The EOY tour was probably Ben Smiths worst form in the last 7 years and really the only quiet patch he's ever had. He obviously had some issues during that period. Played a huge amount of minutes for the highlanders, more than anyone else in the team if I'm not mistaken, he played through an injury, he got sick prior to a test match and lost a significant amount of weight, he was rested for one match after that but he never really recovered till the summer break which basically got him back to the standard he's set for years.
You seem to put a lot of emphasis on stats they will only tell you part of the story. On the field Smith is clearly more confident and committed. Correct me if I'm wrong but I think Daggs stats are heavily buffered by that one sharks game where the crusaders ran riot. The sharks were so poor it's been investigated for match fixing. Week in week out Smith has been a superior player at all levels for the last 4 years.
Smith had another huge game on the weekend. I think his performances kinda go unheralded a bit because we just expect it. Where with Dagg there is a kind of "will he or wont he?" kind of expectation to his play because we know how good he can be but have not truly seen it for so long.
Also think Osborne was superb, Naholo is getting a lot of attention for his finishing but to me Osborne looks like a player more suited to test rugby.
Canes vs. Crusaders was a huge game for looking at relative form & test potential. All 4 all black first fives were good, Slade and Barrett were superb, Taylor was good again and Carter also had a pretty good game.
4 All Black locks as well and I think this was more telling. IMO the two best locks were Whitelock and Broadhurst by a big margin. Thrush looked below par and Colin Slade seemed to have a field day running rings around him.
I only put any emphasis on the stats because somebody else did in Ben Smith's favor, and I thought that was an interesting conversation. Stats can be funny things, and we often forget that they don't tell the full story as you alluded to. If we want a defensive fullback who is reliable in the tackle every time, then just look at the tackling stats. If you think the match will be a territorial game then Dagg consistently gains more meters by running, and with the boot. It's about what kind of story the stats are telling us - the macro picture. You won't see Hansen drop Dagg just because it isn't 2011. You may see Smith star more consistently over him, but I'd be very surprised if Dagg was left out all together. And not just for experience value. He fits a certain type of game plan. That isn't me being one sided or stubborn - it's been acknowledged by other posters here.
Actually, meters gained and tries contributed were ahead of Smith prior to that Sharks match - although yes, in other areas it did provide a buffer. However, it was also consistent with Dagg's form against the Bulls who I have rated almost all season. Even the South African commentary acknowledged that Dagg's performance against the Sharks was on the back of finding more form in 2015, and the stats certainly show that. There are certain games where the opposition are inept in certain playing areas, and you see Ben Smith's stats get buffers as well. For example, his offloads might be low and then suddenly he makes 9 against a certain team. But I'm not going to sit here and point that out stat by stat, it should just be well known.
There were whispers and stories about Smith's health. How do you know something hasn't been happening in Dagg's life for the past few years that may have effected him? The crux of it is, at the time this conversation started some posters were saying Dagg was out of form. Compared to other years where he's been dire, that's just not true. He's been unlucky to be interrupted by injury and showed a lot of promise again in some areas. I don't care who Hansen pick really. I'm just make the point, there is a lot of Ben Smith bias here. When using the stats for Smith - excellent. When using stats for Dagg - you can't do that! People start changing the goal posts and conflating arguments (not you).
Can I also just mention (again) that the main point I've been trying to make throughout
isn't the last 4 years. It's this year, and his most recent All Blacks tour. You seem to think I'm saying Dagg has been better than Ben Smith for the past 4 years. Clearly that's not the case. If you want to have that conversation, you should start a new thread arguing the case, and I'd be inclined to agree with you.
