KEY POINTS:
A month ago the Blues were leading the Super 14.
Now it's anyone's guess who will get in the semi-finals.
We want to hear your picks.
Here is the latest selection of your views:
Zo (Dunedin)
Crusaders will win on the strength of a class team that handles pressure situations. They top the table and will host the final for mine. Blues will sneak in and hold 4th spot. McCalister and desperation will be the difference. Bulls coast in against a poor quality side in the Reds. 4 tries is nearly a guarantee giving them 3rd position. And unquestionabley my lock of the round, the Sharks beat the Stormers. In the last two years the Bulls needed to win this game against the Stormers to qualify and won by plenty. At $1.45 The Sharks are at great value to do the same. Crusaders, Sharks,Bulls,Blues.
Baldyman (Waiau Beach)
There is nothing wrong with the Blues , they need Luke , and he is back , so watch out .The poor results were planned , it is all part of the overall scheme of things , I predict that the Blues will win the final .
Fred (Capetown)
Luke must play frist five, by doing this the Blues will win super 14. It will be good for the All Blacks to have a back-up first five.
Sir John
I bet that the Blues will make it! Go Blues.
Marc
I hope the Chiefs or one of the South African Team wins the Blues and the Crusaders have been disappointing lately.
Manuel
Age old saying.. so long as Auckland are not the powerhouse of NZ rugby, then the all blacks will not win the world cup. Bring back Buck.
Bluesfan
Blues to make it through to the semis then beat the Sharks in SA then beat the Crusaders at Jade if not ah well it's just a game!
Stuart the Poet
I think the force will kill the blues. How good a coach is John Mitchell? Second year and going to make the finals. Legend I say. And the All Blacks, well they will go about their business as usual, win everything this year Tri-nations but once again will fail in their quest for the ultimate prize RWC. Aust have won it twice, been there 3 times, the best record of all making them the greatest rugby nation on earth. Look out for That little man Gregan and his merry Gloden henchmen.
Trevor
Wait till Sunday.
WOJ. (Brisbane, Australia)
The problem with the Blues is that I think that they have already peaked too soon, like the horses has already bolted lol,U fellas over that side of the Tasman have to wake up and realise that u team isnt good enough , Kapai lol, never mind making excuses,it all comes back to the team, your players havent performed,Blues forward pack, havent done the job, and the Blues Backs have been too flashy, too predictable and lack leadership for some to stand up and be like Buck Shelford, or Zinzan Brooke and say , ok u fellas, follow me, this is how u do it, and if u dont , u get a punch in the head, Knock some sense into u, I bet that works.
Ivan
Super 14 semis... my prediction Canterbury vs Brumbies (1 v 4) Sharks v Bulls (2 v 3).
Campbell
Go the Chiefs! will be gutted if they knock over the Crusaders and the Blues limp past the force into the semi, in saying that if the Chiefs lose, then go the Blues, my fifth favourite Super 14 team.
Los (Queensland)
Will the Blues make the finals, sure they will, I will admit, the Bulls defeat was to the demise of the Blues own mistakes, they had enough ball, enough opportunities and have the best talent to make and win the competition, the trend for the Kiwi teams losing in S.Africa is evident, had the this been a reverse and the Blues lost to the S.African teams in the early rounds then were wining toward the finals, you'd say too, they can make the finals. This Friday, against the Force, the Blues face the toughest opponent they'll face all year, themselves, the self belief, everything they worked for will be a testament to themselves in those 80 minutes in Perth of just how good truly believe they are. I believe Auckland. Rise Auckland BLues like the 300 Spartans and conquer your fears and snatch victory in Perth, then march on to the finals and claim your destiny.
Fili Tupua (Sydney)
Seems like everyone's made their point and are all fairly valid. So I may as well select the team just for the last preliminary round and hope Nucifora takes heed cos' he has no choice but to go for broke! C'mon Blues!
15 - Isa Nacewa 14 - Doug Howlett 13 - Anthony Tuitavake 12 - Isaia Toeava 11 - Joe Rokocoko 10 - Luke McAlister 9 - Steve Devine 8 - Jerome Kaino 7 - Daniel Braid 6 - Troy Flavell (c) 5 - Ali Williams 4 - Greg Rawlinson 3 - John Afoa 2 - Keven Mealamu 1 - Tony Woodcock Reserves: 16 – Derren Witcombe 17 – Saimone Taumoepeau 18 – Angus MacDonald 19 – Justin Collins 20 – Taniela Moa 21 – David Holwell 22 – Rudi Wulf.
