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Some ‘obvious absentees’ in Chiefs’ team to take on Brumbies
By Finn Morton
All Blacks Tupou Vaa’i and Anton Lienert-Brown will miss the Chiefs’ match against the Brumbies on Saturday, and fullback Shaun Stevenson has been relegated to the bench.
Chiefs coach Clayton McMillan has named a relatively unchanged side for his blockbuster trans-Tasman derby in Canberra, but there are some “obvious absentees.”
Vaa’i is being rested as per the All Blacks’ mandatory policy, which gives 24-year-old Laghlan McWhannell the chance to start alongside veteran Brodie Retallick.
As for the rest of the forward pack, Aidan Ross, Samisoni Taukei’aho and George Dyer make up the front row trio for the Chiefs.
The Chiefs have named a familiar looking loose forward combination with All Blacks Pita Gus Sowakula, Sam Cane and Luke Jacobson set to pack down in the back row.
Co-captain Brad Weber will combine with Josh Ioane in the halves, while Damian McKenzie shifts from flyhalf to fullback.
Rameka Poihipi returns to the run-on side, and will link up with the reliable Alex Nankivell in the midfield.
Former All Blacks Sevens star Etene Nani-Seturo has retained his spot on the left wing, while Emoni Narawa will line up on the right.
“It’s an important game for us against the Brumbies,” coach Clayton McMillan said in a statement.
“They gave us a real lesson last year and are particularly tough at home in Canberra where their tactical kicking game and maul are real weapons.
“We have selected a largely stable team, with Tupou Vaa’i and Anton Lienert-Brown the obvious absentees as they sit out their last All Blacks rest weeks.
“The team has had an excellent week of preparation and is excited about the opportunity of being on the road, building our connection as a group and finding growth in our game.”
The highly anticipated blockbuster between the Brumbies and Chiefs is set to get underway at 9.35pm NZST on Saturday at Canberra’s GIO Stadium.
Chiefs team to take on Brumbies
- Aidan Ross
- Samisoni Taukei’aho
- George Dyer
- Brodie Retallick
- Laghlan McWhannell
- Pita Gus Sowakula
- Sam Cane (cc)
- Luke Jacobson
- Brad Weber (cc)
- Josh Ioane
- Etene Nanai-Seturo
- Rameka Poihipi
- Alex Nankivell
- Emoni Narawa
- Damian McKenzie
Replacements:
- Bradley Slater
- Ollie Norris
- John Ryan
- Naitoa Ah Kuoi
- Samipeni Finau
- Cortez Ratima
- Daniel Rona
- Shaun Stevenson
Players not considered due to injury: Angus Ta’avao, Quinn Tupaea, Xavier Roe, Bryn Gatland, Josh Lord, Gideon Wrampling, Ngatungane Punivai, Kaylum Boshier
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Latest Comments
Nah, that just needs some more variation. Chip kicks, grubber stabs, all those. Will Jordan showed a pretty good reason why the rush was bad for his link up with BB.
If you have an overlap on a rush defense, they naturally cover out and out and leave a huge gap near the ruck.
It also helps if both teams play the same rules. ARs set the offside line 1m past where the last mans feet were😅
Go to commentsYeah nar, should work for sure. I was just asking why would you do it that way?
It could be achieved by outsourcing all your IP and players to New Zealand, Japan, and America, with a big Super competition between those countries raking it in with all of Australia's best talent to help them at a club level. When there is enough of a following and players coming through internally, and from other international countries (starting out like Australia/without a pro scene), for these high profile clubs to compete without a heavy australian base, then RA could use all the money they'd saved over the decades to turn things around at home and fund 4 super sides of their own that would be good enough to compete.
That sounds like a great model to reset the game in Aus. Take a couple of decades to invest in youth and community networks before trying to become professional again. I just suggest most aussies would be a bit more optimistic they can make it work without the two decades without any pro club rugby bit.
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