Highlanders v Reds Good Friday 29th March

[Tangawizi]

Reds by 15 is perhaps a touch ambitious given the Highlanders came within about 30cm of rolling them at Suncorp last season.

Reds by 1 will do this week and it will be hard to achieve.

Reds must read this forum....

Going into the bye at 5 & 2 is not a bad place to be in.

Key to this season may well be winning the 2 matches after it against the Chiefs & Brumbies and they've got plenty to work on to make that happen.

Get to 7 & 2 and suddenly they look like world beaters with big crowds flocking to Suncorp. Drop to 5 & 4 and making the playoffs will be difficult.

 

[liquor box]

Very happy with the win, but more so that the Reds now look like we can score tries, or at least threaten to.

We need bonus points in the majority of games left this season

 

[redstragic]

Jim Tucker in the Courier Mail is reporting that Gill had a thumb injury. Hope they can strap it cause we need him after the bye.

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[Athilnaur]

Reds best game in a long time from where I sat, maybe vs Crusaders in NZ last year, struggling to think of a good game since where the Reds style of 2011 was in play.

Was disappointed to not see more from Morahan, a player that I have really liked the look of in the past but probably better at FB. Have to disagree with Barbar re Taps, for mine he carried the bulk of the midfield work with Lance. Not sold on him as the Wallabies 12, yet.

Quade played really well I thought. He has been guilty of a lot of turnovers this year, so he needs to get that out of his game and dialling down his running probably achieves a few other things, not least encouraging him to play more as a general. I have every confidence that side of his game will improve albeit at post knee levels.

Highlanders are, for me the enigma of the comp. On their roster they should be much better placed, but somehow they are 0 and 5. They played some superb rugby yesterday, not least because Nonu has finally dialled in. In short it was a bloody good game of rugby and the Reds did very well to get the win.

 

[Inside Shoulder]

Athilnaur what did you make of QC (Quade Cooper)'s kick out on the full near full time?
Against any other NZ and most SA teams that would have been curtains.
I just dont understand how the guy can have such huge wraps on him when he does those sort of things.

 

[Jets]

Athilnaur what did you make of QC (Quade Cooper)'s kick out on the full near full time?
Against any other NZ and most SA teams that would have been curtains.
I just dont understand how the guy can have such huge wraps on him when he does those sort of things.

Because he's the only guy in Australia who can play so close to the line and has a pass long enough to hit anyone within 25 metres.

 

[cyclopath]

Quade did some good stuff, but is still quite inconsistent. He threw a lot of very flat passes (read - the type that officious ARs call forward sometimes) which are great when they come off, but he is toying with the whistle a bit. Can't deny his speed and general accuracy of pass though. I thought most of his general kicking was OK; sure that kickoff was a brain fart, but it looked like it skewed off the boot a bit.
One thing I really wish he wouldn't do is throw the ball away to a player in worse position when he is about to get tackled sometimes - he has to deal with taking the hit at times - he's big enough, and strong enough to do it. A couple of times he almost caused a turnover with these passes. There's no need for it.
With Genia on song, I think the case for Quade at 10 will build, as the 2 undoubtedly work pretty well together. But he has some competition, I suspect.

 

[TSR]

Athilnaur what did you make of QC (Quade Cooper)'s kick out on the full near full time?
Against any other NZ and most SA teams that would have been curtains.
I just dont understand how the guy can have such huge wraps on him when he does those sort of things.

On the flip side IS, I sometimes question the validity of some of the criticism of Cooper.

I though yesterday his defence was pretty poor and would come in for a lot of criticism. He got brushed aside numerous times and I thought he could have at least made an attempt to tackle Nonu in his try, but instead backed off (although he may have been further away from him then it appeared on tv). In attack, I though his worst moment was the hospital ball to Morahan which was telegraphed and his team mate got absolutely belted as a result.

I have tried to review the incident you referred to this morning but can't find footage of it. From what I saw Cooper got a touch on the ball running back while looking up at the ball coming over his head. He then fielded it back near his goal line. I thought it was pretty understandable that he thought he was already in the 22 when he first touched the ball. No doubt it could have been a costly mistake, but that doesn't mean it wasn't understandable. It's not like he knew that he had taken the ball in and miss-directed his kick.

