Boks? 50/50 I reckon, but much will depend on injuries. Hopefully neither the AB’s or the Boks lose any more of their top players (sad for you guys that Bakkies WC is finished). Could be the decider though, if one of us loses one or two more front line players – we’ve both got player depth, but this is getting ridiculous!!!
6 Oct 2011, 21:30 pm
Well deserved, Mils. A good guy to boot.
6 Oct 2011, 22:07 pm
Good job Mils!
SBW at 11! next he’ll be at tight head
where’s Kahui?
6 Oct 2011, 22:07 pm
Dagg, Kahui, and Guildford are all out with injuries. You get the feeling that Dagg could have played if really required, but Mils is not exactly the worlds worst replacement. Good to see him get his 100th cap. He is one of the good guys on world rugby and has been a consistent performer for a very long time.
Kahui and Dagg should be back next week if the AB’s beat the Pumas. Probably won’t see Guildford again in the RWC unless there are more injuries. Not sure about starting SBW on the wing. Would have preferred Toeava with SBW coming off the bench later in the game.
6 Oct 2011, 22:24 pm
well done mils, you’ve been the standard for the past 2 years in international rugby.
all the best in japan
6 Oct 2011, 22:47 pm
“The All Blacks have been dealt further backline injury problems with Richard Kahui and Israel Dagg the latest to be forced out from Sunday’s Rugby World Cup quarterfinal against Argentina in Auckland.
Kahui and Dagg, the first choice wing and fullback, respectively, failed fully to recover from leg injuries that have been bothering them during the past two weeks and will not play in New Zealand’s most important match in four years.
The news is a further blow to the hosts, with matchwinning pivot Dan Carter this week ruled out of the tournament and wing Zac Guildford also unavailable for this match because of a hamstring injury.
The upshot will see Cory Jane and Sonny Bill Williams start on the wings, right and left, respectively, with veteran Mils Muliaina to slip into the No 15 jersey, and in the process make his 100th test match appearance. It will be Williams’ first test start on the wing.”.
6 Oct 2011, 22:49 pm
@SexyTime(SexyTime)-6:
Victor Matfield could learn a few things from Mils’ postmatch speech. He,, he could learn alot of most others
6 Oct 2011, 22:51 pm
@aliboy(aliboy)-11: Starting SBW against los pumas is a good option, as we will see how much impact he can have there against a fresh team, rather than coming on late against a few tired runners. He will be tested on breaking the adv line and seeing how much penetration he can achieve taking on forwards and backs. We have already tried him as a replacement or impact player, so we know his value there, so this is good strategy for this game.
Dagg’s haematoma is still dodgy, so we cant risk him, had we been playing SA or Aus now, they may have.
6 Oct 2011, 22:53 pm
Well done Mils – quality person through and through. If he plays at 100%, he will set this backline firing from the back. How fortunate to be able to call on somebody of his class while we rest the up and coming Dagg
6 Oct 2011, 23:32 pm
dagg, kahui & zaccy are all ‘injured’…we know
6 Oct 2011, 23:58 pm
@Black Panther(Black Panther)-13: Lets just hope for your sake that McCaw makes it through unscathed. And Read too for that matter. Theyre both playing with niggles and all the playing through the pain headlines for Richie do not bode well. If you guys were to lose either Richie or Read youd be on a really slippery slope. Hoping for the best and well done Mils – 100 is a great milestone to achieve.
7 Oct 2011, 00:00 am
One All Black I’ve always liked. Congrats Mils!
7 Oct 2011, 00:25 am
@Slumtown(Slumtown)-18: I think if we lost Kaino, we’d be in deeper poo. Ritchie hasnt really had much of an impact on this RWC so far. and thats due to harder policing of the ruck area, his form, his dodgy foot, and playing against opposition that have been somewhat unorthodox.
I wouldnt at all be surprised if he is a late withdrawal from the Argie match, or that he plays 50 mins max, and they bring Vito on. Read will be fine, I thought he did OK last week against Canada, he will step up another notch this week
7 Oct 2011, 00:35 am
@KiaKahaNZ(KiaKahaNZ)-20: Probably – Richie hasnt been himself this whole year and coming back from injury for the Crusaders he didnt do too well. So defintiely not having the same impact he used to but even when he plays badly he still plays well. Wheels falling off a bit for all the Sanzar teams with injuries. We have lost Juan Smith, Bakkies Botha, Andries Becker, Duane Vermeulen (who possibly would have made this tour), Frans Steyn, have half injured Habana and JP Pietersen and weve been one of the better off SH teams.
7 Oct 2011, 00:52 am
@Slumtown(Slumtown)-21: Yeah you guys, us and Aus have been hammered, which is making a bit of mockery of the whole RWC. With a max possible 3 massive games coming up for each side, you’re sure to see more casualties too.
Could be a southern hem B side take on the best of the north
7 Oct 2011, 01:18 am
Congratulations Mils…!!
