Marce
John Hipwell (52)
Does SBW have Aussie citizenship? Lol
Wallabies 2023
- Thread starter RugbyReg
- Start date
KOB1987
John Eales (66)
Do they still do billets?
Dctarget
Tim Horan (67)
How good is this story about Billy Pollard. Couldn't be woken up to warn him Rennie had placed him on the 6am flight, his brumbies team mates were called till eventually Reimer answered, went round to Pollard's house at 4am, broke the door down and got Pollard up just in time. Pollard packed two tops and two shorts and that was it. Missed his flight to Sydney, but bussed up there, flew to San Francisco, Houston, Santiago then finally Mendoza, 22,300km journey.
qwerty51
Stirling Mortlock (74)
Why are you obsessed with SBW
Marce
John Hipwell (52)
Only 2 messages about him. I rate highler Brad Thorn TBH
Ignoto
Peter Sullivan (51)
I guess with Korobeite in the team, if Foley plays, we'll still have a back that can do clearing kicks more than 20m.
Viking
Mark Ella (57)
Personally, I still think Petaia's best position is 13. He was great there in the last RWC. He could push to be the best player in the world in that position.
Ikitau currently has a mortgage on the spot, he is defensively and positionally solid. But if he goes down, I think the next in line is a step down. Paisami would probably go to 13, but I think he's much better at 12.
I love the idea of Petaia and Ikitau fighting it out for the 13 jersey. And then Wright and Kelleway fighting it out for the fullback spot. Kerevi, Paisami, Foketi fighting for 12.
The Ghost of Raelene
Simon Poidevin (60)
He's a big body that would suit 13 but I think he's shown a good ability under the high ball which we have lacked. Looking through my fingers every time a high ball goes up recently.
Did you forget about Perese at 13? If he stays fit is very solid and would likely be in the team now.
Viking
Mark Ella (57)
Oh man how could I forgot about Perese. Probably the most destructive runner out of all of them. He's got a bright future if he keeps improving on his defence.
Still prefer Petaia at 13. I'd just hate to see him end up as a Hodge or AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) who becomes a utility and never nails down a spot.
Viking
Mark Ella (57)
Banks, Kellaway, and Wright have all been good under the high ball.
Viking
Mark Ella (57)
Because this is a wallabies rugby forum where we discuss positions and players etc.
No he is not injured.
It would totally suck if he only played 121 tests like Adam Ashley-Cooper or 56 tests and counting prior to turning 28 like Reece Hodge.
Viking
Mark Ella (57)
Just imagine how good AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) would have been if he played 121 tests at 13 only.
Its great to get a single cap, let alone 121, or 56, but deep down every player wants to be a regular starter.
His versatility is why he played 121 tests. He wasn't our best 13 for significant chunks of his career (behind Mortlock or Kuridrani mostly).
Lightblue
Arch Winning (36)
Pop gun Foley.. good player but would have been better without his kicks that went nowhere!
Viking
Mark Ella (57)
So it's better for AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) but that does not necessarily mean it's better for the team. The best rugby teams from history have mostly had specialists in each position.
Slim 293
Stirling Mortlock (74)
Specialists, like Mortlock and Kuridrani...
Meanwhile, the All Blacks wingers for the RWC 2011 final were Kahui and Jane.
Didn't he keep getting selected in various positions because he was generally the best available for that role?
If he was only ever considered a 13 then we would have gone many tests selecting an inferior fullback or wing. If the 13 was unavailable then a decision is made on whether your team is better by moving AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) to 13 and bring in another wing or leave him on the wing and bring in a 13. It's a case of whether your next best 13 or wing is a better player on a relative basis.
The Wallabies have mostly had specialists in each position. We've rarely had players who move around a lot and those that could play multiple positions tended to stay in the same position for extended periods of time.