What`s going on?

Hi,as a NZ fan I am somewhat bemused by the AB`s 2014 season a draw and deserved but nearly wasn't loss out of
14 matches is a good return BUT.

At the start of the season until first Bledisloe match it was about equalling then beating a record,then it was winning
the RC.Injury wise the AB`s had there fair share of injuries nearly every one in the squad suffering at some point
and some names were missing most of the year.

There was a common pattern during when the silverware was in doubt conservative options and selections were
tried.Half time usually in deficit playing within themselves then going thru the gears to win often adjusting game
plans to achieve the result.

Final 6 matches with nothing in doubt experimentation and some what risky options were tried maybe costing
the Bok loss.Especially the AI`s it was plain that certain players would play v USA,Scotland and England/Wales.

When Cory jane was injured a utility. player rather than a one for one selection was made Slade coming in
as goal kicking insurance.

So far so good it is plain that it is a strategy planning for RWC rather than one match at a time even down
to the yellow card tactics etc.

Now comes the strange bit,against England problems at the lineout could be down to two things Owens let
England close the gap before throw in.But also that Retalick and Tuitopu [stayed on field] were injured and
maybe.At one point number 1 in the England lineout had his arm in front of his opposite number before
ball was thrown in.

When Coles complained he was toldto throwin quicker,Crockett a loose head goes of at half time Faumina
a tight head replaces him.The specialist loose Head Ben Franks coming on later.I know both Faumina and
Franks c an play either head to some extent but.

Against both England and Wales the match was in the balance only one point lead in each case Aron Smith
who was having a great game comes off.Perenara closing out the game which seemed risky to me.

Next year the RC is only 3 games with Aus and Sa away plus Samoa and a second bledisloe a very real
chance of two losses a RCsacrificed again [assuming full strength sides a big IF].

It is plain that about 50 names are in the RWC frame allowing for injuries it seems Slade,Cruden,Carter[hopefully]
at 10,Aron Smith,Perenara and Ellis apparently at 9.Goalkicking will be vital and Cruden is a liability in that area
Slade is the best bet with Barrett on the bench.Hope fullyMatt Todd will be somewhere near the squad or he
will be lost overseas.

Yeah it was an odd year alright Alan, the nearest explanation being that Hansen wanted to see as many players as he could under pressure. He got more than his moneys worth and they couldnt quite peg them all with the loss to the Boks. So overall a B- to B for an All Black year if last year was an A. But then when you think about it quite a few had an odd way in one ay or another. Everyone was up one week, then down the next.

Our goalkicking is no worse than anyone elses- it's a bit off at he moment but hat can be fixed easily enough, and its something Hansen won't even be worrying about till late next year. If we have to win any match with a goal kick then we will have done a few things wrong anyway.

This year I think our back play suffered from too much tampering- albeit with injuries thrown in- Nonu the key one for me. I thought we peaked versus England test 3, then went off a bit..the Eden Park Oz match the only test where we clicked on most levels.

Very impressed with Slade. I think he has the best goalkicking action in the world at the moment and really great to see him push forward with confidence. He'll figure next year.

The ABs are trying thier darndest 'not' to peak between RWCs, lol. Apparently, Foxy was taking calls on the radio a few months back and someone was quizzing him hard about the ABs running out of ideas when we were scraping home in some games, and he said the ABs were 'holding some tactics back'. Well, we'd all like to think our teams were holding something back for the RWC but that's gotta be wishful thinking. You never know though. But every team will be in the same boat and 'holding back' if that was the case. So maybe the year before and during a RWC is not a good indicator.

Agree about Slade, good for him, considering what he's been through injury wise. I'd have him above DC. DC has to really apply himself next year and prove that he is still worthy but i think he's jumping the shark a bit.

yeah I think theres something in the holding back thing as this year had an unusually high experimentation feel to it, almost a 'we can afford to lose to learn something that will benefit us in the long run' kind of thing. Hansens nervous about next years tournament but he's approaching it in a very holistic way- open to views from all angles.

I actually prefer to look back at the season with one loss (and a draw), one gets the feeling that when you have a perfect season that its all going to go wrong , but a loss keeps these fullas on their metal.

Whats going on? a group of All Blacks are currently in Beijing doing promotional work for sponsors AIG, and to day the Blues started pre season training for the 2015 season.

Oh and Sonny Bill's going to have a fight in February.

Hmmm, something to ponder :-?

Probably nothing in it Biltong but I think a few of us are picking up mixed messages from Hansen. Whatever it is he's certainly doing some deep thinking about next year with all this talk about earning the right to win the tournament.

Tman, if you remove the USA match (12 tries), NZ scored 40 tries in 13 tests this year, Most of them coming off individual brilliance and turn overs, rather than "created phase play"

In my view NZ has struggled this year when hey had ball retention for long periods of time.

I agree Biltong, it's been something I've mention a couple of times including last year. The brains trust of the ABs isn't that brainy in my opinion. Our attack is boring with few created tries but more based on the brilliance of great players.

We have some very good players now but our tactics are average I reckon.

It's a fair point Alan - I can only imagine that the injury horror in the last RWC is fresh in Hansen's mind. Imagine telling the10 whom you intend to front the country in a RWC final to put down the whitebait and try to find a pair of boots.

I think what the rotation has shown is (a) what a well oiled machine the starting 23 of last year was, and (b) how much of a step down it can be for alternate players in that set up to fit in. In a way, it's a good thing - the team is clearly greater than the sum of its parts.

The problems for the Blacks are only in some areas. Who would have said a year ago that the ABs genuinely may not need Dan Carter going into a world cup year? My personal belief is but for Colin Slade dragging the game into an alleyway and kneeing it in the crackers, your lads may have lost to Scotland this winter.