Andrew: No, because he's not even starting for the Chiefs this weekend. His future is bright though but he and Ardie Savea have 2016 All Blacks written all over them.
Mark: No, because Lima Sopoaga. Full stop.
So Aaron Cruden being injured sucks but it is not the worst injury for the All Blacks. Rank the top five most important players to the All Blacks' World Cup campaign right now and where does Cruden rank?
- Tim
Andrew: All three Smiths, Richie McCaw and Brodie Retallick. Apologies to Kieran Read and Julian Savea but the Smiths are more important to our rugby team than The Smiths were to British indie music in the 1980s. Retallick is a dynamic work horse (an oxymoron perhaps) and Richie is our greatest openside flanker and captain.
Mark: History says you can't win without the dominant first five of the tournament. Yes, OK, Beaver. But last Cup was the exception to the rule. First five is most important and given Dan Carter is still the intended first choice then he ranks No1. In fact, if Cruden's not considered an impact player, he ranks low in my order. No disrespect intended, though. No2 is the grunt player and that is undoubtedly Retallick. Conrad Smith is No3. You have to have brains in the midfield playing sensible rugby in stodgy old World Cup play. At four is Sam Cane. Cane will be the player of the tournament. And at five is Owen Franks because it all begins and ends with the tighthead.
Bear in mind Lydia Ko hasn't won a major yet, but how many will she win in her career? Sorenstam finished with 10.
- Carl
Andrew: Ko is well managed and not American or Americanised by SportsCenter gods in Bristol, Connecticut, yet so the expectation levels and hype around her isn't crossing over outside of New Zealand into mainstream sports. I say she wins 12. And the Halberg Supreme Award 13 times.
Mark: How many does she want, simple as that ... Halbergs I mean.
Any ideas to make Formula One more exciting? I don't want to say more crashes, but more crashes would make me watch. As long as people don't die.
- Sammy
Andrew: I know what you mean. You want more incidents but not serious enough ones that require hospitalisation or even Clear Eyes to get the champagne residue out of your eyes after Hamilton has sprayed you. I think reverse grids will fix this. Drivers hate it. Teams hate it but fans would appreciate the skill levels more of a driver like Hamilton, who can get a little frustrated, weaving his way through backmarkers.
Mark: Get back to the days of loud cars and excess. F1 needs to feel like motorsport again and the best driver needs to win. At the moment it has a distinct America's Cup feeling about it. Who's got the best boat and who can manipulate the rules the most? F1 has to think about the fans more because all they seem to care about is themselves and their petty little squabbles.
Come on Mulls, who wins the NBA title?
- Tony
Andrew: Not the Spurs because those old legs and bodies of theirs look like the games are catching up on them and few teams go to the finals lower than third seed (they're sixth). Not the Clippers because their bench is just plain weird, not the Hawks because they're not the Spurs (yet) and they have to beat LeBron James and the Cavs, and so do the Bulls. Not the Grizzlies because they can't slow the game down all the time, nor the Houston Rockets with that current squad. Not the rest of the other playoff teams because they're not good enough yet and not the Cavs because they'll meet the Warriors in the finals, who have home court advantage and the greatest shooting backcourt the NBA has seen.
Mark: No one really wins when it comes to basketball ... and if someone does win it usually comes down to the last shot.
Is TMO/third umpire the best job in sport? You get paid for maximum five minutes work a week?
- Glenn
Andrew: I'm not so sure. How can you sit there with the equivalent of a flash MySky remote and direct communication with the TV trucks, and get decisions wrong. It seems like a trap to me.
Mark: It's a hideous job. You have to watch all day and the minute a call comes through the TV people can't give you the shot you really want. Then you have to get the decision 100 per cent right 100 per cent of the time with 60 per cent of the required information and get booed by the crowd because you want to take your time to get it right.
Here's my make up of All Blacks 31-man World Cup squad - my split is five props, two hookers, four locks, six loosies, two halfbacks, three first fives, four midfielders, five outside backs with preference given to players who can cover multiple positions. What's yours? Who misses out?
Props - Woodcock, O Franks, Faumuina, Crockett, Moody/B Franks
Hooker - Coles, Mealamu
Locks - Retallick, Whitelock, Tuipulotu, Thrush/Romano
Loose forwards - Kaino, McCaw, Read, Messam, Cane, Luatua
Halfback - Smith, Perenara
First fives - Barrett, Carter, Slade
Midfield - Nonu, Smith, SBW, Fekitoa/Crotty
Outside backs - Savea, Smith, Piutau, Dagg, Jane
Unlucky - A Savea, Vito, A Ellis, Moody/B Franks, Fekitoa/Crotty, Thrush/Romano
Luatua is there over Vito as he can cover lock at a pinch. If we take three hookers (Elliot) and three halfbacks (Ellis), who misses out? You would have to think Jane or Dagg would make way in the backs, considering Slade and Barrett can cover multiple positions, as can SBW. Will Crotty make it over Fekitoa due to a cooler head under pressure?
- David
Andrew: You've blown out our word count, David! I'm going with the three halfbacks (Ellis) and three hookers (Harris) rule of thumb, so that means Piutau misses out because there's fullback cover with Barrett and Slade and Sonny Bill can cover wing. Also, if he does enough for the selectors we lose a lock with the Luatua cover offered. Ben Franks gets in for his ability to cover both sides of the scrum.
Mark: Blimey David, what an academic question, as in it's all academic because England will win the World Cup.
Why bother, my last one went unanswered.
- Mike
Andrew: Sorry, Mike.
Mark: I can't remember it but I'm sure my answer would have been England.
