RWC 2019 1/4 Final England vs Australia

[molman]

I didn't say the Pooper lost the game. Like every time they've played together since the last RWC they have not won the game for us. We would in all probability have won a few more if they hadn't been put on the field together.

Yes, I guess what I'm saying is I don't know why we focus on it so much. I feel like we feel like switching a player or two would be the silver bullet, when sometimes I think it's collectively so much more. Maybe we would have done better in some of those prior games, but who knows. In a lot of cases I don't think some of the other options were all that compelling when Pooper was an option (which it hadn't been with Pococks various injuries) and at least in this RWC it hasn't lead to any obvious deficit in areas such as our lineout.


Anyway at the end of the day, thats the last we will see the Pooper in action with Pocock retiring from International rugby.

 

[Viking]

I actually thought the french ref had a good game.

 

[Adam84]

I actually thought the french ref had a good game.

Yeah I thought he did well, he ensured he wasn't the focus of the game and let it flow where practical.

 

[RedsHappy]

Wonder when this castle presser is.

If RA remains true to form, and its precise mechanisms for indulging proven mediocrity, they’ll be announcing that M Cheika

‘.....after many years of devoted service to Australian rugby, has been invited to join the board of Rugby Australia as non-executive member responsible for coaching skills development, in a strategic capacity....’

 

[Brumby Runner]

I blame Pulver.

It has seemed pretty obvious to me that Cheika’s package was highly leveraged to the success at this World Cup. That has allowed him a lot of leeway with experimentation with both personnel and tactics. The positive from that is that he has built a lot of depth. The biggest and most obvious negative is that the team has zero cohesion.

I agree with most that we have a major skills deficit which has been a couple of decades in the making. That isn’t Cheika’s fault. But I also believe that overall the cattle he had were good enough to get better results. If he had a brief to actually do that.

I sincerely hope that the new coach is given a brief to just actually try to beat every fucking team that we play against. Fuck the World Cup, results there will follow.

Over.

KOB I agree with your conclusion. just not the arguments leading to it. There has been an ongoing debate on GAGR about whether the national coach should have a role in improving players' skills but I cannot see that the current coaching group have in any way seen individual improvement as being part of their bailiwick. I also don't, or can't, ascribe any increase in player depth in this country to Cheika. On the contrary, his insistence over the past 4 years of using many of his favourites has had the opposite effect imo. Glad to see the back of him.

 

[gel]

There will not be any fix until Castle and Cameron are gone.

They are incompetent and their history proves it.

 

[KOB1987]

KOB I agree with your conclusion. just not the arguments leading to it. There has been an ongoing debate on GAGR about whether the national coach should have a role in improving players' skills but I cannot see that the current coaching group have in any way seen individual improvement as being part of their bailiwick. I also don't, or can't, ascribe any increase in player depth in this country to Cheika. On the contrary, his insistence over the past 4 years of using many of his favourites has had the opposite effect imo. Glad to see the back of him.

I think the improvement to try to make an elite player already playing at his best,better, is marginal. We saw an example tonight with Genia, his ball clearance at the start of the game was outstanding. Once he got tired he reverted to the norm, a few sideways steps. It was obviously something they tried to drill out of him.

 

[tragic]

Interesting the wallabies have a unique talent for finding ways to lose against Eng.
We used to get dusted in the set piece - so we fixed that.
Then we got bashed in the collisions - so we fixed that.
Then we lost the breakdown - so we fixed that
And tonight we found yet another different way to lose.
Chapeau wallabies.

 

[Juan Cote]

I’ve really struggled this support the team after Link got shafted. I’m looking forward to a new coaching regime and hopefully a coach who displays the sorts of behaviour that doesn’t make you want to hide in a cupboard

 

[Viking]

I think the improvement to try to make an elite player already playing at his best,better, is marginal. We saw an example tonight with Genia, his ball clearance at the start of the game was outstanding. Once he got tired he reverted to the norm, a few sideways steps. It was obviously something they tried to drill out of him.

Skills too...was fine in the first half. Fell apart when we tried playing catch-up rugby.

Although through-out the year and last 4 years ... skills and poor passing a worry.

