Wallabies Tri Nations

[TOCC]

A.Fainga'a getting called in would go with what i was saying last week about needing players around Cooper who run angles and lines without trying to be playmakers themselves.
Undoubtedly Giteau is better then Fainga'a, however Fainga'a complements and supports Cooper far better then Giteau does in a defensive and attacking sense.
Cooper is one of thsoe crazily talented players which you build a backline around, not one of those players that you try to squeeze into the backline.

 

[en_force_er]

Wow en force er - how many tries do you want the Boks to score?

JO'C has done nothing but impress me when he defends in the line. His defense (and reading of the opposition's kicking game) just doesn't seem up to it for a wallaby FB. Obviously he is terrific with the space it gives him though.

en force er, if you want Pocock to have a bigger impact being second man to the breakdown, blindside isn't the place to put him. He would be better off going to 8 ala Phil Waugh.
But, having said that, the tactic isn't exactly tried and tested. What about using a left/right flanker system?

A left right-flanker system would be the way to go.
I don't like the playing your fetcher at 8 theory but at the same time I don't like the whole idea of a specialist open-sider. It's good to share the workload and, through varying the flanker on the open side, not let the opposition get comfortable with the kind of pressure they are facing off the set-piece.
Being a specialist fetcher and specialist open-sider do not have to go hand in hand. I'm not saying it never does but we need to start dividing the two.

 

[spectator]

Leroy got 10 minutes in the bin for deliberately taking a man out after he had kicked through. He was quite awesome though, and contributed a hell of a lot more than I have ever seen him do at club level. everytime he ran the ball he was a handful. I said it on the Brisbane club page but I do wonder whether he and Holmes will come into selection contention. I reckon the scrum could do with the power and drive of Houston and the experience of Holmes.

 

[TOCC]

Souths have a depleted scrum this year, missing both there representative props, so i wouldnt take to much from a scrummaging performance against the Magpies.

Houston for me fits into the Higginbotham category, in all honesty Higgers has things he needs to sort out before he is a test player, however as it stands the alternatives are running short, likewise with number 8, right now Australia is limited to Richard Brown and Leroy Houston as the only two fit number 8's, with Palu and Hoiles both out injured.

With Houston you are getting a player who can sometimes do incredible things, however he can also go missing for a while, so it dependss on whether these deficiencies can be overlooked. Richard Brown rarely does anything remotely incredible, but he is relatively consistent in comparison.

 

[SportsTragic]

Anyone know if McCalman can play No 8? He's a tall, solid build bloke & went OK in the Baa-Baa games. Mowen is another option but he lacks the size we need in the loosy's with Palu out.

 

[tranquility]

He has played all his Junior football at 8. Amazing that he wasn't picked up earlier after being such a dominant schoolboy.

 

[#1 Tah]

Anyone else watch the 2000 Bledisloe before the rugby club tonight? if only we could play like that this year.

 

[Reddy!]

Undoubtedly Giteau is better then Fainga'a

Going by reputation? Fainga'a's form this year suggests that he is 2 times the player Giteau is. While Anthony is known for his hard straight running and defense he also has the ability to create opportunities for others - he can read a game really well (which is one of the reasons why his defense is so brilliant). I remember in the game against the Crusaders I think, Anthony saw that Ioane was up against a few forwards on the wing, and sent down a grubber that Ioane scooped up with a nice run to the try line. This was similar to the try Ioane scored against Wales after a Giteau grubber.

 

[TOCC]

Anyone know if McCalman can play No 8? He's a tall, solid build bloke & went OK in the Baa-Baa games. Mowen is another option but he lacks the size we need in the loosy's with Palu out.

neither of these players offer anything more from number 8 then Brown, in fact they would probably be a step backwards.

Going by reputation? Fainga'a's form this year suggests that he is 2 times the player Giteau is. While Anthony is known for his hard straight running and defense he also has the ability to create opportunities for others - he can read a game really well (which is one of the reasons why his defense is so brilliant). I remember in the game against the Crusaders I think, Anthony saw that Ioane was up against a few forwards on the wing, and sent down a grubber that Ioane scooped up with a nice run to the try line. This was similar to the try Ioane scored against Wales after a Giteau grubber.

