2010 Wallabies End of Year Tour (EOYT)

[The_Brown_Hornet]

So if To'omua isn't going, who will play 10 in the mid week games? Probably Barnes, unfortunately, which means that he won't be starting at 12 in the tests. Bugger.

 

[en_force_er]

Deans really cheapens the Wallaby jersey picking players who haven't proven themselves at Super Rugby level.
And please dont tell me he is picking Wallabies based on their sevens form. Thats like picking a good indoor cricketer for the test team.

I think it's more a case of acknowledging 7s ability be be part of the development of good players. All these guys played 15s when they were young, all these guys played nearly as much if not more 15s then 7s this year.

Phipps played for a premiership winning Uni team; Morahan and McCutch have both played Super rugby this year and have been part of Australia A/Barbarians programs at different points; and Turner has proven himself a serviceable international winger on more then 1 occasion.

 

[en_force_er]

http://www.rbs6nations.com/en/matchcentre/match-centre_fixtures-results.php

Six Nations starts in Feb. Nobody is going anywhere.

Those guys are likely to play. White is an oldie but based on what I have seen in 2 Leicester games I watched this year so far there is nothing wrong with his scrummaging and he is pretty effective for 50 minutes (and no less mobile than Ma'afu). Their backups are people like Boris Stankovich. Trust me, it's going to be tough, whoever they pick.

So you think Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Argentina are going to the NH and not playing England or Italy?

You need to play someone on tour.

 

[qwerty51]

I'm furious over the omission of Douglas and Kepu

 

[Blue]

So you think Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Argentina are going to the NH and not playing England or Italy?

You need to play someone on tour.

Sorry I should have been clearer.

Castro is the only prop at Leicester who currently plays Internationals. Italy are not playing EOYT games.

The backup prop quality of the top tier teams over there are very, very good. I stand to be corrected but none of them are international regulars.

I see little light at the end of the tunnel for the Wallaby dirt trackers. Leaving out guys like Kepu and Douglas who have very strong set piece is just plain dumb.

 

[RugbyReg]

who does Kepu have a stronger set piece than?

 

[Reddy!]

My EOYT 2010 22:

1. Robinson
2. Moore
3. Alexander
4. Sharpe
5. Chisholm
6. Elsom
7. Pocock
8. McCalman

9. Genia
10. Cooper
11. Mitchell
12. Giteau
13. AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper)
14. Turner
15. Beale

Bench: Fainga'a, Slipper, Simmons, Hodgson, Burgess, Barnes, Hynes

My RWC 2011 22:

1. Robinson
2. TPN
3. Alexander
4. Sharpe
5. Chisholm
6. Elsom
7. Pocock
8. Palu

9. Genia
10. Cooper
11. Mitchell
12. Giteau
13. AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper)
14. Ioane
15. Beale

Bench: Moore, Baxter, Vickerman, Hodgson, Burgess, O'Connor, Turner

I really really want Chisholm to step up because I feel the 2nd lock position is the biggest weakness in our team - I also feel that Simmons, Douglas etc are too young and inexperienced to step up into the role for the RWC. And Giteau.

 

[The_Brown_Hornet]

Sorry I should have been clearer.

Castro is the only prop at Leicester who currently plays Internationals. Italy are not playing EOYT games.

The backup prop quality of the top tier teams over there are very, very good. I stand to be corrected but none of them are international regulars.

I see little light at the end of the tunnel for the Wallaby dirt trackers. Leaving out guys like Kepu and Douglas who have very strong set piece is just plain dumb.

Aren't we playing Italy on the EOYT?

 

[Reddy!]

We are playing Italy.

 

[Groucho]

Actually quite the contrary. Need beef. Not fairies.

I forgot the rolling eyes smiley.

 

[vidiot]

I really really want Chisholm to step up because I feel the 2nd lock position is the biggest weakness in our team - I also feel that Simmons, Douglas etc are too young and inexperienced to step up into the role for the RWC. And Giteau.

Giteau has been given a pretty solid trial over the last 8 years. I don't know if he can still be called young and inexperienced, but I agree that he may not be up to the role in the RWC! I'm sure he could help us give Russia a toweling in group C, though.

 

[Ruggo]

Chisholm over Horwill in the 2011 RWC team Reddy?

 

[centreman]

I think it's more a case of acknowledging 7s ability be be part of the development of good players. All these guys played 15s when they were young, all these guys played nearly as much if not more 15s then 7s this year.

Phipps played for a premiership winning Uni team; Morahan and McCutch have both played Super rugby this year and have been part of Australia A/Barbarians programs at different points; and Turner has proven himself a serviceable international winger on more then 1 occasion.

Granted these players have played 15's but we are talking about the supposed best in Australia and IMO Turner is the only one to have proven to be of international class. A handful of Super 14 or club games does not qualify.