Fully deserved and couldn’t happen to a better guy… I was pissed that he was left out originally for Dagg… I would have played Mils at 15 and Dagg on the wing…
Maybe Ted’s hand has been forced by Dan’s injury… but I would’ve had Mils and Dan in my team to direct and lead the younger more inexperienced players…
Anyway… a game or two too late but… good thing it has come…
Enjoy the occasion…!
7 Oct 2011, 01:26 am
Well done Mils! Apparently Mils will have started 95 of his 100 tests…. assuming he isnt “injured” before Sunday. Not many cheap, gimme caps for Mils in his ton. I’m nervous about the look of this AB team. On paper they look good (except $BW on wing again) but reading between the lines, I think they (ABs) will be lucky if Richie manages the full 80 against the Pumas. Should Richie go down, Kaino and Read will be absolutely crucial for the ABs. I wonder if DC werent injured if Richie would have been rested for another week? Its getting farcical now, all these injuries.
Does anyone have a list of all the injured players (eg Juan, Bekker, Carter, Steyn etc….)? It would be interesting to see if a full XV could be made from all the absent/injured players.
7 Oct 2011, 01:53 am
Good on ya Mils – the 100 milestone just shows how many more test games the guys are playing nowdays as opposed to the past – hectic schedules indeed!
7 Oct 2011, 02:33 am
@Transformation(Transformation)-12:
thats right, von Trapp, theyre being ‘rested’ (aka ‘injured’ in Afrikaans) for a RWC QterF against the 3rd-placed team from 2007.
I keep forgetting youre here in NZ, it would presumably be so much easier picking up these nuances from abroad.
7 Oct 2011, 02:55 am
What is this all about…ted still trying out combinations?! I would have thought 8 years is long enough…
7 Oct 2011, 03:51 am
And 4 more years Mils, you will make 101 tests……..nice guy I am sure, but a very average rugby player. Reminds me a bit of Gerbrand Grobler.
AB’s falling apart.
7 Oct 2011, 08:18 am
Finally some justice
Tinker Ted..
Well done Mils,my favourite NZ player of his generation.All Class player,All class professional,All class person
100 Tests as an outside back in NZ…bigger than McCaw’s in my book.All this with likes of Leon MacDonald breathing down his neck,Ben Blair etc
Mils…respect.
7 Oct 2011, 08:23 am
Good for Mils congratulations,
However if Dagg was not injured I would not have agreed with this selection. Mils simply do not play well enough at the moment to deserve a place in the knockout stages.
GH should stick with CJ, ID and RK for the back three. SWB should come off the bench.
This is what has worked so far if we say that the AB`s played well against France.
7 Oct 2011, 08:30 am
Mils has managed to reach 100 Tests beating off likes of:
Cullen
MacDonald
Blair
Jane
Toeava
Howlett(move to 15 latter part of career)
Ben Smith
Impressive
7 Oct 2011, 08:34 am
@mshiniwami(mshiniwami)-29:
Agree
Welldone Mils
7 Oct 2011, 09:16 am
@mshiniwami(mshiniwami)-31: Argh, you force me to moan a bit. First off well done to Mils – awesome player, awesome person. Secondly, boo to the All Black coaching staff over the years who caused all time greats Cullen and Howlett to go abroad way too early. I may be a South African but I really enjoyed watching those guys play.
7 Oct 2011, 09:25 am
@H(H)-33:
Im a saffa too & enjoyed watching that generation of All Black players.Cullen was let go too early by John Mitchell,same with Taine Randell. Howlett was at the end of the road in 2007.Has done will at Munster though
7 Oct 2011, 11:03 am
@H(H)-33:
Hoezit
7 Oct 2011, 14:25 pm
Respect mils – this is lookin like the settled combination for the final run , like the team …. Anybody who thinks Richie wont last the crusade , is in for big disappointment , the boy is made of iron… Easier game for Slade now to step up , what an opportunity for the young man , i bet he would of never guessed he would be the NZ no 1 flyhalf a year ago , go for it Colin !!!! Worried about the kickin duties but hell we will score trys !!!
7 Oct 2011, 15:42 pm
Well all have an awesome weekend – off to bed now must be up at 5 am to start the braai for breakfast – what a weekend !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Back in Black !!!!!!
7 Oct 2011, 15:59 pm
Congrats to Mils, brilliant ambassador for rugby!!
7 Oct 2011, 16:00 pm
Congrats to Mils; brilliant ambassador for rugby!!
7 Oct 2011, 19:24 pm
@H(H)-33:
Blame Mitch (he’s 1 of yours now) for the poor treatment of Cullen but more so a horrific career-ending knee injury (he was never the same player at Munster).
@mshiniwami(mshiniwami)-34:
Howlett was let go too early by 1-2 seasons but Cullen was finished, however much of a knut Mitch & Dingo were at the time.
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