The ABs often have a big statistical disadvantage in the first half. Teams through everything they have against them, and it’s very disheartening that the ABs just seem to absorb it. Then whenever they have the ball, they seem to score. We never worry that the ABs will lose because they are good at simply outlasting the other team, and they know how to score – they can do it with a minimum of ball. Of course, teams like SA are capable of beating them, and if enough players have an off night the ABs will lose. Last Saturday, if we’d got all our kicks over we would have won. Also, because they’re so rarely in such a position towards the end, the ABs aren’t very good and thinking they could try a drop kick. They could have done that on Saturday. It’s cost them big time before.

I think you have this week off? I look forward to you beating Australia next week!

It was not in 2013, but in 2009 that the All Blacks last lost at home. Indeed against the Bokke, and with an equally tight score of 29-32. The All Blacks had 43 consecutive wins at home, no mean feat! Still, I’m kind of happy to realise that the All Blacks are human after all 🙂 , albeit with the tiniest of margins (34-36).
I’ve been looking at the stats:
In possession and territory the All Blacks had a slight advantage, in own scrums and line-outs won the All Blacks were much better and they turned over more balls, had more clean breaks, and defeated about twice as many defenders and carried more than twice the number of meters. In Rucks and Mauls they were about equal.
South Africa won through tackling: 235 vs 61. That is the only statistic where the Bokke did much more than the AB’s. I cannot think of a match ever where the losing team had such a statistical advantage.

Oops, hit the post button by accident, so I’ll just continue:

Mr Graham (South Carolina), Mr Cornyn and Mr Cruz (both Texas], Mr Flake (Arizona, yes, he did!), Mr Vitter (Louisiana), Mr Perdue (Georgia) and Mr Tillis (North Carolina).
I find it striking that 7 of the 11 come from former Confederate states, 3 from the Far West (Arizona is complicated, since different from the present Arizona, but was claimed by the Confederacy, and Utah also had slaves) and only 1 from the Mid-West (Ohio , a non-slave state). None from the North East or the West Coast. Note also that Mr Mc Connell’s state, Kentucky, albeit ‘neutral’ and not part of the Confederation was a slave state.

Is it really ‘conspirational’ to think they hope to bring back Jim Crow in one form or other?
After all, any legislation can be challenged in court, and can end up before the SCOTUS.
I must admit the present US admin is playing with the worst suspicions my mind can come up with.

Apparently the nomination ‘expired’ on the 3rd of January 2017, at the closure of the 114th Congress.
The 11 Senators that wrote to Mr McConnell they would refuse to hear Mr Garland were: Mr Grassley, (Iowa), Mr Hatch and Mr Lee (both Utah), Mr Sessions Alabama, yes, that Sessions), Mr Graham (

Congratulations. From what I hear it was a well deserved win, and the ABs should have done better.

I know what went wrong though – I didn’t watch it! My mother usually comes over with takeaways to watch the games, but she’s away at the moment. The reminder for the game came up an hour before kick-off because of all the pre-game hype. I selected the channel, but then went back to watching something I’d recorded and got engrossed in that. I remembered about the rugby when the reminder came up for the Aus v Arg game!

I can’t remember the last time we lost at home, but I think 2013 is the last time you guys won on NZ soil. Either way, it’s an historic win and I’ve no doubt you deserve plenty of accolades. I did hear that in the first few minutes that even though the ABs were winning, they were making mistakes and SA weren’t, which is the sort of thing that takes its toll later in the match.

We also have to remember with the so-called “Biden Rule” that Biden ultimately voted for that judge to be confirmed. So it’s not like he was trying to do a McConnell and get rid of the person altogether.

Yes, Mr McConnell comlpetely distorted the Biden proposal, and it was just a proposal, there never was a vote about it.
Mr Biden proposed that during an election year the Senate hearing and vote on a candidat for the SC should be postponed until after the eletion, ie in November or December.
He never proposed that a candidacy should eveporate into thin air.
With hindsight, easy with hindsight, I think Mr Obama should have made sure Mr Garland would have been heard, right after the election, but he didn’ because he, we all did, think Ms Clinton would win.

It’s not just the Clinton thing either. Remember that even without her winning, the US should have Merrick Garland on the Supreme Court. That was down to McConnell too. As you say, the man is an evil genius. He uses his position to manipulate things. He did it all the time in Obama’s last two years you’ll also remember.

To be fair, I think anyone would want to know who it was. But most leaders would be far more introspective, and sit down with their cabinet and ask what they could do to change things. However, except in a few rare situations, I bet Trump is not a leader that people can be honest with – speak truth to power. He’s not someone who wants a genuine opinion most of the time, he just wants backing up.