August 30, 2024 • 18 mins
On Sports Fix with D'Arcy Waldegrave and Jason Pine for 30th August 2024, SuperSport rugby commentator Matt Pearce offers his thoughts on the upcoming All Blacks v Springboks test
Jason Pine can hardly contain his excitement for the Sunday Morning test match as he reminisces on past Ellis Park tests
Plus, Piney and D'Arcy discuss Sophie Devine stepping down as the White Ferns T20 Captain and what this means for the future of the team
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Speaker 1 (00:09):
You're listening to a podcast from News Talks ed B
follow this and our wide range of podcasts now on iHeartRadio.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
This is Sportsfix. Howard by News Talk.
Speaker 3 (00:20):
Said, be.
Speaker 4 (00:22):
Hello there and welcome into your Friday and to your
Friday edition of the Sports Fixed podcast. The last Friday
in August. It's the thirtieth today as we look forward
to a massive sporting weekend. My name is Jason.
Speaker 3 (00:34):
Pine, I'm Darcy Walter Grave. It's the last Friday of winter.
I think that is more important than the last Friday
of August.
Speaker 4 (00:40):
Here come spring, my friend, Yes, can't wait. We love
a good spring around here as the days get longer.
But it'll be the middle of the night on now
well Sunday morning, early hours off that we'll be focusing on.
I know you've got a chat with Matt Piers out
of Super Sport in South Africa to give us a
spring Bok point of view. I've got a few thoughts
on this as well, and I'd quite like to kick
(01:02):
some around with you too, dar So that's okay when
we jump into the chamber. So it's very much an
all black Spring themed sports Boox podcast today.
Speaker 3 (01:10):
So why wouldn't it be this is the pinnacle in
your Rugby World Cup finals are pretty important, but playing
the spring Box at Alice Park, I mean, come off,
it doesn't get better, does it.
Speaker 4 (01:21):
It doesn't. Let's crack into it in other news, as
we always do. Let's start with some of the biggest
sports stories floating around today. Cyclist Nicole Murray has launched
New Zealand's Paralympic campaign in Paris, finishing Firth and the
C four or five five hundred meter time trial.
Speaker 3 (01:39):
It was pretty tricky trying to stay time in between
the qualifying and the final because I keept looking at
my phone and tearing up.
Speaker 2 (01:46):
Over All, my friends support is really cool.
Speaker 4 (01:48):
To the US Open. A straight sets first round win
on Arthur Ash Stadium for Aaron Ratliff and her Canadian
playing partner Gabby Debrowski on the fourth day.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
That will do it for the number one seeds defending champions.
Speaker 4 (02:04):
They begin the title defense with a victory and as
the All Blacks and spring Box gets set to do
battle at Alice Park on Sunday morning, AB's coach Scott
Robertson can see a sprinkling of Tony Brown's attacking mindset
across the South African site because.
Speaker 5 (02:20):
Rugby man he's put a little bit of his magic
Touchdow in the game of oolve and how they play,
how they use their forwards. So you're just a lead
on for them and they're doing it well.
Speaker 2 (02:30):
Leading a Vex. We've got just the ticket. It's Sports
Vex News Talks IVY.
Speaker 3 (02:37):
We'll join that now by a supersport commentator from our
South Africa Matt Pearce ahead of Well. I don't think
can anticipate test much as much more than this one,
Matt Peas. This is as This is as good as
it gets, isn't it.
Speaker 6 (02:51):
Yeah, it really is that the excitement is building here
in South Africa. I think, you know, the spring Box
did have the two Test series against Ireland, which was
eagerly anticipated earlier in the year. But this is that
fortnite that everybody he's been looking forward to, you know,
the replay or the repeat of the Reggie World Cup
(03:12):
Final which was such a tightly contested affair, and the
rivalry continues. You know, I was speaking to somebody yesterday
saying that you know, back in twenty seventeen, which isn't
that long ago, you know, we had the fifty seven
nil defeated North Harbor and questions were being asked about
the future of this rivalry. But thankfully, I think for
(03:35):
all of us what's happened and unfilled since then has
been a rejuvenation of this incredible rivalry and the anticipation
is massive for this game.
Speaker 3 (03:48):
Is there any weakness within the Southabgan squad that the
or Blacks may be able to exploit When you look
across the team, do you think actually hold on there's
an area possibly where they might not be as strong.
Does that exist?