He also got criticism for the forward pass, but when you pass as flat as he and Genia do you are going to throw the occasional forward pass. The positives (being the number of line breaks they create) far outweigh the negatives on this one IMO.

The other instance was the kick off that went dead (although again I haven't been able to review it). Unfortunately Quade has history & it straight away leads to comparisons of his world cup kick off. For mine they are worlds apart. You would expect that the kick yesterday would have been caught. If you leave a football to land to bounce it can, and will, go anywhere - including possibly over the dead ball line. As a test, if you were coaching Nonu and he was under another kick like that, would you want him to catch it, or let it go in the hope it went dead. I'm guessing most would want him to catch it.

Am I being a Quade apologist - maybe. I don't deny I'm a fan. But I certainly don't have a problem with him attracting criticism for some of his play yesterday. I do question whether all some of the criticism is balanced though.

 

[FrankLind]

Well done Reds (said through gritted teeth). A class above the Highlanders, who don't seem to play for each other and the "old heads" are really adding much. I think, in Maa Nonu, we have a small case of a player who feels, regardless of what he does, he will walk into black. Genia and Gill were class.

p.s. please pick Cooper for the Wobs.

 

[Inside Shoulder]

On the flip side IS, I sometimes question the validity of some of the criticism of Cooper.

I though yesterday his defence was pretty poor and would come in for a lot of criticism. He got brushed aside numerous times and I thought he could have at least made an attempt to tackle Nonu in his try, but instead backed off (although he may have been further away from him then it appeared on tv). In attack, I though his worst moment was the hospital ball to Morahan which was telegraphed and his team mate got absolutely belted as a result.

I have tried to review the incident you referred to this morning but can't find footage of it. From what I saw Cooper got a touch on the ball running back while looking up at the ball coming over his head. He then fielded it back near his goal line. I thought it was pretty understandable that he thought he was already in the 22 when he first touched the ball. No doubt it could have been a costly mistake, but that doesn't mean it wasn't understandable. It's not like he knew that he had taken the ball in and miss-directed his kick.

He also got criticism for the forward pass, but when you pass as flat as he and Genia do you are going to throw the occasional forward pass. The positives (being the number of line breaks they create) far outweigh the negatives on this one IMO.

The other instance was the kick off that went dead (although again I haven't been able to review it). Unfortunately Quade has history & it straight away leads to comparisons of his world cup kick off. For mine they are worlds apart. You would expect that the kick yesterday would have been caught. If you leave a football to land to bounce it can, and will, go anywhere - including possibly over the dead ball line. As a test, if you were coaching Nonu and he was under another kick like that, would you want him to catch it, or let it go in the hope it went dead. I'm guessing most would want him to catch it.

Am I being a Quade apologist - maybe. I don't deny I'm a fan. But I certainly don't have a problem with him attracting criticism for some of his play yesterday. I do question whether all some of the criticism is balanced though.

There's no point criticising his defence on here: its been done to death and I think everyone's position is pretty clear. He did nothing in defence last night that isnt absolutely typical - one is either of the view that the lack of commitment is indicative of his personality or one forgives his refusal to knuckle down on some basis I am yet to undertsand.

I think he knew he'd taken it back - even though the relevant AR didnt - he didnt argue the toss, for instance. But you may be right.

I'd forgive him the kickoff because it was only Nonu's incompetence that put it in issue so he was dead unlucky. And he accepted the blame. That one doesn't worry me because I'm a huge fan of the long kickoff!

 

[Sully]

Do I need to warn you?

6. Play the ball not the man. Personal comments will be deleted and you'll get a card or ban.
This also applies to comments about players, coaches and other public figures. Feel free to criticize their play and decisions with reasoning, but not slander them as a person.
"Like last weekend, he's always seagulling and it gives me the shits" is OK.
"He's a f*ckwit who'll never amount to anything" is not.
Only a complete knob jockey resorts to personal insults anyway.

It's getting a little tiresome.

 

[qwerty51]

Because he's the only guy in Australia who can play so close to the line and has a pass long enough to hit anyone within 25 metres.

Aaron Smith has the best pass in NZ but he makes way too many errors, I know he was first choice last year but he's way down the pecking order now. It doesn't matter how good you are, Test rugby is an arena of small margins, mistakes have greater significance.

