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Link can only pick the players available to him. Deans only could as well (but he had 6 years to do something about it). That doesn't absolve him of fault. But it does make his job harder. Still a lot of coachable faults in the wallaby play. Aus rugby is paying the price for neglecting to...

3/11 so far and this is pretty much the worst season I can remember. I haven't been on this earth quite as long as others though. On a positive note, I expect if the reds can keep their newly signed backrowers together (Browning, Fakosolia, Gunn + Gill, Quirk, Shactz), they will have the best...

Robinson Moore Slipper Timani Horwill Fardy Gill Mowen Genia Cooper Tomane To'omua Kuridrani AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) Folau There is not much scope for improvement in the forward pack given the squad. Shuffling deck chairs.

There is obviously a huge problem with the wallaby forward pack. People talk about the tradeoff between a pack that is mobile and one that is good in the set piece. We've managed to develop a pack that both immobile around the field and incompetent at the set piece. Horwill was so very shit...

West hasn't been picked up by any NZ super rugby team. I reckon he's joined the Rebellion.

Is he still touring with Maori? And if he does, will that mean he is locked into representing NZ? I've heard the rebels are offering big money (for a rookie).

Yeah in my eyes once you've played about 75 tests you should be able to take the easy money in japan during the off season if you want it.

They ended up breaking the precedent again this year anyway with both GS and Burgess. Furthermore at the time they were operating in a rapidly changing player market, and failed to manage the situation well. The NZRU found ways to adapt and get the best team together. Our blokes shrugged...

Whilst all this is true I still think there was a management failure there. Two things were pretty much undeniable: A) The wallabies needed Smith for the world cup. B) The ARU couldn't come close to matching the money on offer in japan. I think the best option would have been for the ARU to...

If his hearts in it I can see this bloke being a Wallaby starter. Try catch some of his games for waikato on youtube. Pretty handy player.

After reading the quote from O'Connor, he'll be back in July next year, and quite possibly with the force in 2015. Even if he does tear it up overseas I don't expect the ARU + Force money will be significantly better at this time next year. Might be a case of making hay while the sun shines...

I wonder if he will just play the current european season as a medical joker and then return to Aus next july.

It's a shame this has turned out how it has. James could have made a great contribution to Australian Rugby. But the euros would be pretty lucrative at the moment. I think it shows the importance of strong team culture above all. Cooper had the same offers on the table this time last year...

I'd pick Slipper over Kepu at TH every day of the week. Kepu is just as bad in the scrum and he does far less around the field.

We were horrible at the ruck on saturday night. Inaccurate, slow and the body position was far too high. The All Blacks have adopted a tactic of the tackler wrestling with the tackled player on the ground without actually contesting for the ball. It's a good one and helped them to slow us down...

Sunnybank, UQ, maybe GPS and Easts.

I said it was an improved performance by the wallabies in the first line of my original comment on the relative strength of this all blacks team. It was an improved performance. But I saw nothing to suggest we have improved sufficiently in certain areas to win a grand slam.

Likewise when you start patting yourselves on the back for nearly beating the All Blacks you're living in lala land. Win back the bledisloe first and then start talking about improved performances.

To be fair to Kuridrani - he's the first choice 13 for mine now. That left foot step at speed is classic 13 play. Forms a better combination with his winger than AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) as well. I think once O'Connor is back they will form a dangerous combo down that wing.

It's not though. When you look at where we made metres last night, nearly all our breaks were in the 13 channel. The All Blacks defences was well below standard last night, the same thing just doesn't happen when C.Smith is playing. Crudens kicking isnt what carters is. It is small things...