Dont let your red tinged glasses blur your vision, Giteau is without a doubt a better player then Fainga'a, however Fainga'a plays better with Cooper. The main reason that Fainga'a had such a good year was because he was playing outside of Cooper. We are able to laud his defensive prowess and not demand more in attack because he plays beside Cooper who contributes more then his fair share in attack.

 

[tranquility]

I know which one I would prefer in my team. It's even better that he has a twin.

 

[Reddy!]

Dont let your red tinged glasses blur your vision, Giteau is without a doubt a better player then Fainga'a

Mate, you should seriously get a pair. The world looks so much better with them on!

Anyway, I think what you mean is that Giteau is a more skilled player, who looks good playing touch football at training and running off Stephen Larkham

 

[naza]

Anyone else watch the 2000 Bledisloe before the rugby club tonight? if only we could play like that this year.

I've seen that game a few times. The pick and go, with Jim Williams and Kef, is impressive, as are the offloads and speed of ruck ball. Jason Little did a great job at 12, making ground and half breaks. We don't have the dynamic ball runners these days.

Rod Macqueen lost that game by subsitituting Dave Wilson. As soon as Wilson is off, Kronfield wins mountains of ball and we lose all momentum.

 

[DPK]

Dont let your red tinged glasses blur your vision, Giteau is without a doubt a better player then Fainga'a

Apples and Oranges, really. Both excel at different styles.

 

[TheRiddler]

Anyone else watch the 2000 Bledisloe before the rugby club tonight? if only we could play like that this year.

You mean the one we lost? We still seem to be quite capable of losing.

 

[Lindommer]

Anyone else watch the 2000 Bledisloe before the rugby club tonight? if only we could play like that this year.

I watched it but not last night, I was there. One of the very best games of rugby I've had the pleasure to see.

 

[#1 Tah]

The squad is being announced in 27 mins, is there a live stream to ARU HQ?

 

[Newb]

gagger's got a bug in JO'N's office. that's where this little gem came from http://www.greenandgoldrugby.com/my-week-john-oneill/

 

[chief]

The Qantas Wallabies Squad for the 2010 Bundaberg Red Tri Nations Rugby Series is:

Adam Ashley-Cooper Fullback-Wing-Outside Centre Brumbies
Berrick Barnes Inside centre-Flyhalf NSW Waratahs
Kurtley Beale Fullback NSW Waratahs
Richard Brown No 8/Loose Forward Western Force
Luke Burgess Halfback NSW Waratahs
Mark Chisholm Lock Brumbies
Quade Cooper Flyhalf Queensland Reds
Ben Daley Prop Queensland Reds
Rocky Elsom (c) Flanker Brumbies
Anthony Fainga'a Inside Centre Queensland Reds
Saia Fainga'a Hooker Queensland Reds
Will Genia Halfback Queensland Reds
Matt Giteau Inside Centre Brumbies
Scott Higginbotham Loose forward Queensland Reds
Matt Hodgson Loose forward Western Force
Rob Horne Centre NSW Waratahs
Peter Hynes Wing Queensland Reds
Digby Ioane Centre/Wing Queensland Reds
Ben McCalman Lock/Loose Forward Western Force
Salesi Ma’afu Prop Brumbies
Stephen Moore Hooker Brumbies
Dean Mumm Lock/Loose-forward NSW Waratahs
James O’Connor Fullback Western Force
David Pocock Flanker Western Force
Benn Robinson Prop NSW Waratahs
Nathan Sharpe Lock Western Force
Rob Simmons Lock Queensland Reds
James Slipper Prop Queensland Reds

Wingers Drew Mitchell and Lachie Turner, halfback Josh Valentine, props Pek Cowan and Laurie Weeks and hooker Huia Edmonds have all also missed out, after featuring in June’s squad for the Bundaberg Red Rugby Series.

I'm very surprised at Mitchell's exclusion, I thought he played a blinder on the weekend.

 

[#1 Tah]

dammit cheif you beat me by a second!

 

[#1 Tah]

no douglas, turner or mitchell?