not surprisingly I scrolled back a few pages and most of the talk was about Barrett. near perfect game considering the conditions and it being a final with the added bonus of his goal kicking being quite brilliant which has really been the last thing his game is missing. You would have to say that overall this season considering the finals as well his goal kicking has been good.
But for me the next player I have to mention is TJP. Man he was phenomenal around the field. Distributed the ball fairly well in tricky conditions but he was genuinely like an extra open side flanker. His dominant tackles seemed more memorable and more often even than Savea. We all know the AB selectors like TKB because he's strong around the edges but its been a long time since hes pulled off an effort anywhere near TJP in this final.
Next player to mention is Brad Shields, it seems like a travesty now that he is not in the AB squad. Years of consistent performances. IMO he has been outplaying Vito week by week for about 3 years. Big workrate, hugely physical and very fit. When he came off towards the end he still looked fresh.
While there are a lot of players across the park that deserve credit and obviously Barrett being in superb form has been a huge factor. I think a LOT of the praise has to go to the coaching. The defensive system they have been playing the last 6 or so games and the guys to put Julian Savea on Ice knowing hes' not the player they need in that position. Simply knowing that there were only 5 survivors from the team that made the final last year in the starting lineup this was very much a victory for the non-playing team.
You have to wonder with the success of Renee and now this Hurricanes team if the most important thing for NZ teams is to get the right coaching setup. The old saying a champion team will beat a team of champions.
Lastly it has to be said, the lions basically gave this championship away by playing a 2nd string team in the final round. It was a stupid move and unforgivable really. The position they were in going into that final round their #1 objective had to be ensuring that #1 position. I would still have called the Hurricanes favorites if the game was in SA but at least the lions would have had a (MUCH) better chance.