Speaker 6 (04:03):
Look, there's been a bit of a cloud over the
lock position in recent weeks and you would have heard
yesterday that Ivan Etzabeth was included on the bench. So
the way the Springboks work is if you can't train
on a Monday, then you can't play on a Saturday
and on Sunday. When they were in Johannesburg, the doctor
(04:27):
didn't believe that Eben would be able to train on Monday,
so when they revealed the team for Saturday to the
squad members on Monday morning, Ibin wasn't part of it
and he then went to training on Monday and put
in a full shift. So when Rassi Rasmus announced his
team publicly on Tuesday. He explained that Eben hasn't been named,
(04:52):
but if he does come through three full training sessions Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday,
then he would be included and they confirmed that yesterday
or be it on the bench. So Peter Steph de
Toy starting at four, a Jersey number he's never played
in before for the spring Box and alongside Ruin Noque
who's playing just his third Test match. Then you've got
(05:13):
ben Jason Dixon in the number seven, which would usually
be worn by Peter Steph to Toy. Obviously seven is
blind side here in South Africa. Now run had a
very good Test in Perth in difficult conditions, just his
second Test match. Ben Jason Dixon absolutely outstanding at seven
in Brisbane. But these are, you know, their test rugby rookies.
(05:36):
So you're without Franco Mostrik, without Archesneman, without lut Diyaka,
without Salman Murat, so four high quality locks not available
for selection at the moment, and also Jean Klain there's
a fifth one, so that is a little bit of
a concern, but the rest of the team looks pretty settled,
(06:00):
to be honest and maybe the only big selection choice
was did they start with Andnre Pollard or Sasha Funder
and Gomezulu at ten? And you know, Sasha had a
fabulous Test match in Brisbane in the number ten and
you know, not a great outing in Perth in very
very tricky conditions, also with a rookie scrum half as
(06:21):
his half back partner. But I think that's then the
right decision. Let him get back on the horse in
beautiful conditions. The weather's going to be fantastic on Saturday,
and he's the kind of player who will respond well
to being backed against the all Blacks.
Speaker 3 (06:38):
What about all blacks weaknesses? He must have picked that
one apart Matt Peas when you've been building up for
this game, where do they have a problem?
Speaker 6 (06:45):
If so, well, you know it's interesting, you know, talk
about Sasha as the new Springbok ten. You know, Damion McKenzie,
surely this is going to be his biggest test at
number ten. You know, two tight test matches against England
at home and then a fantastic response at Eden Park
(07:05):
after and if he's showing against I and Tina in Wellington,
but this has to rank as the biggest test of
dmax career at fly half and trying to bed down
the successor to Richie Muwanga in in that shirt. Let's
(07:27):
see what happens at scrum time. I would say that
the Springboks are marginally weakened, no disrespect to Peter Steph
and Ruin Nokire, but this is a new combination in
the front five. But generally speaking, that Springbok type five
has gone exceptionally well for the last few years. Now,
(07:48):
you know they have quality on the bench in the
front row, but then so to do the All Blacks.
If you look at that front row bench for the
All Blacks, there's not a lot of weakness there either.
So I think the set peace battle is going to
be great. But if I had to pick an area
which is going to be the making of breaking, I
(08:09):
would think it would be hard. Damien McKenzie goes at tenth.
Speaker 3 (08:12):
Great call and on that Matt Pears will get on
with your day from Supersport Broadcasting over in South Africa.
That's Matt Pearson. When you're there, mate, make sure you
give o mate Justin marshal of a degree for us.
Don't let him get away with any of them.
Speaker 6 (08:29):
I know we surely will good to have him.
Speaker 2 (08:31):
Here leading a Vex. We've got just the ticket. It's
sports Vex, my news talks is he?
Speaker 3 (08:38):
You know?
Speaker 4 (08:38):
Outside of Rugby World Cups, I cannot remember looking forward
to an All Blex Test match as much as I
am Sunday morning's clash at Alice Park. Now, while Bleedislowe
Cup matches still have plenty of attraction and intrigued trans
tasma neighbors all that, the Wallaby's inability to make that
an actual contest in the last twenty years has meant
that Test matches against South Africa have become our yardstick
(09:01):
in recent times. How good are we? Well, let's play
South Africa and find out. The last time we played them,
of course, was the one point loss and the Rugby
Willorld Cup finals, so there were some demons to be
buried there. And while there's been a period of adjustment
for the All Blacks under Racer, the Springboks have of
anything gotten better this year, splitting their series with Ireland
before swatting the Wallabies aside with very little problem, even
(09:23):
when they almost completely changed their side for the second Test. Now,
despite the hype around Alice Park, the vociferous home support
playing at altitude. All of that, We actually do okay
in joe Burg, although games there have been fairly infrequent.
