Wallabies 2024

[Tomthumb]

it is a sad position that Aus rugby finds itself in, on the back of plenty of issues, not supporting Rennie and the EJ (Eddie Jones) (Eddie Jones) train crash being right up there. Surely though, a sober assessment will see the Wallabies defeating teams ranked 11 and 12 - at home. With those successes the Wallabies are at 78.96 points to Bokke with 93.11 points.

Schmidt has started well with 2 seconds of coaching before taking on the internationals with a new squad and a developing 23. They have had much more time to gel the 23 and better pull together game plan and strategy - BUT it is still very early days.

Even Argentina is ranked 7. The RC is going to be tough and there is a real danger that we could drop below Fiji in the rankings. We hope otherwise but I don't think we aught be surprised by negative assessments.

I agree with most of this, but lets not do the poor Rennie thing again. Eddie was an obvious clusterbleep, but honestly Rennie was a part of the problem too. Questionable training methods with a crazy amount of injuries, no development of 9s, 10s or 15s, no improvement in clutch situations and making the same mistakes time and time again, and massive assistant upheaval with Taylor and Wisemantel etc.

In a way the Eddie disaster was a good thing in as much as it forced RA to admit massive change is needed instead of trying to delude ourselves into believing that we were anywhere near the better teams with Rennie

I have major faith in Joe, his decade of international experience with be vital to dealing with issues that come up. And the way he turned NZ around so fast shows he doesn't need that long to make his impact felt

 

[Strewthcobber]

I don’t think he started until later in the year

Schmidt hints at local-based policy as he commences Wallabies job

New Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt has indicated his intentions to select from Australia as he begins life in the new role.

www.rugby.com.au

 

[Sword of Justice]

I recall these pages making mention of the fact that Schmidt specifically turned down a mid-season camp with the Super players because he didn’t see the value. It’s probably not a million miles away from the truth.

He’s also given the players time after Super and after Wales/Georgia to rest which is not really new age thinking but obviously very different to Eddie.

 

[dru]

but honestly Rennie was a part of the problem too.

Oh, I completely agree. Still that close to the RWC and at least with team development having happened (whether you liked it or not), we'd have been much better to continue and bring in someone else later. In this situation the word "support" should be qualified, to be fair.

 

[Joe Blow]

I don't really understand why Schmidt has had so little time with this team?

He was appointed in January, and started on 1 March. Why were their reports that he had met some players for the first time in July?

It makes no sense.

Thats a little unfair. Super Rugby was going on and a get together mid comp would not have pushed them much further along. Schmidt went team to team and learned about them. He obviously has his own ideas now regarding who should be part of the group and who may not be. He is still learning but the signs over the first 3 tests have been promising. We need to back him and his team and support them as they grow. Our expectations should be modest based on what we have been served up over the past few years. If they are I am sure he will surpass them with ease.

 

[The Ghost of Raelene]

Looks like Angus Bell is tracking well. Back training and a few weeks away from playing according to him on the KOKO podcast. Hope he is past his foot issues.

This is great, but in all honesty I'd rather he keep rehabbing then prehabbing and get a full pre-season in next year and start the year with NSW and hopefully fit and fresh coming into the Lions.

At least sit him through the TRC and maybe take him North. This could be an opportunity to build that depth we need or test and see who's up to it a couple years out from a WC.

 

[Wilson]

This is great, but in all honesty I'd rather he keep rehabbing then prehabbing and get a full pre-season in next year and start the year with NSW and hopefully fit and fresh coming into the Lions.

At least sit him through the TRC and maybe take him North. This could be an opportunity to build that depth we need or test and see who's up to it a couple years out from a WC.

Yeah, repeated foot issues and very little rugby played in the last 2 years, this return from injury feels awfully close to make or break for his career. where we are in the cycle there's a lot more to be gained from an overly cautious approach.

 

[barbarian]

Not knocking Skelton but that wasn’t what I took out of it at all.

Jones seemed determined to prove everyone wrong by not following any sort of rational approach to coaching the national team. He had no consistency with player selections, took a completely illogical approach to coaching appointments, pushed out experience, picked guys who were injured and clearly weren’t fit for test rugby and used injury as a reason not to pick other guys who were, by all accounts, fit to play when it mattered. Tactically he was open and vocal about what he didn’t want but, based on some of the player comments, appeared vague and poorly defined about what he did. He did introduce some young guys to test rugby but, for the most part, that seems to have done at least as much harm as good. And the whole time he publicly made the whole thing a circus which, if you’re generous you could say was designed to take pressure off the players but, in reality made then unwilling participants to a circus.

