NZ Shaft Mils Muliaina again!!

Sand Wedge

Hey all, do you think it was strange that Mils Muiliania was not in the NZ squad for their opener against Tonga. He was on 98 caps (the same as McCaw), with McCaw then playing in that game it moved him to 99 and Muiliania stayed on 98. Now that McCaw has been withdrawn for the Japan game they have withdrawn Muiliania from the game too. So it seems to me that they are manufacturing it so that Richie McCaw will be the first to earn 100 caps for NZ and they don't want Muiliania to do it before him or on the same night.

What are your thoughts on it? Is Muiliania being shafted by NZ RFU?

pickarooney

McCaw is the undisputed number 8. Muiliania's place is rightly under threat from Israel Dagg.

Sand Wedge

pickarooney wrote: »

McCaw is the undisputed number 8. Muiliania's place is rightly under threat from Israel Dagg.

McCaw is the undisputed number 7. I know Muiliania is under pressure from Dagg. But still seems strange that he was not even on the bench for the Tonga game. Then when McCaw gets injured for Japan game they withdraw Muiliania too! Maybe they have something against him for deciding to go play in Japan after the RWC!

JustinDee

Sand Wedge wrote: »

McCaw is the undisputed number 7. I know Muiliania is under pressure from Dagg. But still seems strange that he was not even on the bench for the Tonga game. Then when McCaw gets injured for Japan game they withdraw Muiliania too! Maybe they have something against him for deciding to go play in Japan after the RWC!

NZ right now are under tremendous pressure at home to win this competition for the first time in 24 years.
Petty battles over number of caps would be the least on their collective minds right now. All irrelevant in comparison to the job in hand.

LuckyCharms

Inclined to agree with the petty battles comment. With the amount of pressure that these guys have been put under, i would imagine that they will be taking every precaution to maintain morale and avoid problems within the camp.

vinny chase

Israel Dagg has the potential to come out of this tournament as the best full back in the world; it's not like they picked some turkey there ahead of him.

And then, to justify the selection Dagg scored two tries and had a hand in a couple of others.

I'd say sentimentality counts for absolutely nothing in the All Black dressing room right now. They'd drop McCaw or Carter in a heartbeat if they thought someone else was giving them a better chance to win.

Podge_irl

sigh...I'd just moved Muliaina into my fantasy team. Bloody NZ

durkadurka

I'm inclined to think that being the first all black to 100 caps is a big deal.

WeeBushy

Podge_irl wrote: »

sigh...I'd just moved Muliaina into my fantasy team. Bloody NZ

It was a toss up between Muliaina and Smith for me, thankfully I went for Smith. Actually being honest, I thought I had gone with Muliaina until I just checked there

I have Carter though

vinny chase

durkadurka wrote: »

I'm inclined to think that being the first all black to 100 caps is a big deal.

Not on the same level as winning the World Cup.

I can't see how it is even coming into Graham Henry's head when he sits down to pick a team.

All he is focused on now is getting guys fit, and getting them game time for when the real challenges begin.

FWIW-I still think he'll go back to Muliaina come crunch time, and he'll get his 100 caps, probably not before McCaw though.

MungBean

First All Black to hit 100 caps HAS to be McCaw. Withdrawing Muliaina from the Japan game and not including him in the Tonga game doesnt affect anything. NZ gets their wins comfortably regardless.

Theres no way in hell they would let anyone other than McCaw get the first 100 in a must win home world cup. Muliaina will get his 100 after and only after McCaw has gotten his. With Dagg they are not leaving themselves short so its not like they are risking anything against Japan to engineer this.

McCaw gets his 100 against the old WC enemy France and goes down in the record books. Muliaina is an afterthought.

JustinDee

Skunkle wrote: »

Theres no way in hell they would let anyone other than McCaw get the first 100 in a must win home world cup.

They will not give two stuffs. I highly doubt Richard McCaw does either.
RWC is paramount. Number of Caps and everything else absolutely secondary and don't even come into the process.

pickarooney

I thought Dagg was already ruled out for Japan?

MungBean

JustinDee wrote: »

They will not give two stuffs. I highly doubt Richard McCaw does either.
RWC is paramount. Number of Caps and everything else absolutely secondary and don't even come into the process.

This is NZ's world cup in every aspect. I have no doubt their greatest player and captain on home ground being the first player to reach 100 caps is a big deal to them.

MungBean

pickarooney wrote: »

I thought Dagg was already ruled out for Japan?

Yeah your right all three are out. Isaia Toeava is in.

JustinDee

Skunkle wrote: »

This is NZ's world cup in every aspect

Balls it is.