The last one was two years ago, remember the All
Blacks basically saving Ian Foster's job, scoring a couple of
late tries to win thirty five twenty three. The time
(09:45):
before that was all the way back in twenty fifteen,
a twenty seven twenty victory ahead of the World Cup
that year, And the time before that was ten years
ago when South African replacement first five Pat Lambee landed
a fifty two meter penalty with a minute to go
to give South Africa a twenty seven to twenty five
victory and end a twenty two game unbeaten run by
(10:06):
the Abs. But we won there in twenty five thirteen,
So that's three winds there in the last four. We
shouldn't fear the venue as much as we might think.
There's also something just a little bit special about getting
up in the middle of the night, a throwback to
the old days of Northern Hemisphere tours when games were
played in the wee hours of our morning. We got
(10:26):
up with a milo and a couple of chocolate biscuits
to watch Grainy footage from half a world away or
in the generation before that, to crowd around the radio
to follow the men in Black from Afar. Set the
alarm for Sunday morning. This is gonna be a doozy.
Speaker 2 (10:44):
The chamber is now in session on Sportsfax.
Speaker 4 (10:48):
Time for us to assemble. If you can assemble with
just two people in the chamber.
Speaker 3 (10:54):
We're an assembly. It's like going back to school, Pony.
Speaker 4 (10:58):
There's actually not a lot of room in here for
anybody else, which is probably quite good. Just you and
I eyeballing each other across the chamber table. Look, everything
is leading to Alice Park Sunday morning, three o'clock. We
haven't had the chance you would like to chat about
the team yet because when we were in the chamber
yesterday the All Blacks team hadn't been named. Anything that
surprised you. In the All Blacks twenty.
Speaker 3 (11:17):
Three, not particularly, to be honest, though. The big I
think takeaway out of that is Sam Kane. But I
think we all suspected. I thought he'd be on the bench,
but with Papa Lee with an injured thumb, that made
way for Sam Kane. Definitely not going backwards. The shoulder
is there, so that is fantastic. Front row are the locks.
I think we expected what went on there midfield, the
(11:41):
nine and the ten. I know a lot of people
are leaning away from McKenzie and from Pettinara, but they
proved a point last time out, so they've got another
crack and Caleb out there on one wing. I did,
there's nothing really for me that surprises. What about yourself?
Speaker 4 (11:58):
No, as you're saying those names, I'm thinking to myself, Okay,
what other formation or combination could they have tried? And
you look at you look at the impact bench as
they call it now, and you think, okay, is anybody there?
Is it a surprise that any of those guys I'm
more talking of farci Nel Dowry femaled up to Mileenna
Brown or Telaya? Is there any surprise that any of
those eight players are not in the starting fifteen? The
(12:21):
only one is Mark Tlayer. For me, you know, I
reckon that's a coin toss between he and Caleb Clark.
Will Jordan for me has to play now das He's
just the type of player that provides an X factor
and a tri scoring ability that is irresistible in terms
of selection. So I think the only surprise to me
was Clark ahead of Ta Layer. But I mean it's
a bit of a like for like, isn't it? And
(12:41):
t Laia or probably play the last twenty five minutes anyway,
won't he? Well?
Speaker 3 (12:45):
I think that worth Caleb Clark. The issue he has,
if you can call it, that is a titanic turnaround.
I defensively he can be vulnerable, but I think we
pick a winger like that for his destructive capability with
the ball in hand. So watching him run a mark
is going to be fantastic. But I think that maybe
(13:07):
his opposite might be fancying running around them, so that
will be that'll be a very interesting clash.
Speaker 4 (13:13):
Alice Park, Now we actually do okay there. We don't
play there very often. I just had a quick check
before we dropped into the chamber just the fifth time
since twenty thirteen, So it's that five times and eleven years.
It's not necessarily a place that the All Blacks visit
very often. But of the last four going back to
twenty thirteen, three wins, including that one two years ago
(13:34):
Darsa remember when basically Ian Foster's job was saved by
a couple of late tries. I don't think we should
fear Alice Park. Should we know?
