drewprint
Dick Tooth (41)
I confess I am - I thought our u20s of late had been a rare point of excitement? Been performing fairly well the last few years with good talent coming through. Shows what I know.
2024 Under 20 Rugby Champs all match discussion thread
- Thread starter RugbyReg
- Start date
Wilson
Phil Kearns (64)
Last year's were good but the year before were pretty bloody ordinary - thrashed by NZ and lost to Argentina.
Marce
John Hipwell (52)
That's right. Brad Thorn is one in a generation player. Most of the League are suitables for 6,7,8,11,12,13,14 and 15 but you never know. The ugly true is all the kids want to play League.
Argentinian amateur rugby clubs are bigger than Aussie amateur rugby clubs so this trend will continue.
Look at this 3 traditional rugby clubs in Argentina:
And look at this 3 traditional Shute Shield clubs:
The Argie ones are 2 or 3 times the size of an Aussie club. A bigger talent pool, better recruitment
Steve_Grey
Darby Loudon (17)
Not surprised - the NSW Pathways / Academy system is flawed - too much Cronyism and [non] selection bias. Some slip through the Crony net on merit, of course.
The Ghost of Raelene
David Codey (61)
It’s a very up and down category though. I don’t drop my head after a loss or an off year as it can be completely different next year. It’s a problem if we have 5-6 bad years because that’s a generation of seniors not up to it. Scotland are facing that although recruiting is their pathway.
Following the U19s comp this isn’t surprising. It wasn’t a great standard and honestly the U18s looked better but they aren’t ready to all play U20s.
If they get a guy like HMP into that side he can change a lot and direct the team around. Conditions also didn’t suit a smaller side.
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Homer
Bill Watson (15)
You can't play running rugby in a hurricane and we didnt pick a team for the conditions. The Argies played smart tight footy with a big pack, we had a lightweight backrow that didn't provide much punch (would be great on a dry flat pitch).
In the right conditions I think that team would've played at pace and run the Argies ragged but they didnt adjust. Also, the ref letting the Argies constantly drive through on the engage was ridiculous.
In the right conditions I think that team would've played at pace and run the Argies ragged but they didnt adjust. Also, the ref letting the Argies constantly drive through on the engage was ridiculous.
Jimmy_Crouch
Peter Johnson (47)
HMP at 10 and Jorgo at 15. Wont help the forwards from being smashed but the team would be much stronger
Highlander35
Steve Williams (59)
Games like that make me think Talataiana will be rushed back for the tournament, even if he's on 0 gametime. This group looked to be missing someone like him.
We lost an Under 20s game because our clubs social media numbers are low???
Marce
John Hipwell (52)
Social media numbers show how popular is a sport/club. And I think instagram is pretty accurate. Most of the NRL clubs are the double or triple than Waratahs/Reds and nobody here can deny that.
A club with 20k followers probably has more registered players than a club with 10k. That's my point
Cockatoo Run
Chris McKivat (8)
Definitely missing Lachie Hooper, Leafi Talataiana, Ollie Mccrea etc through injury which are definitely more experienced and bigger bodies who played in the u20 WC last year.
Isaac Rumble (lock) brought in as injury cover is a big fella and he has been playing Shute Shield 1st grade. The are are also other good props out there - Will Goddard, Jackson Stiel, Henry Basten - all have been playing some first grade as well (although not the 130kg beasts you're after).
Lets hope a pretty bad day at the office during a cyclone is just an aberration.
Isaac Rumble (lock) brought in as injury cover is a big fella and he has been playing Shute Shield 1st grade. The are are also other good props out there - Will Goddard, Jackson Stiel, Henry Basten - all have been playing some first grade as well (although not the 130kg beasts you're after).
Lets hope a pretty bad day at the office during a cyclone is just an aberration.
wamberal99
Jim Clark (26)
Those conditions suited the Argies. We should not write our boys off after one game.
riiigght. So instead of buying Joseph Sua'ali'i we should have signed Logan Paul!
Strewthcobber
Simon Poidevin (60)
The difference between a 1.88m, 108kg rugby league second rower and a 1.88m, 118kg union prop is just the right diet, the right coach and 3 years of sticking your head in strange places
stillmissit
Peter Johnson (47)
I wondered if the conditions would not have suited a better game plan. The boys just trucked it up the middle into a much larger pack which the Argies would have loved. Maybe short passing and tight support play might have paid off better. Interested in how they go on a dry track but good teams can adjust to the conditions and they looked a bit rudderless in the wet.
Love2Scrum
Watty Friend (18)
Correct. Let’s all have faith in the “Lord”
There were some terrible tactics by us. We couldn't throw a lineout straight very often and when we did we lost it. We still kept kicking for touch most of the time from penalties. The Argies contested our throws so when they weren't straight it went to a scrum. Meanwhile we barely contested any of theirs so their bad throws weren't pulled up.
We actually looked better late in the game when we did run the ball a bit more. While conditions made it really hard to control the ball they also made it easier to slide over the advantage line and get front foot ball which we needed with our smaller pack.
We actually looked better late in the game when we did run the ball a bit more. While conditions made it really hard to control the ball they also made it easier to slide over the advantage line and get front foot ball which we needed with our smaller pack.
waiopehu oldboy
George Smith (75)