Wallabies v Springboks, Brisbane.

[HodgoBerro]

Anyone know anything about Cameron Shepherd? I went to the open training session and He sat out most of the session....

 

[en_force_er]

He apparently had "leg soreness". I do not know what that means.

 

[JJJ]

He apparently had "leg soreness". I do not know what that means.

 

[Joe Blow]

I feel for Cam Shepherd as he has had a terrible run with injury.....but what makes Dingo think that is about to change?

Some bodies just are not designed to withstand the rigours of pro rugby.

 

[fatprop]

GROWDEN guesses, JOC (James O'Connor) on the wing? ................................................................

Moore may have to wait to reclaim spot
GREG GROWDEN
July 20, 2010

SAIA Fainga'a may still hold on to his Wallabies starting spot despite the return of renowned hooker Stephen Moore for Saturday night's Test against the Springboks in Brisbane.

With the Test team to be named today, the Wallabies held a training session at Ballymore late yesterday in front of several thousand people, where Fainga'a was involved in most of the lineout work with the main forward contingent.

It was clear that with so many key players returning from injury, Wallabies coach Robbie Deans is reticent to rush them all back, and in the case of Moore, who has recovered from a fractured jaw that forced him out of the June internationals, is considering using him first-up off the bench against the Boks.

If Deans persists with the combinations that trained yesterday, it seems Benn Robinson will be back at loose-head prop after being sidelined with a broken hand, while Nathan Sharpe will regain his second-row spot at the expense of Mark Chisholm. The back row of Richard Brown, David Pocock and Rocky Elsom is likely to remain.

Out wide, there was confusion as Cameron Shepherd did not train due to leg soreness. He is in contention for either a wing or fullback position, and if not available Drew Mitchell is a certainty to hold on to his wing spot - despite originally being excluded from the squad.

The Springboks, meanwhile, will be without second-rower Andries Bekker due to a back injury. Bekker's absence, on top of Bakkies Botha's suspension, will certainly help the Wallabies, who yesterday stressed they wanted to follow a similar game plan to the All Blacks in the hope that the Tri Nations holders will be without a win after three matches. It revolves around speed and intensity.

Wallabies assistant coach Richard Graham observed the South Africans had made the mistake of ''using the blueprint from 2009 and the Kiwis showed that the game had moved forward''.

''Their ball movement in particular asked questions of the South Africans,'' Graham said yesterday. ''For us, whilst not the exact replica of the way we want to play, we still definitely need to keep the ball moving. You don't want to get into hand-to-hand combat with them around the breakdown for 80 minutes.

''We want to keep the ball in hand and we want to challenge them. The laws of the game at the moment allow us that, as long as your breakdown and support work is good. Certainly the Kiwis' attack and defence at the breakdown was impressive.''

Meanwhile, former Test captain Andrew Slack, who was yesterday unveiled as the latest member of the Wallaby Hall of Fame, said it would be ''madness'' if Deans was replaced before next year's World Cup.

Likely Wallabies XV: Adam Ashley-Cooper; James O'Connor, Rob Horne, Matt Giteau, Drew Mitchell or Cameron Shepherd; Quade Cooper, Will Genia; Richard Brown, David Pocock, Rocky Elsom (c), Nathan Sharpe, Dean Mumm, Salesi Ma'afu, Saia Fainga'a, Benn Robinson.

 

[jay-c]

yer yer yer whats the score?\
i think JOC (James O'Connor) on the wing would be great hes got the speed and elusiveness i recon he'd be the new shane williams (ive posted this months ago)>>
cannot wait till everyones back>>> id love to see

1 ben robinson 2 tpn 3 alexander

4 sharp 5 horwill

6 rocky 8 palu 7 pocock



9 genia
10 cooper
11 JOC (James O'Connor) 12 giteau
13 chambers
14 ioane
15 AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper)

16
17 moore
18 mumm
19 hodgeson
20 burgess
21 barnes
22 hynes



ps. jus found some old gold
kearns:
"Nicknamed 'Lightning' (as in Lightning never strikes the same place twice) because of his sometimes erratic lineout throwing. "
:lmao:

 

[RugbyReg]

the courier suggest Fainga'a would start too, but that also said that Mumm would be in the back row?

Team announcement press conference is at 1.30pm today. Watch the blog for the team!

 

[ACT Crusader]

Rabbit on the wing wouldn't be a bad move at all. The guy is pretty elusive and stronger than most would think. Knows how to sniff a pie as well. Better than having AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) out wide who seems to go missing when he's not at FB for some strange reason.

Rocky to 8 seems to be what some are predicting. If the scrums are stable then that might re-ignite his running game somewhat. Not sure if Mumm is the right option at 6 though, but I doubt they would start Higginbot first up vs the Boks. His game is a touch loose and probably wouldn't be a good fit with Mumm and Sharpe given they both tend to go missing in the tight during 80 minutes.

Robinson back will help OZ tremendously. Good at set piece and an underated ball carrier. Concerns on "who's left" for TH though.

Looking forward to the test match

 

[Gagger]

Are you referring to these by any chance Cyclo? http://www.greenandgoldrugby.com/exclusive-qwade-drug-news/

 

[RedsHappy]

When the Boks used quick ball with their go forward they looked dangerous - see the Rossouw try as an example. Can the Wallabies outmuscle the Boks behind the gainline like the ABs did with McCaw, Read, Kaino, Mealamu and Thorne? If we don't, we'll be looking at worse than the second pommy match.

Gagger, I think your caution re Brisbane is justified, on these and other grounds. Let's also recall that, at Brisbane, we really did struggle to beat a way under strength Ireland that likely would have scored 1-2 more tries if they hadn't had such a dreadful night of consistent, largely unforced back line errors, including BOD's.

