The only team that could beat NZ;
15. Spiderman
14. Mr T
13. Ironman
12. Batman
11. Wonderwoman
10. Captain America
9. John McClane
8. Hulk
7. Macho Man Randy Savage
6. The Thing
5. Darth Vader
4. He Man
3. Pop-eye (on spinach)
2. Wolverine
1. Beast
Pretty decent line up (though I, too, question Mr. T in the 14 jersey). Love - just LOVE - McClane at scrumhalf! Per-freakin'-fect!
Just for funsies (and since I doubt any human line up can beat the ABs at this point), I'll go with an all-Marvel line up (keeping some of your choices in the mix)...
1. Beast
2. Wolverine
3. Thing
4. Colossus
5. Cable
6. Punisher
7. Luke Cage
8. Hulk
9. Gambit
10. Captain America
11. Deadpool
12. Nightcrawler
13. Ironman
14. Thor
15. Spiderman
16. Dark Beast
17. Juggernaut
18. Sabretooth
19. Deathlok
20. Captain Britain
21. T'Challa (Black Panther)
22. Silver Surfer
23. Quicksilver
I'm torn between Wolverine and Beast as hooker/prop - Beast has more mobility and longer arms, making him a great hooker material, but Wolverine is good in that position, too, and not sure his small stature (dudes...he's only 5' 3") would be right for a prop. And you're probably right, Beast would make a better loosehead. Just not sure about Wolverine in the lineout - he's so short I imagine him popping the first guy right in the face with the ball. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt for now...
Thing definitely gets switched to prop.
For the locks, I went with a couple of the tallest - and strongest - heroes. Good in the lineouts (@ over 7' armored Colossus doesn't even require lifting), power in the scrums.
For flankers, I went with good fighters and good tacticians, figuring they'd be good at turning the ball over in the tackle. I put Cage on the openside because I feel he's the more physically intimidating of the two - someone that might just scare the beejeebees out of those big Maoris.
#8 is a no-brainer.
Gambit as scrumhalf - he's small and agile and knows how to throw/pass accurately. That, plus he's got the hands and mind of a thief, so plucking the ball out of a ruck or scrum will be a piece of cake for him.
I, too, have to go with Cap as the boot man here. His accuracy with the shield suggests similar accuracy with the boot, and he's both a great leader and a great strategist. He would also be my team captain.
The rest of the backs are pretty self-explanatory: speed and agility, with good defensive skills as well. I simply had to add Deadpool for his twisted wit, and Thor just for the hair.
As for the replacements I mixed it up a bit, adding some questionable characters and even a villain (or two - depending on your perspective) in the forwards, along with some extraordinary speed in the backs. If the game is going south, an unforgiving forward pack - tempered by Captain Britain to avoid unnecessary penalties - coupled with inhuman speed in the backs just might be what's needed to turn the game around.*
*waits for Big E to poo-poo my choices, and then to tell me I'm not playing the game right, and then to say something rude...and then to apologize, then not apologize, then - in the end - admit that I'm right. God, I just love that guy...
das