Australia vs South Africa - Brisbane 7th Sept 2013

[boyo]

Wasn't Heyneke Meyer rather animated during the brief crosses to the coaches box?

Is he always like that?

He was as fidgety as a wombat on bull ants nest.

You sound like the Honey Badger.

 

[Scotty]

Given your shit knowledge of the front row, and your relentless Brumbieboyism, I'm not surprised at your attitude.

The combination needs to be tried, because in pure scrummaging terms he's actually the best one left in the country.

And just because Lilo can kick didn't mean he's the answer at 12, because he raises too many other questions about or midfield attack. Maybe he needs to go to 10?

I'll say it: there are too many Reds in the team who were not picked on form, and haven't displayed any since. Simmons is part of a scrum and lineout (which apparently is his specialty) that has sputtered - he goes. Genia goes for reasons that are obvious. Cooper goes for again showing he isn't the messiah, and can't tackle despite what Margo and Jim tucker would have everyone believe.

The truth will set you free, Link.

You have a go at someone for 'shit knowledge' and then imply that the issues with the wallabies are based around 3 reds players, two of which were backs?

Where I was sitting we lost the game in two areas:

1. The breakdown - mostly because our forwards are too lazy or slow to get to it (see Folau break after Cooper kick and Cummins tackle at the kick off for prime examples)

2. We made too many handling errors

But I am sure all this was down to three reds players?!!

 

[Scotty]

Just to be pedantic....

It was a Cooper turnover that directly led to one of the Bok tries....

You mean the one where he pushed a pass when we had to score 3 tries in 15 minutes?

Yeah, totally inexcusable that one ......

 

[Scrubber2050]

QC (Quade Cooper) average
Genia still maintaining recent form and must be under real pressure
AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) needs to pass Falou needs to run the fucking ball back at speed and direct
The Badger verage after terrible start
Slipper the only forward with agression - we need a Higgers and Horwill (in form). Kepu not up to expectation either at scrum time or around park.
We need some good old fashion mongrel
Maybe JOC (James O'Connor) to 15 and Izzy back to wing ???

 

[emuarse]

I actually left Suncorp Stadium 15 minutes before the end of the game, an act I can't believe I did, after the Bok scored their third try in a row.
On Sunday, I decided to watch the game again which I had recorded.
It was then that I realised I had made the right decision the night before.
The Wallaby pack certainly did not give me my money's worth.
I think I got better value on Sunday afternoon when I watched the Premium grand final at Ballymore between Easts & GPS, even though I was again supporting the losing side.

 

[Dam0]

The other one was nick cummins tapping the ball back in on the 5 mt line when steyn locked for touch from a penalty. Why was that called in touch?

Someone else has answered this, but I can confirm that the AR was correct. If the ball has crossed the plane of touch and a player jumps and knocks it back into the field of play and lands in touch then the ball is in touch (kicking team put it there). Where a player remains in the field of play and knocks the ball back into play, the ball is not in touch.

 

[boyo]

http://www.rugbyrefs.com/wiki/images/8/85/LineBallYourCall.pdf

 

[Inside Shoulder]

I was interested in this from Dwyer on the front page:

Now although we didn’t win the three test series, we won the second test on New Zealand soil. What did we do? We chose channel one ball, which put pressure on our halves, but at least we had a chance to attack. The NZ back row therefore had to choose whether to put the focus on the scrum or the ensuing tackle.
Funnily enough, our scrum started to become more competitive.

To my observation we are going Channnel 1 on every scrum with Mowen detaching from between the locks and re-packing between flanker and lock - fatprop and other can conform or debunk this observation.

I am most concerned about MOwen's detachment - we're pulling 100kg+ out of the scrum when we apparently have a 30kg deficiency. This should not be happening. The old solution was for the 8 to trap the ball with his left foot and move it across to his right foot. with a scrum under pressure - which it will be for the rest of the season - we cannot afford to have blokes detaching early.

 

[Dam0]

http://www.rugbyrefs.com/wiki/images/8/85/LineBallYourCall.pdf

I thought about linking to that, but sheesh that is a complicated document. There is something wrong with the laws when you need a 19 page pamphlet just to describe when the ball is in or out. I know that no simple solution is perfect but the hodge podge we have at the moment is a mess.

 

[USARugger]

If the 8 is trapping the ball at his feet he's not really adding a ton to the scrum other than just some of his body weight.

Gonna have to rewatch the scrums this week to see about the Mowen repackin thing.

 

[MajorlyRagerly]

Fuck thats a good forward pack the Bokke have got. You guys are going to have to really man up in that part to get even close to parity.

However, your backline is worth about 25 points vs the Bokke one - which frankly I think blows badly. Decent defensively, but Habane excepted, where are the tries coming from - perhaps a JdV intercept?

Zane Kirchner is not an international class footballer - must be somebody better, MUST BE.

Suncorp. Cooper back to pull the strings. I'm picking 30-28 score to the Wobs. 4 tries, 2 conversions, 2 penalties, vs 7 penalties and a JdV converted intercept try.

