Quade Cooper and Summer Digressions

[qwerty51]

I would suggest a joint session with Nathan Grey & Stirling Mortlock(I think Sonny-Bill Williams) would give Stirling a good reference!

Burgess has a great tackling technique too. Although look no further than Berrick Barnes

 

[cyclopath]

Really, Cyclo, is that what everyone was saying? I couldn't work it out. Of course, the suggestion is drop Giteau, move JOC (James O'Connor) to 12 and put your lovechild on the wing. Your passion for Turner is admirable. But I suggest you pull your head in when someone disagrees with your precious point of view.

I suggest you try engaging your thought processes a little more thoroughly. I have no issue with opposing points of view, even yours - if they are argued cogently. I was pointing out that you were confusing the arguments to peddle your anti-Turner diatribe at any cost, and that there was little connection between criticisms of Quade Cooper, and suggestions for Turner to be on the wing, with JOC (James O'Connor) at 12 at the cost of Giteau.
That is all.

 

[disco]

Have Larkham teach him, Larkham was a good defender & he played the same position stands about the same height & is actually lighter as well.

But if we go the body guard style then it's Bam Bam one side & Barnes the other.

 

[Spewn]

I suggest you try engaging your thought processes a little more thoroughly. I have no issue with opposing points of view, even yours - if they are argued cogently. I was pointing out that you were confusing the arguments to peddle your anti-Turner diatribe at any cost, and that there was little connection between criticisms of Quade Cooper, and suggestions for Turner to be on the wing, with JOC (James O'Connor) at 12 at the cost of Giteau.
That is all.

I suggest you read what I said on the thread about the votes. I am not anti-turner. I think he is a good player. But I do not think he should be in the team ahead of others. I find the constant push for Turner tiresome. He would have finished off the Mitchell try just as well. But he cannot break a tackle like Mitchell or Digby if fit. I like JOC (James O'Connor) on the wing. He has to be in the team. I would not drop Cooper and I would have Barnes at 12. No place for Turner in my view. Fast, solid, reliable, but that is not enough to win against ABs. Apparently, Deans shares this view but you would write him off as a dill like most others on this forum.

 

[Rugby Rat]

Reds FTW in 2011 !!!

 

[Newter]

I've really got to question whether Cooper is up to it mentally after his poor display tonight.

Under pressure he fell to pieces. Not for the first time either.
He doesn't get the concept of percentage football and takes unnecessary risks with bullshit behind the back stuff. This isn't Fijian 7s rugby.
I cannot recall a poorer defender for us, not since Campo in the amateur era. He is diabolical.
His behaviour is not Wallaby standard. I don't know if you caught the interaction with McCaw after O'Connor scored - I thought it was very poor form. The bloke is low class bogan scum. He is a flake.

Time to cull.

Naza, Quade is definitely a fuckwit. But to say he crumbles under pressure is well off the mark.

He was outstanding in the last few minutes of the game when the pressure was really on. He gave James O'Connor not one but two good opportunities to score the final try, just by running onto the ball and timing his pass well. Luckily O'Connor took the second opportunity.

 

[Jnor]

I was extremely pissed off at ol' 2" by 4" QC (Quade Cooper) when we were down last night and to a lesser extent after we won.

While his defence is completely nonexistent (I don't understand why it has not improved AT ALL), his is still a freak in attack and I thought by far the most valuable thing he brought was every time he had the ball he drew two or more AB defenders. It's been a while since we've had someone with that space creating ability for those outside him.

He has to stay but work a bit on the maturity and a shitload on the tackling.

 

[Slim 293]

This thread is such a huge overreaction.

Yes, his tackling is poor, but he's by far the best flyhalf.

Let's plant barnes next to him and have guys help him out.

 

[Lee Grant]

Dougie. I almost never bag players but at my age you learn not to waste a good line.

On fire I say - Bruce is on fire !!!

Seemed like mccaw and quade had a spat thing throughout the match culminating in quade giving mccaw a cheeky shove at the end

Let's forget for the moment that McCaw may have given as good earlier as he got at the end later and look at the Cooper head massage of him after the try in isolation.

What he did was reprehensible because had the officials followed the law that act of foul play could have lost the game. I've seen penalties given for less and if a player from either side performs an illegal act after a try is scored then the other team should be awarded a penalty at commencement of play. Play would continue after the siren for this purpose.

In other words: the All Blacks could have taken a penalty shot 50 metres out. Donald could have had redemption for missing his earlier penalty and for not kicking the attempting clearing kick at the end into touch. The papers and talkback over there would be crowing about our indiscipline and the touch feely redemption.

Any bets about whether or not Deans said after the game (or will say before the next one) that he should control himself better?

