Australia vs South Africa - Brisbane 7th Sept 2013

[PommyPowerhouse3]

Errrrrrr... so how exactly does To'omua get Test experience if you keep picking Quade??

He's still on the bench isn't he?

 

[Bullrush]

He's still on the bench isn't he?

Like lastnite? What invaluable experience.....

Just start him and let him play....like Taylor/Saili/Luatua

 

[something]

I dont know that much about the forwards. But there needs to be changes in the backs for the future - eoyt and 2014.

People say "all blacks dont drop there best players when theyre out of form" but i really think White deserves a starting spot. Genia is just playing like shit and i think its an attitude problem rather than form, he looks pretty happy to point the finger but doesn't seem to change and fix his own game.

Quade is too erratic and To'omua is too unvaried. I'd Lilo in at 10... solves a lot of problems, but i doubt that will happen. As someone said above, he is the best 10 but brumbies only play him at 12 to accommodate for To'omua. Quade is the right option if he is absolutely killing it in super like he was in 2011, but he hasnt had a stellar game in 2 years.

We have 2 awesome 12's in Horne and Godwin. bring them in and develop them and by 2015 we will have epic centre pairings.

AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) is like a horse with blinders on, strong but just one-dimensional - but do we really have an alternative right now... get Kurindrani and CFS and build them up strong and develop a rivalry between them, make them fight for the jersey and hopefully one of them will be a menace by 2015

Outside backs aren't too bad in my opinion. We have 2 good fullbacks in Mogg and Izzy. Izzy should probably start unless the game plan revolves around field position in which case move him to wing. Also, KB (Kurtley Beale) when he gets some form is just crazy, watching the 2010 highlights and he is a freak.

Wings we will have speight, cummins, tomane, JOC (James O'Connor) & at a stretch the tahs boys. All good when theyre actually getting quick ball. any combo works depending on the game plan.

Boys just need front foot ball, i can bitch about the backs as much as i want but unless the forwards are doing their job (which they arent... evidently) then the backs, no matter how skillful, are just fucked.

 

[nugget]

Our forwards are too small, simple as that.

They might be 2m tall, but they look like AFL players compared to the AB's and Boks.

All of 'em - Too friggin' small!

 

[Richo]

One of the flaws of the "around the park" fetish we seem to have for our tight forwards is that we end up with too many blokes who are jacks of all trades. We need a tight five that wins scruns and lineouts first, tackles and hits rucks second and makes the gain line third. Sliding out into the back line to put the ball through the hands should be a very distant consideration.

 

[light]

do we have world xv players right now? i dont think any of them are the best in the world in there position. at all

Did u see A.smith v the Pumas. just immense - better than ive seen Genia play for over a year

You missed the point of the post.

I stated at the beginning that we are missing Pocock and Higgenbotham - the two players who I believe to be closest to world XV in our side based on their form prior to injury.

Genia is lucky to be Australia's best, let alone in the top 5 in the world.

Horwill would be the only other player close and he would be lucky to make the bench based on his form prior to injury.

It was only two-three years ago that KB (Kurtley Beale), Moore, JOC (James O'Connor), AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) and Genia were considered among the best in their respective positions. I'd argue Moore and Genia are the only ones who has been consistent since then but they are seriously struggling at the moment and it shows on the scoreboard.

 

[KOB1987]

I kind of agree, forward look to 2015 and put the future xv in jerseys 1-15 and relegate the old guard to 16-23

 

[BPC]

I was going to write a post about slotting White in for Genia, at least for a few games, but then I realised that it is the other White from the Brumbies that I want to bring in.

 

[kiap]

Often the best scrummagers are hidden away in subbies and country clubs, never noticed now in the professional era. What the ARU needs to do is invite all props from around the country under 25 and of a minimum physical requisite to attend an academy every weekend for the next 6 months. At the end of the process 3 tight heads and 2 loose heads are selected and dispersed one each amongst the super franchises. Opportunity of a lifetime is the carrot.

Find these prospects and get some intensive development into them, even though it will take some years before they can step up.

Include Dale Stephenson:

​

The 24-year-old is being groomed as a tight-head prop but faces a controlled progression through the lower grades for several years, where it is hoped he will develop into a contracted Super Rugby player. Stevenson and Rebels officials such as list manager Sam Cordingley acknowledge the long path ahead but the club has high hopes for the powerhouse.​

​

Stevenson, who weighed 138 kilograms when competing in London, has been working with conditioning staff and is down to 124 kilograms after stripping four kilograms in the past two weeks.​

​

He has a target of 118 kilograms to 120 kilograms and yesterday completed his first team training session with the Rebels, a weights session where he impressed the more hardened players looking on. ''He's much stronger than the rest of us,'' said front-rower Laurie Weeks.​

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-union/union-news/rebels-put-faith-in-olympian-20121024-285s8.html#ixzz2eGsjhx23​

 

[hughbert]

I totally agree with everything you said. Quade, in my opinion was one of the better players in the backline. I would continue to pick him over To'omua until To'omua gets more experience at test level.

I think that the down fall for the wallabies was that they took the points to often instead of backing themselves to score tries. A prime example was when we were piling the pressure got a penalty 5m out and we took the point instead of the quick tap and a possible 7 points

You're on fucking drugs, mate. We didn't look like seriously threatening their line all night. The exceedingly likely outcome of us not taking our kicks because of a "possible" 7 points was that we would end up losing 38-0 rather than 38-12.