Purcellzzzzzz
I think the blues will definitely make the semi finals. Tthey will beat the blues 13+ this week and with the return of Luke Mcalister this blues team will be back at its best. The combination of Luke Mcalister and Isaia Toeava is the key. Tuitupou and Isaia proved deadly but with Sam trying to barge through big defences it is evident that the only way to get through this error of defence is by out thinking opposition with speed, power, sharp stepping, and ball excellent ball skills. I think the Isaia and Mcalister combination is the key to the blues backline and the blues hopes this year.
Matt
The Blues will beat the Force. Midfield kingpin McAllister will lead the way, while the introduction of Troy Flavell at 6 would be the answer to a failing forward pack. These two changes would give the Blues an ultimate chance of slaying a South African opposition in the semi-finals.
Mytakeismine
A Lot of Blues' problems came from Nucifora's strategy and player selection.1.Blues didn't allow their All Blacks early, resulting their All Blacks not being the best form player. Nucifora put far too much emphasis on forms of the early rounds and neglect his class All Blacks. Compare Robbie Dean's and his strategy is like day and night. Perhaps it just goes to say how good Robbie is as a coach. 2. He is too slow to read the situation regarding the number 10. Ica is good player, but still very raw and inexperienced. Nucifora should have read as early as the early part of the Shark's match that, that he shouldn't be the sole kicker dictating the game without McAlister. Both Holwel and Nacewa should be on field together and Nacewa as fullback.3. Both Atiga and Pisi played poorly in fullback both in terms of Defence as well as creating attacking opportunity especially with the high balls. The Blues played like they didnt have a fullback.All in all, I think its a just outcome. It might be too late for Nucifora to address these issues. McAlister should helped a bit at Perth. May be Blue should consider Warren Gatland next year.
Bondie
Blues wont not only make the semis, they will go all the way and win the final against the Sharks,probably in South Africa. Ali and Joe will both start against the Force. Chiefs to beat Crusaders by 10.
Jafa
I'm they'll beat the Force but you'd like to gain momentum into the semis even if it looks like its going to be in Shark land. What I can't believe the amount of playing time Nucy has played some players eg Braid has played in every game since round 1 along with Kaino. What happened to Auva'a from last year? He just sits in the stands. Also Collins, we all know about Collins sickness but if he couldn't last an 80 minute game he should not have been chosen in the squad, cut the emotions, thats professional life!! As for the ABs, Nuci should've done what the Crusaders did & chucked them in for Day 1, build them up. How can a player stick on the wing & impress a coach coming in for 20mins or so. I mean look at Siti, he can switch to fullback hence he has much more contact with the ball. I'd like to see Isa moved to another position other then 1st5 too. Before Round 5-6 he could get away, well hello, this is the do or die stuff now!! Hes so talented he could even play fullback which seems to be a problem. Our only hope is if we play in SA lets hope for a fast track & out our fastest players out there. I mean Rudi compared to Joe........you the maths.
The enforcer
The short answer is no. The Force will do what the last 3 teams have done to the Blues -.take a bonus point win and then finish above them on the ladder by virtue of having more bonus points.
Dean
Yes they will qualify forth and get smashed again in the republic. Another kiwi team of chokers and dont blame the coach cause those All Blacks havent looked flash anyway.
Dean
The Blues are killing me. I keep keeping the faith however, everytime I put my head above the chook pen I get slammed by my International friends.It's hard work being remote from the Shire.RWC- can we do it again in my life time i.e. 1987....I'm 36? Yep.
