TSR
Andrew Slack (58)
My comments relate to super rugby of course.I'd be interested weather your referring to cooper in tests or super rugby? Because he's barely got off the bench if at all in all tests too prove anything, and in super rugby he was injured and or playing injured most of the year in a rather underdone reds squad. If you saw the episode where he was miced up, it showed how much attacking nouse he still has running the show and is very vocal and respected by Players around him like Hunt and Pareese! On Pareese...he's shined exceptionally well running off cooper this year...earning a wallaby call up even.
I'm just blown away how much flip flopping Cheika does due to performances...but never even bloods or tries others at 10.
As you said he was playing injured - is he back to full fitness? If so, great. If not I don't want him playing test rugby - I want him doing rehab/S&C. As for your subsequent comments about him not being a card risk - that's crap. He constantly ran the gauntlet under the current interpretation/crackdown on contact above the shoulders. He has been carded multiple times for it.
I am not a Quade hater at all, I'm a big fan - and I share a lot of your concerns around Foley - but throwing a half fit player in who continues to have issues (albeit different issues) with his defence into Test rugby is just setting him up to fail.