Thursday’s Rugby News has Kyle Sinckler upset at scrum time, Mysterious Michael’s secret ways, a happy Simon Cron and a wise Karmichael Hunt.
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Sinckler Sulk
Lions prop Kyle Sinckler is an unhappy chappy, as he reckons there were unfair decisions at scrum time during his star-studded team’s 23-22 loss against the half-strength, Marty Banks-led, Highlanders on Tuesday night.
Well, it is a tricky one isn’t it? At the end of the day there are no penalties conceded for the scrums – and an all new front row comes on and the scrum just collapses,” Sinckler said, according to Stuff.co.nz
“And the referee gives a penalty straight away. It makes no sense to me on a personal level, as a tighthead prop.
“Ultimately that changed the game, they kicked to the corner and they are in our 22m. But it is about taking your chances, and the Highlanders did that.”
By referee, Sinckler is referring to Our Angus, of course.
“I just think there is not much one can really do with that penalty, first scrum of the game for a whole new front row. It is just a genuine collapse,” Sinckler added.
“Normally when you have a new front row, you give it time to settle combinations. Rather than come on and prove a point. The referee ultimately made a decision and we just have to get on with it, and move on to Saturday.
“We know we are going to have our backs against the wall every single game we are here. We have got to stick together. It just doesn’t make sense to me, some of the calls.”
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Cheika’s Secret Ways
Wallabies coach Michael Cheika has another motivational masterstroke, the Daily Telegraph can reveal.
Cheika, well-known for his propensity to have wacky motivational things – he gave the 2014 Waratahs golf clubs, he stuck a photo of Mt Everest on the wall in the same year, and he even made them carry a rope to traini-oh no wait that was Daryl Gibson – has stuck a picture of a barking dog on the Wallabies dressing room.
A Fox Sports camera inadvertently captured the piece of psychological mastery, when filming inside the sheds at halftime.
Cheika declined to reveal the hidden message behind the barking dog, but Sekope Kepu, when asked about it, gave away this:
“It’s about having the dog within you, to fight all the way to the end,” Kepu said.
“That’s kind of the mentality we want to have going into every battle. It’s you or them. You have to fight for everything you want.
“Everyone is different. Some guys show that dog or mongrel in their own different way. [Most guys just stupid shit like shoulder charge the opposition]. But that’s basically the mentality you want.”
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Cron Happy
The Australian u20s blitzed Italy 42-19 last night in the 5th-place semi-final and, for once, coach Simon Cron is happy.
“I thought we played a lot better field position in the second half,” Cron said, reports rugby.com.au.
“Score wise, it blew out a little bit against a good side – they’re a Six Nations team – but we were still under par in terms of our execution.
“A lot of our guys were trying to offload through high density contact and just knocking it on, so we made that pretty clear at half time.
“The scrum was brilliant today again, the defensive lineout was really good – we had some issues with the attacking lineout which was a bit frustrating.
“But we’re working on that as a coaching staff and I think they’ve done a great job at set piece.”
Reds weapon Izzy Perese scored a hatrick in the game, so Cron’s happy with him too.
“Izzy is an awesome athlete and a great human being,” Cron said.
“He’s a lovely kid and has a lot of rugby ahead of him. We had a couple of key work ons for him from the English game and I thought he did those today.
“But like I’ve said to all these boys, it’s week on week. It doesn’t come free but I back him 100 percent.”
The u20s will now play either Wales or Scotland.
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Hunt Becomes Bloke
Karmichael Hunt rocked up to The Back Page, a sports panel show on Fox Sports, to talk about rugby and Wallabies and junk. More to the point, he discussed his past and his future career.
“It was a nice moment. It’s been a tough couple of years obviously, personally, on and off the field, so for me to be able to get a cap was a dream come true,” Hunt said on the show (via Fox Sports).
“It looked unlikely there at one stage there but for me to run out there and sing the national anthem was just a proud moment for myself and my family. Very happy.”
If you’ve forgotten, just after he signed for the Reds, Hunt was arrested for cocaine supply (during his time with the Gold Coast Suns) by Queensland popo. He received a 6-week ban and a $30k fine from the ARU, and got off after pleading guilty to four counts of cocaine possession.
“Not really. I look for the positives in every situation. We make mistakes but there are lessons there to make us a better person,” Hunt continued.
“I’ve always been big on evolution as a player, always trying to get better no matter what state your game is or personally. For me it was just time for a bit of reflection to see what was going on with myself. I’m thankful that situation happened the way it did.
“Obviously I was not happy bringing the club into disrepute, the Gold Coast Suns. For me, personally, I’ve come out the other side a better player and a better man, more importantly.”
Asked about his various football playing experiences, Hunt finished with this:
“I enjoy every experience that I get so I can’t put one above the other,” he said.
“Definitely making the Wallabies, just after everything that went on personally for me is probably up there with one of my greatest achievements, just because of how far I had to go, a lot of the stuff I had to get through. This definitely rates as one of my highest achievements.”
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