Duncan
I agree with a lot of the posters that the coach does need to take a lot of the blame for his stubborn refusal to out the reconditioned AB's back into the squad. The guys in the AB reconditioning squad are obviously the best in their position and hence should be at least on the bench for the Blues as soon as they returned. I mean he gives Rocokoko 1 game and about 20 minutes and then says that Joe's performance doesn't warrant him being in the squad of 22 for the next game, I don't know any winger who would be back to his best after such limited game time (Rico Gear even though he wasn't in the reconditiong squad took at least 7 games to start finding his best form). He then goes into the game against the Bulls (who have probably the best line out in the comp) with a line our that wouldn't worry anyone (Angus Macdonald - please, how he ever got selected for the AB's is beyond me, He should of started with both Williams & Rawlinson as the locks, Flavell at 6 & Kaino at 8 to give them height and options and he should have certainly had Nick Williams on the bench so he could sub him on and let him loose on those damaging runs against tired defenders. If the Blues fail to make the semis, then Nucifora should be held just as accountable as the players.
Liam
I think the Blues will make the semis. They will know that the game against the Force is 'do or die' and with the talent they have will gwt through in the end. The likely return of Luke McAllister will make a big difference as I feel both Naewa & Tuitupo have both struggled with a consistent kicking and attacking game in the last 3 weeks putting too much pressure on Toeava to make the breaks. Ideally they will win with a bonus point and not have to face the Crusaders.
Perplexed Pam from Sydney
Whats wrong with the Blues? Well, um, errr, I don't really know, but its starting to seem like theirs disharmony in the camp!!! Whether its coming from that Australian coach who refuses to let our national guys from our national play,this may be causing some angst in the ranks, or something else I don't know. I kinda refuse to blame Troy because he has led by example on the field and was one of the many who made the Blues a pleasure to watch,and he also doesn't pick who plays and who doesn't. I've seen choking and this definitely isnt choking all I can say is you guys at home, fix it.
Ms Auckland
If Blues don't make the semis I'll get the blues.
Brian
No, unfortunately I don't think the Blues will make the top 4. Even with the inclusion of McAlister for this week, they will come unstuck in Perth against the Force. Couple of factors which are just too much for the Blues to handle right now:Travel factor. They've got zero points from their SA tour and it really is downing their confidence. To add to that, they have to overcome the jetlag of travelling from Pretoria all the way to Perth with such conditions. Not much to recover from. This year's competition is so tight and balanced that nobody really managed to have the superiority over all the teams from one certain country. In other words, not even the best NZ team the Crusaders have suffered losses to at least one team apiece from their fellow Kiwi teams and the teams from Australia and SA. The Blues have beaten the Brumbies, the Reds and the 'Tahs among the Aussie teams so far this season and it's hard to see them making a clean sweep judging from this year's trend of 'not allowing such clean sweep over all the teams from one country. With the Blues going down in Perth, the Brumbies are favoured to beat the Highlanders in Dunedin and I think they will too, so that would mean ACT will sneak past them on 4th spot.
The Black Prince of Manly
1.Mealamu obviously did not learn form mistakes at the lineout when it was clear that Mealamu could not deliver clean ball to the back of the line due to the intercepting hands of Matfield, Botha et all. Mealamu should have changed his tactic when he realised that the long throw was not working,to a shorter throw to the front of the line and to regather and scoot on the blind(touchline) as he has excelled in the past.
2.Nacewa kept "sliding" sideways wasting valuable yards and time and in the process getting Toeava guarded by a double edged sentry of Bulls midfielders everytime.(the Bulls defenders were offside a few time which Dickinson did not pick up. (By the way , the only player who has the skills to slide in attacking play and to fool the defenders adeptly is Larkham and to a lesser extent Dan Carter.) Nacewa should have made some inside incisions when he discovered that the outside play was too congested.The only time that I recall a clean inside insision being made was when Sam Tuitupou fumbled a clean and healthy pass which led to a Bulls try at a critical juncture in the match.On that occasion it was not Naceaw who delivered the excellent pass but it was Braid, I think. #. Nacewa should play at full back in the last match and bring back Macalister at 1st five.
Rex Hapimana
The Blues will still make the semi's by beating the Force but it won't be a home semi and I doubt they'll go any further. I agree with a previous writer that Nucifora should have brought the AB's straight back in as other coaches did. Instead he had them playing club rugby and sitting on the bench-if in the 22 at all!!The idea was not just to qualify for the semis but have momentum going into them and that comes with consistent selection policies. Now they may just make the semis but have no momentum and an away semi to the Crusaders seems the easier path believe it or not. We've seen how they've gone in Sth Africa so an away semi in Pretoria or Durban will surely result in defeat. I'm in favour of Nucifora pursuing his coaching in Australia next year and promoting Pat Lam to the Blues head position.
