Compare: Wallabies v Boks: 2006, 2009, 2010

[RedsHappy]

It has to be of some use to compare these three performances by the Wallabies, all at the some ground, under two different coaches, with overlapping but different Wallaby teams.

Video highlights from the 2006 and 2009 games are here on GAGR.

How have the Wallabies evolved since 2006 (or from 2009) when viewing the 2010 edition? Was SA 2006 (and its zero score) an inferior side to SA 2010?

Or is each game so different, there's no point in comparing them?

 

[barbarian]

Think the laws certainly make them very different games. I think certainly the Boks played better in this game than they have done in the past a Suncorp- they were abysmal in the 49-0, and not much better last year. Not to say they were fantastic last night, but they had flashes of great play but couldnt finish a lot of it off.

 

[Langthorne]

It is always difficult to compare teams over time, even a relatively short time, and to draw conclusions.

A good starting point is that all of those matches were wins for the Wallabies. Beyond that we'd just be splitting hairs regarding how comprehensive each win was. A loss may have raised some eyebrows though.

As for comparing teams and coaches, I don't think the number of matches involved constitutes 'statistically significant' numbers.

 

[RedsHappy]

One noteworthy aspect of this lineage could be that of the 2006 to 2007 Wallaby-Boks reversal of fortunes, which has added interest given RWC 2011.

2006 was a bad year for the Boks, the low point of which must have been Suncorp. 15 months later: RWC! For the Wallabies, Suncorp in victory terms must have been the high point of 2006*, and we thrashed England in two June 2006 Tests, only for England to expose all our forwards and breakdown frailties in Marseilles and crash us right out of the RWC. Surely demonstrates how 'year before RWC' can be a very poor predictor of the RWC results.

Here's Jake White's Intn record with the Boks:

Year Played Won Lost Drew Win ratio (%)
2004 13 9 4 69
2005 12 8 3 1 67
2006 12 5 7 42
2007 17 14 3 82
TOTAL 54 36 17 1 67

In 2006 the Wallabies played 13 Tests, won 7, lost 5, drew 1. All AB games were lost, and we won 2 games v Boks (both home). All June Tests were won, incl the 2 v England.

It's only a personal view and not in any sense an expert analysis view, but I stood back last night and looked at the 2006 and 2009 Suncorp vs Boks vids on GAGR (allowing for the fact they were all edited positives) and then some quick looks at the replay of 2010's game, and I found it pretty hard to say 'well there's been some real development in the Wallabies' skills since 2006'. Hope my rushed intuition is wrong.

All shows how quickly rugby fortunes can shift. Boks triumphed last year, this year's Tris start as a near-disaster for them. It may all point to a need to cull hardest and revitalise aggressively just after a period of good wins drives a team to the top.

 

[The_Brown_Hornet]

It's hard to compare the 2006 and 2010 Wallaby squads though Reds. There are hardly any common players between them. The 2006 team looked to be building OK for the RWC, only to get bashed up by England in the QF. They flattered to deceive really. The current group don't have anywhere near the same theoretical experience and class that the previous squad did. No Gregan, Smith, Larkham, Latham, Mortlock et al. The new guys may prove to be as good or better, but just those guys alone leave a void.