The Wallabies Thread
- Thread starter KOB1987
- Start date
upthereds#!
Peter Johnson (47)
do you mean the reds ones? Lukhan and Hendrik?....Hendrick is a capped Japan International but Lukhan would be eligible.
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Luckhan has strong physical attributes, a very promising young player, but has a bad habit of losing the ball in contact, almost once or twice a game.
Hendrik Tui was only Japanese eligible based on residency as far as I know.
Are Hendrik and Tui actually related? They were both born in Auckland but I know Lukhan lived in Sydney from a young age.
Are Hendrik and Tui actually related? They were both born in Auckland but I know Lukhan lived in Sydney from a young age.
KOB1987
John Eales (66)
Yes I have since looked on Wikipedia, I probably should have done that before I posted!
Hendrick is 9 years older and I can't find any mention anywhere of them being related which probably means they aren't, at least not brothers.
So let's forget about Hendrick for this thread. Lukhan could possibly be a future Fardy understudy? I know he plays lock but he's not a huge one..
Hendrick is 9 years older and I can't find any mention anywhere of them being related which probably means they aren't, at least not brothers.
So let's forget about Hendrick for this thread. Lukhan could possibly be a future Fardy understudy? I know he plays lock but he's not a huge one..
wamberal
Phil Kearns (64)
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He is is 200cm and 120kg at only 19years old, he won't get as tall as Arnold but he has a massive frame, i think his future is solely at lock.
swingpass
Peter Sullivan (51)
i think his future is to be overhyped, underdeveloped and a massive disappointment to all the folk on G&G until he goes to Europe and dominates for a few years before returning as a a "saviour" to Australian rugby, only to be injured in the opening minutes of a Bledlisloe decider at Eden Park, where our attacking lineout gets picked off in the dying minutes for the AB's to go coast to coast and convert the try to win by a point, thereby continuing the Wallabies losing streak to 40 years !
swingpass
Peter Sullivan (51)
i am invariably almost always wrong by the way. #notnostradamus.
Thats very negative, the Wallabies losing streak to 40 years, should say The All Blacks victorious for 40 glorious years
The torpedo
Peter Fenwicke (45)
But then......................................................................on the big screen, there's a forward pass. Wayne Barnes refers to the TMO, and after 5 minutes of standing around, declares no try, forward pass, game over, wallabies win by six. A Royal Commission is set up in NZ to find out why they lost, riots break out in NZ, I have a jeremy clarkson level smug face and...................................................I then wake up from my dream
Wallabies won't win the Bled until 2022. At the earliest
and every time you guys get down on yourselves and the Abs winning everyyear, i have dreams with gregan tackling wilson in the corner and Eales kicking on on fulltime in wellington, and then theres 1998. enough to wake in a terrible stateBut then........................on the big screen, there's a forward pass. Wayne Barnes refers to the TMO, and after 5 minutes of standing around, declares no try, forward pass, game over, wallabies win by six. A Royal Commission is set up in NZ to find out why they lost, riots break out in NZ, I have a jeremy clarkson level smug face and.................I then wake up from my dream
Wallabies won't win the Bled until 2022. At the earliest
The torpedo
Peter Fenwicke (45)
At least you guys have won a game this year.
And have 3 world cups.
And the Bled.
And every trophy you are eligible to win.
Anyway, what was the mood like in NZ when the wallabies were winning everything? (pretty much from 1998-2002)
Well, that was a chastening experience against the Poms. A few thoughts:
- The First Test was the Poms seventh since the RWC, our first. Their combinations and tactics were much more settled than ours, and it showed.
- A few injuries in key positions (8/12 fer instance) severely tested our depth. We have five professional sides in Oz, the Poms have 24, with only a few of them weak. We must be very smart about developing and keeping our talent.
- I can't help escaping the feeling the Super sides are letting the national team down. Most of the Oz sides aren't as fit as they should be for starters. Form/results-wise the Reds are a debacle of their own design due to the RG fiasco; the Tahs are coming down from the heights of 2014 with departures in key positions and a new coach, and started the season not fit enough; the Brumbies are disappointing considering the quality of their squad, some of their losses have been very sloppy; the Rebels have promised much the last few years but just can't seem to break out of the bottom third and threaten for the finals; and the Force battle on with meagre resources after the boom/bust days of Firepower (did no one do any research on Johnston?, it was there for all to see) although I notice some green shoots in Perth with local talent coming through.
- There have been comments here Cheik's coaching staff needs improvement, I agree. The Poms have many times our budget, but the Kiwis don't and have a much more professional group running the ABs. Kicking: I've been banging on about this for years, we have the best oval ball kickers in the world right next to us everywhere and we don't use them. As one born and brought up in southern NSW who played Aussie Rules as his first football code it shits me to watch such crap kicking from Australian rugby players. Mick Byrne (ex-Swan) has consulted to both the Springboks and All Blacks as a kicking coach, Ben Perkins (ex-Port Adelaide) has done some work with NZ Super sides. Do we ask any AFL players or coaches for a few kicking tips while mucking about on Moore Park? Obviously not. The other coaches: the Brumbies job is, effectively, Larkham's first coaching gig. I can't escape the feeling he should've done an apprenticeship somewhere else, as McKenzie, Jones and Cheika have all done. To ask Stephen to back up from his Super responsibilities looks like too much at this stage of his coaching career. Call me a hard marker but the performances of the backs at both the Brumbies and Wallabies are wanting. The Wallabies also look as if they need another forwards coach to fine tune their lineouts and breakdowns. Maybe bring Foley back, he was an excellent assistant coach in charge of the forwards at both the Wallabies and Waratahs.
- All isn't lost, there's a shitload of promising talent coming through to add to the handful of newbies over the last year. I refer to the bevy of hookers in Hanson, Ready and Scoble, props including Sio, Ala'alatoa and Robertson (Tom's got future Wallaby written all over him but I'm very concerned about an intelligent THP, what's the world coming to?), some excellent potential in Arnold and Coleman for the second row, backrowers in Dempsey, Hanigan, McMahon and Holloway and Powell, Hodge, Kerevi, DHP and Kellaway in the backs (if only Andrew was 10cm taller, even 5cm'd do). Please forgive the Tah-centric emphasis to this list but I watch them more than others. If Cheika can develop this cohort along with keeping some/most of the established lot up to form we'll be competitive up to the next RWC. But it's imperative the Super coaches bring these players, and others, through, something New Zealand do so much better than us, ie, turning promising young talent into the finished product.
- Something else Cheika and the Super coaches MUST do is a shitload of work on those positions where we're weak. I refer specifically to the halves positions ATM. The ARU should never again let the Super franchises have two of the five starting halfback spots filled by foreigners. And we desperately need a competent backup to Foley at 10. Or better, two backups in case of injury.
- It would be well to remember Dwyer lost the 1989 series against the BILs thus causing him to reappraise his approach and personnel before going on to win the RWC two years later. Let's hope Cheika has a similar road to Damascus moment.
Forcefield
Ken Catchpole (46)
I thought the reason we are all struggling is because all the Super Rugby sides are on the breadline and can't afford decent assistant coaches (or head coaches!) to add that top 2%.
tragic
John Solomon (38)
Can't like that enough.
Absolutely spot on.
So much banging on about what are essentially very small differences between locks,flankers, or wingers when that series showed conclusively the kicking and the halves depth is the elephant in the room.
Regardless of improvement in other areas we won't be competitive with the top sides until we address that part of our game.