[2016 Super Rugby] Blues vs. Sharks (Round 8) 16/04/2016

[TRF_heineken]

Venue: Eden Park
Time: 09:35 CAT (SA, GMT+2)​

 

[Bull]

Blues
15 Lolagi Visinia, 14 Rieko Ioane, 13 Rene Ranger, 12 Piers Francis, 11 Tevita Li, 10 Ihaia West, 9 Bryn Hall, 8 Steven Luatua, 7 Tanerau Latimer/Kara Pryor, 6 Jerome Kaino, 5 Josh Bekhuis, 4 Hoani Matenga, 3 Charlie Faumuina, 2 James Parsons (captain), 1 Sam Prattley.
Substitutes: 16 Quentin MacDonald, 17 Namatahi Waa, 18 Ofa Tu’ungafasi, 19 Kara Pryor/Joe Edwards, 20 Akira Ioane, 21 Billy Guyton, 22 Matt McGahan, 23 George Moala

Sharks
15. Willie le Roux, 14. JP Pietersen, 13. Paul Jordaan, 12. Andre Esterhuizen, 11. Lwazi Mvovo, 10. Joe Pietersen, 9. Cobus Reinach, 8. Philip van der Walt, 7. Jean-Luc du Preez, 6. Daniel du Preez, 5. Stephan Lewies, 4. Etienne Oosthuizen, 3. Lourens Adriaanse, 2. Franco Marais, 1. Tendai Mtawarira (captain)
Substitutes: 16. Kyle Cooper, 17. Thomas du Toit, 18. Coenie Oosthuizen, 19. Hyron Andrews, 20. Keegan Daniel, 21. Michael Claassens, 22. Garth April, 23. Odwa Ndunganev

Sharks have a strong team but they're in such a slump that I doubt they'll win

 

[pagliaccio_euforico]

now this is the type of rugby a stoned out of their mind college student can get behind... give me more of those offloads and little chip kicks

 

[smartcooky]

Chrissakes! The Blues are their own worst enemy, and they are damned lucky to be only 1 point behind at the break

Rene Ranger's injury could be a blessing in disguise!

 

[Bada-Bing!]

Great steal at the line out by Akira. So the boy can jump.

 

[smartcooky]

Well, the Blues escaped with the four points in spite of themselves, but OMG some of their decision making was truly amateur stuff!

Thank heavens I'm not a Blues fan; it must be an immensely frustrating pastime!

 

[Bada-Bing!]

I have a soft spot for the Blues, but yes they just make too many mistakes and their decision making and organisation is the poorest of the 5 NZ teams. Some great individuals, but as a team they just don't gel. Personally don't rate the 9 and 10 half back combination in Hall and West.

 

[smartcooky]

They could also do with a player other than West to kick the ball on their exit plays. Either his timing was way off or he simply isn't a good punter. Kicking the ball from your own 22m right down the throat of Willie le Roux just inside his own half is not a brilliant exit strategy. Le Roux is one of the bast broken field counter-attackers in South African rugby. The Blues were very lucky they didn't get punished for that strategy.

Piers Francis is a much better kicker; perhaps they should use him.

 

[Jaguares]

Hey Kiwis. Where Can I find the attendance numbers of SR games in NZ?

 

[nzlizard]

They could also do with a player other than West to kick the ball on their exit plays.

Chiefs struggle with exit play as well though I reckon, some high % of our tries conceded come from mistakes when we try exit out 22.

The real cost of poor exit play.

 

[Bada-Bing!]

Just read on Stuff NZ that Ranger is out for the rest of the season after doing his ACL, which leaves the Blues in a hole at 13. George Moala to fill in? That also stuffs up Ranger's chances at playing for the ABs this year.

 

[smartcooky]

Just read on Stuff NZ that Ranger is out for the rest of the season after doing his ACL, which leaves the Blues in a hole at 13. George Moala to fill in? That also stuffs up Ranger's chances at playing for the ABs this year.

Yep. Did you see the impact Moala made when he came on...No more crazy, ill-advised offloads that no-one was expecting, and he started making metres over the gain-line with the ball in hand.

IMO George Moala is a better prospect to start at 13 than Ranger. Yes, Ranger is an "X" factor player, but that isn't what the Blues need right now.. they need head-down-arse up hard work... you need to earn the right to go wide.

 

[Shaggy]

Yep. Did you see the impact Moala made when he came on...No more crazy, ill-advised offloads that no-one was expecting, and he started making metres over the gain-line with the ball in hand.

IMO George Moala is a better prospect to start at 13 than Ranger. Yes, Ranger is an "X" factor player, but that isn't what the Blues need right now.. they need head-down-arse up hard work... you need to earn the right to go wide.

Yeah, Moala wasn't on the field long before he scored that try, was he ... I think he is probably better suited to the way the ABs play right now, than Ranger anyway.

While I never like to see injuries happen, Ranger hasn't really featured in too many conversations concerning the likely AB midfield make up anyway.

I can see all of the likely candidates (Crotty, Fekitoa, Moala, and Ngatai) being used by the ABs this year, even if Moala is used off the bench or on the wing.

 

[The Jones Boy]

George Moala is the man.
Great result for the Blues.
I have been a Blues fan since all there was for us was blue and white hoops as the elephant in the closet in the mid 1970's.
Long before those splitters went off across the bridge to form the Auckland C team ;-)
Long before the Hart revelation in the mid 1980's...

Putting this victory in context, the Blues have been an ailing and failing franchise since Nucifora took over, then we endured Pat Lam and Kirwan, that is years and years of underachieving.
Come back Graham...
To get a win over the Sharks is a big morale boost for a team full of young and inexperienced talent.
As a Blues fan from the start it has been a long time in the wilderness and while we are still struggling in plenty of areas it is great to see a result like this lift us out of the basement cellar and put us at the comparatively giddy heights of mid table mediocrity.
Tana has his work cut out and I can see his ideas are likely to need longer than a handful of games to cement themselves but playing the best side every week would be a good start.
That means, for me, starting with Moala, and Ioane.

Is there no other halfbacks in the Auckland region?

 

[Cruz_del_Sur]

Hey Kiwis. Where Can I find the attendance numbers of SR games in NZ?

@Jaguares

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2016_Super_Rugby_season#Round_5

You need to click the "show" link on the right for each game. You won't find all the attendance numbers but most of them.

 

[Jaguares]

@Jaguares

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2016_Super_Rugby_season#Round_5

You need to click the "show" link on the right for each game. You won't find all the attendance numbers but most of them.

@Cruz_del_Sur;

Thanks but it's not complete: