TPN being flown to Europe

[cyclopath]

Thanks for posting that Vidiot. A very good read.
Our 2005 debacle on the EOYT was due, in no small part, to this poor lock binding, as aerial views showed.
The meerkats just make it worse. Add in a 92kg powderpuff number 2, and it is surprising we don't get reamed on every single scrum.

 

[RugbyReg]

from vidiot's linked article. Is this true? Because it goes completely against anything I was ever taught as a front and 2nd rower.

Australian scrum gurus believe that locks need not bind closely together to generate power. This is just the opposite of what young South African second rowers are taught in schools and clubs across the nation.

In fact, certain Aussie scrum coaches believe the need for locks to bind tightly in the engine room is a total myth. The Wallaby locks tend to use a loose bind and channel their energy directly behind the props.

the whole reason they are called locks is because they are there to lock the scrum for pete's sake.

 

[RugbyReg]

this is a good article :

There are at least two disadvantages to this scrum style.

First, the Wallaby locks’ loose bind on each other leaves the hooker isolated and unprotected. A savvy and battle-hardened opposition tighthead and hooker combination will take advantage of this and put a painful squeeze on the two, who’s got no one behind him.

Second, the eighthman at the back of the scrum almost becomes a non-factor. It’s essentially a seven-man push. In this year’s Tri-Nations, Richard Brown, and Ben McCalman in the last two tests, could not propel forward and stabilise the locks with their shoulders. Instead, the Wallaby 8s were limited to pushing on the locks’ backsides with just their forearms. This does not generate nearly enough push as a shoulder drive.

 

[Groucho]

It is sounding like we have many technical problems in the scrum.

It is sounding like we need a technical scrum coach.

 

[Hawko]

Does anyone else think that its frightening that we have to read a technical article on how to improve our scrum in a South African newspaper and it really makes sense??

Foley must be tearing his hair out. All his good work has come to nothing within 12 months.

 

[RedsHappy]

Does anyone else think that its frightening that we have to read a technical article on how to improve our scrum in a South African newspaper and it really makes sense?? Foley must be tearing his hair out. All his good work has come to nothing within 12 months.

I know I am routinely bagged in the 'broken record re coaches' club, and my psychotherapist and I are working through the ramifications carefully, but I have said for some considerable time, and stand by it: The Wallaby Assistant Coaches - Williams and Graham - have been (very serious) failures. And, actually, this is Deans' greatest failure - he has constructed himself as the all-knowing Master Coach able to personally drive and instruct all facets of the team, and second-rate yes-men have been the result underneath him. That is why Foley left, all the insiders say it. That is why the ARU have quietly shifted Graham out, and, rightly or wrongly, parachuted Nucifora and Blake in, and insisted on some form of kicking coach (negligently late, after the event of the Giteau's boot debacles and the resulting lost Tests). The result today is an unstable, unsure, and insufficiently deep coaching organisation, and a team too dependent on the natural brilliance of 3 or 4 backs and one flanker. Our wins will thus be 'fragile', in that they will be excessively constructed on that special talent, and not upon the coherence and evenness of the whole.

Deans is an able individual 'thinking' coach, however the personal talent of one is a necessary but far from sufficient attribute of an elite coaching group aiming have their team be No 1 in a highly competitive global sport. A well managed and structured total coaching organisation is essential, covering all key specialist facets of play, and player development. Forwards, defence and scrum in total require at least 2 dedicated, proven specialists focussing solely on these aspects. Deans' self-declared 'I am the defence coach' is reckless, and IMO the wrong use of his skills. Given that we are pre RWC and trying to rebuild fan love for the code in Australia via a revival of a consistently winning team, we have two immediate alternatives in this area, both require large licks of humble pie by Deans, but so what frankly if the team's success is the thing, and not one man's ego: (a) Foley returns or (b) Link (+Evans) are brought in for forwards/defence/scrum, and Evans takes over when Link has S15 duties.

Not taking this type of action IMO risks a kind of very dark, horrendous Grecian tragedy for Australian rugby: namely, we get to October 2011, and we lose yet again via an inadequately selected, coached and hardened forwards pack, just as was the case in 2007 (and arguably aspects of 2003?). And the brilliant young backs and Bam just couldn't do enough to compensate.

 

[Reddy!]

I think if TPN is there waiting at home, and fit to play he should.

If we want to build momentum into next year we need to win games and that means having the strongest scrum possible.

Injuries are unavoidable in rugby - if he doesn't injure himself on this tour, he will next year. You can't predict these things. If we were always worried about players being injured, none of the stars would ever play.

I will just emphasise this point again: our scrum was embarressingly bad against the Welsh, we need the best people out there to help improve it.

