Wallaby Watch 2014
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Forcefield
Ken Catchpole (46)
I think we can safely say that Cummins just trumped Tomane's efforts for the weekend.
Brumby Runner
Jason Little (69)
As strong as our back row seems to be ATM, Cottrell must be coming into consideration for a spot on the squad and maybe on the bench. He is skillful as well as being hard as nails. I would be happy to see him included.
Hoolly Doolly
Fred Wood (13)
I hadnt been very impressed this season with cummins up until last night. Defensively he'd been a bit ordinary and his speed has been a bit off the pace. Last night he had a blinder but would like to see a bit more consistency for the rest of the season.
BDA
Jim Lenehan (48)
Just rewatching the Force v Tahs game.
-Skelton was very dangerous for the first 45 odd minutes. He was super impressive with ball in hand, good foot work and lots of offloads in contact, plenty of tackle busts, and as always very effective in stopping the attacking maul. He really needs to improve his fitness, but lots of potential. He's shaping as a handy bench option / impact player for the wallabies in the coming years (he's not there yet but i like what i see).
- TPN was very good
- I actually thought Robinson's pay round the park was good.
- Hodgson, Cottrell and McCalman are a great unit.
and obviously Cummins reminded us why he's the Honey Badger. He takes the lead in the battle for wing spots. Cummins, Tomane and AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) all in good form
-Skelton was very dangerous for the first 45 odd minutes. He was super impressive with ball in hand, good foot work and lots of offloads in contact, plenty of tackle busts, and as always very effective in stopping the attacking maul. He really needs to improve his fitness, but lots of potential. He's shaping as a handy bench option / impact player for the wallabies in the coming years (he's not there yet but i like what i see).
- TPN was very good
- I actually thought Robinson's pay round the park was good.
- Hodgson, Cottrell and McCalman are a great unit.
and obviously Cummins reminded us why he's the Honey Badger. He takes the lead in the battle for wing spots. Cummins, Tomane and AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) all in good form
Gotta say I agree, definately a smokey.
USARugger
John Thornett (49)
When he's on anything above neutral form though he's really got the full skill set (sans kicking) that you want from a winger.
He also has a genuine turn of pace to compliment those skills, he's gotta be one of the quickest guys over 10-15m in Aus Super Rugby right now and is absolutely no slouch over 60-100m either.
Tomikin
David Codey (61)
I dont see the pace you see remember he got caught on that 3rd try
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GaffaCHinO
Peter Sullivan (51)
Not so much caught but ankle tapped by a diving player he didn't really make a tackle on him.
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Tomikin
David Codey (61)
But run down, Im not having a go at the badger I think his great I just never thought him as one of the quick wingers. His quicl enough but not Coleman Mogg Davis quick.. and at a guess Tomane, Betham look quicker to my eye. Turner is supposedly really fast too but he seems to have lost a yard.
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wamberal
Phil Kearns (64)
Maybe, but Tomane did a lot of very good things. He has a lot to offer, I am surprised that he has struggled a bit to show his ability for too long.
Crazy Grey
Frank Nicholson (4)
And I reckon he was buggered by then
Tomikin
David Codey (61)
In and out with injuries I think his a complete package you'd want in a winger..
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Scoey
Tony Shaw (54)
Just a note to those who keep saying that Skelton needs to work on his fitness. Do you know how big the guy is?
He is never going to be an 80 min player and I doubt he will ever even be a 60 min player.
The effort required to do what he does with a body that size is immense.
A bit of extra fitness might get a few more minutes out of him but that's it. You get a guy like that the pros are obvious but one of the cons is that he won't go all day. It's just not going to happen.
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He is never going to be an 80 min player and I doubt he will ever even be a 60 min player.
The effort required to do what he does with a body that size is immense.
A bit of extra fitness might get a few more minutes out of him but that's it. You get a guy like that the pros are obvious but one of the cons is that he won't go all day. It's just not going to happen.
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TOCC
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He obviously needs to shed weight then.. If he wants to be a test player he is going to need to be able to play at least 70minutes at test level, otherwise he is too much of a liability for the coach in planning substitution and having redundancy on the bench for injuries.
You only have to take one look at him to realise he is carrying comparatively high body fat, he could drop 5-8kg without impacting on his strength.
@TOCC - he has dropped a fair bit from school to now, I dare say he will drop a few more kgs over the next year or so. A work in progress, but he seems to be progressing quite well, and I like his attitude.
Scary thing is his younger brothers are bigger!
Scary thing is his younger brothers are bigger!
Hoolly Doolly
Fred Wood (13)
I dont think you are imagining it. Cummins is definitely not the quickest winger out there. But what he lacks in out right speed he makes up for in power in contact, effort and hustle.
A lot has been said in the past that he could work on his defense and try and re-invent himself as an outside centre. I would agree with this. Its been a gap for the western force for a while prior to rosolea settling in and Brache so he may have lost his oppurtunity for the time being.
T
TOCC
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@TOCC - he has dropped a fair bit from school to now, I dare say he will drop a few more kgs over the next year or so. A work in progress, but he seems to be progressing quite well, and I like his attitude.
Scary thing is his younger brothers are bigger!
Yep and I agree, he is progressing well and he seems to have good head on his broad shoulders... In terms of physical maturity I think he is another season or two away.. That's not to say he shouldn't get a taste of test rugby in the next 18 months - depending on injuries I think he is a chance to get a cap or two off the bench, in some of the lesser matches this year even, but in terms of been considered a test starter or even on the bench for some of the top tier test matches, he is still quite some time off.
What does that mean for his RWC 2015 chances? well I think they're slim but not completely ruled out, I haven't watched enough rugby to gauge the technical set-piece aspects of his game too really judge, but in the loose I have noticed with ball in hand he does run too upright at times and defensively when trying to line up a big hit he has a tendency to miss completely..
Can we accept the fact that there was only one open OSF playing in the Force vs Tahs game and it was Matt Hodgson who gave Hooper an absolute bath.
Hodgson 17 tackles and 3 turn overs vs Hooper's 5 tackles and ZERO turno-overs.
Not bad for a 32yo who carries the extra burden of being Captain....
Hooper runs the risk of playing like a Centre when his team needs him as #7.
A bit like Higgers seagulling on the wing instead of using his bulk to do the hard stuff.
Hodgson 17 tackles and 3 turn overs vs Hooper's 5 tackles and ZERO turno-overs.
Not bad for a 32yo who carries the extra burden of being Captain....
Hooper runs the risk of playing like a Centre when his team needs him as #7.
A bit like Higgers seagulling on the wing instead of using his bulk to do the hard stuff.
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