Reds vs Stormers, Newlands 2013

[convenient wisdom]

I think we aren't giving enough credit to the stormers defense. It was the best I have seen this season.

The reds weren't able to get a roll on through the forwards and that is why the attack looked average against a vet organised defensive line.

Rugby 101 , lesson 1 : win the contact, win the game. the reds plan revolves around forward runners hitting the gain line and bending it, before quick ball can be spread wide against a still retreating defensive line ( its not exactly rocket surgery). BUT our forward runners are not bending the line enough. Horwill does because he gets his shoulders down and he is about 3 metres tall. The next best forward runners are Ant (yes, I mean Ant) Fainga'a and Digby Ioane. the other guys are trying, but they are just a bit flat footed when they get the ball, and often a bit high in contact. With a smothering tackler type defense like the stormers or the brumbies, that means sloww ball, set defense and eventually turnover time. The Stormers, like any professional outfit did their homework and were waiting for the persistent blind side runners.

It makes things harder now for the reds, but results in the other conferences have gone our way this week, so we are still alive, just.

 

[Blue]

In a normal world, the national coach says what he wants from the player and the player tries to do it.
In Quade-supporter-land Quade doesn't do what the national coach wants from him and we say "good on him".
WTF??

Quadisitis

Lethal.

 

[Blue]

I would say the biggest worry for Robbie right now is who to partner Horwill with.

 

[Rassie]

Scotty - was it really a notch ahead of the Stormers' defence that the Tahs and Rebels were able to unpick? I'm not convinced, perhaps the home crowd gave it a bit more intensity and confidence, but I'd not say the realtive difference was a key factor for the outcome vs Reds.

Our line out was shoddy and looked under-rehearsed (especially after 2 weeks in SA and what we knew of the SA jumpers). Our loosies seemed slow to and often ineffective at the breakdown, we went back to our pattern of handling errors and turnovers that blighted our attack earlier in this season. Other than our general defence, I can't think of a single facet of our team play that was truly well-structured and executed.

In a sense the Stormers embarrassed us with that well conceived and executed set piece try off their line out. That's exactly the type of daring scoring device off set piece that helped the Reds win the 2011 title. How many of those have we executed and pulled off in 2013?

Nothing different. Their first time tackling have been poor this season. By their high standards it have been awful. Its was much improved and it meant the defense can actually put pressure on the the attack where a guy like Liebenberg can do what he does best and win turn overs,

 

[qwerty51]

I would say the biggest worry for Robbie right now is who to partner Horwill with.

What makes you think Robbie is worried about that? No one asked him much about the locks at the press conference (wonder why are pack is shit, all the media cared about was Quade) but he doesn't seem that worried. I'd argue selecting only 3 in the 25 man squad makes him pretty sure of those players.

 

[Shiggins]

Feel sorry for the reds. Played pretty well. Defiantly the better attacking side.

 

[Rassie]

I do not know what to make of this. Its sort of horrifying

Tackles
Stormers 206

de Allende - 10
S Kitshoff - 13
Liebenberg - 11
Harris - 20
Grobler - 14
Etzebeth - 16
Kolisi - 19
Armand - 15
Carr - 29

 

[Scrubber2050]

Good win to the depleted Stormers.
Observations:
Our lineout terrible, particularly 5 meters out with a rolling maul and a try in the offering
Attack average
Whilst I enjoy watching QC (Quade Cooper) Deans is probably correct in his comments about the numbers of mistakes that flow from quades playmaking. If they come off then great but if 4/5 times in a game they don't then big trouble - don't think a team can afford that in the test arena.

Boys are going to do it tough now but GO THE REDS

 

[Dan54]

As you say Stan, lineout didn't look flash, can't for the life of me work out what attack strategy was, apart from QC (Quade Cooper) crabbing across field to sqeeze up his outsides, and unfortunately Genia wasn't on top of his game, and he usually the one who stops this happening. You would think there needs to be a fairly big improvement for a; the Reds to make finals(I still think they can) and b; Link to stay in frame as Wallabies coach, which I am bot convinced is settled as a lot of people I talk to think it is.

 

[Scotty]

It isn't settled because of ARU politics, but it damn well should be.

Who else deserves it more?

