2014 Super Rugby: Highlanders vs. Bulls (Round 9) 11/04/2014

[Icemn]

i put it to you... my lady...

 

[TRF Mr Fish]

What's the rule with a maul from kick off? I though mauls from a kick receive went in favour of the team with the ball, but obviously it's different for kick offs?

Fantastic second half from the Highlanders, bit gutted they didn't get the BP but a win's a win.

 

[tenpm]

What's the rule with a maul from kick off? I though mauls from a kick receive went in favour of the team with the ball, but obviously it's different for kick offs?

Fantastic second half from the Highlanders, bit gutted they didn't get the BP but a win's a win.

Not sure which incident you're referring to, but the feed goes to the team who took it in if it was straight from the kick and not if the player took a few steps before being tackled.

 

[TRF Mr Fish]

Not sure which incident you're referring to, but the feed goes to the team who took it in if it was straight from the kick and not if the player took a few steps before being tackled.

Twice from kick offs, once against each team. Both in the second half, one may well have had a few steps involved.

 

[nzlizard]

I always thought it was the team with the ball team that gets the nod.

Great game by the Highlanders, showed true grit in defense and Ben Smith saving a couple of tries.

B Smith will have to get a 1st crack at fullback for the AB's based on current form, and Fekitoa would have to be considered for centre.

The Bulls could have easily scored 4-5 tries if not for great work by the Highlanders, the HL's can consider them lucky they had so many different types of infringements otherwise they may have been a man short, esp on the back of those 3 lineouts on their line where the Bulls tries 3 rolling mauls, the 3rd one was awesome work the HL's.

Just need a Chiefs and Crusaders win for the trifecta.

 

[Hairy Scot]

Has this ref never heard of the penalty try rule?

 

[austingtir]

I always thought it was the team with the ball team that gets the nod.

Great game by the Highlanders, showed true grit in defense and Ben Smith saving a couple of tries.

B Smith will have to get a 1st crack at fullback for the AB's based on current form, and Fekitoa would have to be considered for centre.

The Bulls could have easily scored 4-5 tries if not for great work by the Highlanders, the HL's can consider them lucky they had so many different types of infringements otherwise they may have been a man short, esp on the back of those 3 lineouts on their line where the Bulls tries 3 rolling mauls, the 3rd one was awesome work the HL's.

Just need a Chiefs and Crusaders win for the trifecta.

See this is the difference between last years HL and this years... last years would of lost this game. Players like Fekitoa, Treeby and even Sapoaga providing far more on attack are helping Ben Smith out a crap load.

Lima has really surprised me this year sure his D is rubbish but the rest of his play puts him on par with just about any 10 in the comp.

And on Ben Smith i think everybody should know by now what I think about that! He should of been first choice two friggin years ago FFS. Everybody gives Nonu **** about being lazy in super rugby well imo Dagg is lazy ALL the time. All he has to really do is punt the ball for the AB's for the last two years its ridiculous.

 

[Kiwiwomble]

Smiths tackle to save that try is as food a play as any try that will get talked up, how often do you see a wingers and full pace get stopped dead legally?

Does anyone know what kind of contract we've signed fekitoa on?

Darwin, so, Lima and TJ.....?

 

[TRF Mr Fish]

Sounds like Thorn is done for the season.

 

[Darwin]

Smiths tackle to save that try is as food a play as any try that will get talked up, how often do you see a wingers and full pace get stopped dead legally?

Does anyone know what kind of contract we've signed fekitoa on?

Darwin, so, Lima and TJ.....?

Yep, it was a pretty phenomenal tackle by Smith. Basson is an excellent finisher, and I was a bit surprised he didn't try to take Smith on the outside, as he had more than enough room to use his pace. Smith's has always been an ok defender, but it has been one of the weaker parts of his game. I think we have seen some big improvements in this area of the last 6 months or so, even since he got shifted to centre by the AB's....

Not sure exactly what sort of contract Fekitoa is on - my guess is it will only be a 1 year contract. If the Highlanders have any sense they will be looking at extended that contract for a few more seasons as soon as they can....

Sounds like Thorn is done for the season.

Bugger. He will be a big loss. He may not be the player he once was, but he still did his core jobs well and leads from the front. I really hope we get to see Franklin given a go in the 23. I'm sure Hoeata will be back starting, but apart from a strong performance in the first week he has been average for the Highlanders this season (as he has been for the last couple of seasons).

