Openside showdown George Smith v David Pocock

[disco]

Well probably the most interesting man on man match up we Wallabies supporters are going to see all year, the old veteran George Smith v the young gun David Pocock.

Last year it was a clear points decision to Smith but now Pocock is another year wiser & has an EOYT under his belt.

ATM it would be fair to say that Pocock has moved past Phil Waugh & must now stand up & show Dingo Deans that he is the man to front Richie McCaw on July 18 in Auckland & not George Smith.

The bad news for Pocock is that Smith wasn't good aganist the saders & I've yet to see Smith play badly twice in two weeks.

The positives for Smith is that I expect him to be part of the dominate pack this week plus he'll have the help of Julian Salvi who is a very handy openside himself.

Pocock will need a big game from Nathan Sharpe this week & hopefully Mitchell starts Hockings or Pocock may find himself & Richard Brown fighting a losing battle.

 

[Cutter]

I didnt think Smith was too bad against the Crusaders. Whitelock is a handy player as well. We will hear more of him in a few years. Read is getting better and better too. Pocock is a different style of 7 to Smith, but for mine, the Wallaby no. 7 jersey is Smith's for as long as he wants it. I am biased though, Smith is probably in my top 3 favourite players of the last 30 years (Eales, Horan, Smith).

 

[Scarfman]

I agree Cutter. I reckon Pocock is hugely promising but not yet in the same class as Smith. And he may never be - Smith is a once-a-generation player.

 

[rugbywhisperer]

I agree Cutter. I reckon Pocock is hugely promising but not yet in the same class as Smith. And he may never be - Smith is a once-a-generation player.

As the Zen Master said - 'we'll see'.

 

[formeropenside]

Smith tried to do a few things he shouldn't have, and they did not come off. He needs to play within his limits.

 

[Scotty]

I think Pocock has the potential to be better than Smith, so I back RW's comment.

 

[Rugby Rat]

The wallaby forwards...

Horwill, 3M, Mumm, Palu/Houston ( Big call but probably the next 8 If he can mongrel up in the next 1-2 years ), Robinson, Moore, Elsom ( If they let him), Baxter ( until he retires).

The rest will be a bit of a fight with Smith and Waugh still in front.

 

[Cutter]

Maybe when Pocock has played 100 tests, beaten the Lions, won the Bledisloe, won the Tri-nations, won a couple of S14 titles and repeatedly won every domestic award on offer we can talk about who is/was better. Until then Smith is still far, far ahead of Pocock.

Pocock is in the top 2 opensides in Australia (some would argue the top 3), Smith is in the top 2 opensides in the world and has been for most of the last 9 years.

 

[Ash]

I thought Whitelock outplayed Smith at the ruck. Whitelock was very impressive, wasn't he?

 

[disco]

Smith tends to go missing whenever McCaw is on the field for some reason, Pocock has always played better when playing McCaw so maybe Deans might opt for a horses for courses openside..

 

[Cutter]

Smith tends to go missing whenever McCaw is on the field for some reason, Pocock has always played better when playing McCaw so maybe Deans might opt for a horses for courses openside..

Are you joking? That is Olympic standard nonsense.

Smith and McCaw have played each other plenty of times and, from an individual perspective, the ledger would be pretty even, perhaps slightly in McCaw's favour. Then again, how many opensides consistently outplay McCaw? If the Wallaby pack is getting dusted, which it has been for much of the last 5-6 years, its impossible for Smith to dominate at the breakdown. That doesnt mean he is being outplayed by McCaw but it does means its much harder for him to have as big an impact. Conversely, in '01 and, to a lesser extent in '02, Smith was the dominant player on the back of a forward pack that competed pretty well with the ABs.

The last game McCaw and Smith played against each other Smith was dominant (albeit it was only the Baa Baas game).

I also suspect that McCaw might lift his level a bit when he runs out for the ABs against the Wallabies as opposed to when he plays the Force.

Yes, Pocock is a good S14 player with potential at test level. He hasnt done anything yet though.

I thought Whitelock outplayed Smith at the ruck. Whitelock was very impressive, wasn't he?

He was very good. I think the kiwis have found their backup to McCaw. They have been talking about him for a little while and, on that performance, I can understand why.

 

[Lee Grant]

The Kiwi was very good, but he knows how to go through the side gate at the tackle. But good luck to him for not being pinged.

 

[fatprop]

Maybe when Pocock has played 100 tests, beaten the Lions, won the Bledisloe, won the Tri-nations, won a couple of S14 titles and repeatedly won every domestic award on offer we can talk about who is/was better. Until then Smith is still far, far ahead of Pocock.

Maybe we should get Campese back on the wing then - he has scored more tries

 

[naza]

If the Wallaby pack is getting dusted, which it has been for much of the last 5-6 years, its impossible for Smith to dominate at the breakdown. That doesnt mean he is being outplayed by McCaw but it does means its much harder for him to have as big an impact. Conversely, in '01 and, to a lesser extent in '02, Smith was the dominant player on the back of a forward pack that competed pretty well with the ABs.

You are 100% accurate. If he were playing for Scotland, nobody would be raving about McCaw. Richie McCaw is the equivalent of Neil Back in the great English packs of 2001-2003. And remember how Josh Kronfeld was made to look like the second coming of Michael Jones behind a tight 5 of Dowd, Fitzpatrick, Brown, Brooke & Jones ? When our pack started to muscle up in the late 90s, David Wilson showed up Kronfeld for the lightweight seagull he was.

Now, where did I put that :fishing icon ?

 

[Cutter]

Maybe when Pocock has played 100 tests, beaten the Lions, won the Bledisloe, won the Tri-nations, won a couple of S14 titles and repeatedly won every domestic award on offer we can talk about who is/was better. Until then Smith is still far, far ahead of Pocock.

Maybe we should get Campese back on the wing then - he has scored more tries

My nephew scored 40 tries in a 10 game season. Look at his potential, maybe we should get him in there.

Smith was the Oz S14 player of the year and the Wallaby player of the year last year. I can't believe we are talking about pensioning him off.

 

[fatprop]

Maybe when Pocock has played 100 tests, beaten the Lions, won the Bledisloe, won the Tri-nations, won a couple of S14 titles and repeatedly won every domestic award on offer we can talk about who is/was better. Until then Smith is still far, far ahead of Pocock.

Maybe we should get Campese back on the wing then - he has scored more tries

My nephew scored 40 tries in a 10 game season. Look at his potential, maybe we should get him in there.

Smith was the Oz S14 player of the year and the Wallaby player of the year last year. I can't believe we are talking about pensioning him off.

:lmao: maybe we should.

If Pocock's form deserves the opportunity this year then he should get the shot.

 

[Scotty]

Easy Cutter, I think most are talking about the potential of Pocock, rather than rating him the better player at this stage of his career. In my opinion if he keeps improving as he has and steps up when he gets a run for the Wallabies, then he will be the first choice openside in 2011, possibly even 2010.

 

[Ash]

The Kiwi was very good, but he knows how to go through the side gate at the tackle. But good luck to him for not being pinged.

That's not all he got away with, such as ripping away balls on the ground - but as you said, good luck to him not being pinged. All in all he got a huge number of turnovers, both legally and illegally. But gees it made him look like a good prospect.

 

[Cutter]

Nothing wrong with a bit of fire in the belly on an internet forum. Keeps things interesting.

The point that I objected to was that Smith goes missing against McCaw.

 

[Scotty]

I think you may have objected to a few more points than that!

By all means keep in interesting and tell me to f*ck off though......