Do we need to make changes?

[Scotty]

scotty i agree with you 100% as always

Thanks louie, afraid I can't recipricate regarding Hoiles though..

Tah J,

When did Palu make any metres on the weekend. I can barely remember him with the ball in hand at all. Burgess made more metres through the middle than Palu.

 

[Reddy!]

i think we need to bring lote back, we miss his work up the middle as an extra forward. he made alot of metres that our back three dont now. we only have mortlock (injured now) , palu and smith who consistantly break advantage lines, agreed we need tpn on field, wish we had lote back.

Yeh I agree somewhat with this. He is was a significant physical presence and rarely screwed up. He was marked more heavily than mitchell and turner are now, which freed up players in the midfield to attack.

 

[waratahjesus]

i think when judging lote we how often he came into the centre of the ground and took hitups, it let our forwards rest and he often made more metres in close than most of them put together.

ive watched the weekend game twice and i think that palu along with most of the pack didnt get the ball to make an impact. when he did get the ball he seemed to be on his own with no support running at three or four springboks. even if he had one support player with him (same goes for most hit ups by most forwards from the weekend) it would have created at least some doubt to make a few more metres.

maybe moore could play six, allowing tpn to play 2 but moore to throw? if rocky is jumping as well, we still have 3 options and the kiwis have a worse thrower than tpn .

 

[Moses]

Rocky at 6 and Moore at 8 would be pretty awesome.

Eastwood had Dunning at hooker a few weeks ago with Fitzpatrick at 7 and throwing the lineouts. Worked pretty well too...

 

[louie]

yes it did moses. clearly.

moore at 8 could really be a master stroke.

 

[Cutter]

Are you blokes serious about playing Moore or TPN in the backrow? It sounds like a subbies selectors meeting over a beer at the local bowling club.

Whilst that might work at club level, internationals are much much faster. Part of being successful at international level is being in the right place at the right time which requires experience, instinct, speed and fitness. TPN might be able to do it some of the time, Moore would never be able to do it. Backrowers are specialists in the same way front rowers are specialists. In the front row your inexperience and lack of technical skill could lead to injury. In the backrow it just leads to you being exposed and your team suffering.

I'm certain that if you asked Moore (or TPN) whether they could play backrow in the Tri-nations they would laugh at you. Much as I am doing now.

 

[the gambler]

Cutter :thumb

 

[eddo]

I'm not really a Hoiles fan one way or the other .. but I certainly see the irony when the excuse to not have Hoiles seems to be "he's a lightweight",.. and then we go and put George Smith back there...

Seriously?

I think he has served his provinces well and he deserves a bit more respect than getting dissed on this forum for no good reason. Those at the brumbies think he is at least in the top 4 no.8's in the country.. No doubt he's better than anything the Reds can muster. I don't see any amazing differences between him and Brown,..except the yellow card last week shows that Hoiles has more experience and leadership qualities.

In the absence of a hulking beast that is useful... at least the man can make up a viable third tall man option that has been discussed. He has bulked up a bit, while maintaining the high workrate.

There are plenty worse options..
Houston,.. Fava,..

 

[Gagger]

I'm with the "calm the farm" camp.

Interesting that Deans is talking about "removing from the trough" those who keep offending from a discipline point of view.

Who would be the biggest offenders over the last two games? I think it might lead you down some radical paths.....

 

[fatprop]

I'm not really a Hoiles fan one way or the other .. but I certainly see the irony when the excuse to not have Hoiles seems to be "he's a lightweight",.. and then we go and put George Smith back there...

Seriously?

I think he has served his provinces well and he deserves a bit more respect than getting dissed on this forum for no good reason. Those at the brumbies think he is at least in the top 4 no.8's in the country.. No doubt he's better than anything the Reds can muster. I don't see any amazing differences between him and Brown,..except the yellow card last week shows that Hoiles has more experience and leadership qualities.

In the absence of a hulking beast that is useful... at least the man can make up a viable third tall man option that has been discussed. He has bulked up a bit, while maintaining the high workrate.

There are plenty worse options..
Houston,.. Fava,..

Hoiles is a seagull

 

[louie]

Seriously?

I think he has served his provinces well and he deserves a bit more respect than getting dissed on this forum for no good reason. Those at the brumbies think he is at least in the top 4 no.8's in the country.. No doubt he's better than anything the Reds can muster. I don't see any amazing differences between him and Brown,..except the yellow card last week shows that Hoiles has more experience and leadership qualities.

In the absence of a hulking beast that is useful... at least the man can make up a viable third tall man option that has been discussed. He has bulked up a bit, while maintaining the high workrate.

There are plenty worse options..
Houston,.. Fava,..

agreed 100%. i think the problem with aussie rugby atm is that we have fixed opinions on players from a few seasons back that don't change. we neeed to open up a little more think about the more options we have npt just closing them down.
and not fat prop he's not a seagull.

 

[Moses]

Are you blokes serious about playing Moore or TPN in the backrow? It sounds like a subbies selectors meeting over a beer at the local bowling club.

Whilst that might work at club level, internationals are much much faster. Part of being successful at international level is being in the right place at the right time which requires experience, instinct, speed and fitness. TPN might be able to do it some of the time, Moore would never be able to do it. Backrowers are specialists in the same way front rowers are specialists. In the front row your inexperience and lack of technical skill could lead to injury. In the backrow it just leads to you being exposed and your team suffering.

I'm certain that if you asked Moore (or TPN) whether they could play backrow in the Tri-nations they would laugh at you. Much as I am doing now.

Fair point, I was getting carried away with Moore at 8.. still, if TPN and Moore are in our best 8 forwards shouldn't they both start? I guess an argument can also be made for impact off the bench, and TPN has been immense from there.

TPN does have back row experience, though only a few cameo's at super level.

 

[Blue]

Are you blokes serious about playing Moore or TPN in the backrow? It sounds like a subbies selectors meeting over a beer at the local bowling club.

Whilst that might work at club level, internationals are much much faster. Part of being successful at international level is being in the right place at the right time which requires experience, instinct, speed and fitness. TPN might be able to do it some of the time, Moore would never be able to do it. Backrowers are specialists in the same way front rowers are specialists. In the front row your inexperience and lack of technical skill could lead to injury. In the backrow it just leads to you being exposed and your team suffering.

I'm certain that if you asked Moore (or TPN) whether they could play backrow in the Tri-nations they would laugh at you. Much as I am doing now.

Fair point, I was getting carried away with Moore at 8.. still, if TPN and Moore are in our best 8 forwards shouldn't they both start? I guess an argument can also be made for impact off the bench, and TPN has been immense from there.

TPN does have back row experience, though only a few cameo's at super level.

I think it ,may have been suggested already but TPN should be considered as a converted THP. He is a strong mother. The scrum becomes stronger when he comes on at hooker.

 

[Scotty]

Rocky at 6 and Moore at 8 would be pretty awesome.

TPN would make a better 8 than Moore. He has the best short passing and ball handling skills of any of the wallaby forwards. If he could get his lineout throwing right I think he would quickly move to first choice hooker ahead of Moore.

 

[Gagger]

Wasn't TPN originally a backrower who still plays there for club?

It would become a very short back row. Mowen or Higginbatty before that.

 

[Scotty]

And probably Chisholm before those two - particularly when Mowen is injured and HB had a poor end to the season.