Speaker 3 (13:42):
And when you look at the success, yes, And when
you talk to people like Ia Kameyer who had on
the show last night, it's like, well, it may be
the high vault, but these players are fit, they get
what they have to do to train to get up there,
and the hard fast ground, if anything, probably leaned toward
the All Black with their attacking finesse and the speed
(14:06):
that they have. So that's an interesting thought process there.
But yeah, I don't think any fear anymore. Maybe the crowd,
maybe the briars out the back before it.
Speaker 4 (14:16):
Jane, Yeah, I think I reckon if we got a
whiffle one of those, I'd be out the back looking
for a looking for a spare Roob sandwich, if there's
such a thing, or something like that. I have heard though,
that our colleague Elliott Smith, first time in joe Burg,
has been getting nose bleeds, not serious ones, but little
nose bleeds because of the altitude. And apparently a member
(14:37):
of the All Blacks team who hasn't visited South Africa
before is getting the same sort of thing. So this
altitude is a thing. It is an adjustment to make.
Speaker 3 (14:46):
I think though, when you look at the results, as
you pointed out of the last handful, that there's enough
in place for the all Blacks to actually deal with that,
to carry that reasonably comfortably. Although yeah, I haven't been
there and had a blood nose, so I don't know much.
It's a place I'd like to visit, though maybe not Johannesburg,
but Alice Park. I think that's one of the one
(15:07):
of the list, isn't it. Jay Oh?
Speaker 4 (15:09):
Absolutely, Just before we move on, put yourself in the
shoes of somebody in the all blacks environment and in
this hypothetical situation I'm going to present to you if
you said to them, right, you'll win one and lose
one in South Africa, would you take it?
Speaker 3 (15:25):
No, No, win both games. That's the all Black way.
There's always been the all Black way in the concept
of someone settling for one and one Sits really uncomfortably
with me. I'm sure a lot of people this is
not the way the all Blacks rolling. Yeah, they haven't
been utterly dominant over recent times. But what I say,
(15:46):
break off the rear vision mirrors. It's about the present. No,
no two and two one, Just go beat them. Both times. Right,
you've gone silent piney am I insane?
Speaker 4 (15:55):
No? I love the answer. I love the answer. No,
I absolutely love the answer. And I'm pretty sure that
even privately, if you were to delve deep into the
private thoughts of Razor, or of Scott Barrett, or of
any of those guys over there, they'd all say exactly
the same thing. Hey, just before weeks at the Chamber,
a change at the top of the White Ferns women's
cricketers in T twenty Sophie Diviners have aren't announced this afternoon.
(16:17):
She'll step down as T twenty skipper after the World
Cup and the UAE in October. She'll stay as skipper
of the one day side, and presumably we'll stay as
a member of the T twenty side. I'm not sure
there's a heck of a lot to see here, is there?
A Melli Kerr will come in and run the T
twenty side and we'll just carry on, won't we.
Speaker 3 (16:34):
There's often been discussion around the changing of the guard
and the fact that some of the youths aren't probably
performing as well as they'd be expected to perform, So
she's not leaving. Sophie Divine I'm glad because you's a
superstar at the game and I think she brings a
lot to the table. But moving away from the captaincy,
letting someone else take over, that's a different environment and
(16:57):
that I believe can't do any harm to the white ferns.
Speaker 4 (17:02):
Us as always a pleasure spending time in this rather
comfy chamber with you. Enjoy your weekend, mate, no doubt
we'll be messaging one another about three in the morning
on Sunday as we exchange thoughts about this test match.
But we'll reconvene next time. We reconvene great the chatters.
Speaker 3 (17:20):
Always absolutely next time bring some deodor and oh my.
Speaker 2 (17:25):
This is Sports Fix, your daily does of sports news
how in by News Talks EV.
Speaker 4 (17:32):
And that is us for the Sports Fix podcast for
today and for the rest of this week as well. However,
don't fear. On Monday, at around about this time, our
fresh edition will drop into your podcast feed. Make sure
you subscribe and that will happen automatically.
Speaker 3 (17:45):
Does and if the weekend is live radio for you,
get amongst a Piney has got weekend Sport on News
Talk zeb twelve till three Saturday and Sundays back again
on Monday Night and Sports Talk and then I Take
the Rains Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday night from seven to
eight on News Talk ZEB. You want sport, We've got
it for you, right Piney, we have.
