Groucho
Greg Davis (50)
When a someone picks a player that someone else wouldn't, that's man-love. When someone fails to pick a player someone else has man-love for, they hate that player. Leo Tolstoy's got nothing on that emotional range.
The Wallabies Thread
- Thread starter KOB1987
- Start date
When a someone picks a player that someone else wouldn't, that's man-love. When someone fails to pick a player someone else has man-love for, they hate that player. Leo Tolstoy's got nothing on that emotional range.
sort of my point, the back row as a team do it, actually the pigs as a group do it
Groucho
Greg Davis (50)
Which is what we appear to aiming for. The forwards as a group provide the set of services traditionally associated with specialists.
dru
David Wilson (68)
That's the idea. But are they, though?
Groucho
Greg Davis (50)
Not yet! If it was instant, the thousands of hours the AIGs have spent practising it wouldn't be needed. We have some catching up to do, if we want to win by emulating their methods. Not just that, but their urgent re-alignment in attack and defence, and putting the ball through the hands in narrow spaces in preference to the cutout pass. All the simple things Dwyer bangs on about. Execution! I think that in the long run that probably has a better chance of success than any other approach.
Even that can be sorted out, the Boks often have a guy on the ball runners hip driving him across the advantage line and becoming the first cleanout
The Tahs were doing for a while as well
It doesn't even have to be individual(s) in the pack, for a long time the guy to get us go forward was Sterling Mortlock, his crash ball usually started the momentum
upthereds#!
Peter Johnson (47)
agree. in a previous post i wrote
btw i See 6 and 8 as interchangeable as long as the balance is right.
as long as you have the full spectrum profile of players to excel in their particular portfolio, and they are all willing to do the hard yards.
Wilson
Phil Kearns (64)
And digby for both wallabies and reds, part what allowed higgers to play the wider role.
Exactly rugby is about using the resources available, not wishing and hoping for some magical player to be excreted from the someone's arse.
The Reds won the comp moving the ball away from contact as quickly as possible, not by having crash ball pigs getting go forward
The Tahs by using two pods with the apex having a unit on his hip
The challenge for the Wobs is that their set piece fundamentals have not let us use any structure or create any pressure for a lot of the first games of the season (it could have been all different if some of those opportunities vs the poms came off, because we were in those games for long periods and confidence is an amazing thing)
Joe Blow
John Hipwell (52)
The set piece was pretty solid on the weekend and it gave us some front foot ball. We were lacking a big ball carrying back rower that could consistently get us across the gain line though. The tight 5 did pretty well in this regard, but no better than any decent tight 5 would have done.
Inside Shoulder
Nathan Sharpe (72)
Sean McMahon seems to fit that bill and can handle 8 better than Pocock. He's offended someone.
Thinker
Darby Loudon (17)
I heard some scuttlebutt from a player the other day and I don't want to mention what I was told as simply rumour and speculation.
However, has anyone else heard anything about a bus trip involving the Wobs in recent weeks? (apologies if it has been discussed but I couldn't find anything in the thread)
However, has anyone else heard anything about a bus trip involving the Wobs in recent weeks? (apologies if it has been discussed but I couldn't find anything in the thread)
upthereds#!
Peter Johnson (47)
Mcmahon doesnt fit that bill. Hes not big, and at international level he doesnt consistently get us over the gain line.
Not saying he's not epic, just saying that bill is not his.
Scrubber2050
Mark Ella (57)
All I know is that they catch a bus to and from games and training.
.Anything else would have been in the shit media, by now
Inside Shoulder
Nathan Sharpe (72)
Every game I have seen him play he manages it.
I thought I heard that he had the most carry metres of any player in Oz during Super - which doesn't directly answer your point but suggests he's the best we have at this skill: this is part of the Cheika Selection Mystery (CSM).
By popular acclamation it seems to be agreed that a number of players are not being picked in the positions in which they are the best in Oz.
The least controversial one, by way of illustration, is Kerevi. He's not a noted defender so the CSM is to pick him out of position in the hardest channel to defend.
If what we need is a ball carrying #8 to get over the gain line picking a non ball carrying 7 is unlikely to provide the solution.
Scrubber2050
Mark Ella (57)
Suggestions ????
Inside Shoulder
Nathan Sharpe (72)
Pick the best bloke in the position - McMahon.
Old fashioned I know but its worked in the past.
Old fashioned I know but its worked in the past.
Is that our biggest problem though?
It would seem that a very substantial part of our forward issue is that the tight five aren't shouldering nearly enough of the workload needed by the whole pack and our backrow (particularly Pocock and Hooper) are picking up the slack.
The biggest gap in statistical terms between our team and the All Blacks for example is how much more involved in the game in general play their tight five are.
Brumby Runner
Jason Little (69)
^^^^^^^^^ Is the apparent low work rate of the tight five a result of the game plan? Why would the coaches persist if the players weren't giving what was asked of them.
Another thought occurred to me re the Pooper too. Hasn't the Pooper been reflected in the back row selections by the Rebels for the past two Super Rugby seasons? Often two No 7s and sometimes even three in the backrow. Works in some situations where speed to the breakdown is required, but on the whole has not led to very much success at the Rebels.
Another thought occurred to me re the Pooper too. Hasn't the Pooper been reflected in the back row selections by the Rebels for the past two Super Rugby seasons? Often two No 7s and sometimes even three in the backrow. Works in some situations where speed to the breakdown is required, but on the whole has not led to very much success at the Rebels.
Inside Shoulder
Nathan Sharpe (72)
No.
But an earlier poster thought it was so I offered the solution to that problem.
Our biggest problem is lack of fundamental skills. I reckon this feeds into the forwards work rate because we have to do so much more work to remedy skills shortages.