 

[Lost]

Yeah I thought he did well, he ensured he wasn't the focus of the game and let it flow where practical.

100%. Didn’t get everything right , they never do.

Job was made a lot easier by Skeene shutting up or being put in his place

 

[cyclopath]

I’ve really struggled this support the team after Link got shafted. I’m looking forward to a new coaching regime and hopefully a coach who displays the sorts of behaviour that doesn’t make you want to hide in a cupboard

Would that be the Cote Room?

 

[Viking]

Interesting the wallabies have a unique talent for finding ways to lose against Eng.
We used to get dusted in the set piece - so we fixed that.
Then we got bashed in the collisions - so we fixed that.
Then we lost the breakdown - so we fixed that
And tonight we found yet another different way to lose.
Chapeaux wallabies.

Nah still lost it by trying to go 20 phases + and scoring tries.

No team in the world can do that. a knock-on, penalty or poor pass will eventually happen.

No idea why the strategy to run it or chip kick it out of our 22 is a good idea.

One key area we havn't learned yet is exiting our 22 - I used to blame Foley a lot for this, clearly it's a bigger issue then that.

 

[tragic]

Nah still lost it by trying to go 20 phases + and scoring tries.

No team in the world can do that. a knock-on, penalty or poor pass will eventually happen.

No idea why the strategy to run it or chip kick it out of our 22 is a good idea.

One key area we havn't learned yet is exiting our 22 - I used to blame Foley a lot for this, clearly it's a bigger issue then that.

Our exits have been largely better of late. I thought it was post foley with hodge taking the exit kicks. (Until his suspension)
Then we ignore him and go back to the same old rubbish.

 

[Viking]

Our exits have been largely better of late. I thought it was post foley with hodge taking the exit kicks. (Until his suspension)
Then we ignore him and go back to the same old rubbish.

True - clearly part of the game-plan for some stupid reason this game. All of Beale, Lilo and Genia doing stupid chip kicks in our 22 - none worked.

 

[Lost]

There is a difference in the No 10s RN, but the bigger problem is the light years of difference between E Jones and M Cheika.

Sadly AUS is the golfer who thinks success comes from a new golf club or a different ball, the teams in the Top 5 know that the answer is in repetition and the ability to produce skill under time and space pressure. Until we get that this is more important than the size of the dog in the fight we will go nowhere. Cheika had the passion but was badly let down by the people he employed to teach and develop skill. We make bad decisions back to back then look for a haymaker to fix it. Poor
outcomes guaranteed.

 

[Penguin]

actually, thinking back the writing was on the wall before the game evens started.

a man (and even worse a former silk trader) who cannot tie his own tie is the ultimate reflection of poor preparation and poor performance.

i mean ffs, rugby men grew up in private schools!

Actually this comment is more the problem with Australian rugby than you think.
A lot of us didn't go to your posh schools nor wear a fucking tie. But we don't get the opportunities because of it. New Zealand on the other hand......

 

[Penguin]

Sadly AUS is the golfer who thinks success comes from a new golf club or a different ball, the teams in the Top 5 know that the answer is in repetition and the ability to produce skill under time and space pressure. Until we get that this is more important than the size of the dog in the fight we will go nowhere. Cheika had the passion but was badly let down by the people he employed to teach and develop skill. We make bad decisions back to back then look for a haymaker to fix it. Poor
outcomes guaranteed.

Chieka always talked down the passion. It was one of his biggest failings IMO

 

[KOB1987]

Skills too.was fine in the first half. Fell apart when we tried playing catch-up rugby.

Although through-out the year and last 4 years . skills and poor passing a worry.

And don’t underestimate the difficulty. It looks easy to us on the sidelines, but you’re sprinting at 11s/100m, simultaneously trying to navigate around 2 defenders and perfectly land the ball into the hands of a bloke also sprinting 10m to your right. Other countries have players who can do this better than ours, simple.

 

[Dctarget]

Yeeeeah well fuck me, we all knew that was coming, how depressing.

Ref was good, England were better, we were absolute shit. Tried hard lads, four more years, please fucking spank England NZ or Ireland.