Overall I really enjoyed the match. There were a few surprises for me. I was surprised at how well we countered the Bulls driving maul, and surprised how quickly the Bulls abandoned this tactic after we stopped the first couple of mauls. I was also surprised at how expansively the Bulls played. Potgeiter plays very differently than traditional South African 10's. He stands very flat on attack allowing the Bulls backline to attack the advantage line - I'm not actually sure this is the best tactic for the Bulls (who actually had us in trouble early on with a more traditional aerial assault), but it does mean they play a more attractive style of rugby (and they do have the backs to pull this off). The Bulls were really there own worst enemies in that 2nd half - they just kept dropping the ball. With 10 minutes left a stat popped up showing the Bulls had made 11 handling errors in the 2nd half alone!

I thought the Highlanders played much better this week, particularly on defense. The backline defense did get breached a few times, but there was some outstanding cover defense which prevented the Bulls from scoring.

For the Bulls:
- I actually though Greyling was one of their best players. He has a bad reputation, but I was really impressed with his ball running and scrummaging.
- Hattingh is not an 8.
- Matfield is still pretty good (though it is easy to win lineouts when no-one is contesting!)
- Serfontein impressed me again.

For the Highlanders:
- Hames had a bit of a shocker. I think he is recorded as conceding 6 penalties! Fia wasn't any better, with 3 penalties in the sort time he was on. Obviously the scrum struggled a lot (3 tighthead is almost unheard of these days!). Coltman was alright - it is hard to know how much blame to attribute to him for the tightheads though.
- Wheeler has been by far our best lock this season. He just seems to time his runs so well, and runs at gaps rather than players. I would like to see him used a lot more in the lineout though (as he is our best lineout jumper by some margin).
- Evans again did a good job around the park, and was a menace at the breakdown. Christie continues to perform every week, while Dixon did a very good job covering for Manu. He has always been a good ball runner, but he has cut his error-rate down, he is making plenty of tackles, and I've been impressed with his breakdown work too.
- Aaron Smith had an excellent game. His running wasn't as prominent as in recent weeks, but he was reading the game very well, his kicking game was accurate, and he keep putting players in gaps.
- I'm still not convinced with Sopoaga. I'm more than happy with him on attack. He has actually been pretty conservative on attack this season, and because of this his error rate is much lower than in previous seasons (which is certainly a good thing!). His goal-kicking has been superb this season too. I still think he is a massive liability in defense though, and severely limits our counter-attacking ability (with Smith defending up in the line). I do believe he was in some ways responsible for the Basson try too - he should have been defending directly behind the scrum to prevent them attacking down the blindside....
- Treeby played as he always does. Fekitoa looks more like an All Black every week. He still has a few things to work-on, but his distribution is pretty good, he is a weapon with ball in hand, and hits hard in defense (just ask Conrad Smith!).
- Buckman played as he always does. One day he may even get a try. Osbourne had a mixed game. He had a shocker in the first half with numerous handling errors, but looked a different player in the 2nd. He will make a few mistakes, but he is worth persisting with as he is a real weapon with ball in hand. Ben Smith was pretty quiet with ball in hand but made some fantastic defensive plays, and was brilliant (as always) under the high ball.

I thought the ref had a bit of a shocker. He missed numerous forward passes/knock-ons from both sides. He didn't seem to have the balls to give a Highlanders player a yellow for repeated infringements in the "red zone" (we certainly deserved at least one!). He awarded the final Bulls try when it was blatantly obvious the Bulls player should have been penalized for not releasing. At one stage he even game the Bulls the lineout when Basson knocked the ball on into touch (it may have come off Osbourne, but it was a blatant knock-on before-hand!). I don't really like critizing refs (as it is largely a thankless task!), but be just looked completely out of his depth to me.

 

[austingtir]

I dont agree about Thorn for me other than maybe one game he's been missing in action for me. I think wheeler and Hoeata are fine. Wheeler in particular has been a good signing for them.
Certainly would of been nice to have him for the rest of the comp but I just dont seem him as a big loss like I would of previously might actually be good to have him there backing up the younger locks they might have to blood now anyway.

That said come finals time he would of been pretty usefull....Assuming the HL make the finals for once of course. ; )

 

[Darwin]

I dont agree about Thorn for me other than maybe one game he's been missing in action for me. I think wheeler and Hoeata are fine. Wheeler in particular has been a good signing for them.
Certainly would of been nice to have him for the rest of the comp but I just dont seem him as a big loss like I would of previously might actually be good to have him there backing up the younger locks they might have to blood now anyway.