Skunkle wrote: »

I have no doubt their greatest player and captain on home ground being the first player to reach 100 caps is a big deal to them.

Maybe you have no doubt but that won't change anything.

MungBean

JustinDee wrote: »

Balls it is.

Perhaps you’ve been living under a rock. The tournament is in NZ, NZ are the favourites by a long way. NZ are the team to beat. Its all about NZ.

Maybe you have no doubt but that won't change anything.

Childish. Try to add something constructive rather than saying "your wrong".

WeeBushy

Even if NZ were concerned about who reaches 100 caps first, they could have played Muliaina in this game leaving both on 99 caps, and then started Dagg (who ain't no slouch and is arguably the form FB anyway) in the next match so that McCaw reaches 100 first.

But its all nonsense anyway. No way would the coaches put something like that before their WC attempts.

JustinDee

Skunkle wrote: »

Perhaps you’ve been living under a rock. The tournament is in NZ, NZ are the favourites by a long way. NZ are the team to beat. Its all about NZ

You're saying it is theirs to lose. It most certainly isn't.

Skunkle wrote: »

Childish. Try to add something constructive rather than saying "your wrong".

Not childish.
If you get the chance, ask an international which would be top of their priorities.

MungBean

JustinDee wrote: »

You're saying it is theirs to lose. It most certainly isn't.

I'm saying its all about the All Blacks. A world cup in New Zealand with the All Blacks as favourites, hyping it up as the one to end the world cup drought. Never said it was theirs to lose, but I'd wager very very few people wouldnt put them in the final. The entire things is revolving around NZ and whether or not they can win or who will beat them this time.

Not childish.
If you get the chance, ask an international which would be top of their priorities.

I know whats top of their priorities but just because its not top of the list doesnt mean its not very important. This isnt a just a milestone in McCaws career its a milestone in NZ rugby. And it happens at a very significant time for NZ rugby. To dismiss all that as "who cares what you think" is childish.

Whether I'm right or wrong I have reason to believe what I believe. Unless you have inside knowledge of whats happening in the minds of the players and coaches of the NZ rugby team then you know the same as me so your opinion isnt worth any more than mine.

JustinDee

Skunkle wrote: »

I'm saying its all about the All Blacks. A world cup in New Zealand with the All Blacks as favourites, hyping it up as the one to end the world cup drought. Never said it was theirs to lose, but I'd wager very very few people wouldnt put them in the final. The entire things is revolving around NZ and whether or not they can win or who will beat them this time

It isn't all about New Zealand.

Skunkle wrote: »

I know whats top of their priorities but just because its not top of the list doesnt mean its not very important. This isnt a just a milestone in McCaws career its a milestone in NZ rugby. And it happens at a very significant time for NZ rugby. To dismiss all that as "who cares what you think" is childish
Whether I'm right or wrong I have reason to believe what I believe. Unless you have inside knowledge of whats happening in the minds of the players and coaches of the NZ rugby team then you know the same as me so your opinion isnt worth any more than mine

As I suggested earlier, ask any professional rugby player if you ever get a chance, whether an individual player record even registers close to competing in and winning the RWC and I can guarantee you by 99.99% what the reply would be.
Records will mean absolutely zilch.

MungBean

JustinDee wrote: »

It isn't all about New Zealand.

This one is going nowhere, cant argue with "balls it is" "no it isnt" "no it isnt".

As I suggested earlier, ask any professional rugby player if you ever get a chance, whether an individual player record even registers close to competing in and winning the RWC and I can guarantee you by 99.99% what the reply would be.
Records will mean absolutely zilch.

And if I ask Peter Stringer and he says "It would nice to get 100 caps but nicer to win the world cup" that proves what exactly ? Your just repeating yourself and ignoring my point. I know the priority is the competition, I know caps dont matter to the players involved as much as winning, I know the coaches are not gonna risk anything to get McCaw to 100 first but keeping Muliaina out of the Japan game doesnt risk anything.

I know everything you have feckin said but it doesnt change the fact that a player with the reputation that McCaw has being the first player in NZ rugby history hitting 100 caps in the world cup on home soil is a big deal to NZ rugby.

.ak

I doubt at this stage caps means anything to McCaw. Besides, you can link anything you want to history in any game. If he got his 100th cap against Japan they might've won by 100 points, or if he got his 100th cap in the QF's they could link it to some event 100 years ago, or some other coincidental nonsense.

Whilst the very notion of becoming a Test Centurion is important to any professional rugby player, I doubt they care how or where it comes, especially McCaw who seems to have a very level, professional head on him - he's not one to get wrapped up in the sentiment of things, at least not before he's won anything.

handsomecake

I'd say " ice" will tear it up in his favoured 15 shirt tomorrow.