Internationals Kiwi Hardman team.

[Weno]

My brother and I were passing time talking about hard nuts that wore the Kiwi jersey.
Player's that had opponents looking where they are.

So we started making our own team sheets up on that topic.
He chose from the 80's to the present and mine was from the 90' to the present.
Was hard thinking,but fun.
Can't wait to see who Bruce digs up if he chimes in.

Team Brother

1- Daryl Willams.
2- Joe Ropati
3- Jarrod McCracken
4- Dean Bell
5- Dane O'Hara
6- Olsen Filipina
7- Clayton Friend
8- Kevin Tamati
9- Duane Mann
10- John Lomax
11- Tawera Nikau
12- Kurt Sorenson
13- Mark Graham

14- Gary Freeman , 15- Dane Sorenson , 16- Brent Stuart , 17- Nathan Cayless

Team Weno

1- Daryl Williams
2- Richard Blackmore
3- Jarrod McCracken
4- Willie Talau
5- Manu Vatuvei
6- Henry Paul
7- Keiran Foran
8- Craig Smith
9- Issac Luke
10- Quentin Pongia
11- Ali Lauitiiti
12- Stephen Kearney
13- Brendan Tuuta

14- Brendan Smith , 15- John Lomax , 16- Ruben Wiki , 17- James Fisher Harris

 

[dean]

A few hard buggers. Mark Broadhurst, Doug Gailey ( hardly gay ). No room in your teams for Hugh McGahan or Howie Tamati or James Leuleui ?

 

[brightman]

1- Daryl Willams.

One of the best, grew up idolising him..

 

[Chchfanatic]

Do a 70s team. That’s when there was some real hard barstards. Some of those coasters were tough buggers. Alan Rushton was one of my dads team mates growing up. He was scary as a kid.

 

[Weno]

A few hard buggers. Mark Broadhurst, Doug Gailey ( hardly gay ). No room in your teams for Hugh McGahan or Howie Tamati or James Leuleui ?

Hughie was a hard grafter,found it hard as there were the Mannering ,Jeremy Smith, Logan Swann and Awen etc who had a similar style.
With Ali,you get an electrifying ball playing wrecking ball who every defensive line feared.

Leuluai was a finisher kind of like Renouf Imo.
Blistering speed was there ammo.
James Roberts is the only player that compares to them in this era.
Great defender too,but Talau was a brute on defence and steamrolled cats.
McCracken was just feared and respected.

Howie Tamati was more a backrower playing hooker.
Had great distribution and copy book defence.
Then there was Richard Swain and the North Queensland Cowboy hooker David Faiumu who played the same game.

Hear about Broadhurst all my life.
Only footage I seen of him is a massive brawl against Newton when a headbutt dropped him.
Had to go on who I have seen.

Who is your line up bro.

 

[Weno]

Do a 70s team. That’s when there was some real hard barstards. Some of those coasters were tough buggers. Alan Rushton was one of my dads team mates growing up. He was scary as a kid.

Be a good one to see,even with a caption about them so we know why.

 

[Weno]

One of the best, grew up idolising him..

Even at the end of his career when he finally moved into the pack at Parramatta he had a presence.
But that shot he took from Wally Lewis is probably the number hit in the game ever?

 

[Off The Bench]

tough would have to be Lonergan he got nocked out real cold an played on .
Tamati didn't take a backwards step
Not the greatest but definatly tough id add Mannering an Manu with them two

 

[Panther]

The 80s was full of tough buggars with Bell and McCracken in the centres I would look at Dave Watson at stand off, Nikau and Tuuta would be 2/3rds of a back row, flip a coin Betham or Luke for hooker. Darryl Williams has to be there but both Ridge and Barnett were fearless.

 

[playdaball]

Somebody already mentioned Doug Gailey ... a hard man, as was Alan Rushton. A totally different body type to today’s hooker. Even the half backs were tough buggers ... Friend, Varley, Kenny Stirling, Gordon Smith.

