good luck - not the first and won't be the last to try. Joeys love it when oppositions fixate on one player - creates opportunities elsewhere.
I agree, trying to stop one or two key players is not the way to beat Joeys. And in fact, this has got me thinking about how to handle the famed Joeys running machine...
If schools want to beat the famous Cerise and Blue, I believe they need to focus on the following - (or any team that plays at pace in the forwards, and with highly skilled backs):
1. Starve them of the Ball: Keep the ball in hand, and
do not kick to their back 3. I don't just mean to solely rumble up 1-2 passes from the ruck, but use the ball in hand, and keep the ball in hand and recycle. Any kicking needs to go into touch,
and always make sure that someone touches or picks up that kicked ball that is not playing (i.e. spectator, coaching staff, etc). So kick it into the crowd and sacrifice a few metres to ensure this happens. This will stop any quick lineouts from occurring, and will allow the forwards to reset.
2. Have two #7s in your forward pack: To do #1 above, school teams should have two #7's in the pack - do away with the bigger less mobile #6, and have two fliers to attack the downed ball carrier so as to recycle possession, or cause a turnover.
3. Pressure the Joeys #9 ALL game: from the games I have seen on Cluch, he does make mistakes when he is pressured (at the back of scrums, TRM). I am not saying he is a poor player - far from it. But placing constant pressure on his passing will either generate mistakes, or diminish the quality of his service to the outside Joeys backs. Having two #7s will go a long way to achieving this.
4. Tackle Low Tackle Hard: I see too many schools trying to tackle too high - using arm grabs and the like - only to be palmed off, and the ball advanced further. This was noticeable with Newington last Saturday, and was frustrating to watch. Go low and bring the ball carrier down quickly and get back to the Jackal-jockey position for the turn over ball opportunity. What this does will force the supporting attacking backs to enter the TR area to support (assuming the #7 has already been in a previous play, and not nearby), thereby reducing their effectiveness for advancing the play forward.
5. Use an Outside Back Drift Style Defence: I also see defending outside backs doing man-on-man defence at schoolboy level; that will only work if the defenders always s
tay-and-stop their man, and is typically used in conjunction with a rush-up defensive pattern (i.e. - an up and in your face defence). When facing teams that have a well-drilled and quick backline, It is always best to use a drift defensive pattern, and use the sideline as an extra player, and shepherd the play towards that direction. This will require the defenders having faith in their inside teammates - not only to be there, but also to do their job if play turns back inwards.
6. Work with the Referee: If the referee is (for example) focusing on tackle release, do this, do this, and - do this... adapt to his refereeing style, let the opposition get frustrated with his calls and they will become lippy; believe me those 50-50 calls will go your way...
Anyway, better said than done, but I believe in this style of play - I'd be great to hear others of their opinions on this, and other potential ways to beat those Joeys boys.
