Town Hall Station in Sydney is covered with HSBC Waratahs ads, I mean 40m long ads
http://www.hsbcjersey23.com.au/
http://www.hsbcjersey23.com.au/
The Tahs 2009
- Thread starter fatprop
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Cutter
Nicholas Shehadie (39)
Could they stick their head into the back of a scrum and run around the field? Yes. Could they play no. 8? Probably not. I think there is a difference between playing 8 and playing 8 well, even for an international hooker to play at club level. You lose a lineout jumper, you generally lose speed around the park, you lose positional play, you lose the link man, you lose a supporting kicking game...
For example, none of those blokes would displace the good club no. 8s. Obviously the rep players are one thing, Fava, Hoiles, Tim Davidson, Drew Hickey etc But even the blokes who are just good club players who havent played rep - Bill Ratu and Andrew Maloney from Southern Districts are better no. 8s than any of those hookers (after they became hookers not when they were junior players). Jeff Reid from Eastwood, Nic Fitisemanu from Norths and Henry Schaef? from Penrith are other examples.
Are you blokes seriously suggesting that club hookers can move to no. 8 successfully? That was my initial point. ie if McCormack, a club hooker, can regularly play no. 8 at club level in Sydney, the competition isnt as strong as it was. That Southern Districts were weak this year probably tells the tale though doesnt it? With McCormack at hooker or prop, and a good no. 8, they would have been a stronger team.
For example, none of those blokes would displace the good club no. 8s. Obviously the rep players are one thing, Fava, Hoiles, Tim Davidson, Drew Hickey etc But even the blokes who are just good club players who havent played rep - Bill Ratu and Andrew Maloney from Southern Districts are better no. 8s than any of those hookers (after they became hookers not when they were junior players). Jeff Reid from Eastwood, Nic Fitisemanu from Norths and Henry Schaef? from Penrith are other examples.
Are you blokes seriously suggesting that club hookers can move to no. 8 successfully? That was my initial point. ie if McCormack, a club hooker, can regularly play no. 8 at club level in Sydney, the competition isnt as strong as it was. That Southern Districts were weak this year probably tells the tale though doesnt it? With McCormack at hooker or prop, and a good no. 8, they would have been a stronger team.
Lee Grant
John Eales (66)
McCormack played only 3-4 games at no. 8 for the Rebels towards the end of the season and on those occasions Palmer was hooker, and sometimes Trouville played lock. They may have been a lock down. For all the other games he was hooker.
Palmer played in the first 2 months of the season and returned for 6 games, missing the last one. During his mid-season absence from clubland he was in the Oz U/20 squad for training camp plus the tournament.
Southerns acquired the services of Nic Henderson and Guy Shepherdson during his absence, obviously by arrangement with the Brumbies, but it didn't do them much good. They won only one game the whole year, by one point against the Blue Slime Manly team, and finished a very comfortable last. Mind you they had a fairly useful front row at Rat Park in Rd. 21: 1. Henderson, 2. Dan Palmer, 3. Guy Shepherdson. Handy, but we still smacked them.
Cutter, I see your point but whenever one writes stuff people will take one sidebar of it and take one to task, and there is nothing wrong with that.
The Sydney comp took a nosedive once the professional era started but since then I don't think there has been a decrease in standard. I think it's marginally higher because over the years the sprinkling of professionals have brought more to grade footie than they did at the beginning when they were paid, but not really professional in the wider sense. And there's more pros and ex-pros in total. Some guys who are no longer pros are still playing grade.
But it's much the same. The top 4 teams are still bloody good and the bottom 4 are bad most of the time, but certainly not always. I don't think that because a hooker for the weakest team in the comp played out of position for 3-4 weeks means anything at all except that his club had poor depth and players had to move around.
Palmer played in the first 2 months of the season and returned for 6 games, missing the last one. During his mid-season absence from clubland he was in the Oz U/20 squad for training camp plus the tournament.
Southerns acquired the services of Nic Henderson and Guy Shepherdson during his absence, obviously by arrangement with the Brumbies, but it didn't do them much good. They won only one game the whole year, by one point against the Blue Slime Manly team, and finished a very comfortable last. Mind you they had a fairly useful front row at Rat Park in Rd. 21: 1. Henderson, 2. Dan Palmer, 3. Guy Shepherdson. Handy, but we still smacked them.
