Wallabies 2023

[Namerican]

For literally all the other chatter going on, seeing Arnold selected in a very 2025 & 2027 forward looking squad is somewhat perplexing.

Obviously Eddie values freakishly tall/large locks. And there isn't a young lock that is nearly 7' tall.

 

[Tomthumb]

Just curious, if donalson isnt in the 23, who plays 10 if gordan goes down injured?

Jordan Uelese

 

[Braveheart81]

Just curious, if donalson isnt in the 23, who plays 10 if gordan goes down injured?

I'm not really sure and it would depend what the new look bench is. If Foketi is in the 22 shirt then him.

I could be wrong but my guess is that this squad looks like we run the risk of Gordon getting injured and don't really play to have a ready replacement in the 23.

 

[stillmissit]

He gave Cooper the chance, he gave him time to get back to his best, he understood he is recovering from injury so he needed more time to find form and fitness. The gamble didn’t work, he didn’t find form in time. Time to go with plan B. Which I am totally all for.

Until that plan B is Donaldson…. That’s a head scratcher that one.

Donaldson will perform that utility-back role well enough and certainly better than Hodge who I have always liked but has slowed this year.

It was a bit of a shock to read it and Samu is a loss we didn't need to dump but all in all, we were going nowhere with what we had and we all saw how frustrated he was in the 2nd Bled so I think he thought we can't go any worse, I'm going to take whoever we have with bags of talent and see what we can do.

 

[BDA]

Foketi can play 10? So if gordon goes down injured in the first half we're basically fucked? Seems to me like eddies only option is to include donaldson in the 23 in every game.

I think the idea that we wont need to rely heavily on our back up 10 is fraught with danger particularly given that in recent years we've seen a move to teams subbing in a fresh 10 in ths second half. Hell eddie has done it in every test this year and gordan hasnt played 80 minutes at 10 in any game

 

[fatprop]

Donaldson will perform that utility-back role well enough and certainly better than Hodge who I have always liked but has slowed this year.

It was a bit of a shock to read it and Samu is a loss we didn't need to dump but all in all, we were going nowhere with what we had and we all saw how frustrated he was in the 2nd Bled so I think he thought we can't go any worse, I'm going to take whoever we have with bags of talent and see what we can do.

Samu hasn't played great this year, in Hooper & Kemeny he has preferred workrate, in Gleeson, stupidly hard running

 

[qwerty51]

Just curious, if donalson isnt in the 23, who plays 10 if gordan goes down injured?

If I had to guess, he'll do a 6:2 with Leota and Gleeson (or Kemeny) and then White and Perese as the bench backs.

Tate would play 10 but he's more looking at it like, we're already fucked who cares.

Where's this talk Foketi can play 10 coming from?

It's not good but fucking Eddie.

My actual guess is Donaldson makes the 23 though.

 

[stillmissit]

Somewhat of a stretch to attribute 6 losses to one player, which is kind of what you're doing. I reckon the wider squad for all those tests was as much an issue as 1 player. They got done badly.
Given he did not pick Cooper, I am bemused as to why he would think he'll get more from Donaldson than, say, Foley.
I'd have picked Cooper, by the way, or Lolesio rather than Donaldson, even though people keep qualifying Donaldson as the "utility". By definition a utility has multiple purposes...
Anyway, I suspect Eddie will have a short tenure. I think this campaign will go tits up. It's a bizarre squad.

Agree, I am sticking with my wild arse guess that he won't be the coach for the next Wallaby season, he will be off topping up his retirement portfolio in US etc. He will have left us with the makings of a great team and that is far better than he did last time.

I think we will go as well as we would have with others. I've moved from we are in trouble getting out of our pool to we should go OK in the qtrs and the semi's are most probably a place too far but I wouldn't rule it out.

 

[KiwiM]

I wonder if Eddie's plan for Donaldson is to just build some confidence back in him through training.

No need to throw him to the wolves vs Boks or ABs.

He's had a pretty rough 12 months with the loss to Italy on debut and then the Tahs season which was a bit of a disaster.

He should get plenty of game time in pool play.