Speaker 4 (18:05):
Indeed, you have a great weekend, folks.
Speaker 1 (18:07):
For more from News to set b listen live on
air or online, and keep our shows with you wherever
you go with our podcasts on iHeartRadio
You're listening to a podcast from News Talks ed B
follow this and our wide range of podcasts now on iHeartRadio.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
This is Sportsfix. Howard by News Talk.
Speaker 3 (00:20):
Said, be.
Speaker 4 (00:22):
Hello there and welcome into your Friday and to your
Friday edition of the Sports Fixed podcast. The last Friday
in August. It's the thirtieth today as we look forward
to a massive sporting weekend. My name is Jason.
Speaker 3 (00:34):
Pine, I'm Darcy Walter Grave. It's the last Friday of winter.
I think that is more important than the last Friday
of August.
Speaker 4 (00:40):
Here come spring, my friend, Yes, can't wait. We love
a good spring around here as the days get longer.
But it'll be the middle of the night on now
well Sunday morning, early hours off that we'll be focusing on.
I know you've got a chat with Matt Piers out
of Super Sport in South Africa to give us a
spring Bok point of view. I've got a few thoughts
on this as well, and I'd quite like to kick
(01:02):
some around with you too, dar So that's okay when
we jump into the chamber. So it's very much an
all black Spring themed sports Boox podcast today.
Speaker 3 (01:10):
So why wouldn't it be this is the pinnacle in
your Rugby World Cup finals are pretty important, but playing
the spring Box at Alice Park, I mean, come off,
it doesn't get better, does it.
Speaker 4 (01:21):
It doesn't. Let's crack into it in other news, as
we always do. Let's start with some of the biggest
sports stories floating around today. Cyclist Nicole Murray has launched
New Zealand's Paralympic campaign in Paris, finishing Firth and the
C four or five five hundred meter time trial.
Speaker 3 (01:39):
It was pretty tricky trying to stay time in between
the qualifying and the final because I keept looking at
my phone and tearing up.
Speaker 2 (01:46):
Over All, my friends support is really cool.
Speaker 4 (01:48):
To the US Open. A straight sets first round win
on Arthur Ash Stadium for Aaron Ratliff and her Canadian
playing partner Gabby Debrowski on the fourth day.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
That will do it for the number one seeds defending champions.
Speaker 4 (02:04):
They begin the title defense with a victory and as
the All Blacks and spring Box gets set to do
battle at Alice Park on Sunday morning, AB's coach Scott
Robertson can see a sprinkling of Tony Brown's attacking mindset
across the South African site because.
Speaker 5 (02:20):
Rugby man he's put a little bit of his magic
Touchdow in the game of oolve and how they play,
how they use their forwards. So you're just a lead
on for them and they're doing it well.
Speaker 2 (02:30):
Leading a Vex. We've got just the ticket. It's Sports
Vex News Talks IVY.
Speaker 3 (02:37):
We'll join that now by a supersport commentator from our
South Africa Matt Pearce ahead of Well. I don't think
can anticipate test much as much more than this one,
Matt Peas. This is as This is as good as
it gets, isn't it.
Speaker 6 (02:51):
Yeah, it really is that the excitement is building here
in South Africa. I think, you know, the spring Box
did have the two Test series against Ireland, which was
eagerly anticipated earlier in the year. But this is that
fortnite that everybody he's been looking forward to, you know,
the replay or the repeat of the Reggie World Cup
(03:12):
Final which was such a tightly contested affair, and the
rivalry continues. You know, I was speaking to somebody yesterday
saying that you know, back in twenty seventeen, which isn't
that long ago, you know, we had the fifty seven
nil defeated North Harbor and questions were being asked about
the future of this rivalry. But thankfully, I think for
(03:35):
all of us what's happened and unfilled since then has
been a rejuvenation of this incredible rivalry and the anticipation
is massive for this game.
Speaker 3 (03:48):
Is there any weakness within the Southabgan squad that the
or Blacks may be able to exploit When you look
across the team, do you think actually hold on there's
an area possibly where they might not be as strong.
Does that exist?