Cutter, I see your point but whenever one writes stuff people will take one sidebar of it and take one to task, and there is nothing wrong with that.
The Sydney comp took a nosedive once the professional era started but since then I don't think there has been a decrease in standard. I think it's marginally higher because over the years the sprinkling of professionals have brought more to grade footie than they did at the beginning when they were paid, but not really professional in the wider sense. And there's more pros and ex-pros in total. Some guys who are no longer pros are still playing grade.
But it's much the same. The top 4 teams are still bloody good and the bottom 4 are bad most of the time, but certainly not always. I don't think that because a hooker for the weakest team in the comp played out of position for 3-4 weeks means anything at all except that his club had poor depth and players had to move around.
Cutter
Nicholas Shehadie (39)
Lee Grant said:
I think that is the part I disagree with Lee. When the professional era started, only the top guys were paid. As professionalism has filtered through the system, handy Sydney club players (but not world beaters) can make a decent living playing rugby in France or Italy. Its only been in the last 8 or so years that these players have really started to leave Sydney club rugby in large numbers.
We've all seen the lists compiled of players who are now playing overseas. If we had compiled those lists in 2001, the numbers would have been lower and comprised mostly of ex S12 and Wallaby players. Players like Hines, Parks, Hinshelwood, Gleeson and even Paul Dearlove became internationals by leaving Australian club rugby. Those guys were playing in the late 90s and coming up against the likes of Willie O, Campo, Tony Daly and Michael Brial who were running around in club rugby after they retired/were no longer selected for rep teams. Also, with the advent of the Force, another 15 or so Sydney club players have been pulled out of the system.
From R&M
well the players out of contract at the end of the year are (I believe):
Tatafu Nau
Sekope Kepu
Sam Norton-Knight
Phil Waugh
Matt Dunning
Luke Burgess
Kurtley Beale
Jeremy Tilse
Dean Mumm
Daniel Halangahu
Chris Thomson
Brett Sheehan
Ben Batger
Beau Robinson
David Dennis
Peter Playford
Luke Doherty
So Waugh is the obvious one. Who is he managed by and who else do they manage? Dunning perhaps?
well the players out of contract at the end of the year are (I believe):
Tatafu Nau
Sekope Kepu
Sam Norton-Knight
Phil Waugh
Matt Dunning
Luke Burgess
Kurtley Beale
Jeremy Tilse
Dean Mumm
Daniel Halangahu
Chris Thomson
Brett Sheehan
Ben Batger
Beau Robinson
David Dennis
Peter Playford
Luke Doherty
So Waugh is the obvious one. Who is he managed by and who else do they manage? Dunning perhaps?
Ash
Michael Lynagh (62)
Brett Sheehan could be a smokey to be gone, but Waugh and Dunning would be my two picks.
Tisle is definitely gone anyway.
From the others in with a starting shot, Halangahu is another who wouldn't surprise if he went.
TPN, Keepu, Burgess, Mumm, Sam Two-Dads and Beale are the players from that list who WOULD surprise.
Tisle is definitely gone anyway.
From the others in with a starting shot, Halangahu is another who wouldn't surprise if he went.
TPN, Keepu, Burgess, Mumm, Sam Two-Dads and Beale are the players from that list who WOULD surprise.
naza
Alan Cameron (40)
It isn't odd at all. He's an openside specialist and at 183cms and no more than 100kgs, he doesn't give them physical presence or lineout option at 6 or 8. With Vickerman gone and the NSW lock pairing not the biggest, you can't afford to go that small.
I've been suggesting if they go with 2 flyers, they'd do it with Ben Coridas at 6. He's 6'4" and 105 kgs so can cover both sides.
I've been suggesting if they go with 2 flyers, they'd do it with Ben Coridas at 6. He's 6'4" and 105 kgs so can cover both sides.
S
Spook
Guest
Hmm, Hate to see Waugh with a back pedalling scrum.
P
PhucNgo
Guest
Don't think he's going to get one of those at the Tahs this year. If the Tahs had another top notch second rower to allow Mumm to go to blindside breakaway they'd have a world class scrum.
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Rocky who?
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Rocky who?
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