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England is nice but the Springboks will be a true test of the All Blacks' mettle
It’ll be September before we know a thing about this All Blacks team.
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Look, we probably underestimated Ireland this time two years ago and are at risk of doing the same with England this time around.
But I just don’t see this England team throwing up a huge challenge in the next couple of weeks, nor Fiji or Argentina.
It’s not until the All Blacks meet the Springboks in South Africa in September that we’ll be able to judge if this coaching group and players are any better than what we’ve since the team began a steady decline in 2017.
I look at the team picked to play England in Dunedin on Saturday and it’s okay.
The tight five is good and the loose forwards useful.
But when I see the names of those picked in the backline, I wonder if they have the accuracy and consistency to stave off legitimate opposition.
I try not to pick on individuals. It’s kind of mean and certainly doesn’t endear you to anyone.
It’s easier to make statements about the collective than to say so and so isn’t up to it.
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My disappointment, in this instance, is we’re not going to learn whether they are or not during the next two months of footy.
Let’s assume they beat England handily. We all know how that’s going to be greeted.
We’ll be told about the fresh environment and ideas in the camp and how this player and that player has matured beyond belief during the Super Rugby Pacific season and is twice the footballer they were before.
It’ll be ‘fabulous’ this and ‘wonderful’ that, forgetting that Super Rugby and average-to-weak test opposition are no barometer of success or development.
I have a degree of sympathy for new coach Scott Robertson in that regard.
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His players are likely to be praised to absurd levels, given our collective thirst to see a return to All Blacks supremacy.
Only nothing weakens the resolve of people like praise.
I know there will be fans that say we have to treat the start of a new era with optimism.
People who believe teams deserve a honeymoon period, where we all get behind them until proven otherwise.
I actually believe this is a time for pragmatism and caution, even scepticism. A time to stay off the bandwagon at least until the Springboks are beaten in Johannesburg and Cape Town in September.
If Robertson can keep this team from getting lazy and complacent after the victories that appear to await them between now and then, I’ll be mightily impressed.
It’s at that point, that I’ll start talking about a team that’s potentially turned a corner and which has an idea about what excellence looks like.
For now, this looks like an All Black team with some holes to fill. Particularly in the backs.
A team that hopes to do well against elite competition, but hasn’t yet got the personnel or belief to do it consistently.
We’ll get a better idea of their 2027 Rugby World Cup credentials come September.
Watch the exclusive reveal-all episode of Walk the Talk with Ardie Savea as he chats to Jim Hamilton about the RWC 2023 experience, life in Japan, playing for the All Blacks and what the future holds. Watch now for free on RugbyPass TV
How dismissive of an improving England team. I do hope they surprise you. They may well not but to look further ahead for sterner competition is very condescending.
Borthwick is gradually building a non-nonsense kind of team, with a back-to-basics workmanlike style. And I am backing him to do a good job of it, over time. If they aren’t already a legitimate contender against all comers then we should expect them to get there within the next year. Don’t expect the prettiest or most elegant rugby, but don’t underestimate their potential.
FWIW I would not be surprised to see a relatively under-cooked NZ team lose to England in this series. You have to back Razor’s record in the longer run, but again it is a team in rebuild. Most of the magic emerges in teams when they have built experience as a unit. It’s when you get the roles, accuracy, timing and anticipation working that you get the results. It also helps to prove your selections and develop your squad depth.
England are one year ahead of NZ in that rebuild process. I would love to see NZ win, but it is a lot to ask right. now. NZ deserve a break as Razor gets it all working together.
As relates to NZ/SA, I expect those to be the biggest games of the 2024 season.
Bidwell is just a troll.
Well if Sir “Dumb Ass” Kirwan is to be believed then the AB should have no problem beating the Springboks in SA. Why wait until September, just pronounce the AB the best in the world and then blame everyone and everything when they lose. That is after all the NZ way.
Muppet
Wow another terrible and meaningless article from this guy!
Beat England handily?!
I’d take any win
Why not provide some analysis on the backline players you refuse to name Hamish??
