Spring Tour Improvements

[disco]

A good way to finish the season & I think we are definitely on the up. Really only two bad decisions away from a grand slam & this bunch would be sitting with the great team of 1984.

The front row of Slipper, Moore & Kepu was a massive improvement & I can't see Ben Alexander staying in the 23 next year unless he scrums the house down in Super Rugby.

2nd row was definitely better, Horwill played much better when he was stripped of the captaincy & Rob Simmons was brilliant in the lineout. There will be some good locks coming up the ranks next year & I'm picking big Will Skelton to play test rugby next year.

Backrow was brilliant & the amazing part is we still have Pocock, Higginbotham & Palu to come back.

Halves: Genia still a little bit down on his best but coming good, Quade was back to his brilliant best in attack & his defence has improved out of sight.

Centres: #12 - To'omua was very good but I still rate Godwin, Lilo doesn't offer enough around the park for me & maybe Ben Tapuai may get back to his best also.
#13: Kudriani was good but he has suspect hands I'm still leaning towards AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) for 2015.

Back 3: #15 - Israel Folau is the best 15 in the world, sorry Kurtley if I was Wallabies coach you'd be bench warming.
Left & Right wing: AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) I think will come back to 13 anyway. Tomane & Nick Cummins did everything right but they will definitely have a stack of blokes gunning for a wing spot next year in Henry Speight, Cam Crawford, Lachie Turner, Luke Morohan, Tom English& Dom Shiperly.

Good signs for next year with depth being built over the last two years with so many injuries.

 

[Aussie D]

Agreed we are on the improve.

I'm hoping Higgers comes back next year the way he was playing before injury to put the pressure on Mowen and Fardy to keep their spots.

Genia and Cooper have been playing better but I agree with Bob Dwyer that they could be even more effective (they were great last night with plenty of space but they need to have that kind of influnece with less space as they would against the Saffers and All Blacks).

I thought Adam Ashley-Cooper has improved, he has finally learnt to pass the ball - my only criticism is he needs to run straighter as he took away all of Cummins space on two occasions. Think both times Cummins would have bagged test meat - we will need to convert those opportunities if we want to take back the Bledisloe.

I thought Folau was good last night and is one of the best fullbacks in the world, he just needs to learn to utilise his support players better to be regarded as the best in the world.

A little critical but I believe that this team has the potential to be the best in the world and I can see that happening if some of my suggestions were heeded.

Finally, excellent intensity over eighty minutes by our forwards, more of that please.

 

[disco]

Breakdown work has improved out of sight on this Spring tour.

 

[Inside Shoulder]

A good way to finish the season & I think we are definitely on the up. Really only two bad decisions away from a grand slam & this bunch would be sitting with the great team of 1984.

The front row of Slipper, Moore & Kepu was a massive improvement & I can't see Ben Alexander staying in the 23 next year unless he scrums the house down in Super Rugby.

2nd row was definitely better, Horwill played much better when he was stripped of the captaincy & Rob Simmons was brilliant in the lineout. There will be some good locks coming up the ranks next year & I'm picking big Will Skelton to play test rugby next year.

Backrow was brilliant & the amazing part is we still have Pocock, Higginbotham & Palu to come back.

Halves: Genia still a little bit down on his best but coming good, Quade was back to his brilliant best in attack & his defence has improved out of sight.

Centres: #12 - To'omua was very good but I still rate Godwin, Lilo doesn't offer enough around the park for me & maybe Ben Tapuai may get back to his best also.
#13: Kudriani was good but he has suspect hands I'm still leaning towards AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) for 2015.

Back 3: #15 - Israel Folau is the best 15 in the world, sorry Kurtley if I was Wallabies coach you'd be bench warming.
Left & Right wing: AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) I think will come back to 13 anyway. Tomane & Nick Cummins did everything right but they will definitely have a stack of blokes gunning for a wing spot next year in Henry Speight, Cam Crawford, Lachie Turner, Luke Morohan, Tom English& Dom Shiperly.

Good signs for next year with depth being built over the last two years with so many injuries.

good comments.
Agree with nearly everything.
But I'd take the Dagg version of Israel for the time being.