Not a bad effort by yours truly.

Point 1 - nailed.
Point 2 - got the teams around the wrong way, but still nailed the premise
Point 3 - still stands, but you guys did manage to make him look not bad
Point 4 - see point 2

You guys were truly awful. There's no way to be nice about it - limp, lame, unstructured. Has to be up there with your efforts vs Scotland and Samoa of the last few years. Why oh why is your backline so shit? I can't fathom it.

Bok rugby is BACK. That forward pack is looking huge and brutal. Quite impressive.

EDIT: I forgot to mention Meyer in the coaching box. BEST ANIMATION EVER.

 

[sneaker]

I was at the game, and walked out 10-15 min earlier. The school boy errors were appalling. I was really looking forward to this game for months, and I paid $120 a ticket for this POS performance. You would think some of these guys are on 500k a year and can't get the basics right like catching the ball? Seriously... and once again where is the backup ? everyone runs and gets isolated and our forwards are nowhere to be seen? and what the fuck is with all the fucking props in the back line get the fuck out and get to the fucking breakdown. I saw cooper deliver a great pass to a gap, and who was there... a fast back ? no slipper. We need our fast guys to hit these gaps not forwards.

 

[Slim 293]

You mean the one where he pushed a pass when we had to score 3 tries in 15 minutes?

Yeah, totally inexcusable that one ..

The one where he basically passed the ball to the opposition?

Yeah, he deserves a pat on the head and a "tough luck pal" for that one...........

The ol' "he was just trying too hard" excuse that gets wheeled out for him every match has surely been overplayed by now?

 

[A mutterer]

i think it's fair to say that australia have lost a lot of ground (and not just on the park) to other nations. we are consistently outmuscled, outplayed and lack any real passion. the same set of issues consistently fail to be addressed by players who look lethargic, lacking and often entitled.

it is indefensible that players in a professional environment be rewarded with consistent selection for below par performances. i'm tired of hearing all about the so-called 'talent' apparently held by players - if they're holding any it must be in reserve or very bloody sparse on a shelf in the back of the shed from a few seasons ago.

if mckenzie is to have length in his tenure, and at a time when as a new coach he has a mandate for change, then he really needs to start demoting some of the 'talent' until they can perform at an acceptable level and perform the basics without error.

i'd be hard pressed to defend much of the squad after our recent performances and think that the selections for argentina should include as a necessity a significant number of demotions and players dropped. perhaps a bit of a touch up to the ego would get players at least playing competently?

 

[daz]

I suppose we can argue constantly about who should be in the team, and who played shit, and the merits between RD and Link, etc, etc, etc.

In three games with different starting players in each game, it is fair to say that no-one has proven they are "great" in their respective positions - not QC (Quade Cooper), not To'omua, not Izzy, not Lilo, not Genia, and certainly not anyone in the forwards.

So let's cut the state bias crap and just admit they are all struggling to compete at this level right now.

For mine, we just got out-muscled in the brain and aggression department. That is the regrettable hall-mark of the current Wallaby team circa 2013.

A lack of smarts and a lack of mongrel. Everything else is just meaningless dribble.

 

[Braveheart81]

After Saturday night's debacle, I think it's fair to say to Link that:

It's time to get back to simple things, work on suring up our set piece and forget the crap about trying to play an entertaining style of rugby.

We need to starting playing half decent rugby before we worry about how entertaining it is.

 

[fatprop]

I suppose we can argue constantly about who should be in the team, and who played shit, and the merits between RD and Link, etc, etc, etc.

In three games with different starting players in each game, it is fair to say that no-one has proven they are "great" in their respective positions - not QC (Quade Cooper), not To'omua, not Izzy, not Lilo, not Genia, and certainly not anyone in the forwards.

So let's cut the state bias crap and just admit they are all struggling to compete at this level right now.

For mine, we just got out-muscled in the brain and aggression department. That is the regrettable hall-mark of the current Wallaby team circa 2013.

A lack of smarts and a lack of mongrel. Everything else is just meaningless dribble.

Yep, they ain't that good at the moment.

And I can't see it changing for a few years.

 

[Inside Shoulder]

We need to starting playing half decent rugby before we worry about how entertaining it is.

speaking only for myself I would actually find half decent rugby from the Wallabies pretty entertaining

 

[Braveheart81]

speaking only for myself I would actually find half decent rugby from the Wallabies pretty entertaining

Exactly.

At the moment they're trying to run before they've learned to walk.

 

[Bruce Ross]

For mine, we just got out-muscled in the brain and aggression department. That is the regrettable hall-mark of the current Wallaby team circa 2013.

For mine, we just got out-muscled in the muscle department. That is the regrettable hall-mark of the Wallabies team for the past five years at least.

We are the only major rugby playing nation that does not respect or train for basic strength in the most strength-oriented code of football. It's about time we woke up to ourselves and acknowledged how far we are off the pace in this respect. Only when we begin to get this right should we preoccupy ourselves with "smart, creative running rugby".
.