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All Blacks trial own brand 'Pooper'

Michael Hooper and David Pocock. (Photo by Michael Dodge/Getty Images)

If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, the Wallabies will be feeling pretty smug after the All Blacks unveiled their own version of “Pooper” for the Bledisloe Cup opener.

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However, the world champions have hinted that starting with two specialist openside flankers – and having a third on the bench – in Perth on Saturday could be a case of smoke and mirrors.

Having struggled to identify his best blindside flanker for the World Cup, coach Steve Hansen has asked in-form No.7 Ardie Savea to swap sides, teaming up with fellow openside Sam Cane, with skipper Kieran Read completing the backrow trio.

It immediately sparked comparisons with Australia’s long-established but undersized combination of David Pocock and Michael Hooper, or “Pooper”.

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Pocock’s calf injury means the Wallabies will for once boast the bigger back row in a trans-Tasman Test, with captain Hooper joined again by ball runners Isi Naisirani and Lukhan Salakaia-Loto.

The size discrepancy extends to the bench, where Australian loose forward cover Luke Jones towers over Matt Todd.

Skipper Kieran Read completes the visiting trio at No.8 but Hansen hinted strongly that Savea would spend time at the back of the scrum and employ the acceleration and power running that has been a hallmark of 2019.

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The canny coach provided some insight when asked if the numbers on the jerseys of his back-rowers were relevant.

“We don’t need to tell Australia everything do we? But probably not, they’re only numbers.”

Wallabies counterpart Michael Cheika is well aware Savea won’t play as a classical openside, having already identified the 36-Test veteran as a “hybrid” forward after coaching him in the Barbarians team four years ago.

“You get to see the player for what he is and he’s a bit of a hybrid between a No. 8, a six and a seven,” Cheika said.

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“Often that can hurt players but he’s a good enough player to be able to push through that and continually be selected for New Zealand.

“We’ve always had that; we’ve played Pocock and Hooper together … I don’t think the profile of any player is the essential element, it’s more the quality of the player and he’s obviously got good quality … we’ll have to watch him closely.”

– AAP

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Tom 7 hours ago
Will Bristol's daredevil 'Bears-ball' deliver the trophy they crave?

Also a Bristol fan and echo your sentiments.


I love watching Bristol but their approach will only get them so far I think. Exeter played like this when they first got promoted to the prem and had intermittent success, it wasn't until they wised up and played a more balanced game that they became a consistently top side.


I really want Bristol to continue playing this brand of rugby and I don't mind them running it from under their posts but I don't think they need to do it every single time. They need to be just a little bit more selective about when and where on the pitch they play. Every game they put themselves under so much needless pressure by turning the ball over under their posts trying to do kamikaze moves when it's not required. By all means run it from your goal line if there is a chance for a counter attack, we all want to see Bristol running in 100m tries from under their posts but I think until they learn when to do it and when to be pragmatic, they are unlikely to win the premiership.


Defense has been a real positive from Bristol, they've shown a lot of improvement there... And I will say that I think this kamikaze strategy they employ is a very good one for a struggling side and could be employed by Newcastle. It's seems to have turned around Gloucester's fortunes. The big advantage is even if you don't have the biggest and best players, what you have is cohesion. This is why Scotland keep battering England. England have better individuals but they look muddled as a team, trying to play a mixed strategy under coaches who lack charisma, the team has no identity. Scotland come out and give it full throttle from 1-15 even if they struggle against the top sides, sides like England and Wales who lack that identity drown under the relentless will and synergy of the Scots. If Newcastle did the same they could really surprise some people, I know the weather is bad up there but it hasn't bothered the Scots. Bristol can learn from Scotland too, Pat is on to something when he says the following but Scotland don't play test matches like headless chickens. They still play with the same level of clarity and ambition Bristol do but they are much better at picking their moments. They needed to go back to this mad game to get their cohesion back after a couple of seasons struggling but I hope they get a bit wiser from matches like Leinster and La Rochelle.


“If there’s clarity on what you’re trying to do as a team you can win anything.”

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LONG READ Does the next Wallabies coach have to be an Australian? Does the next Wallabies coach have to be an Australian?
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