“MostHated” instagram caption by Sotutu hours after his All Blacks snubbing.
As the All Blacks announced their long awaited squad yesterday for their upcoming tests, one familiar name which was missing caused a lot of discussion.
Arguably one of the standout players of the Super Rugby competition and in the Blues side this year, Hoskins Sotutu was not included in the 32 man squad.
The snubbing of Hoskins was questioned by many, with fans and teammates taking to social media to voice their frustrations.
Some called it a “robbery” and that he was “unfairly treated”.
The Blues Instagram page shared a post minutes after the squad announcement, which included a photo of Sotutu and two other teammates accompanied by the backing track “Not Like Us” by Kendrick Lamar.
The post was reshared by fans including teammate, Akira Ioane with the caption “Crazy movements”. Sotutu later then posted his own Instagram post with the caption “MostHated”
It hasn’t been confirmed on whether the post was referring to his non selection, but many have commented on it showing support to the 25 year old.
It’s a big call for new All Blacks coach Scott Robertson in not including Sotutu in the loose forwards department. A call that he says took them the “longest time”
“My biggest thing is for our loose forwards and all our team to be great on both sides of the ball. Mentally and physically tough in which you can see in the selection of players we have” Robertson said
The new coach then added that it’s just the first squad and that “there are always opportunities for other players to add themselves in”
The loose forwards selection for the All Blacks squad is as follows.
Loose Forwards
Ethan Blackadder (29 / Crusaders / Tasman / 10)
Samipeni Finau (25 / Chiefs / Waikato / 1)
Luke Jacobson (27 / Chiefs / Waikato / 18)
Dalton Papali’i (26 / Blues / Counties Manukau / 32)
Ardie Savea (30 / Hurricanes / Wellington / 81) (Vice Captain)
Wallace Sititi* (21 / Chiefs / North Harbour / 0)
*new caps
