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'Saders pluck Thorne out of retirement
- Thread starter TRF_Cymro
- Start date
I heard a rumor yesterday they were looking at bringing Thorne in. No surprise really, as they don't really have any other locks who are ready for Super Rugby level: Dominc Bird is far to young and inexperienced, Rob Verbakel also lacks experience, while the Tasman lock Glenn Gregory probably lacks the size and speed to be effective (though he did have a good ITM Cup). It sounds like Thorne will start on the bench against he Force (assuming Wheeler doesn't recover in time), and I'm sure he will do a solid job if he does get on the field.
Very interesting news. I wonder if he'll be in the squad purely for cover? It'll take a lot for him to get fit. Still, not a player to pull out of retirement. Thought I'd seen the last of him for sure.
Black Heart
Bench Player
Was never a fan of Thorne. But I suppose you could have worse pensioners playing.
Good to see Ellis is out for a lengthy period though.
Good to see Ellis is out for a lengthy period though.
Always thought Thorne was good for the Crusaders, but well preferred Jerry Collins over him in the All Blacks.
I had a wee chuckle to myself when I read the Ellis point, it was the first thing I thought of when I heard about it.
Black Heart
Bench Player
Thorne was always a safe option but he never had much more to offer than that imo.
Ellis is severly lucky he is playing behind one of the best packs in the Super 15. Fotoali'i on the other hand has huge potential and it'll be good to see him get a decent throw of the dice before the World Cup.
Keep in mind he can't play for the All Blacks, since he played for Samoa on the EoYT last year.
Black Heart
Bench Player
Yeah that's right. Shame too.
Ah well, Crusaders' win anyway.
Ah well, Crusaders' win anyway.
ranger
First XV
Its interesting you throw that name out, there are a number of similarities between the two players:
-Same height
-Same weight
-Both play the same hybrid position (Grafter 6/ undersized 5)
-Went to the same boarding school, both became head boarder at that school
-Both made the same 1st XV at an early age and went on to captain the side
-Both went to the same Christchurch club out of school
-Both apparently have a natural aura of leadership (On top of various age grade and club sides, Gregory earned Canterbury B captainship 2nd year out of school, captained Tasman at times last year)
-Both play an identical game.
I think it would be well worth giving Gregory a go. He has all the same skills that Thorne showed, it just happens to be very hard to get spotted when you play like that.
Shaggy
First XV
Thorne was always one of those players that got in and did the work - a lot of it went unseen, hence the nickname "the invisible man" ... they probably are putting him on the bench because he is known/respected by the Crusaders players, and for his leadership as much as anything.
... "It's good to see Ellis is out for a lengthy period though" - Really? ... I'm not his biggest fan either, but he has been doing the job for the Crusaders, and it's never good to see an experienced player out, Kahn's a high quality player, but what's the new bench player covering the half back spot like? ... also, doesn't that make two out of the four All Black half backs from last year currently out with injury?
Right now, an invisible man is need who can do the graft at the breakdown and not give away penalties, not an inept openside like George Whitelock trying to play blindside. When THorne played, it was hard for the opposition to get quick clean ball.
As for Ellis being out, I prefer Kahn for his attacking flair and speed but he's and Ellis are different players and sometimes Blackadder has picked the wrong one for the situation. If Ellis had stayed in against the Landers, it probably would've gone better for the Crusaders. They have Heinz on the bench who's decent in my opinion but I always liked Norton when he played for Cantab but then again, he's close to 35.
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And he was very good if memory serves.
If Thorne had not been available, I think Gregory would have been the ideal choice (and arguably should have been taken ahead of Thorne...). The problem with Gregory is that he doesn't really fit into any one position - he's probably too short to be a lock, but not dynamic enough to be a loose-forward. You could argue that Thorne fits into the same category, but when Thorne first hit the scene he was a very dynamic lock - he really only developed his hard working 'grafting' game a bit latter on in his career. I would like Gregory to get a chance at Super Rugby level, as I really like the way he plays, but unfortunately I feel that ITM Cup level may be his limit
Not yet panic stations but it would be of concern to the crusaders the number of injuries to their top line players. So far I have heard Ellis is out for 6 weeks, Thorn wont be touring to SA, Carter is still one more week away so he wont play against the Force, McCaw is 50/50, Sam Whitelock is still recovering and Kieren Read won't play against the Force because he is in a rest and recovery plan....WTF!!!1! This is no time to be resting your leader and best player, especially against the Force who are a very tricky team to play against in Perth and the Crusaders know very well, also Crusaders need leadership now with a host of young players with little experience who will be replacing the All Black counter parts.
Black Heart
Bench Player
I understand that but my view of a genuine blindside is to bring that physical enforcment which I believe he rarely showed. I'm not suggesting he was a bad player, don't get me wrong.
As a side point, this is a viewpoint that I've never subscribed to. If you look at guys like Kaino, Burger, Elsom, Thompson etc, they aren't great loosies simply because they do a lot of work behind the scenes - although they may do so anyway. I dunno, I'm just stating my opinion.
I think he's been playing well by his own standards but it only reflects the quality of the Crusaders as a whole. I would have Fotoali'i over him any day. He's brilliant.
Ellis doesn't have flair or the physicality around the fringes and he often lacks direction during the game which is obvious by his lack of speed.
As far as I'm aware he's only out for about 2 months so he's still in WC contention. On top of him we've got also Weepu, Cowan, Mattewson and Leoanard to select from so I wouldn't be too concerned.
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Reuben Thorne was a machine for me, looking back at it he was a quality player. His workrate was disgustingly good and he did sometimes go unnoticed because he was working like a dog at the breakdown.
The players you mentioned: Elsom, Burger and Thompson are good in the loose so I don't buy the argument that they aren't good and are mainly background workers. Far from it.
Thorne is back in the big league now.. will his body still have what it takes? Playing in Japan where the game is known to be softer will be different to the bruising game that is played here where even well conditioned player stuggle with injuries and knocks.. I think a wake up calls coming his way..
TRF_RC
Bench Player
I'm pretty sure they won't make him play for too long, because his match fitness won't be great right now. But he'll dog it out and right now, with the shortage he's a great player to call back into the squad.
Black Heart
Bench Player
Um, that wasn't what I said, read again.
Amobokoboko
Waikato Junglist
Hope he still has some good rugby in him.