The Akld club comp was full of those types of players, they were Wharfies (Maritime club), Policeman, Freezing workers.

Bring back the biff or just go to YouTube and watch some of the old AUCKLAND vs GB games!

Check out the Kiwi link below...

 

[Gizzyfan]

You had the West Coast coal miner types like Tony McColl. Great players and tough as teak.

The Sorenson boys were no bargain either.

 

[playdaball]

You had the West Coast coal miner types like Tony McColl. Great players and tough as teak.

The Sorenson boys were no bargain either.

Only think though was that Tony Coll was a bank manager, hardly the standard WC miner ... know what you mean though.

 

[Billy Teets James]

Did Neville Ramsay ever make the Kiwis? One of the toughest players I've ever seen. I'd put Steve Matai in at centre. Shoulders was a tough hombre.

 

[playdaball]

Did Neville Ramsay ever make the Kiwis? One of the toughest players I've ever seen. I'd put Steve Matai in at centre. Shoulders was a tough hombre.

No he never played for the Kiwis, perhaps off the field issues rather than on field performance. Whilst on that topic, Nicky Wright was a tough man, just ask Big Mal.

 

[Defence]

Depends on your definition of hard man I suppose.
I've heard both Gordon Tallis and Adrian Morley say wiki was the hardest man they ever played against so that's good enough for me.
Broadburst, tamiti, the Sorensen bros, McCracken and betham would be some other names that spring to mind.
Brendan tutta was one of my heros growing up- from what Ive heard he wasn't actually that good of a fighter but it wasn't for a lack of trying.

 

[dean]

Hughie was a hard grafter,found it hard as there were the Mannering ,Jeremy Smith, Logan Swann and Awen etc who had a similar style.
With Ali,you get an electrifying ball playing wrecking ball who every defensive line feared.

Leuluai was a finisher kind of like Renouf Imo.
Blistering speed was there ammo.
James Roberts is the only player that compares to them in this era.
Great defender too,but Talau was a brute on defence and steamrolled cats.
McCracken was just feared and respected.

Howie Tamati was more a backrower playing hooker.
Had great distribution and copy book defence.
Then there was Richard Swain and the North Queensland Cowboy hooker David Faiumu who played the same game.

Hear about Broadhurst all my life.
Only footage I seen of him is a massive brawl against Newton when a headbutt dropped him.
Had to go on who I have seen.

Who is your line up bro.

Williams
Vatuvei
Bell
K. Iro
T.Iro
Filipaina
Stirling
Pongia
H. Tamati
K.Tamati
Graham
Kearney
McGahan

Res. K.Sorensen, McCracken, Cayless , Freeman

 

[MurrayTD]

Like it, Wayne Wallace is worth a shout out.

 

[the borg]

Tough bastards huh.... Need to look back to 70s at least I think, when the rules were different ... pushing and competing in the scrums, clothes lines were legal, off the ball cheap shots were common and no interchanges as such... need props and forwards who threw punches in the scrums and were able to intimidate but can also take a punch or 2 Lindsay Proctor comes to mind. Theres a few old buggars that fits the bill. But man its hard to pick. I like some of the suggestions already though...

 

[dean]

Tough bastards huh.... Need to look back to 70s at least I think, when the rules were different ... pushing and competing in the scrums, clothes lines were legal, off the ball cheap shots were common and no interchanges as such... need props and forwards who threw punches in the scrums and were able to intimidate but can also take a punch or 2 Lindsay Proctor comes to mind. Theres a few old buggars that fits the bill. But man its hard to pick. I like some of the suggestions already though...

Hard to compare era's but some players were really dominant. One of the big differences in comparison is fitness and Size. Modern players are bigger and fitter.

 

[the borg]

Hard to compare era's but some players were really dominant. One of the big differences in comparison is fitness and Size. Modern players are bigger and fitter.

Exactly, thats why its very hard to determine a team unless we've seen modern players play under the old rules and conditions.. etc.. bring back the biff...lol