Photos courtesy of Keith McInnes photography
Last night brought Wallaby fans their first win over the All Blacks since 2011, and a nice piece of silverware to boot (though we’ll have to wait until next week for the Bledisloe).
I was lucky enough to be at the game last night, and have since watched the replay. Here are a few things I noticed:
1. We beat the All Blacks
Forget the World Cup, forget the Rugby Championship and forget who played well or badly. We beat the All Blacks. And we deserved it too. How good is that?! Just take a second to think about it and smile. Isn’t that why we do this whole thing? Silverware is nice when you can get it but it’s these moments that you chase, and it’s these moments that have been all too infrequent over the past 10 years. We had our hearts broken in Brisbane last year, but have come back in the best possible way. It was great to watch.
2. The Pooper works a treat
Both David Pocock and Michael Hooper were outstanding, and totally justified Michael Cheika’s selection. Combined with the work of Scott Fardy it saw the All Blacks ball slowed at almost every ruck, and we were unlucky not to force a couple more penalties. I was worried about the lack of a strong ball-carrier in the pack, but Pocock stepped up and filled that role well. Surely this has to be the combination we take to the World Cup.
3. That’s our best front row
One of the big stories that went largely unacknowledged last night was the birth of Scott Sio as a test match star. This was his coming out party, with great work at the scrum putting the Wallabies on the front foot. It was a huge step forward for us, especially considering the challenges Wales and England will pose at the World Cup. Producing a scrummaging performance like that will go a long way to seeing us through our pool. I think last night we learnt that Sio, Stephen Moore and Sekope Kepu are our best combination up front.
4. Halfback presents a selection challenge
The picture at halfback is murkier, though the talent is there. Nick Phipps had a shocker. I’m not sure it means we dispense with him from the starting side, as he’s been good overall in the Rugby Championships. But Nic White’s cameo has made Cheika’s decision a lot tougher. There are still question marks over White’s ability to manage the game but there is no doubt he has some touches that Phipps does not. And Matt Giteau’s 10 minute stint at half was pretty impressive, I thought! Certainly enough to make Michael Cheika doubt the need for 3 halfbacks on the plane to the UK.
5. We are close to finding our best 10-12
After tonight I think it has to be Matt Toomua and Matt Giteau. I don’t think it really matters what numbers are on their backs. Bernard Foley was exposed by the All Blacks. He stood too deep, he kicked poorly from hand and he fell off a number of tackles. Giteau defended resolutely, and kicked better than Foley. Toomua was great off the bench, straightening the line and showing a few sparkles. He’s a world class player.
6. Our depth has never been better
I don’t think I’ve seen our bench perform as well as it has in the past three games. To make it even better it has been different guys every time. Last night it was Nic White’s turn, but all of the benchies played their roles well. In contrast the All Blacks subs struggled for impact, and Steve Hansen waited too long to introduce guys like TJ Perenara and Sam Cane into the match. Cheika timed his substitutions perfectly, in what is becoming something of a hallmark of his regime.
7. The All Blacks were uncharacteristically poor
They lacked composure, fell off simple tackles and kept letting us back in the game. They should have been up by 15 at half time, but thanks to some great Wallaby defence and some sloppy All Black handling we were still in the game. They had a man advantage for 20 minutes but couldn’t capitalise. It’s not panic stations yet, but there will be rumblings that a few of the older players may not be up to it anymore. Particularly Tony Woodcock and Daniel Carter. I’d still bet my house on them coming out next week breathing fire though.
8. Our lineout was a mess
The downside of two opensides, but we still had three top quality jumpers. We were slow and inaccurate, and were picked off on multiple occasions. Nonetheless this showed us that you can’t start Will Skelton alongside the Pooper. If we couldn’t win our lineout with Dean Mumm, James Horwill and Scott Fardy then dropping one out for Skelton is only going to make it worse. Rob Simmons was sorely missed.
9. The atmosphere at the ground was great
There were plenty of vocal Wallaby fans and they found their voice in the second half. The Gold Brigade down behind the posts were small but loud enough (a great idea that will hopefully grow). Also kudos to whoever was working the music over the PA system. Sometimes at these matches you are blasted with top 40 hits at every break in play, but not last night. They used music to build the tension during stoppages and it worked a treat. It was stuff like the riff from Deep Purple’s ‘Smoke on the Water’ or the drums from Kanye West’s ‘Black Skinhead’. Just loud enough to sound ominous, but by no means blaring. I thought it worked really well.
10. But most of all…
We beat the All Blacks! You little beauty! Bring on Eden Park. Bring on the World Cup. We’re coming to PLAY.
Did I miss anything??