That said come finals time he would of been pretty usefull....Assuming the HL make the finals for once of course. ; )

Thorn has barely played this season due to injury though - when he has played he has been very good IMO. He only played 23 minutes in the 1st Blues match but really set the tone for the Highlanders with some big hits, and similarly stood out with some physical defense and powerful runs against the Hurricanes. He was a bit quieter in the 2nd Blues match (but made plenty of tackles), and I thought he played well against the Bulls. I don't think it is any coincidence the pack played much better when he has been on the field. Hoeata offers a similar level of physicality at times, but is far too often goes missing, offers nothing with ball in hand, misses too many tackles, and is a yellow card waiting to happen. He played very well in the 1st match of the season but hasn't done anything since. Franklin would offer much more in my opinion, and I would even prefer Bekhuis over Hoeata.

 

[austingtir]

I thought the bulls thumped the Highlanders while he was on the field? And i certainly cant recall and Brand Thorn like plays in the few games he has played he's been very quiet.

I thought Matfield was a huge presence on the field Thorn not so.

 

[Darwin]

I thought the bulls thumped the Highlanders while he was on the field? And i certainly cant recall and Brand Thorn like plays in the few games he has played he's been very quiet.

I thought Matfield was a huge presence on the field Thorn not so.

The Bulls forwards had the upper hand the whole match, but Thorn was one of the few Highlanders players who was matching them physically. His physical defense was a real feature of the first half, as was the way he hit the breakdown. The Bulls forwards were just as dominant in the 2nd half (once Thorn went off) but the Bulls couldn't hold onto the ball! I wouldn't consider Thorn to have been quiet at all this season - indeed his ball running (and tackle breaking) has been as prominent as ever. I remember one particular run against the Canes where he bust straight through 2-3 defenders. Again, I don't think he is quite the player he was in his prime, but he was far and away the best TH lock on the Highlanders roster....

Matfield played well for the Bulls, but I thought Thorn was arguably more valuable for the Highlanders than Matfield was for the Bulls. Matfield took a dozen uncontested lineout takes.... and that's about it. I can't recall him disrupting the Highlanders lineout, he went backwards the few times he had ball in hand, and didn't standout in defense (though I can't recall him missing any tackles). I felt there were a number of Bulls forwards that offered a lot more than him (Greyling, Kruger, du Plessis...).

 

[Kiwiwomble]

I'd have thorn there every day, hoeata is doing a bad thorn impression. He's always bouncing around the back of the maul looking for someone to line up...but the ball get cleared before he gets the chance, thorn just gets stuck in

He may not be a bust a game open kind of player anymore but he ain't going to make a mistake, locking down the position, no pub intended, is invaluable, it gives the others a bit more rope

 

[TRF Mr Fish]

Highlanders squad to tour Africa:

Josh Bekhuis, Richard Buckman, Phil Burleigh, Shane Christie, Liam Coltman, Elliot Dixon, Jason Emery, Gareth Evans, Malakai Fekitoa, Ma'afu Fia, Kane Hames, John Hardie, Jarrad Hoeata, Chris King, Nasi Manu, Craig Millar, Brayden Mitchell, Patrick Osborne, Hayden Parker, Trent Renata, Ged Robinson, Ben Smith, Aaron Smith, Lima Sopoaga, Fumiaki Tanaka, Shaun Treeby and Joe Wheeler.

Thorn has been confirmed to be out for the season. Also it doesn't look like they're taking Franklin with them to Africa

 

[Darwin]

Highlanders squad to tour Africa:

Josh Bekhuis, Richard Buckman, Phil Burleigh, Shane Christie, Liam Coltman, Elliot Dixon, Jason Emery, Gareth Evans, Malakai Fekitoa, Ma'afu Fia, Kane Hames, John Hardie, Jarrad Hoeata, Chris King, Nasi Manu, Craig Millar, Brayden Mitchell, Patrick Osborne, Hayden Parker, Trent Renata, Ged Robinson, Ben Smith, Aaron Smith, Lima Sopoaga, Fumiaki Tanaka, Shaun Treeby and Joe Wheeler.

Thorn has been confirmed to be out for the season. Also it doesn't look like they're taking Franklin with them to Africa

I'm not surprised Franklin wasn't included. He won't get a look-in until he plays for the NZ Maori, Wellington, or in Japan. Unless of course Hoeata does something dirty and gets himself suspended - a distinct possibilty.....