Speaker 6 (04:03):
Look, there's been a bit of a cloud over the
lock position in recent weeks and you would have heard
yesterday that Ivan Etzabeth was included on the bench. So
the way the Springboks work is if you can't train
on a Monday, then you can't play on a Saturday
and on Sunday. When they were in Johannesburg, the doctor
(04:27):
didn't believe that Eben would be able to train on Monday,
so when they revealed the team for Saturday to the
squad members on Monday morning, Ibin wasn't part of it
and he then went to training on Monday and put
in a full shift. So when Rassi Rasmus announced his
team publicly on Tuesday. He explained that Eben hasn't been named,
(04:52):
but if he does come through three full training sessions Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday,
then he would be included and they confirmed that yesterday
or be it on the bench. So Peter Steph de
Toy starting at four, a Jersey number he's never played
in before for the spring Box and alongside Ruin Noque
who's playing just his third Test match. Then you've got
(05:13):
ben Jason Dixon in the number seven, which would usually
be worn by Peter Steph to Toy. Obviously seven is
blind side here in South Africa. Now run had a
very good Test in Perth in difficult conditions, just his
second Test match. Ben Jason Dixon absolutely outstanding at seven
in Brisbane. But these are, you know, their test rugby rookies.
(05:36):
So you're without Franco Mostrik, without Archesneman, without lut Diyaka,
without Salman Murat, so four high quality locks not available
for selection at the moment, and also Jean Klain there's
a fifth one, so that is a little bit of
a concern, but the rest of the team looks pretty settled,
(06:00):
to be honest and maybe the only big selection choice
was did they start with Andnre Pollard or Sasha Funder
and Gomezulu at ten? And you know, Sasha had a
fabulous Test match in Brisbane in the number ten and
you know, not a great outing in Perth in very
very tricky conditions, also with a rookie scrum half as
(06:21):
his half back partner. But I think that's then the
right decision. Let him get back on the horse in
beautiful conditions. The weather's going to be fantastic on Saturday,
and he's the kind of player who will respond well
to being backed against the all Blacks.
Speaker 3 (06:38):
What about all blacks weaknesses? He must have picked that
one apart Matt Peas when you've been building up for
this game, where do they have a problem?
Speaker 6 (06:45):
If so, well, you know it's interesting, you know, talk
about Sasha as the new Springbok ten. You know, Damion McKenzie,
surely this is going to be his biggest test at
number ten. You know, two tight test matches against England
at home and then a fantastic response at Eden Park
(07:05):
after and if he's showing against I and Tina in Wellington,
but this has to rank as the biggest test of
dmax career at fly half and trying to bed down
the successor to Richie Muwanga in in that shirt. Let's
(07:27):
see what happens at scrum time. I would say that
the Springboks are marginally weakened, no disrespect to Peter Steph
and Ruin Nokire, but this is a new combination in
the front five. But generally speaking, that Springbok type five
has gone exceptionally well for the last few years. Now,
(07:48):
you know they have quality on the bench in the
front row, but then so to do the All Blacks.
If you look at that front row bench for the
All Blacks, there's not a lot of weakness there either.
So I think the set peace battle is going to
be great. But if I had to pick an area
which is going to be the making of breaking, I
(08:09):
would think it would be hard. Damien McKenzie goes at tenth.
Speaker 3 (08:12):
Great call and on that Matt Pears will get on
with your day from Supersport Broadcasting over in South Africa.
That's Matt Pearson. When you're there, mate, make sure you
give o mate Justin marshal of a degree for us.
Don't let him get away with any of them.
Speaker 6 (08:29):
I know we surely will good to have him.
Speaker 2 (08:31):
Here leading a Vex. We've got just the ticket. It's
sports Vex, my news talks is he?
Speaker 3 (08:38):
You know?
Speaker 4 (08:38):
Outside of Rugby World Cups, I cannot remember looking forward
to an All Blex Test match as much as I
am Sunday morning's clash at Alice Park. Now, while Bleedislowe
Cup matches still have plenty of attraction and intrigued trans
tasma neighbors all that, the Wallaby's inability to make that
an actual contest in the last twenty years has meant
that Test matches against South Africa have become our yardstick
(09:01):
in recent times. How good are we? Well, let's play
South Africa and find out. The last time we played them,
of course, was the one point loss and the Rugby
Willorld Cup finals, so there were some demons to be
buried there. And while there's been a period of adjustment
for the All Blacks under Racer, the Springboks have of
anything gotten better this year, splitting their series with Ireland
before swatting the Wallabies aside with very little problem, even
(09:23):
when they almost completely changed their side for the second Test. Now,
despite the hype around Alice Park, the vociferous home support
playing at altitude. All of that, We actually do okay
in joe Burg, although games there have been fairly infrequent.