Surely it can be said that these Boks have the credible potential to be better than England and Ireland, especially in desperation mode. And the Boks in NZ were made to look weaker than they really are by exceptional AB play for more or less 160 minutes. I also think they can and will adapt their game plan for ball in hand width anticipating a more Reds-like plan from Aus. Then we have numerous players returning under weight in game time, combined with a back line now likely composed of on-again off-again players like Mitchell, and maybe Shepherd with all sorts of unpredictable fragilities.

Let's indeed be patriotic, but on objective grounds you'd have to say this game could be knife-edge hard for Aus.

 

[cyclopath]

Are you referring to these by any chance Cyclo? http://www.greenandgoldrugby.com/exclusive-qwade-drug-news/

Gagger, that is just what I had in mind! I love it. Thanks for the production credit too, by the way!!

 

[fatprop]

What alternate universe did I wake up in ? What has Shepherd ever done ? He can finish tries on the wing from 20 metres out, that's about it.

Naza, he is better than that. Shepherd to me is a very talented footballer who makes the right decisions(like Hynes), is quick, elusive, safe, a long distance goal kicker and tall. He does more than finish of tries, but even that would be nice IMHO, someone who can finish off movements would not be a bad option. Without his constant injuries, I believe he would be one of the first backs picked for Aus

 

[JJJ]

Is there a reason Mumm would make a better 6 than an 8?

 

[fatprop]

Is there a reason Mumm would make a better 6 than an 8?

none, he hasn't played a good game at 6 for a couple of years.

 

[naza]

Naza, he is better than that. Shepherd to me is a very talented footballer who makes the right decisions(like Hynes), is quick, elusive, safe, a long distance goal kicker and tall. He does more than finish of tries, but even that would be nice IMHO, someone who can finish off movements would not be a bad option. Without his constant injuries, I believe he would be one of the first backs picked for Aus

I'm thinking our pack is pretty mediocre and we need some serious firepower in the backs to overcome that. Solid backs don't really cut it for me at the moment, I'm looking for gamebreakers all over the park. I want guys who can create and finish long range tries.

Shep's pretty solid. He's tough to stop close to the line with a nifty in and away or his strong fend. He's no gamebreaker. He's never been the quickest and I reckon injuries have robbed him of some pace, verve and footwork. He has nice size but doesn't use it - you just don't see him bumping people off like a Tuqiri. In fact, he doesn't really try - Mitchell and Ioane are vastly more determined runners than he. He doesn't have the kind of ball playing ability the modern fullback is expected to have. He's a bit like Joe Roff - a big rangy winger, with a loping stride, and a knack for finding a bit more time and space than he ought to !

You're right about his safeness - he doesn't make too many boo boos, takes care of the ball, does the little things. Admirable qualities. But I don't think he scares anybody. I can't ever picture the ABs or Boks thinking 'shit, how do we stop this bloke ?' or 'we've got to keep the ball out of his hands'.

 

[Reddy!]

You're right about his safeness - he doesn't make too many boo boos, takes care of the ball, does the little things. Admirable qualities. But I don't think he scares anybody. I can't ever picture the ABs or Boks thinking 'shit, how do we stop this bloke ?' or 'we've got to keep the ball out of his hands'.

I agree mostly with what you say, but to be fair, he hasn't really had a chance in the Test arena for the ABs or Boks to be scared of him.

 

[Reddy!]

I think the Boks are going to come into this game as underdogs - at least they will feel that way. They haven't won in Brisbane since the early 1970's, have never won at Suncorp, are coming off 2 losses, and didn't win at Suncorp during the Super rugby season this year.

 

[Blue]

Well the way the media has been ridiculing the Boks they should actually forfeit and fuck off home.

Seriously, today's SMH was the most childish and embarassing reporting I have ever seen. It's like some fucking school weekly.

Two pages on ridiculing PdV which I though expired as a sport two years ago and on and on about how bad the boks are. One or two articles about the Wallabies and selections. ON THE EVE OF A CRITICAL TEST FOR TWO TEAMS. It's a joke. This is not reporting and I have never seen papers in other countries stoop to this level.

Has Spiro Zavos ever written an analytical piece? Has Growden ever reported anything meaningful? Lucky their bosses know fuck all about rugby. In other countries they wouldn't have a job.

 

[Lance Free]

The Qantas Wallabies team to play South Africa in the Bundaberg Red Tri Nations and Mandela Trophy Test at Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane on Saturday 24 July, 8.05pm kick off (AEST), is:

15. Adam Ashley Cooper (Brumbies)

14. James O’Connor (Western Force)

13. Rob Horne (NSW Waratahs)

12. Matt Giteau (Brumbies)

11. Drew Mitchell (NSW Waratahs)

10. Quade Cooper (Queensland Reds)

9. Will Genia (Queensland Reds)

8. Richard Brown (Western Force)

7. David Pocock (Western Force)

6. Rocky Elsom (Brumbies, captain)

5. Nathan Sharpe (Western Force)

4. Dean Mumm (NSW Waratahs)

3. Salesi Ma’afu (Brumbies)

2. Saia Fainga (Queensland Reds)

1. Benn Robinson (NSW Waratahs)

Run on reserves:

16. Stephen Moore (Brumbies)

17. James Slipper (Queensland Reds)

18. Rob Simmons (Queensland Reds)

19. Matt Hodgson (Western Force)

20. Luke Burgess (NSW Waratahs)

21. Berrick Barnes (NSW Waratahs)

22. Kurtley Beale (NSW Waratahs)

 

[Grandmaster Flash]

So no Shep, guess it's not really a surprise due to game time and "leg soreness". Actually think JO'C on the wing could work.