“We are probably under estimating england”…. Then goes ahead and writes them off, predicting an AB easy series win, at the same time saying the backline is rubbish. How arrogant can you possibly be. Ridiculous
As a South African, I would say, take any team thats in the top 8/7 Seriously, any of them can beat any team on the day.
So you have now indicated that the All Blacks should beat England and Argentina quite easily and if they do you have already played down those victories no matter what the margin or the quality of the performance. You have rated that it is impossible to discern any progress between now and September. So why even play the matches? Why even watch? Who cares, lets just wildly speculate about them until then because apparently the next 2 months are inconsequential and will be filled with praise and love for an overhyped AB’s team. Is that your point from this article? If thats the case what was the point in me even reading this?
All Blacks win= who cares the opposition sucks
All Blacks lose= they suck
Basically, Bidwell writes to wind up New Zealanders. And unfortunately, it works everytime.
The scribe is gonna have egg on his face if England beat NZ. There's no guarantees in rugby.
This guy has egg on his face already. Its made of egg
Actually it’s the opposite. Nothing would make this guy happier than an all blacks loss.
Is Bidwell just trolling or does he actually not watch any rugby?
England were bronze medalists in the World Cup last year and changed their game up after a poor 6N start to beat Ireland (who improved massively since the 1/4 final loss) and almost beat France with some very nice running rugby.
How are they not a massive challenge for a brand new ABs
side on ten days prep?
Bidwell offers no ideas on what this weak backline of ours should look like either.
And how on earth are the Boks the yardstick? According to Bidwell, they only beat a mediocre English team and a not very good All Blacks team by 1 point each.
Can’t be very good if they only beat the weak teams by one point.
Bidwell is writing about fan’s complacency and he has already written off the English team as a worthy challenge for the ABs??
If anything, the test tomorrow (NZ time) is totally up for grabs.
England are a settled team, and are match ready. Our guys have had 10 days together under a completely new regime.
Lets see how the next 2 weeks go before we start thinking about playing the RC
BTW… The Rugby Championship… what marketing genius gave it that inspiring title?!
SANZAAR I guess. Six Nations is obviously by far a more inspiring title?!
Hamish I thought you were the Champion of “Free Speech” unless it’s about you!
Journalists are the parasites on the arse of negativity. They suck blood to survive. They take the next opportunity that’s available, usually another wounded victim in distress.
In New Zealand 86% of them are Socialists. They usually all start off with Radio New Zealand. All Socialists are “Social Engineers” and as you can see by this article, that “we have to save the world from themselves attitude” is very noticeable.
So really Hamish, either give us some “positive” common sense or piss off back to RNZ with the rest of your comrads.
Hamish just censored my comment(s) sprattbjs1@gmail.com
Journalists are the parasites on the arse of negativity. They suck blood to survive. They take the next opportunity that’s available, usually another wounded victim in distress.
In New Zealand 86% of them are Socialists. They usually all start off with Radio New Zealand. All Socialists are “Social Engineers” and as you can see by this article, that “we have to save the world from themselves attitude” is very noticeable.
So really Hamish, either give us some “positive” common sense or piss off back to RNZ with the rest of your comrads.
Indeed. Neither the ABs or Boks good enough to beat France or Ireland without the massive incompetence of the refs shown in the RWC to ruin it for the supporters of rugby.
But gotta keep the ignorant delusional SH supporters happy with some additional utter 💩 like this article.
What a sad loser of a comment , maybe don't watch rugby, because if you lose it’s the refs fault.
You are such a plonker
Is that historically Dan, or just this RWC, because both France and Ireland have never won one between them, and the SH teams you name have stacked the deck.
Cry me a river.
delusional indeed mate, big hugggs . . .
Very average article. You usually hate on NZ whats going on? Oh I get it… praise them up forever as being great then jump on the first loss. Silly journalism really.
Hamish censored my comment about his article
I don't mind him even if its clear he's never even played tag rugby.
Already looking past the first test… slippery.
Top trolling Hamish, well done!
Yeah, pretty rubbish from a supposed journalist.