Noble
The Blues will scrape into the finals with a strong performance against the Force, (in third place). Which should mean back to S.A. to play the Sharks in one of the Semi's.Hopefully Nuciforas coaching staff will have done their homework. If they have, the Blues will have too many game breakers across the field & on the bench. I'm booking my flight to Christchurch now.
Yoal
Who cares, go the Chiefs.
Clarke
I still believe the Blues will make the play offs at the expense of our team the Chiefs unless one of the South African teams are bowled over. They just have to go back to how they were playing prior to the return of the All Blacks who sat out the first seven weeks. Attacking defence and playing the game in the oppositions territory. They need to bring back that mongrel that helped bowl over our team in Hamilton. I believe they sat on their laurels after winning that game.
P W
If you compare the tactics employed by David Nicifora and Robbie Deans in assimilating their reconditioned All Blacks back into the team I think it really speaks for itself. Deans took the perspective that the reconditioned players at their best are going to be in your starting 15 every week and needed to get game time as soon as possible to get them up to speed, where as Nucifora took the loyalty perspective of 'the current players have done the job for me thus far so these reconditioned players will need to prove their up to speed for me to pick them'. Well the squeeze has come on from the intensity of teams playing for playoffs spots and trying to build momentum for the playoffs and without meaningful game time the blues reconditioned lot are still off the pace, as opposed to the Crusaders bunch who, apart from dropping a highly emotional game in Canberra, are improving nicely as usual.
The reconditioned All Blacks, after all the intense training they were receiving for the first part of the competition, needed highly competitive games to really begin the process peaking their performance for a rugby match. All the specialised, targeted, personalised training in the world is not going to do you any good if you're going to warm the bench for 20 minutes of super rugby or go and play club level rugby. It's all a bit late now and with all the great things Nucifora has done for the Blues this season, and he is a very smart I believe, his mentality of integrating the reconditioned bunch has been to his and the teams detriment. Joe, Ali, Tony and Keven at their best, are the best in the world or amongst the best and they had just been primed to lift their performances to all new levels, but with the paltry amount of time they have been given in the Super 14 the potential to see that for the Blues has now been lost, along with the chances of the Blues hosting a playoff if they do make the playoffs.
Nigel
Lack good leadership on the field. Now at the pressure end of the competition the hard mettle of leadership is left wanting. Flavell appears to have lost his fire he once showed before this season. He seems to be content loping around the field following the game instead of deciding it. He may be a rock of Gibraltar but he certainly isn't a Buck Shelford.
Ure
Hopefully they still will and if they do they may still win the pennant.Winning is a habit just as losing is and the external pressures on the Blues are making getting back into the winning habit harder than it should be. The biggest part of the problem was that while the All Black certainties were away for conditioning the Blues finally melded into a real team, which meant that when they came back great care had to be taken re-introducing those players back into the side. Players who mean well but whose priorities are bigger than the Blues and whose absence allowed younger, allegedly lesser lights to shine brighter.
The media and the NZRU put Nucifora under a lot of pressure to take the players back when he really wasn't ready to change the team dynamic. That ended the winning habit maybe McAlister's return will break the losing habit. The same voices heard demanding the return of the so called senior players are now at the forefront of criticising the Blues for not winning. Nothing surprising in that. A couple of things stick out like the proverbial dog parts. One is that any NZ born coach wouldn't have copped the hiding that Nucifora did when doing what he knew to be best for his team and his franchise. Second next world cup the NZRU will still have too much control over the NZ Super teams, so while the financial kick in the pants they copped this year from pulling out the AB's will probably stop them from repeating this stupidity, the degree of centralised control on the game in NZ will cause them to attempt something equally witless.
Dan.B
In my view the entire blame fall's on the coach and his inability to play the best Blues team every week, he has had a number of quality players to choose from yet he hasnt given them amply time to gel together. How can you leave Joe Rocokoko and Ali Williams out of a starting line up?. He needs to go as he is butchering another Super 14 season.
Todd Wales
The problem with the blues is there are too many players who prefer socialising to training.