 

[qwerty51]

Rocky (who is always a class act) was right there when it happened, he quickly intervened and gave Quade a death stare. I reckon he had something to say afterwards

 

[The_Brown_Hornet]

I've just watched the replay of the game again and without Quade's attack, we wouldn't have scored three out of four of those tries. Two came from absolutely perfect long flat passes that put the runners in space. You can't play 5/8 better than that. He's worth the risk.

 

[disco]

Let's forget for the moment that McCaw may have given as good earlier as he got at the end later and look at the Cooper head massage of him after the try in isolation.

I did see McCaw kick out at Quade at around the 47th minute when McCaw gave away a penalty & Giteau missed the kick.

McCaw entered from the side & Quade cleaned him out & after the whistle blew McCaw kicked Quade in the knee.

 

[cyclopath]

I suggest you read what I said on the thread about the votes. I am not anti-turner. I think he is a good player. But I do not think he should be in the team ahead of others. I find the constant push for Turner tiresome. He would have finished off the Mitchell try just as well. But he cannot break a tackle like Mitchell or Digby if fit. I like JOC (James O'Connor) on the wing. He has to be in the team. I would not drop Cooper and I would have Barnes at 12. No place for Turner in my view. Fast, solid, reliable, but that is not enough to win against ABs. Apparently, Deans shares this view but you would write him off as a dill like most others on this forum.

I challenge you to find a post where I have ever written Deans off as a dill. He is far from that. I don't fully fathom all his selections, but don't presume to state my opinion. We agree to disagree on our 12.

 

[Ignoto]

Let's forget for the moment that McCaw may have given as good earlier as he got at the end later and look at the Cooper head massage of him after the try in isolation.

Theres something about this that just makes me grin - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPZszd1B66Y#t=03m23s

 

[Spewn]

I challenge you to find a post where I have ever written Deans off as a dill. He is far from that. I don't fully fathom all his selections, but don't presume to state my opinion. We agree to disagree on our 12.

I'm searching.

 

[Scarfman]

I've just watched the replay of the game again and without Quade's attack, we wouldn't have scored three out of four of those tries. Two came from absolutely perfect long flat passes that put the runners in space. You can't play 5/8 better than that. He's worth the risk.

Mate, I agree - he played fantastic rugby in attack. But when he was getting all the man-love on this forum, it came with the proviso - "his defense will get better, for sure." Well, it hasn't at all, and I believe you if you took each occasion he misses a tackle, you would be horrified to see the consequences 2 or 3 phases later. A lot of tries are being scored against us because of him.

If you keep picking him no matter how bad he tackles, he'll never bloody learn. I would present him with an ultimatum. Make your first up tackles like Carter and Larkham, or you're benched.

 

[RedsHappy]

I've just watched the replay of the game again and without Quade's attack, we wouldn't have scored three out of four of those tries. Two came from absolutely perfect long flat passes that put the runners in space. You can't play 5/8 better than that. He's worth the risk.

TBH: Perhaps a quote from one Sean Fitzpatrick in today's NZ Herald may add usefully to the debate, and adds to your assessment above:

Quade Cooper might not have much on defence but he opened up the All Blacks by creating so many opportunities and finding so much space that I am sure it worried Graham.

Same with Kurtley Beale. They can be pretty exciting and it will not be lost on judges of the game that they took the game to the All Blacks this time and found space.

They will take a lot of confidence out of that. I watched the test in Hong Kong with David Campese and we were musing after the game that the situation reminded us of the 1990 Australian team which beat the All Blacks in Wellington. They grew in stature after that and, of course, went on to win the 1991 World Cup by beating, among others, the All Blacks. I don't think this Wallabies team has quite the quality of that one but they definitely have calibre - and there are some similarities indeed.

 

[cyclopath]

I'm searching.

Anything to keep you distracted for a while...

 

[The_Brown_Hornet]

Scarfy, good points. There has to be some concerted one-on-one work with QC (Quade Cooper) to get him to international standard in the tackling department.

RH, thanks for the link. I see some real parallels with 1990 and this win will give us a lot of belief. However and this is a big however, we need to back it up and beat the NH teams for me to fell like we have truly turned the corner. There is bags of potential in this team and we are starting to see it pay off, but we aren't there yet. Not by any stretch.

 

[Chauncey]

Get on board the Nonu express.....

What is it with Quade's tackling technique or lack of.

He waits for the attacking player on the back foot and then attempts to mount them in the reverse cowgirl fashion before enjoying a ride towards the try line. Riding along on your opponents waist is not a good look.

It makes no sense as he is a big fella with obvious good coordination. If he applied himself there is no reason why he could not be a very dominant defender.

Look at Burgess and Barnes - great defenders and much smaller than Quade.