 

[Zander]

Israel Dagg? The 'Greg Inglis' of rugby union? Turns up every 3rd game. Often loses concentration during games. No where near as good as the Folau version of Israel or consistent.

 

[Tip]

Israel Dagg? The 'Greg Inglis' of rugby union? Turns up every 3rd game. Often loses concentration during games. No where near as good as the Folau version of Israel or consistent.

The 'Greg Inglis of rugby union' would NOT be Israel Dagg. That sir, is insulting

G.I. is the Jonah Lomu of League.
Jonah: 63 Tests, 37 Tries

GI: 27 Tests, 22 Tries
Leading Origin try scorer, 21 matches, 15 Tries.
The winger (Boyd) who's been playing outside him for the last 5 years is 2nd on the Origin try scorers list with 17 Games & 12 Tries

Surely you aren't suggesting that Dagg is as good as Lomu

 

[Zander]

Maybe you missed what I wrote, Greg Inglis is famous for turning up every 3rd game, take last night's Rugby League WC final - he did nothing. Same as Israel Dagg. Very average most games and then plays the house down in the odd game and is deemed the greatest. Spare me.

 

[Ruggo]

A frustrating season but glad it has ended on a high. We have plenty of positive things to talk about. The things that stuck out for me on the player front are

The rise of Rob Simmons. He has taken his game to a new level since about half way through the rugby championship. I think he was missed plenty during that England game. Keep it going mate.

Sekope Kepu. He has always been decent at scrum time as is common with Tah players but his worload and impact in general play has been fantastic. Keep it going mate.

The reinvention of Quade Cooper. No need to discuss any further.

Saia Fainga'a's set piece work. It has come ahead in leaps and bounds. Keep it going mate

Matt To'omua at 12. That combination with Quade will be fruitful for years to come.

Leleafano, bloody sad how fate smashed his dream last year through injury. Hit the ground running this year. I understand his late father is his inspiration. Well fella, he will be damn proud of you.

Scott Fardy. It is not unthinkable this bloke could be a massive chance at the John Eales medal next year.

There are others but they are the ones that stick out for me.

On the national level, so many new Wallabies are going to take their experiences into the 2014 Super Rugby season and have positive influence in their respective franchises. I hope and think it will promote this momentum in 2014. Combine that with the return of team rehab players and there is plenty to look forward to.

I think I will enjoy the fishing I get done on the weekends in the off season but the buzz of anticipation for 2014 will linger.

 

[It is what it is]

Defence - we looked organised and many players are starting to hit in tackles rather than grabbing. We also regularly look capable of getting turnovers now.
Straight running - the backs are setting up more effectively, looking composed and not panicking. Well done Jim McKay. A few less cut out passes please.
Cummins - the type of player every player loves to have in their team.
Work rate - Fardy, Moore and Hooper have role modelled the energy level required and it's become contagious with Simmons and Horwell thriving off it.
Purpose - the team and individuals look like they know what they want to do most of the time, very different to the directionless play we witnessed earlier this year when Genia stood over ruck ball because he had no options.
Composure - an early 10 point deficit or poor periods of play don't seem to distract us like before when errors would compound and we'd panic by trying too hard and over playing the situation. Now we refocus and make things happen rather than waiting for things to happen.
Enjoyment - they're having fun and it shows.

 

[RoffsChoice]

If we had played the game plan that we used against NZ in Bled 3, we got a grand slam.
Players I want to see back next year are Kepu, Simmons, Fardy, To'omua and Kuridrani.

 

[BDA]

Funny how we had a comparatively more successful 2012 (and finished the season with a similarly hard fought win at Millennium Stadium) yet there is so much more to be optimistic about than there was at this time last year.

2013 was the year we had to have, like it or not. Going into 2013 I genuinely expected that major positive of the season would be the end of Robbie Deans reign. And it was. It was pretty clear after 2011 that the team was going no where under Deans, and I was losing my passion for supporting the wobs. But now I'm thoroughly enjoying watching us play again. The Australian way.

Looking back on the year, it was for me (and im sure for many others) the most trying year to be a wallabies supporter. The Lions loss cut deep. But there was always going to be the light at the end of the tunnel.

