Leading All Blacks may be rested during next year’s Super 15 rugby tournament in order to ensure that they will be fit for the World Cup in New Zealand later in the year.
All Blacks coach Graham Henry came under fire in 2007 for his reconditioning program which saw the New Zealand’s leading players pulled out of the Super 14 for half of the season.
The Super 15 kicks off in 2011 with a much more demanding program and Henry says that he plans to pull players in a similar fashion to what he did in 2007.
Henry says that he will meet with New Zealand Super 15 coaches shortly to discuss the increased workload imposed on players by the expansion of Super rugby from 14 to 15 teams in 2011.
He said top players would have to be carefully managed to ensure they avoid burnout in a lengthened season.
Henry’s comments were echoed later Wednesday by Reds Super 15 coach Ewen McKenzie, who said he would combat the lengthened 2011 season by implementing a rotation policy which would extend to the Wallabies duo of Will Genia and Quade Cooper.
The length of the Super rugby season will increase from 16 to 21 weeks with the addition of a fifth Australian franchise and both Henry and McKenzie said the burden on players would grow with the additional matches.
“The main difference would be the load,” McKenzie told AP.
“It’s just literally longer and we found when we went from Super 12 to Super 14 (in 2006) there was a big difference.It doesn’t sound like much when you say it but the bodies have to get used to that.”
“It means the rotation of players will be a bit more relevant.” Henry said it was “ridiculous” to think any player could play in every week of the new tournament.
“I just think guys need to make sensible decisions so that people play at a high standard all the time and we will be discussing that with the Super 15Â coaches in late September,” he said.
Henry said each team would receive two byes in the season and spelling players for an additional two weeks to ensure they had four weeks off during the season was “a reasonably logical way of looking at it.”
Interesting…
2007 all over again ???
@ Blouste:
Henry is smart, I am sure he has learned from his mistakes and has a plan up his sleeve, unlike our 3 so called wise men.
winston
not so sure bru, not so sure!!
Think GH has learned from 2007. For me this is a smart move. Not to rest them totally, but for good parts of the S15. Think that is what he will do, also we should be too. Far, far too much rugby will be played next year. Tri-Nations which we have to tour first again then a extended S15. So don’t expect to see our top Boks playing in all of the S15 or Tri-Nations next year.
@ Puma:
Fact is currently the Bok management have no right to not let the Boks play in the S15…
The cannot enforce it onto the unions…
Sure they can leave them out of the Tri-Nations ala Jake in 2007, but have no say in the provincial setup…
@ Blouste:5 – I know Blouste, but think the unions will respect what is the best for Bok rugby for the world cup. Think the unions will co-operate with what the coach wants. I am expecting to see many top players rotated or rested for some part of S15 and probably Tri-Nations.
World cup is more important next year than the S15 or Tri-Nations.
@ Puma:
I agreeit’s more important but you know this have been debated about over and over again…
The unions and their coaches have their own problems regarding sponsors, performance clauses etc. etc.
Say for example the Lions buys J.Smit for the reported R4 mil, do you think they will not let him play for what would basicly be the whole season ?
Nope, sorry, in a perfect world maybe, but expect to see the Boks in most of the S15 games imo…
Only when the system changes in SA will that change.
Fact is none of us will jeopardise your income or the complete loss of it when you have families to support etc. just in order for the Bokke to win the WC…
If the system does’nt change, nothing else will…
@ Blouste:7 – Blouste, Muir is in-charge of the Lions S15 next year. If John goes there to play expect him to be rotated or rest quite a few games. Remember he was rotated and sometimes only played 50min a game in 2007 to keep him fresh for the world cup. Muir was the Sharks coach then. I expect the same from Muir if John goes to Lions. Actually with such a long season and world cup year, I expect plenty of our top players to be rotated or rested in some of the games. We don’t do that we need rocks in our heads đŸ˜›
Do we need to rest the Bokke much in the Super 15?
As I understand the rounds, there will be 8 Home Conference games per team, 7 extra games for the 8 top Teams plus a possible semi and final. So most of the leading teams will be subjected to about 15 games, 4 Teams (of which some could be SA Teams) to 16 and 2 Teams to 17 games of 80 min each. Maximum Super 15 minutes = 1360 minutes
Peter de Villiers says that players should not play more than 1400 – 1600 minutes in a season… this stems from guys like Noakes who have advocated these figures..
