Warm Up Match 4: Highlanders v British & Irish Lions (Dunedin)

[ncurd]

Whilst I didn't watch the match, I don't really mind loosing it by one point. The team had that mid-week feel and I'd expect Ireland, or England's first team to push over that team and on a good day France, Wales and Scotland too. I'd also expect the best Top 14, Pro12 and Premiership teams to have given it a run for their money.

Nothing to worry about here really.

 

[McTallshort]

Well the kiwis all love him, so...

Obviously he was fantastic! Glad the Kiwis are guardians of whats right and proper in the game.

 

[TRF Mr Fish]

Let's hope none of the Lions players go on Dunedin benders tonight.

Great win for the Highlanders. As per usual, some contentious refereeing. Highlanders got the rub of the green - looked pretty clear that Paddy Osborne tackled Nowell in the air.

At the end of the day, it's a game. It's not a test match, the Lions are here to win those games - these are just bonuses.

And even more at the end of the day, it's a game. No point getting upset at people online about it! Let's all take a few breaths, fellas.

 

[GoTheNaki]

I don't get it. What's up with Seta switching from Chiefs to Saders and back to Chiefs? What's the logic behind it?

The logic, i guess... Is Colin Cooper replacing Rennie. Idk though, Ngatai and ALB already there...

 

[Skylinerd1]

Everyone says Mckenzie is the unluckiest player in NZ. I say BULLSHIT.

Liam Coltman is the most underrated player in NZ rugby. He should be second behind Coles for this test series.

 

[The Jones Boy]

Great game, ebbed and flowed, the Highlanders were sorely depleted but they still held to their style and did the business.
Lions mid-week team is weaker than their Saturday side but i would have expected more dominance from their forward pack.
Fabulous result from the Highlanders, they will hold their heads high.

 

[GoTheNaki]

Saturday is gonna be one HELL of a match tho.

 

[Penne Rara]

Everyone says Mckenzie is the unluckiest player in NZ. I say BULLSHIT.

Liam Coltman is the most underrated player in NZ rugby. He should be second behind Coles for this test series.

Mckenzie's really unlucky though mate. I'm not looking at his xfactor or the glitter he pours on the field. He's just influential and one of the reasons why the Chiefs have won some of their matches when they were deemed to be a lost cause.

 

[Groundhog]

Breaking: SRU to designate the Highlanders their primary international team with the outdated traditional 'Scotland' team to play a developmental role where excelling but economically challenged players will be forced to emigrate to Dunedin to play their rugby.

 

[Penne Rara]

Breaking: SRU to designate the Highlanders their primary international team with the outdated traditional 'Scotland' team to play a developmental role where excelling but economically challenged players will be forced to emigrate to Dunedin to play their rugby.

Haha brilliant

 

[Mrs. Peter Quinn]

Crusaders must be feeling pretty inadequate right now!

 

[Penne Rara]

Crusaders must be feeling pretty inadequate right now!

And I would understand why! Their scrum is reputedly New Zealand's finest but they got owned by the Lions. Meanwhile, the Lions can't cope with Landers scrummaging.

 

[curtbob7]

And I would understand why! Their scrum is reputedly New Zealand's finest but they got owned by the Lions. Meanwhile, the Lions can't cope with Landers scrummaging.

change of props and illegal scrummaging

 

[The Jones Boy]

Breaking: SRU to designate the Highlanders their primary international team with the outdated traditional 'Scotland' team to play a developmental role where excelling but economically challenged players will be forced to emigrate to Dunedin to play their rugby.

Will Dunedin be granted 'special zone' preference by the EU?

 

[TRF_Olyy]

Will Dunedin be granted 'special zone' preference by the EU?

No VAT on bucky, That was their only demand

 

[Caitlyn Jenner]

What a great game! Definitely the best of the tour so far. I thoroughly enjoyed it!

I think we saw the best and worst of Fekitoa tonight, and ultimately why he isn't an All Black. He carried very strongly, was always a handfull with ball in hand and defended well. These are the things that he generally always does well and are what make him a very good player.
BUT, he absolutely butchered a try as a result of his poor decision making and natural tendency to hold onto the ball too long and always want to take the line on. Had that been any of the other centers from across the NZ super rugby sides, I'm sure that play would've resulted in a try. If it had been ALB in that situation, you can absolutely bet your house on that try being scored. That's why ALB is our no.1 center, and Fekitoa is no longer an AB. I thought for the most part Feks was very good, but it's that one aspect of his game - his decision making with ball in hand - that is holding him back.