I was really surprised to some people saying Link was "Out of his depth" etc after some of the losses this year. Reading some interviews with Link (it's nice having a coach that makes sense in interviews) he basically explained that he was having to completely rebuild the squad to play the way he wanted them to, after taking over for Deans, and that doesn't surprise me. Not only has he gone quickly about fixing our back-line potency, but he has tackled (head on) the serious team culture issues which plagued our team during the Deans era.

Link is clearly making inroads. 4 away wins in a row to finish the season is no mean feat. There is still work to be done but I'm pretty happy with where the teams at. We are once again one of the more potent attacking teams and we have good depth in most positions.

 

[BDA]

The 2013 Springboks are a good example of a team looking much better in the second year of a new coaching regime, than in the first. we wont be the finished product next year, but we could be by 2015, which is the important thing

 

[Train Without a Station]

Ruggo, FYI, Simmons best game of the year was Bled 1 actually.

 

[Dave Beat]

Sort of off topic (cant find anywhere else to post) - Kafer & To'omua, both play 10 / 12 and can read the game, both come from the Brumbies stable, and I cant remember what Kafe looked like in his mid 20's anybody care to post a look alike comparison?

 

[Train Without a Station]

I thought Kafe's rig looked about the same back then as it does now...

On a side note, Larkham mentioned in a podcast a couple of weeks back that he started playing 13, because Kafer was at fullback. Or possibly the other way around...

 

[Brumby Runner]

Combinations have improved over the tour. Haven't seen a 12/13 combo work like To'omua/Kuidrani since early 2000s. Will and Quade at 9/10 are getting back to their best and far outshine any other 9/10 combo used in recent years. Izzy at 15 is starting to work very effectively with his wingers and with QC (Quade Cooper) at 10. Will only get better as he learns to use the wingers a bit earlier.

Front row combo of Slipper, Moore and Kepu seems to be improving with game time. Think both the 2nd row and back row are ares which can be strengthened over the next year or so. Granted Rob Simmons is improving, but I'd say Scott Fardy offers more than Rob atm and Hugh Pyle, Will Skelton could both be better with opportunity. Skelton probably battling Horwill for BS lock.

Back row will improve if Pocock, Palu and Higgers return to full fitness, Kimlin returns from o/s and Luke Jones comes on as expected.

Most improved players on tour include Fardy, Izzy, Tomane, Kuridrani, Kepu and To'omua.

 

[Dave Beat]

QC (Quade Cooper) - (Only IMO) I think the players returned to favour so quickly because he's brutally "open" and honest, his honesty and openness went against him last year. From an outsiders view I didn't see camp Wallaby as a happy camp, recalling a number of posts on gagr not a lot of people did. He came out and said it.
I do see him as being the catalyst for some good viewing rugby ahead, and look forward to next season.

 

[RugbyReg]

I thought Kafe's rig looked about the same back then as it does now.

On a side note, Larkham mentioned in a podcast a couple of weeks back that he started playing 13, because Kafer was at fullback. Or possibly the other way around.

kafe was picked to play a test for the Wallabies at fullback well before his debut for them in 1999 but he broke his leg (or something) during training in the week leading up. Perhaps it was even in the amateur days?

Yeah I think Larkham's first Brumbies game was at 13, and he was famously a scrumhalf before that.

The irony of the Brumbies (and specifically Larkham) saying that they will play Tooomua and Lealiifano where its best for the BRumbies first, rather than the Wallabies is that back in 1999 when the Wallabies were looking for a new flyhalf, Wallaby Coach Rod McQueen asked Brumbies coach Eddie Jones to move their fullback, Larkham, to 10 for the Super Rugby season. Jones said no so Larkham's first game at ten was for the Wallabies v England at Lang Park - which we won 76-0 with Bernie starting (up against a teenage Jonny Wilkinson).

 

[Train Without a Station]

Reg, it's a little frustrating to hear that from Larkham after seeing how well To'omua is playing at 12. His robustness suits the position a little more so than Lilo.

 

[fatprop]

I thought To'omua and Simmons were marked improvers

To'omua looked the business at 12, he showed both strength and guile; and I think found his position in test rugby.

Simmons has finally looked like a proper test lock, there was a signs at the back end of the rugby championship, but he showed consistency in November