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All Blacks 2021-2023 Thread
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<blockquote data-quote="RedruthRFC" data-source="post: 1096460" data-attributes="member: 58362"><p>IMO there's a lot of overthinking about NZ's slide in the rugby world in general and this post sums up the reality that's a bit too boring to get column inches out of.</p><p></p><p>The tight five is the big weakness for me, world-class players who have gone or declined have not been replaced with anyone of similar quality and now aren't providing the platform that they used to for those behind them (who are maybe not all-timey, but still very good) to do what they have for most of the rest of the professional era. Most of the tight five have been in the conversation for best of all time for so long that we've become used to it, but this simply can't last. Nowhere is this more evident than in the second row, where the gene pool simply can't keep providing players like Retalick and Whitelock as their performances decline.</p><p></p><p>As you say, having a coach who for most of his career has been used to forwards getting their share of the ball, and giving it to the backs to do something the opposition can't stop can't be helping. With this platform taken away, he needs to play to the strengths of the players he has in the same way as Farrell has with Ireland, but there's no evidence of this happening.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="RedruthRFC, post: 1096460, member: 58362"] IMO there's a lot of overthinking about NZ's slide in the rugby world in general and this post sums up the reality that's a bit too boring to get column inches out of. The tight five is the big weakness for me, world-class players who have gone or declined have not been replaced with anyone of similar quality and now aren't providing the platform that they used to for those behind them (who are maybe not all-timey, but still very good) to do what they have for most of the rest of the professional era. Most of the tight five have been in the conversation for best of all time for so long that we've become used to it, but this simply can't last. Nowhere is this more evident than in the second row, where the gene pool simply can't keep providing players like Retalick and Whitelock as their performances decline. As you say, having a coach who for most of his career has been used to forwards getting their share of the ball, and giving it to the backs to do something the opposition can't stop can't be helping. With this platform taken away, he needs to play to the strengths of the players he has in the same way as Farrell has with Ireland, but there's no evidence of this happening. [/QUOTE]
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