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The Wallaby 12 Conundrum

Who do you think should be the Wallaby 12?

  • Total voters
    55
  • Poll closed .
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Aussie D

Aussie D

Desmond Connor (43)
Watching the game last night and having the discussion throughout the Super Rugby series the question needs to be asked of who should be the Wallaby 12. The candidates as I see them are as follows:
Matt To'omua - incumbent, excellent defence and brings physicality to the position but seems to lack the attacking spark (at international level at least as he consistently produces attacking spark for the Brumbies), kicking game has been off lately.
Kurtley Beale - Attacking spark in abundance, lacks physicality and has a tendency to be passive in defence. Kicking game in the past has been more miss than hit.
Kyle Godwin - the Force fans favourite. I haven't seen enough of his play to make a definitive call but at super level his defence is good and he provides attacking spark. However, test rugby is a lot tougher than super rugby and he is untried at this level.
Mitch Inman - Rebels favourite. Hard running centre, tough tackling. Does he have the creativity needed for test rugby (IMHO running hard is not enough at inside centre - perfectly fine for the 13 though). Does he have a kicking game? Is he up to test level?
Ben Tapuai - Former Wallaby 12 seems to have gone off the boil through injury and being selected out of position over the past few years. Does he still have what it takes? Is he the answer?
Anthony Fainga'a Another former Wallaby 12 who has gone off the boil. His problem at Wallaby level was consistency.
Rob Horne - Has played centre and wing for the Wallabies with varying degrees of success. Proven to be test capable (at wing - debatably at centre), strong defence and running game, lacks attacking spark. Played on the wing this year but was one of the 'tahs best at 12 in 2013.
Tevita Kuridrani - Has been playing the house down at 13 and is Bob Dwyer's preferred 12. Does he have the skillset necessary for this position?

Of course the selection of the 12 will be influenced by who is playing 10, with Quade on the comeback trail and expected to be selected for the end of year tour. What are your thoughts?

For the poll I haven't included truly out-of-left-field selections such as Scott Higginbotham or Michael Hooper. The poll will close in 7 days.
 
Aussie D

Aussie D

Desmond Connor (43)
Nor would I on last night's performance. Has cemented his place there for the rest of the year (barring injury) in my opinion. AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) is doing well on the wing so I would hate to see him moved as well. Personally, if MT is injured as has been reported for the Argie test I would like to see Kyle Godwin given a run (if fit) to see if he is up to this level, as he has impressed at super rugby level for a couple of years. I expect Link, being the conservative coach he is, to go for Kurtley Beale though.
 
BarneySF

BarneySF

Bob Loudon (25)
Beale would definitely be making his 'going to League' noises if Link trials Godwin at 12 - which wold be interesting to see. Surely if not Beale he'd go with Lilo though?
 
Lorenzo

Lorenzo

Colin Windon (37)
Out of the people over there I'd like to see Horne, but I think we'll see Beale.

Long term it would be between Godwin and Kerevi, for me.
 
Bairdy

Bairdy

Peter Fenwicke (45)
Taps.

Got his chance to play for the Wallabies through injury in 2012, but deserved to be there initially based on his Super form if I recall. Since then, he has been discarded for reasons unknown.

I think he's injured, so the discussion is probably pointless, but he is a specialist inside centre with the distribution game akin to To'omua, runs well in traffic and is strong defensively. Was also the most consistent performer for the Reds in 2014.

Regardless, Link is adamant on his 12 being a secondary playmaker, so it's really a toss up between To'omua and Lilo to start, and Beale on the bench.
 
Tomikin

Tomikin

David Codey (61)
Aussie D said:
Nor would I on last night's performance. Has cemented his place there for the rest of the year (barring injury) in my opinion. AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) is doing well on the wing so I would hate to see him moved as well. Personally, if MT is injured as has been reported for the Argie test I would like to see Kyle Godwin given a run (if fit) to see if he is up to this level, as he has impressed at super rugby level for a couple of years. I expect Link, being the conservative coach he is, to go for Kurtley Beale though.
Click to expand...
Is Goodwin on tour?
 
Pfitzy

Pfitzy

Nathan Sharpe (72)
BDA said:
To'omua looked best outside cooper last year - i thought they complimented each other well. that would be my 10/12 on the EOYT and the third bledisloe. put foley on the bench. get rid of beale.
Click to expand...


Interesting. Who is your halfback in that scenario? With my one guess, I'm going:

*drum roll*

Nick Phipps!

:)

Nah just fucking with you. I know you want Genia back there ASAP.

Anyway, I see a place for Beale as the outside back bench replacement.

Short memories.
 
BDA

BDA

Jim Lenehan (48)
Pfitzy said:
Interesting. Who is your halfback in that scenario? With my one guess, I'm going:

*drum roll*

Nick Phipps!

:)

Nah just fucking with you. I know you want Genia back there ASAP.

Anyway, I see a place for Beale as the outside back bench replacement.

Short memories.
Click to expand...


I actually think Phipps has been playing very well this season. He's definitely our 1st choice half on current form but if Genia can regain his top form, yes his partnership with Cooper is our best bet imho
 
Pfitzy

Pfitzy

Nathan Sharpe (72)
Actually I agree - in fact if Genia can just play uninjured, I think its nearly guaranteed that it will be he and Cooper starting against the ABs in Brisbane.

As to the poll at hand: Mitch Inman. Takes no shit, gives plenty, likes to hurt people.
 
BDA

BDA

Jim Lenehan (48)
i might be being a bit harsh on Beale. I certainly dont think he should be in the starting side.
 
T

TOCC

Guest
I was pretty disappointed in some of To'omua's decision making last night, his kicking game at the moment is poor... Missing touch and grubber/chip kicks which are ineffective were detrimental to some of the momentum built by the Wallabies last night. On the other hand, some of his passing for Kuridrani was good and his 1 on 1 defence was good.


How about a centre pairing on Samu Kerevi and Tevita Kuridrani ;)
not serious.... yet
 
farva

farva

Vay Wilson (31)
Foley and Cooper both attack the line. They keep defenders on their toes. Kuridrani is able to draw multiple players and open space.
That lends itself to a stepper 12 as opposed to a bashed 12. Equally, with the exception of the Rebels our super sides have done the same.
To'omua for me sits too deep at the moment.
Beale's defence is questionable.
Inman and Finger are bash centres.
Horne could be an option but I like him on the wing.
That means Godwin or Taos for me.

Give Godwin a run in Argentina and see how he goes.
 
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