 

[fatprop]

My RWC 2011 22:

1. Robinson
2. TPN
3. Alexander
4. Sharpe
5. Chisholm
6. Elsom
7. Pocock
8. Palu

9. Genia
10. Cooper
11. Mitchell
12. Giteau
13. AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper)
14. Ioane
15. Beale

Bench: Moore, Baxter, Vickerman, Hodgson, Burgess, O'Connor, Turner

I really really want Chisholm to step up because I feel the 2nd lock position is the biggest weakness in our team - I also feel that Simmons, Douglas etc are too young and inexperienced to step up into the role for the RWC. And Giteau.

My preference for next year would be

1. Robinson
2, TPN
3. Alexander
4. Sharpe
5. Horwill
6. Elsom
7. Pocock
8. Palu

9. Genia
10. Cooper
11. Mitchell
12. Barnes
13. AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper)
14. Ioane
15. Beale

Bench: Moore, Slipper, Chisholm/Vickerman, Hodgson, Burgess, Giteau, Chambers

 

[Ruggo]

One can only presume that those blokes left out are the ones that put in the least on the training paddock. They have had an opportunity to demonstrate their stuff in camp. Same for the sevens blokes that got picked.

 

[Jnor]

Anyone else want to see JOC (James O'Connor) given a shot at 12 at least for the mid-weekers? Not that I think its likely; but he should be in the RWC squad for mine and needs to be put somewhere more betterer than wing

 

[barbarian]

Granted these players have played 15's but we are talking about the supposed best in Australia and IMO Turner is the only one to have proven to be of international class. A handful of Super 14 or club games does not qualify.

The EOYT has never been about taking the top 36 players in Australia though. There have always been a few bolters- some turn out to be revelations, others flops. Most of the time they are sitting on the bench or cutting the oranges anyway. Its not like Phipps or McCutcheon are going to be starting in any tests, it is about development and building for the future.

 

[Lee Grant]

Some thoughts on the selections and non-selections:

• Phipps is a good bolter choice who would have been chosen on his form for Sydney Uni, not his form in Dehli, where he played hooker in the scrums and got hoisted in the lineouts IIRR. Last year Deans signalled that he was looking for others apart from the usual suspects to back up Genia and Burgess and this search prevails. Phipp's young maturity has impressed me in both forms of the game and technically he seems to be at least as good as the suspects.

• Humphries has been chosen because of the dearth of tight head locks in Oz: the Thorn and Bakkies type that scrummage behind the THP and are by nature confrontational. Good for him: he was the oldest Super rookie of the year IIRR and will be one of the oldest Wallaby debutants if he gets on the park.

• Douglas may have toured if Chisholm couldn't, but since Chiz is, it was long odds that both he and Simmons would tour. There is lots of time for Douglas if he is good enough; so we shouldn't be too concerned for him.

• Edmonds is lucky to be touring and Deans must have given Charles some thought after how well he played for the Force and for Uni. Perhaps he wanted Edmonds, and Van that matter, to balance out the youth of the team. Am glad that TPN was not considered.

• Kepu obviously didn't do enough for Randwick to dislodge Daley as reserve LHP. Since Daley was hardly stellar in the scrums in the 2010 tests he played in, the gurus must not rate Kepu as a scrummager because he was playing well in other areas.

• McCutcheon is a damn fine choice but you could wonder why both he and Hodgson are touring, ostensibly to cover Pocock. Hodgson put down a marker to be the backup to Pockock in the Force v Tahs game, but Cutch had some fine performances for Uni as a 7 – but two of them? There's a lot of backrowers there.

• Turner was always going to tour despite a few unfounded murmurs about him on this forum. It was unlikely that he was a marginal choice after the Sydney Bledisloe but if he was, his excellent play at 13 for Eastwood would have served him well. (A pity none of the backrowers can play at outside centre as we are thin there.)

• McCabe is another who may be touring because of versatility, albeit at club level, and the lack of back up at outside centre.

That is not a great Oz A side is it? The problem with guys like Ioane, Palu, Horwill, Horne and TPN getting injured is that our real dirt-trackers get moved up, and the wannabies get to be called "Wallabies" by the ground announcers at mid-week games.


PS. I don't think Leicester will risk Castro on us even if Italy don't need him that week.

He's gold for them.

 

[Crow]

re. Phipps & Kepu: I'm starting to think that Shute Shield games were ignored or the team was somewhat set in stone since the end of 3N.

 

[Scotty]

Deans really cheapens the Wallaby jersey picking players who haven't proven themselves at Super Rugby level.
And please dont tell me he is picking Wallabies based on their sevens form. Thats like picking a good indoor cricketer for the test team.

Deans isn't the only one that has picked bolters, many coaches have, and many will continue to.