Who the hell kicks for the corner at 16-6 down in the first half when given a very kickable penalty? The only one in the commentary booth sensible enough to call that for what it was (stupid) was Nathan Sharpe. The rest of them were furiously jerking themselves over us "keeping the pressure on". What do you know, we lost the ball about 3 phases later. Yeah, some pressue we kept on there

 

[No4918]

KRudds message to the Wallabies.

 

[Zander]

Bring Back Big Benn

 

[tekay]

Yeh fuck Quade. He's so shit. He can't pass, he can't tackle, he can't kick, he can't step, he can't run at the line, he can't run backline moves, he can't even take a hit and go to ground. What a fuckwit. He should just leave because he's a shit flyhalf who never does anything good and never gets his outside backs over the advantage line. What a kook!!

You could have jesus at 10, Moses at 12 and the prophet Muhammed at 15, it wouldn't make a difference to what happened last night. Please keep the unjustified and unwarranted claims to yourself. At least describe what he did wrong.

Man. You're so fucking parochial it hurts. You even have Ewen in your avatar. Pathetic. Take off your red tinted classes and start paying attention.

For anyone having watched Quade Cooper closely they would have noticed the following on a consistent basis:

1. Can't defend

2. Gets rattled easily

3. Does stupid kicks again and again

4. Has no vision

5. Is predictable in attack

6. Pushes passes attempting tricky shit that comes off 1 in 10 (reminiscent of another way over hyped player in Sonny Bill Williams)

7. Isn't smart enough (see 4)

The hype around this guy has been so misplaced it's laughable, he is ordinary, he should stop appearing in Wobs and go to league.

Btw - I'm not talking about a specific game here, I'm talking about consistent performance overall and the Wobs getting the right personnel so the rots stops and in the backs it starts with HIM.

Put Tomua in, give him continuous game time and he will flourish.

 

[Muttonbird]

It's all on and Quade Cooper is the touchstone once again. Interesting.

 

[Hugh Jarse]

It was not a memorable game from QC (Quade Cooper), nor about 22 other blokes wearing Gold last night.

He was pretty ordinary but a fair way off being our worst.

 

[PommyPowerhouse3]

Man. You're so fucking parochial it hurts. You even have Ewen in your avatar. Pathetic. Take off your red tinted classes and start paying attention.

For anyone having watched Quade Cooper closely they would have noticed the following on a consistent basis:

1. Can't defend

2. Gets rattled easily

3. Does stupid kicks again and again

4. Has no vision

5. Is predictable in attack

6. Pushes passes attempting tricky shit that comes off 1 in 10 (reminiscent of another way over hyped player in Sonny Bill Williams)

7. Isn't smart enough (see 4)

The hype around this guy has been so misplaced it's laughable, he is ordinary, he should stop appearing in Wobs and go to league.

Agree with all except that he has no vision. He does see opportunities he just can't take advantage of them because of his lack of skills. He tries to be tricky and play with flair but he's not that sort of player. He has a decent pass and kick he just doesn't no how to use those skills properly

 

[tekay]

It's all on and Quade Cooper is the touchstone once again. Interesting.

I just think Ewen has got to settle on establishing a solid core backline - particularly with the inside backs and we're wasting serious time on Cooper who has continuously failed to deliver.

Need some stability/consistency in selections for strong playing partnerships to emerge.

 

[cyclopath]

Man. You're so fucking parochial it hurts. You even have Ewen in your avatar. Pathetic. Take off your red tinted classes and start paying attention.

For anyone having watched Quade Cooper closely they would have noticed the following on a consistent basis:

1. Can't defend He can defend, and if he has to defend in one spot, will get better

2. Gets rattled easily Especially behind a munted pack, like many others.

3. Does stupid kicks again and again Does them sometimes. Hardly alone in this

4. Has no vision I would say his vision is one of his better attributes

5. Is predictable in attack Umm, not really, I sometimes wish he was more predictable

6. Pushes passes attempting tricky shit that comes off 1 in 10 (reminiscent of another way over hyped player in Sonny Bill Williams) Maybe better than one on 10, but yeah, probably a weakness

7. Isn't smart enough (see 4) I dunno, never met him. How "smart" do we need our pro rugby players to be, and by what metric are we measuring smart?

The hype around this guy has been so misplaced it's laughable, he is ordinary, he should stop appearing in Wobs and go to league.

Btw - I'm not talking about a specific game here, I'm talking about consistent performance overall and the Wobs getting the right personnel so the rots stops and in the backs it starts with HIM.

Put Tomua in, give him continuous game time and he will flourish.

 

[Zander]

Ewen's trying to play Reds' Super rugby at Test level. Jake White plays Test rugby at the Brumbies. Go figure.

 

[Quick Hands]

One of the flaws of the "around the park" fetish we seem to have for our tight forwards is that we end up with too many blokes who are jacks of all trades. We need a tight five that wins scruns and lineouts first, tackles and hits rucks second and makes the gain line third. Sliding out into the back line to put the ball through the hands should be a very distant consideration.

The knock-on effect of this being that every scrum in world rugby thinks they can out scrum us so starts off with a degfree of confidence in at least one aspect of the game and every test referee thinks we can't scrum and the penalties flow accordingly.

And quite often these guys who are "good around the field" end up getting in the way of the backs when quick hands at pace are needed.