The last one was two years ago, remember the All
Blacks basically saving Ian Foster's job, scoring a couple of
late tries to win thirty five twenty three. The time
(09:45):
before that was all the way back in twenty fifteen,
a twenty seven twenty victory ahead of the World Cup
that year, And the time before that was ten years
ago when South African replacement first five Pat Lambee landed
a fifty two meter penalty with a minute to go
to give South Africa a twenty seven to twenty five
victory and end a twenty two game unbeaten run by
(10:06):
the Abs. But we won there in twenty five thirteen,
So that's three winds there in the last four. We
shouldn't fear the venue as much as we might think.
There's also something just a little bit special about getting
up in the middle of the night, a throwback to
the old days of Northern Hemisphere tours when games were
played in the wee hours of our morning. We got
(10:26):
up with a milo and a couple of chocolate biscuits
to watch Grainy footage from half a world away or
in the generation before that, to crowd around the radio
to follow the men in Black from Afar. Set the
alarm for Sunday morning. This is gonna be a doozy.
Speaker 2 (10:44):
The chamber is now in session on Sportsfax.
Speaker 4 (10:48):
Time for us to assemble. If you can assemble with
just two people in the chamber.
Speaker 3 (10:54):
We're an assembly. It's like going back to school, Pony.
Speaker 4 (10:58):
There's actually not a lot of room in here for
anybody else, which is probably quite good. Just you and
I eyeballing each other across the chamber table. Look, everything
is leading to Alice Park Sunday morning, three o'clock. We
haven't had the chance you would like to chat about
the team yet because when we were in the chamber
yesterday the All Blacks team hadn't been named. Anything that
surprised you. In the All Blacks twenty.
Speaker 3 (11:17):
Three, not particularly, to be honest, though. The big I
think takeaway out of that is Sam Kane. But I
think we all suspected. I thought he'd be on the bench,
but with Papa Lee with an injured thumb, that made
way for Sam Kane. Definitely not going backwards. The shoulder
is there, so that is fantastic. Front row are the locks.
I think we expected what went on there midfield, the
(11:41):
nine and the ten. I know a lot of people
are leaning away from McKenzie and from Pettinara, but they
proved a point last time out, so they've got another
crack and Caleb out there on one wing. I did,
there's nothing really for me that surprises. What about yourself?
Speaker 4 (11:58):
No, as you're saying those names, I'm thinking to myself, Okay,
what other formation or combination could they have tried? And
you look at you look at the impact bench as
they call it now, and you think, okay, is anybody there?
Is it a surprise that any of those guys I'm
more talking of farci Nel Dowry femaled up to Mileenna
Brown or Telaya? Is there any surprise that any of
those eight players are not in the starting fifteen? The
(12:21):
only one is Mark Tlayer. For me, you know, I
reckon that's a coin toss between he and Caleb Clark.
Will Jordan for me has to play now das He's
just the type of player that provides an X factor
and a tri scoring ability that is irresistible in terms
of selection. So I think the only surprise to me
was Clark ahead of Ta Layer. But I mean it's
a bit of a like for like, isn't it? And
(12:41):
t Laia or probably play the last twenty five minutes anyway,
won't he? Well?
Speaker 3 (12:45):
I think that worth Caleb Clark. The issue he has,
if you can call it, that is a titanic turnaround.
I defensively he can be vulnerable, but I think we
pick a winger like that for his destructive capability with
the ball in hand. So watching him run a mark
is going to be fantastic. But I think that maybe
(13:07):
his opposite might be fancying running around them, so that
will be that'll be a very interesting clash.
Speaker 4 (13:13):
Alice Park, Now we actually do okay there. We don't
play there very often. I just had a quick check
before we dropped into the chamber just the fifth time
since twenty thirteen, So it's that five times and eleven years.
It's not necessarily a place that the All Blacks visit
very often. But of the last four going back to
twenty thirteen, three wins, including that one two years ago
(13:34):
Darsa remember when basically Ian Foster's job was saved by
a couple of late tries. I don't think we should
fear Alice Park. Should we know?
Speaker 3 (13:42):
And when you look at the success, yes, And when
you talk to people like Ia Kameyer who had on
the show last night, it's like, well, it may be
the high vault, but these players are fit, they get
what they have to do to train to get up there,
and the hard fast ground, if anything, probably leaned toward
the All Black with their attacking finesse and the speed
(14:06):
that they have. So that's an interesting thought process there.