 

[Hugh Jarse]

In defence of QC (Quade Cooper), he hasn't played that much footy since RWC11. Are we expecting too much of him?

He seems to be getting better with each game, and much can be put down to Sanchez return from injury to play inside him. Even the most ardent QC (Quade Cooper) hater should acknowledge that, or at least acknowledge that he is making less mistakes/howlers as he gets more game time.

In some respects there are parallels with how Folou is coming on in Heavensgame. He is a fair way off the full potential that many see in him, but he is getting better with as he gets game time in his legs.

 

[yourmatesam]

The Reds played well and deserved the win. Nonu had a brain fart in an important final phase of the game which could have allowed the Highlanders to grind out a win. If they had held the ball instead of throwing a ridiculous pass, they may have been a chance.

Did anyone else think that Fainga'a was lucky to stay on the field around the 35th minute? His 3rd penalty for offside inside 35mins of footy could probably have been carded.

Also think that Hore was lucky not to give away a penalty try when he was carded. The Reds had an enormous overlap out wide and his cynical infringement definitely prevented a probable try.

For me, the jury is out on what Hore and Nonu bring to the game anymore. They were obviously cancerous at the Canes and aren't contributing the way I would expect seasoned campaigners to be doing.

 

[qwerty51]

They looked pretty bloody big from where i was sitting. Which teams have bigger scrums?

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upfront to combat a sizeable Bulls pack this weekend, who arrive with the worst scrum success rate in the tournament on 81%.

Brumbies, Waratahs, Sharks, Crusaders, Chiefs

 

[Lyall]

Do I need to warn you?


It's getting a little tiresome.

Sully, I have to ask, from a moderators point of view, are the people who continually post in this manner only pulled up when they call someone dumb?

 

[liquor box]

Athilnaur what did you make of QC (Quade Cooper)'s kick out on the full near full time?
Against any other NZ and most SA teams that would have been curtains.
I just dont understand how the guy can have such huge wraps on him when he does those sort of things.

Can you name a player who does not make mistakes? I cant think of any.

I think the wraps on on Cooper are because when in form he creates more points than he loses.

 

[Athilnaur]

Athilnaur what did you make of QC (Quade Cooper)'s kick out on the full near full time?
Against any other NZ and most SA teams that would have been curtains.
I just dont understand how the guy can have such huge wraps on him when he does those sort of things.

Sorry for the delayed response IS. I was disappointed, but no more so than for any other player who kicks fairly but gets it wrong - I didn't have an issue with the option. His hot potatoe game aggravated me more, but given his propensity for conceding turnovers this year his 'hospital' passes had the merit of being safer possession! Overall I thought he played really well, doing a great job of bringing others into the game and thats the thing I love about his game; he is always looking to create opportunity for others rather than himself.

Really not sold on his playing fullback in defense, I'd think it would be in his interests to play a more traditional 10.

 

[Inside Shoulder]

Can you name a player who does not make mistakes? I cant think of any.

I think the wraps on on Cooper are because when in form he creates more points than he loses.

As to your first point: of course I can't.
That hardly grapples with the issue of why he made that mistake at that time.
"When in form" is a big "if": some say he was "in form" on Friday and yet this error should have cost the game.
As ever there is no desire to address the issue just the taking up of entrenched positions.


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[Inside Shoulder]

Sorry for the delayed response IS. I was disappointed, but no more so than for any other player who kicks fairly but gets it wrong - I didn't have an issue with the option. His hot potatoe game aggravated me more, but given his propensity for conceding turnovers this year his 'hospital' passes had the merit of being safer possession! Overall I thought he played really well, doing a great job of bringing others into the game and thats the thing I love about his game; he is always looking to create opportunity for others rather than himself.

Really not sold on his playing fullback in defense, I'd think it would be in his interests to play a more traditional 10.

I thought he was better and he created some stuff. But as is implied in your comments he was erratic. I don't like the 10 to 15 move and Justin Marshall gave the best reason for avoiding it: it means QC (Quade Cooper) is a mile away on turnover ball when he should be first to get his hands on it.
My issue with the kick is that in the state of the game the only place he couldn't kick it was out on the full. Almost anything else was ok.
Perhaps most importantly will he learn from it? History says not.



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