So, say a Bok misses just 2 Super 15 games and is subbed in total for only 80 minutes during the whole Super 15… means he’ll play between roughly 960 minutes and 1080 minutes in the Super 15, plus a possible 240 minutes in the Tri-Nations = 1200 – 1320 minutes before the World Cup…. with most players on the lower minutes scale of the 2… so let’s say an average of 1260 minutes….
Even if playing ALL World Cup matches, the figure would stay under 1600 minutes per player…
So, rest them properly at the end of this year, and just be a bit careful with them in the Super 15 and they should be absolutely fine.
One can reduce their Super 15 player training minutes substantially too….
@ grootblousmile:
Hi GBS. I agree. But I would also like to see PDV follow the Jake blueprint. Jake had his best players available during the world cup. Only with the exception of Pierre Spies.
All the signs are there. NZ peaking this year, resting their players again during Super rugby. It all looks good as far as I’m concerned. All blacks will be a tough nut to crack in at home, so we need all the help we can get. Go Graham Henry go
On the other hand… what is the minumum preferred amount of minutes needed prior to World Cup for players to be match fit and absolutely in tune with their game….
It is also known that rusty players perform below standard… we saw that in 2007 when the returning All Blacks did not make much of an impact in the Super 14 for a long time after their return to the game…
Fine balance between undercooked and overcooked….
We see this in Fransie Steyn at the moment…. undercooked… and we saw that in Bakkies Botha’s return after his long absense due to injury… undercooked and out of form coupled to his ill dicipline problems…
Each player would have to be assessed individually….
@ grootblousmile:12 – Gbs, there must be a balance. For sure we can’t go into the world cup under-cooked. That is just as bad as being exhausted from too much rugby, must not go to the world cup with lead in our boots, with bodies so heavy from exhaustion as we seeing right now. So coaches from Unions and Bok Coaches have to balance playing and rest.
Mangage the players like we done in 2007. Sharks rotated their players plenty. Also Jake kept all the top Boks from touring in the 2nd half of the Tri-Nations.
We have to be fresh but game ready and fit too.
@ Puma:
typo meant manage.
13@ Puma:
Interesting way Bulls managed players this season…
Remember the break the A-Team had against the Stormers?
Remember that Matfield did not take part in Monday training on overseas leg of the Bulls this year?
… and we know that they peaked well in the Super 14…
So maybe take a leaf from that book but in stead of applying it to the Super 15, apply that to the whole 7 months prior to the World Cup, so that the Bokke peak in the World Cup.
One must not be reactive in approach, one must be pro-active in approach…. think each player’s specific needs through down to a T….
@ grootblousmile:15 – Gbs, That sort of thing, partly rested but game and fit ready too. Similar to how Sharks played their Bok players in 2007. Like Bulls managed Victor this year.
Yes, agree we need to do it from January next year. From the start. The way to go.
Okay out of here. Out to dinner. Catch up tomorrow. Been hectic busy this week.
@ grootblousmile:
15 – Gbs, I agreed totally when Bulls rested their whole team for the semi in the S14 semi. If your team is way ahead like that and can afford to rest the whole team do it.
It payed off very well in the final. I knew it would. Fit but fresh.
Cheers gbs, out to dinner now.
this was my initial fear when Henry was re-instated after 07.. he still hasnt learnt IMO. if they are going to be rested, I would want it to be for the first 4 or 5 rounds of the S15, (like McCaw and Mulianina had the first 3 weeks this year) that way they can play themselves into form over the remaining ten games, thus hitting the 3Ns while on the upward curve playing wise IMO.
this reeks of 07 all over again… all those saying Henry is a smart man, in 07 he never knew his best team, so while he may appear smart, the question is is he really?
I like GBS’ idea, but would change it a little, let the boks not plat the away legs of the Super 15, let them rest after the Currie Cup.
The rest of the time they can retain match fitness and stay sharp.
We need them to play in the 4 Tri Nation matches to tests the All Blacks and Wallabies.
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