 

[Braveheart81]

Foketi can play 10? So if gordon goes down injured in the first half we're basically fucked? Seems to me like eddies only option is to include donaldson in the 23 in every game.

I think the idea that we wont need to rely heavily on our back up 10 is fraught with danger particularly given that in recent years we've seen a move to teams subbing in a fresh 10 in ths second half. Hell eddie has done it in every test this year and gordan hasnt played 80 minutes at 10 in any game

This is just my guess. I think if Jones still wanted a reserve 10 in his best 23, Cooper wouldn't have been dropped.

If Gordon got injured we play very differently for the rest of the match and largely play off the 9.

 

[stillmissit]

Samu hasn't played great this year, in Hooper & Kemeny he has preferred workrate, in Gleeson, stupidly hard running

Agree with your rationale on this but I thought Samu would lift in his farewell to Aus rugby. He's 31 so not over the hill yet.

 

[Braveheart81]

I wonder if Eddie's plan for Donaldson is to just build some confidence back in him through training.

No need to throw him to the wolves vs Boks or ABs.

He's had a pretty rough 12 months with the loss to Italy on debut and then the Tahs season which was a bit of a disaster.

He should get plenty of game time in pool play.

Donaldson started the following week against Wales and we won.

 

[qwerty51]

Donaldson started the following week against Wales and we won.

The score was 34-13 to Wales when Donaldson got subbed off.

 

[Braveheart81]

The score was 34-13 to Wales when Donaldson got subbed off.

This is a valid point.

Mostly I just think it's unlikely Donaldson is low on confidence. His confidence is probably higher than it deserves to be.

 

[Dismal Pillock]

You made me fucking look. You're on my shit list now.
***SHIT LIST NOW****

 

[cyclopath]

Reminds me of Damien McKenzie lining up a kick...

 

[Bullrush]

On 22 October 2019 Josh Navidi withdrew from the squad having failed to recover from injury and he was replaced by Owen Lane.[54]
1 On 29 September, Sam Carter and James Hanson were called up to the squad to replace Will Skelton and Wycliff Palu, injured during Australia's game with Uruguay.[2]
2 On 28 September, Gareth Anscombe and James Hook were called up to the squad to replace Hallam Amos and Scott Williams who were injured in Wales's win against England.[13]
On 14 September, Eli Walker was released from the squad following injury and was replaced with Ross Moriarty.[11]
On 29 September, Blair Cowan replaced Grant Gilchrist in the squad following injury.[21]
2 On 17 October, Rory Sutherland replaced Ryan Grant in the squad following injury.[22]

There's a million of these. Backs replacing forwards and vice-versa.

It says injury of course but how do we know if they were injured? There's proof right there that teams replace players with not an actual like-for-like replacement but someone more suited to the squad.

The onus shouldn't be on me to show WR (World Rugby) (World Rugby) don't do fuck all due diligence (because they can't really) in evaluating the merit of an injury replacement.

Were any of those injuries considered fake or part of replacement plan strategy.

The onus is on you to show why there would be a need for WR (World Rugby) to have previously thought there was any ‘sneaky replacement stuff’ taking place.

 

[Tomthumb]

To be fair, Donaldson was decent vs Wales. That score line had more to do with 2 Yellow cards and a forward pack getting pushed around

I'd prefer Lolesio over him, but the negativity against Donaldson seems to be a bit much. I get it, he didn't have a great Super Season, but which Waratah did?

 

[Eddie's Eyebrows]

Were any of those injuries considered fake or part of replacement plan strategy.

The onus is on you to show why there would be a need for WR (World Rugby) (World Rugby) to have previously thought there was any ‘sneaky replacement stuff’ taking place.

I don't think Eddie is strategising for injuries as your suggesting. I believe Eddie is expecting injuries.

We had 7 injuries during the shortened RC (and that's with one rest week).

I seriously doubt any team in the RWC will get through the pool with their original squad in tact.

 

[Joe Blow]

I'm not really sure and it would depend what the new look bench is. If Foketi is in the 22 shirt then him.

I could be wrong but my guess is that this squad looks like we run the risk of Gordon getting injured and don't really play to have a ready replacement in the 23.

Does that sound at all reasonable for a RWC campaign?