They've had a bunch of their senior players retire, go to Japan, or are injuried, but even so, they shouldn't be as bad as they are.I stopped watching Super Rugby when the SA teams got booted out, but I remember the Western Force being one of the whipping boys so to speak. To see them put over the Crusaders is a surprise to me.
I guess losing Razor doesnt help either.They've had a bunch of their senior players retire, go to Japan, or are injuried, but even so, they shouldn't be as bad as they are.
The depth in NZ rugby is certainly reducing.
They were pretty unstoppable going into the world cup as well but got, well, stopped. The 6N has never really been the barrier for them, beating NZ is.England gave France a thrashing in the 6 Nations decider in Bordeaux, despite being rather average in the second half when the game was won.
That's 29 consecutive 6 Nations wins now. Giving this side John Mitchell has just taken them to a new level. Can see them having a level of domination similar to the Aussie Women's Cricket Team.
I think that was a one off freak game where England played most of it with 14 (a sending off which I'm not sure would be more than a yellow now). It was in NZ and they still should have won. In last year's inaugural WXV, NZ lost to France by a point before getting well beaten by England (in NZ).They were pretty unstoppable going into the world cup as well but got, well, stopped. The 6N has never really been the barrier for them, beating NZ is.
I mean they're favourites sure, and it's not that close, but I really think winning one cup is the minimum starting point before you can compare them to a side that's won four in a row.I think that was a one off freak game where England played most of it with 14 (a sending off which I'm not sure would be more than a yellow now). It was in NZ and they still should have won. In last year's inaugural WXV, NZ lost to France by a point before getting well beaten by England (in NZ).
Next World Cup is in England, they've upgraded the Coach, found some better players and are clearly significantly better now than the last tournament. It'll take more than a questionable red to stop them this time.
There is a huge gulf in the current rankings between 1st and 2nd. A lot has changed since 2022.
Women's and Men's Rankings | World Rugby
Could easily change Wallabies to Wales there - both nations have huge issues at the mo that run deep in their game.Hard to argue with though tbh. Don't think we'll see a properly competitive Wallabies again before 2050
Rugby has massive competition in Australia from far better managed/more popular sports so the situation is somewhat understandableCould easily change Wallabies to Wales there - both nations have huge issues at the mo that run deep in their game.
It's not exactly rosey for England/Scotland either, but their concerns pale into insignificance by comparison.
The Aussie sides are showing a lot of promise in Super Rugby this year, most competitive they've been in years.Hard to argue with though tbh. Don't think we'll see a properly competitive Wallabies again before 2050