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100% ILTW. Change of NZ's 7s womens' coach post Rio has been key. Together, he and the team have materially improved: general error rates; breakdown speed and, crucially, effectiveness when there; accuracy of passing, mid-field attacking prowess....and more. Our girls' skill base appears...

The issue of 'too many S18 Aus teams', 'S18 model broken', 'we have too few players for 5 Super teams' etc etc are all red herrings that detract from the real heart of the Australian rugby problem(s) as we helplessly watch this wonderful code slowly but surely die here. The core issues for...

- The Force looked much the better coached team, certainly in 2H. Rookie HC to rookie HC, Wessells appears to have engendered both greater attacking and forwards play coherence and skill than is present in the early 2017 Reds in what is on paper a far less well-ranked and well-resourced Force...

The issue seems to be that World Rugby has infuriatingly implemented a policy whereby if Foxtel is showing Mens' 7s live then it automatically geo-blocks its streaming feed of Women's 7s live at the same times and so there is zero way for Aussie-based Women's 7s fans to watch our team if the...

Foxtel Guide is showing 'Live: Women's Sevens' on Foxtel Sports 2 and HD2 from 10pm AEST to 11:30pm AEST tonight December 2.

To that excellent post, I would add: Half (if not more) of the problem is that Cheika has long decided that he will be Wallaby Forwards Coach (other than as to scrums). Is it not obvious to us all that, after 2 years as Wallaby HC, whatever his other positive attributes, he does this job...

Putting aside all the 'for the good of Australian rugby' pieties re the Mason matter (that typically are far more sentimental than factually thought through), I possess a more brutal calculus as a Reds and broader rugby fan: - if the Reds languish as a 'just OK' S18 team in 2017 and 2018, the...

Media re L Gill's award, C-M link below. A Reds' Gala Ball 'cannot be afforded'. 12+ positions within QRU gone since mid-2016 (was RR referring to a D Herbert departure from the QRU above?). Also this text re the IMO very unfortunate departure of Mack Mason to the Tahs FFS. If as the article...

I think someone who's got 17,014 Likes can do better than that in addressing the issues I have canvassed.

I've posted at length re the criticality (to outcomes) today of a broad and deep enough team of specialist coaches at rugby's highest levels. And how EJ (Eddie Jones) has been at work since late 2015 in recognising this pre-requisite, and how he, to good effect it would seem, brought in an additional number...

And fair enough too. I wish for the best from this coaching group, I really do. It's just that the ratio of what they have to achieve quite fast and what they have actually achieved before is a challenging and demanding one. Good HCs and coaching teams make notable team improvements quickly...

IIRC M Taylor was a quite successful QLD GPS rugby coach for The Southport School pre joining Link at the Reds in 2010. This from a 2012 Fairfax article: "A key contributor in the thrilling (2012) 25-21 win over NSW, Tapuai takes Anthony Fainga'a's No.13 jersey and will rekindle a partnership...

Whatever the merits of the arguments here over costs and so on re the 2017 Reds coaching group, I can assure you that the design and objectives for, and the resulting outcomes from, LInk's 2010-11 coaching group were not 'luck' in any sense. As this is/was a subject of great interest to me, I...

It's nothing to do with 'conspiracy theories'. You misinterpret me. Conspiracy implies conscious and calculated conduct. That is not what has happened at the QRU. It's rather to do with proven yet mostly unconscious institutional inbred cultural norms and insularity and such like issues of the...

On a different but related topic, not sure if it's been much noticed that the peerless ex-Reds attack coach under RG - Steve Meehan - has been dumped by Toulon as backs coach after one season. Mike Ford took over that role and was soon promoted to HC. Meehan has been transferred to 'video work'...

The QRU, in its coaching choices, has clearly moved from a preference for irrational obstinacy to one of very high risk again centred upon 'our QLD rugby family'.

What a really excellent post TWAS. You'll likely know from my pervious posts on this Wallaby-related topic through 2015 and 2016 that FWIW the vast majority of your analysis has my endorsement. I would add a couple of additional observations: Half if not more of the core problem rests with...

If only for the priceless mirth to be enjoyed (if that's the word) in reading JON's responses to the Papworth draft letter, this article is well worth consuming and further quotes the Papworth letter in full...

NF-J indicates 'a revolt' could be on the cards: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-10-19/nick-farr-jones-warns-of-revolt-in-club-rugby-union/7947490

and the beat goes on: Simon Poidevin tells ARU to take former players' letter seriously or risk 'tears' http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-union/union-news/simon-poidevin-tells-aru-to-take-former-players-letter-seriously-or-risk-tears-20161019-gs5wp1.html