I thought Naholo was absolutely outstanding. He may well have just played himself into a starting spot in the 1st test. His work rate and hunger was great as always, he was powerful and threatening whenever he got the ball, was safe under kicks, and the silly mistakes which can sometimes creep into his game were not there. I think it's clear that he is playing better rugby than The Bus right now.

Big effort from the Landers pack too. I though in particular Whitelock and Coltman were great.
Special mention to Marty Banks as well. While I don't think Sopoaga was as bad as some are suggesting, Banks definitely made a difference when he came on and in the end I think he was the difference between the 2 teams.
On the whole, a great effort from the Landers. This was exactly the intense, committed, clinical performance you'd expect from the tight-nit passionate franchise that they are. Despite not having their 2 biggest stars and having a host of others unavailable they still came together and gave it their absolute best.

As for the Lions, I didn't think they were bad at all. I like the way they're tracking and I think come test 1 they should be in great shape. Obviously this was the midweek team, and some aspects of the performance were a bit dicey, but for the most part I was impressed by the rugby they played.

I was pleasantly surprised by the performance of the halves too... especially Webb. I thought he was a standout for the Lions. Did his core roles well and kept the fringe defence very honest, with a couple little break-aways to boot. Biggar looks to be heading in the right direction as well as well, I think he did everything you'd expect of him for the most part.

 

[galumay]

Crusaders must be feeling pretty inadequate right now!

To be fair though, they had a really off night, worst they have played all season, with some key players missing, and probably against the strongest Lions team of the tour so far. But you are right, and I am sure the Bloos and Landers will remind them frequently and regularly!

 

[Mrs. Peter Quinn]

I didn't understand any of the decision making for the lions late on. Why was Farrell rushed on to take a kick?
Why did we go for the mode of play from the line out with the least room for error when we could have kept it tight and mauled it up?

 

[TobesHodges]

Marler ****.
George only hooker on tour for me.
Stander very one dimensional, never looks at the option of passing.
TBH, Warburton hasn't done enough to warrant a test.
Had we kept Webb on, would have probably won, Laidlaw is so slow..
Bigger went well, I agree with comments, why Farrell to kick straight off the bench wasn't a good idea.
Henshaw runs sideways to much, need to straighten up the attack.
Joseph was ok.
Nowell and Seymour both underwhelming..

Henderson and Payne had good games, so did tipuric, as you can tell from the post I'm ****** off to sit for 2 hours to lose to a out of form, aged highlander.. I'll just sit here and eat my Kiwi Humble Pie

 

[Caitlyn Jenner]

I don't get it. What's up with Seta switching from Chiefs to Saders and back to Chiefs? What's the logic behind it?

He went to the Crusaders to get consistent game-time in the midfield, since he was clearly gonna be over-taken by ALB at the Chiefs and there were no clear options at 13 for the Crusaders at the start of 2017. As it turned out, he only got one game at 13 as a result of the emergence of Goodhue and had to ply his trade on the wing, a position that he has said he doesn't want to play. With Goodhue now the clear young and established Saders 13, Seta won't be getting any gametime there barring injury. The Saders also have a number of great young wingers coming through, so his position there isn't even garunteed.
With the ongoing issues around Ngatai, who knows what his availability will be like next year. If he isn't available, and Seta is there, then ALB will go to 12 with Seta going to his preferred spot at 13. If these 2 can form an effective partnership, it would also do great things for Seta's ABs chances. There is also a clear lack of midfield depth at the Chiefs atm anyways, so Seta would be a very valued player.

Also, obviously, Colin Cooper is the Chiefs coach next year, which is probably the biggest factor. He has strong links with Seta (and Naholo) through Taranaki, so no doubt his presence will be a big factor in Seta's decision.

All things considered, it makes a lot of sense really. For his sake and the sake of the Chiefs, I hope that the rumors are true and that he does go back.