Time to Complain to the ARU

[qwerty51]

How much prep time did the Scot's have compared to us?

Since Glasglow and Edinburgh were knocked out of the Pro12 and Heineken respectively on April 28 and May 12. Add maybe 1-2 weeks for holidays.

 

[SealClubber77]

I actually think Cooper would have been good last night.

I read an article by Spiro today that said a lot of Australian players hold the misconception that wet weather rugby requires extremely tight attacking lines, when really it doesn't (he didn't expand on what he thinks it does require, but in my experience it just needs slightly more depth to account for the half-second delay in handling, and calmer/deliberate support from the forwards).

Say what you like about Cooper, but he also has the minerals to throw it around a bit regardless of conditions. That probably would have been quite good for the Wallabies last night.

I feel that Quade would have been an absolutely mess in the weather. And the addition of rush defence and a possible hesitation to step after his injury could have seen the game take a whole different turn in Scotland's favour. I watched highlights of the world cup game against Ireland and his behind the back flick pass that was intercepted for an almost full field try made me cringe. So now i'm cringing at the thought of rush defence, wet weather and Quade Cooper. However his kicking game and kicking tactics would probably have been far better than Barnes'.

 

[Bruce Ross]

The ARU did NOT say it was 'making the best of a bad situation', they said something totally different, namely that 'we are doing the Scots a favour'. What an idiotic call, why should we risk additional injuries and the potential humiliation of a sequential loss to Scotland and poor preparation v Wales, just to do Scotland 'a favour'.

At times, RH, you can be a very harsh critic. I fear this may blind you to the good things that people and organisations do. I'm going to pose a question:

When was the last time that the ARU stated a clear objective and achieved it?

Do you get my point? Objective: To do the Scots a favour by scheduling a Test four days after Super 15 games. Result: Massive over-achievement. The Scots will be in our debt for years.

I believe our national body has just turned the corner. Let's have some positive reinforcement from you, RH. Join with me in giving them a robust pat on the back that will help inspire them to set further relatively easy objectives they are likely to meet. That will give them the confidence to move on to the tougher tasks like actually winning Tests.

I am told the Samoans are so thankful for the "favour" we did them last year they want to play us every year.
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[Antony]

Do you get my point? Objective: To do the Scots a favour by scheduling a Test four days after Super 15 games. Result: Massive over-achievement. The Scots will be in our debt for years.

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Fair point, though I'm not sure if you were being sarcastic.

The three main Southern Hemisphere countries are in the interesting position of having the bulk of the talent, but a minority of the votes at all relevant levels of the IRB. If there's any chance of turning this gratitude into south-friendly IRB votes the next time somebody proposes some dumbass law change, then the game was almost worth it from the ARU's perspective.

Admittedly, the pain of the loss was substantially/entirely numbed for me by virtue of being a New Zealander (I do like the Wallabies though - just to clear up that I'm not taking the piss).

 

[Bruce Ross]

Fair point, though I'm not sure if you were being sarcastic.

Antony, you've just made my day. .

 

[Antony]

Antony, you've just made my day. .

I blame my Invercargill blood. We're a very genuine bunch.

 

[Bruce Ross]

I blame my Invercargill blood. We're a very genuine bunch.

I thought Scots were more canny than that, Antony.
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[Antony]

I thought Scots were more canny than that, Antony.
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Wouldn't know, we're Irish. Which probably explains it even further.