: Mon Oct 27, 2008 3:44 pm  

knocker norton wrote:

TL is taking a hammering in the Aussie press so much so that Adrian Lam is even discussing who will replace him at 7 for the game against PNG!

Very few Kiwis made any impression on the game so to make Tommy the scape goat is pretty harsh IMO.

Yup, and they are very short of options. Expectations were probably higher of Marshall that TL, i would have expected Marshall to get more stick.

: Mon Oct 27, 2008 3:49 pm  

knocker norton wrote:

TL is taking a hammering in the Aussie press so much so that Adrian Lam is even discussing who will replace him at 7 for the game against PNG!

Very few Kiwis made any impression on the game so to make Tommy the scape goat is pretty harsh IMO.

Harsh but fair. He was poor earlier in the year aswell for NZ. He is not to blame for the defeat but in all honesty they need a better no.7 then him.

: Mon Oct 27, 2008 3:52 pm  

Big Dave T wrote:

Yup, and they are very short of options. Expectations were probably higher of Marshall that TL, i would have expected Marshall to get more stick.

Marshall is still a bit of a golden boy I reckon. Hasnt played many internationals so probably getting more slack because of this.

Would expect if his performances dont improve over the next couple of games that the pressure will be on him. The PNG game this weekend is a massive one for both countries.

Fien could play at 7 and he did run his blood to water yesterday but again I dont think he has the quality in that position to compete against the Aussies.

: Mon Oct 27, 2008 3:53 pm  

Big Dave T wrote:

Im not comparing them, my point was that if you are saying Marshall was annonymous because of a beaten pack it can be said about why TL was poor too.

Like I said I agree about that but TL just is not good enough to play 7 for NZ. Marshall has been hit and miss this season after coming back from a horrendous run on injuries. However as the season went on he started to show some of the brilliance that he is known for. He should be back to his best next season I would have though with a full offseason behind him. He has drifted in and out of games this season but Kearney will know he can be a gamebreaker and there is no way he will be dropped.

: Mon Oct 27, 2008 3:55 pm  

PAUL M wrote:

Like I said I agree about that but TL just is not good enough to play 7 for NZ. Marshall has been hit and miss this season after coming back from a horrendous run on injuries. However as the season went on he started to show some of the brilliance that he is known for. He should be back to his best next season I would have though with a full offseason behind him. He has drifted in and out of games this season but Kearney will know he can be a gamebreaker and there is no way he will be dropped.

Think this replies for me too

knocker norton wrote:

Marshall is still a bit of a golden boy I reckon. Hasnt played many internationals so probably getting more slack because of this.

Would expect if his performances dont improve over the next couple of games that the pressure will be on him. The PNG game this weekend is a massive one for both countries.

Fien could play at 7 and he did run his blood to water yesterday but again I dont think he has the quality in that position to compete against the Aussies.

Marshall appears to be a golden boy with no substance at international level. He needs to turn it on soon.

: Mon Oct 27, 2008 4:00 pm  

Big Dave T wrote:

Think this replies for me too



Marshall appears to be a golden boy with no substance at international level. He needs to turn it on soon.

He is regarded as a golden boy due to his performances in the NRL at a very young age. Before he got injured he was THE most exciting player in world rugby. He has finally got back playing this season and its taken him time to get his confidence back.

Nobody has ever said he is proven at International level and whether or not he produces his best in this comp he will still be the no.6 for NZ next year. I would strongly doubt there is any timescale for him to 'turn it on soon' in all honesty.

He can do things that no one else in the NZ team can, all he needs is the right platform.

: Mon Oct 27, 2008 4:01 pm  

PAUL M wrote:

Harsh but fair. He was poor earlier in the year aswell for NZ. He is not to blame for the defeat but in all honesty they need a better no.7 then him.

That is the Kiwis problem. Since Stacey Jones they have not had a world class scrum half. Marshall is an out and out stand off who probably has the weight of the Kiwi expectation on his shoulders...or he will have if they dont improve this weekend with a different 7 next to him.

Losing the experince in the pack and the sheer class of SBW leaves the Kiwis looking fairly ordinary to me.

: Mon Oct 27, 2008 4:04 pm  

knocker norton wrote:

That is the Kiwis problem. Since Stacey Jones they have not had a world class scrum half. Marshall is an out and out stand off who probably has the weight of the Kiwi expectation on his shoulders...or he will have if they dont improve this weekend with a different 7 next to him.

Losing the experince in the pack and the sheer class of SBW leaves the Kiwis looking fairly ordinary to me.

Replacing Jones was always going to be difficult. There is no one really shining at SH for them and I really don't think TL will ever be the answer.

SBW was imo the best RL player in the world and he would have made a massive difference to the kiwi's. Shame he fecked off.

: Mon Oct 27, 2008 4:04 pm  

knocker norton wrote:

Losing the experince in the pack and the sheer class of SBW leaves the Kiwis looking fairly ordinary to me.

Looking at the players that no longer play or were injured that i thought still played im not surprised.

Players like Solomona, Lautiti, Kidwell, Wiki, Webb, Tony, Pritchard, Puleatua

ive not seen NRL for a year or two so im sure someone can tell me why these players didnt play. (i know why webb and tony didnt)

Obviously SBW is a huge loss too.

: Mon Oct 27, 2008 4:06 pm  

Big Dave T wrote:

Looking at the players that no longer play or were injured that i thought still played im not surprised.

Players like Solomona, Lautiti, Kidwell, Wiki, Webb, Tony, Pritchard, Puleatua

ive not seen NRL for a year or two so im sure someone can tell me why these players didnt play. (i know why webb and tony didnt)

Obviously SBW is a huge loss too.

The ones in bold are in the Samoa squad iirc, think that Pritchard maybe as well but thats more of a guess than knowledge