 

[fatprop]

You would assume he has been in the Tahs pre season flogging program building his fitness, if he can stand on two feet he will be better than anyone other than Moore over there

 

[The_Brown_Hornet]

That was a great article and if what they say about modern Australian scrum coaching is true, then I am a bit dismayed. As a junior and young grade player who played lock and flanker/8, I had it drummed into me that as a lock or 8, I had to not only have my shoulders up the backsides in front of me, but I had to be tightly bound to the guy along side me. As the article says, it's simple physics.

 

[topo]

You would assume he has been in the Tahs pre season flogging program building his fitness, if he can stand on two feet he will be better than anyone other than Moore over there

He's only about 8 weeks post ankle surgery so he can't have been doing too much lower body stuff recently. The tahs pre season flogging program only started last Mon. I'd be surprised if he is ready for a hard forward focussed Test match. But, being TPN, he'd sure give it a crack.

 

[Richard D. James]

As the article says, it's simple physics.

pfft... who needs physics when you're being "innovative". Obviously every other international Rugby team is doing it wrong.

 

[Lance Free]

He's been out injured for months with a disc injury in his neck and has only just started contact training again recently. Not an option.

Like TPN Topo? I thought I read on his blog about a month or so ago that he was back doing contact work? Sounds like he's aerobically not too bad either. Couldn't do worse?

 

[vert]

Good. Just so good. I'd be pleased if they put TPN and damo fitzpatrick as the two wallabies hookers, think that Fainga lost his spot on the weekend and Moore lost his over a number of bad perfomances

 

[kiap]

Ok I've stewed on this overnight and I'm still pissed off.

I was at the Barbarians match in Gosford when TPN made his comeback. He played very well at Hooker and went off at 41 minutes with a niggle. Then Pek Cowan went down and considering our scrum was getting smashed by the Poms (8 scrum penalties) we thought, yay, uncontested.

But Robbie had other ideas, bringing TPN back to play Tighthead Prop and justifying it in the presser by saying TPN played that position at club level. To me the idea of bringing back a player on his return from injury who has put in a massive 50 minutes and then picked up a niggle, to join a dominated scrum in a position he has not played in years when uncontested scrums would not only have won us the game, but also be seen as legitimate with the existing injury count stinks of negligence.

Now Tatafu is apparently recovered which is convenient as he wasn't fit enough to be picked two weeks ago but now that Moore is down, he is. TPN is key to our world cup campaign, going raw and not match-fit into a Twickenham match will hardly help his recovery. On past form, can we trust Robbie to look after his well being?

Yup. What happened to Tatafu in Gosford was extremely poor team management. We need this guy back long term and he should be allowed to recover properly. If he is truly fit, fine, but otherwise his injury management is a higher priority than the result of the EOYT match against England.

 

[disco]

It is sounding like we have many technical problems in the scrum.

It is sounding like we need a technical scrum coach.

Bring back Axle.

 

[disco]

Good. Just so good. I'd be pleased if they put TPN and damo fitzpatrick as the two wallabies hookers, think that Fainga lost his spot on the weekend and Moore lost his over a number of bad perfomances

Moore has been brilliant in his last 3 matches have a look at Bledisloe 4 in HK & see who looked after Richie at the Breakdown. It wasn't Pocock it was Moore who was smashing Richie off the ball more often than not.

 

[BRIX]

I guess the big question about this is how important is it to beat the English this weekend? If the world cup is all that matters then we should leave TPN at home to make sure he has no niggle. If we think it important to beat the English this weekend, then reconsidering the status of TPNs injury might be reasonable.

Incredibly important, brother.

 

[cyclopath]

Incredibly important, brother.

I agree. Time for "development" has passed, to a large degree. Now this team needs confidence, and to get on a roll. Combinations. They MUST be looking at this tour as a potential clean slate of wins. Mid-week games aside, although they help!

 

[The_Brown_Hornet]

How important is this game? I'm amazed the question needs to be asked. IT'S A BLOODY TEST MATCH!!!! Forget the RWC, it's 10 months away. Right now we have important games to attend to. You don't win the RWC if you aren't winning games in the lead up.

 

[Bruce Ross]

How important is this game? I'm amazed the question needs to be asked. IT'S A BLOODY TEST MATCH!!!! Forget the RWC, it's 10 months away. Right now we have important games to attend to. You don't win the RWC if you aren't winning games in the lead up.

I am in total agreement, Hornet, but I think that everything after your exclamation marks is superfluous. We're talking about a Test against England.

This preoccupation with a knockout carnival devalues the importance of contests between nations and provides excuses for coaches who are unable to field competitive teams.