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Owen is a bit biased by friendship/team mate status so also need to be viewed objectively. Just as we needed to be objective with the efforts of The Master Coach Robbie Deans in the same circumstances.

In what way were they reffed off the park? The calls that Cheika was seen whinging about (with his constant nodding yes men) and others have also whined about here were not even close calls. The only exception being the ball touching (maybe) the line while Beale jogged and watched it. Hooper was...

Jones deserved to get the chop post 2004. Do not re-write history with recent great results. He bet very wrongly on the direction Rugby would go after 2003, and depowered the Australian scrum with a statistical analysis that showed scrums as having low importance to the game. A generation of...

He did very well with obvious provocation in the Post Match interview, better than Hanson did to be honest, but his constant carry on in the stand is where I draw my critique from. He is not being targeted, the same vision caught Jones out last week and he fronted up to that. Jones however is...

The genesis of this loss is in the woeful defensive structures that the team is playing under. Unlike others I do not think Folau would have made any difference, Coleman certainly would have secured the scrum and breakdown better, but overall the loss is down to defence. The bullshit they sold...

Act with some diplomacy and not be a total tool. He is now a justifiable target of parody and derision through his own actions. I can respect passion and emotion, but is he a child or a professional coach. See my post a bit later about unaddressed flaws with the coaching of this side about what...

Leaf from the ABs play book. Up to Hooper sin binning they have been getting away with it 8 out of 10 times. It's still shit, the tactic that is.

The discussion Amrite has brought to the fore is a sensible and reasoned one. I am occasionally cynical about the ARU :-) and in this no less so in this case. I have no doubt the rebranding is an attempt to create the illusion of new start. a fresh "team" at the top ignoring the continuity that...

I do agree, but rather than feel sorry or sympathy for him in the position he has "PUT HIMSELF IN" I feel contempt. There is a cost for Kafer here and it is the loss of his integrity. He had a choice and made it and settled on the option to hold both commentary and official positions, just as...

I miss Bill McLaren for his obvious passion and Scottish brogue. It didn't matter who was player he applauded great play regardless and commentated without fear or favour and knew the players and teams backwards. ALL the newbies could learn a lot from his professional approach.

The lack of a critical voice in the media has been a major issue for Australian Rugby. The executive has existed in an echo chamber for a large part of the time rarely getting exposed to critical review and a genuine feel of what is happening at non pro levels with the fan base and non pro...

Actually Savea is not a good example as he developed significantly his kicking skills from when he first burst onto the scene. The great Wallaby sides always had two full backs who could kick as well as run it back with aplomb, with one selected on the wing which made the territory game...

Since when has that made a difference to how the Tahs perform? In fact there may even be an inverse relationship between representative players and performance for the Tahs.

Firstly the biggest hurdle Ladesma had with the Wallaby scrum wasn't even with the players, it was with the perception of the scrum from the officials. To overcome that they had to be so obviously pushing straight and staying up and binding correctly. Early engagements can be forgiven as...

Whilst pay is a big incentive, being part of a winning culture and true professional development will also be having a big influence on players wanting to stick around. The coaching in Australia have been poor for many years from a low level to Wallabies level. Looking at the continuing poor...

You would think that contracts are a reward for past performance and expectation of future as you have put it but far to many examples can be given where that is just not the case. As for injuries, take out some insurance like the rest of us. As for incentives to stay and play test rugby, the...

I'll vote no, but IMHO the "top ups" are fraught because there is far too much scope for nepotism and rewarding "favourites" instead of actual performance. I'd much prefer to see an incentive based system rewarded selection in training squad and selection in team. It may also have the added...

In context nobody had ever achieved what Martin Johnson did in English Rugby either and he was parachuted into a coaching position he did not have the experience for and it ended his career. There is a price to be paid in any field with talent being promoted too early and too green. There is...

Bugger. That is the only part of the rumour that I actually was a bit excited about.

Not really, compared to their peers of the time like Zinzan Brooke, Michael Jones, Richard Hill, Dalaglio, they were of a size. Average player sizes can be very misleading as the backs were indeed much smaller. However size is not the point, its about balance of skills and specialties.