 

[Bullrush]

When Quade wears red he is not playing for Dingo Deans. He executes the Reds game plan.

That's funny because when I had this conversation with another Reds fan on a different thread, he reckons you'd be blind to not see that QC (Quade Cooper) has tried to play to what Deans wants for the Wallabies this year.

 

[Scoey]

The move the Reds did from a line out I think it was where Gill played scrum half and threw a long pass to Genia at first receiver, to have Quade standing 1st receiver from the next ruck was nice to see. Showed some imagination and I think was one of the moves that resulted in a knock on from Ant or CFS. This is the sort of stuff that was sticking in 2011 and isn't now. It's a fine line. Had the last pass gone to hand then the player was in space with support on his outside and fullback to beat.

 

[Hugh Jarse]

Lineout problems in both Tahs and Reds camps doesn't bode well for the Lions tests.

A saving grace for us is that their #2's seem to be chucking pineapples.

Hopefully the new ARU lineout Consultant will sort things out. The lineout is such a great platform to launch attacks from, that we can not afford not to win all our own throws, and the odd one or two of theirs.

QC (Quade Cooper) - Hmmm. The more pressure the team is under, the more he seems to try for the miracle ball to break the deadlock. High risk and high payoff. Unfortunately high risk plays under pressure seem to have low probability of success. Rugby is ultimately a simple game. Good players and teams simply execute the simple things well. When they do that then they can try the "miracle balls". They are not called "miracles" for nothing.

Link. Seems to have handed some of the reins over to RG, because what we are seeing now from the Reds is inconsistent with what we have become accustomed to under Link's previous leadership.

Diggers. You don't know how good things are until you lose them. His presence will be sorely missed next year, as we have already seem this year when he has not been on the field.

 

[bloodred]

My concerns are that the Reds may be thinking of the future (Lions) and not enough about the next game. Simmons and Horwill hardly bent the line at all, Genia took too many bad options and Quade struggled (for different reasons). Will worries me as I thought after his poor game against the Cheetahs that he would bounce back but not so. As a team we need to address these issues as the last chance saloon is coming close

 

[Dan54]

It isn't settled because of ARU politics, but it damn well should be.

Who else deserves it more?

Not sure who deserves it most, but not sure why any of us think Link should be guaranteed spot, what do you think he has done that you think he should have it sown up?? And don't say he has won a S15, as I have said before Deans won it a few times, it not really a guarantee of a successful coach. I not against Link by any means, but do think coaches that have had success outside of S15 ie; under different types of rugby should never be dismissed as a good selection for Wallaby's coach.

 

[FrankLind]

Feel sorry for the reds. Played pretty well. Defiantly the better attacking side.

Every side is a better attacking side than the Stormers - defiantly so.

 

[I like to watch]

It isn't settled because of ARU politics, but it damn well should be.

Who else deserves it more?

If we are going on results, then he is in a bit of trouble this year.
These vocal Reds supporters can't have it both ways.
You can't claim that most of the side should be in the Wobs squad,and that the coach should be a shoo in as well.
Cos with his coaching,and their playing.It aint working ATM.

 

[PaarlBok]

Awesome win for my team, little to late, maybe not? Who is Andries Bekker? Thought Gerbrandt Grobler for such a youngster was massive and my MOTM by far. Lineouts locks dont grow on trees, but this laaitie is pretty special. ysterbet massive as always. The Reds well you wont get away with the fancy stuff all night. Cooper is awesome, did not check what he did so well last time in Cape Town against the Stormers.

 

[Sully]

Awesome win for my team, little to late, maybe not? Who is Andries Bekker? Thought Gerbrandt Grobler for such a youngster was massive and my MOTM by far. Lineouts locks dont grow on trees, but this laaitie is pretty special. ysterbet massive as always. The Reds well you wont get away with the fancy stuff all night. Cooper is awesome, did not check what he did so well last time in Cape Town against the Stormers.

Fantastic effort! That try was brilliant and to lose so many players and have a defence still work like that speaks volumes for the coaching structure.

 

[PaarlBok]

Where do they find them in SA?

Here comes another one. Still in school but 2m tall timber playing on my stoep.
http://www.greenandgoldrugby.com/community/threads/sa-schoolboy-action.7936/page-4