But yeah, I don't think any fear anymore. Maybe the crowd,
maybe the briars out the back before it.
Speaker 4 (14:16):
Jane, Yeah, I think I reckon if we got a
whiffle one of those, I'd be out the back looking
for a looking for a spare Roob sandwich, if there's
such a thing, or something like that. I have heard though,
that our colleague Elliott Smith, first time in joe Burg,
has been getting nose bleeds, not serious ones, but little
nose bleeds because of the altitude. And apparently a member
(14:37):
of the All Blacks team who hasn't visited South Africa
before is getting the same sort of thing. So this
altitude is a thing. It is an adjustment to make.
Speaker 3 (14:46):
I think though, when you look at the results, as
you pointed out of the last handful, that there's enough
in place for the all Blacks to actually deal with that,
to carry that reasonably comfortably. Although yeah, I haven't been
there and had a blood nose, so I don't know much.
It's a place I'd like to visit, though maybe not Johannesburg,
but Alice Park. I think that's one of the one
(15:07):
of the list, isn't it. Jay Oh?
Speaker 4 (15:09):
Absolutely, Just before we move on, put yourself in the
shoes of somebody in the all blacks environment and in
this hypothetical situation I'm going to present to you if
you said to them, right, you'll win one and lose
one in South Africa, would you take it?
Speaker 3 (15:25):
No, No, win both games. That's the all Black way.
There's always been the all Black way in the concept
of someone settling for one and one Sits really uncomfortably
with me. I'm sure a lot of people this is
not the way the all Blacks rolling. Yeah, they haven't
been utterly dominant over recent times. But what I say,
(15:46):
break off the rear vision mirrors. It's about the present. No,
no two and two one, Just go beat them. Both times. Right,
you've gone silent piney am I insane?
Speaker 4 (15:55):
No? I love the answer. I love the answer. No,
I absolutely love the answer. And I'm pretty sure that
even privately, if you were to delve deep into the
private thoughts of Razor, or of Scott Barrett, or of
any of those guys over there, they'd all say exactly
the same thing. Hey, just before weeks at the Chamber,
a change at the top of the White Ferns women's
cricketers in T twenty Sophie Diviners have aren't announced this afternoon.
(16:17):
She'll step down as T twenty skipper after the World
Cup and the UAE in October. She'll stay as skipper
of the one day side, and presumably we'll stay as
a member of the T twenty side. I'm not sure
there's a heck of a lot to see here, is there?
A Melli Kerr will come in and run the T
twenty side and we'll just carry on, won't we.
Speaker 3 (16:34):
There's often been discussion around the changing of the guard
and the fact that some of the youths aren't probably
performing as well as they'd be expected to perform, So
she's not leaving. Sophie Divine I'm glad because you's a
superstar at the game and I think she brings a
lot to the table. But moving away from the captaincy,
letting someone else take over, that's a different environment and
(16:57):
that I believe can't do any harm to the white ferns.
Speaker 4 (17:02):
Us as always a pleasure spending time in this rather
comfy chamber with you. Enjoy your weekend, mate, no doubt
we'll be messaging one another about three in the morning
on Sunday as we exchange thoughts about this test match.
But we'll reconvene next time. We reconvene great the chatters.
Speaker 3 (17:20):
Always absolutely next time bring some deodor and oh my.
Speaker 2 (17:25):
This is Sports Fix, your daily does of sports news
how in by News Talks EV.
Speaker 4 (17:32):
And that is us for the Sports Fix podcast for
today and for the rest of this week as well. However,
don't fear. On Monday, at around about this time, our
fresh edition will drop into your podcast feed. Make sure
you subscribe and that will happen automatically.
Speaker 3 (17:45):
Does and if the weekend is live radio for you,
get amongst a Piney has got weekend Sport on News
Talk zeb twelve till three Saturday and Sundays back again
on Monday Night and Sports Talk and then I Take
the Rains Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday night from seven to
eight on News Talk ZEB. You want sport, We've got
it for you, right Piney, we have.
Speaker 4 (18:05):
Indeed, you have a great weekend, folks.
Speaker 1 (18:07):
For more from News to set b listen live on
air or online, and keep our shows with you wherever
you go with our podcasts on iHeartRadio
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