I don’t really think anything of value could be taken out of Jones tenor. Particularly in relation to assessing the capacity of the players involved.

Edit- although in saying all that the fact Skelton was able to perform is a credit to him.

Yeah, sure. I don't disagree. I'm not saying it was the main thing I took from the Jones era, but I think it was one of them.

He's class and I think one of the few who can actually claim that moniker. I'm building my team around him.

 

[Sword of Justice]

Yeah, sure. I don't disagree. I'm not saying it was the main thing I took from the Jones era, but I think it was one of them.

He's class and I think one of the few who can actually claim that moniker. I'm building my team around him.

Could you really build a team around a guy who has admitted to being 50/50 as to whether he even wants to play for us? And who admitted he didn’t want the responsibility as captain?

He’s in the best club XV right now for sure but if he’s not interested then he’s not interested.

 

[Wilson]

Yeah, sure. I don't disagree. I'm not saying it was the main thing I took from the Jones era, but I think it was one of them.

He's class and I think one of the few who can actually claim that moniker. I'm building my team around him.

I understand the desire but I'm not sure how you can build a team around a guy only available for half the year, particularly not when you've already started trying to implement a lot of new systems. With him coming in fairly close to the start of the Rugby Championship (if he does come at all) it's a lot easier to work him into the team via the bench and build that cohesion over time, potentially starting him more later in the season. Especially when we're coming up an opposition that get a lot of pay from how they use the bench and he could represent an effective counter to that.

 

[Derpus]

I understand the desire but I'm not sure how you can build a team around a guy only available for half the year, particularly not when you've already started trying to implement a lot of new systems. With him coming in fairly close to the start of the Rugby Championship (if he does come at all) it's a lot easier to work him into the team via the bench and build that cohesion over time, potentially starting him more later in the season. Especially when we're coming up an opposition that get a lot of pay from how they use the bench and he could represent an effective counter to that.

IMO gunna have to start learning how to build a team from disparately located players like the Saffas. Writing has been on the wall for years.

 

[Wilson]

IMO gunna have to start learning how to build a team from disparately located players like the Saffas. Writing has been on the wall for years.

Have they done that though? As far as I'm aware they built much of the core of this team while they were playing together in South Africa and have kept the together as they've moved away, that's very different from choosing an overseas star in the later half of their career that you have limited access to and constructing things around them. Arguably SA are about to have to start working it out to (or repeating the process with a local core) given the current age profile of their team.

 

[Slim 293]

Have they done that though? As far as I'm aware they built much of the core of this team while they were playing together in South Africa and have kept the together as they've moved away, that's very different from choosing an overseas star in the later half of their career that you have limited access to and constructing things around them. Arguably SA are about to have to start working it out to (or repeating the process with a local core) given the current age profile of their team.

And the majority of their squad are still actually playing for SA teams, with a handful of guys in Japan.

 

[Joe Blow]

We absolutely should not try to build a team around Skelton or anyone else playing OS. However, he does offer a point of difference and we do not have another similar player available. If he wants to be a part of the squad and have the chance to play against the BILs and represent in the next RWC then great. If not the Schmidt and the Wallabies should move on.

 

[The Ghost of Raelene]

I could see a good partnership between Skelton and Williams. Williams has a motor and Skelton the size. The Welsh pack while toilers really didn't have the ability to bash anyone up. Our pack looked on the light side and not really bending the line when Tupou not bringing it up. I think it's one of the reasons Blyth got the call up tbh.

Against the top sides we do need some bodies like Skelton in the middle.

 

[Ignoto]

Putting aside that Will is one of the best locks going around and O/S, he is also 32 years old.

I don't think he is at the stage of his career and life where the Wallabies can afford to build a team around him. However, in saying that, I think it is worthwhile keeping him in the team.

In a team where we have struggled to put in two good games in a row, I think Will should be able to contribute helping the young players understand how to perform at a high level based on Will's prolonged success in Europe vs how he played in Australia.

 

[Derpus]

Seems pretty simple to me. Pick our best players or continue to be 9-10 in the world. Getting philosophical about 'who to build a team around' etc seems pretty redundant if we are restricted to a talent pool worse than Italy's.

 

[Tomthumb]

Seems pretty simple to me. Pick our best players or continue to be 9-10 in the world. Getting philosophical about 'who to build a team around' etc seems pretty redundant if we are restricted to a talent pool worse than Italy's.

Lets not go nuts

 

[fatprop]

Skelton is one of the best TH Locks in the world (and one of the few world class players we have), you pick him whenever you can and pick his partner to compliment him

 

[Derpus]

Lets not go nuts