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Waratahs 2012

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N

Newter

Guest
fatprop said:
more likely would be

9. Sarel Pretorius
10. Bernard Foley
11. Tom Kingston
12. Tom Carter
13. Adam Ashley-Cooper
14. Pakalani
15. Lachie Turner
Click to expand...

Quite right. AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) is more an asset in defence these days.
 
Hawko

Hawko

Tony Shaw (54)
Newter said:
So basically these injured players have been doing limited pre-season training, probably made no physical gains, and in fact have probably gone backwards due to muscle wastage. It's almost worth basing all predictions on the assumption that the Tahs will field their 2nd XV for the majority of the season again.

What are the prospects for a team like this:

1. Jeremy Tilse 2. Damien Fitzpatrick 3. Sekope Kepu
4. Sitaleki Timani 5. Kane Douglas
6. Dean Mumm 7. Chris Alcock 8. Dave Dennis
9. Sarel Pretorius 10. Bernard Foley
11. Tom Kingston 12. Tom Carter 13. Pakalani 14. Lachie Turner
15. Adam Ashley-Cooper

I'd say not too bad, overall. You've still got 5 Wallabies in the lineup, and they've all experienced success at Super level except Foley, but the coaches seem to think he's a good prospect. Good, confident young side.

Most likely finish: 6th.
Click to expand...

The pedant in me counts six Wallaby squad members but maybe Dennis doesn't have a cap yet. That team would give a good account of itself and win a lot of games. Missing from that team as first choice picks are:
  1. Robinson: Had a bad injury run last year but is usually pretty healthy. I'll back him to have a good one this year.
  2. TPN: Someone has stolen his mojo. Please bring it back. If it isn't returned then I think Fitzpatrick and Ulugia will be capable if unspectacular replacements.
  3. Vickerman: He came back last year from three years off to be a first choice Wallaby. He'll be there when the whips are cracking, moving rucks single-handedly.
  4. Rocky: Everything depends on the surgery but you'd have to say he is 50-50 at best. Maybe this year's first major casualty unless his operation has fixed the underlying problem. But Mumm and Dennis are top quality back-ups and last year at the end of the Super comp Dennis was easily in the top six number eights.
  5. Palu: Was going gang-busters when he broke his collarbone in that freak incident with Thompson. After that he just ran out of time. He needs to be brought up to speed slowly by judicious use of the bench in order to get him match fit and hamstring ready. If he is he will have a huge year - you heard it here first.
  6. Barnes: Everyone here seems to think Berrick is going to get concussed again. But the invisible man had similar problems two years ago and now has a WC winning captaincy in his CV. It doesn't have to be, I think pessimism has got in the way of realism here. And Hangers is a very capable first choice back-up.
  7. Horne has bulked up his legs considerably (see photo a few pages back). Unless this is the underlying cause of his hammy problems, I think this could be his breakthrough year. Him at 12 and Carter at 13 would be awesome.
  8. Mitchell will be back. He hasn't got the WC timetable pushing his recovery too fast, when he does restart he and Turner will be lethal
So, of the injury concerns I reckon only Rocky and TPN are a real worry unless the others are rushed back too soon. Most of the back-ups are either solid Super performers or young guys on the way up. Last year was an injury disaster but with a bit of luck and careful management we could go much better than 6th. We might lose a couple in the first month, as we bed down the new coaching team and bring some key players up to speed but after that we will trouble everyone.
 
Inside Shoulder

Inside Shoulder

Nathan Sharpe (72)
Hawko said:
The pedant in me counts six Wallaby squad members but maybe Dennis doesn't have a cap yet. That team would give a good account of itself and win a lot of games. Missing from that team as first choice picks are:
  1. Robinson: Had a bad injury run last year but is usually pretty healthy. I'll back him to have a good one this year.
  2. TPN: Someone has stolen his mojo. Please bring it back. If it isn't returned then I think Fitzpatrick and Ulugia will be capable if unspectacular replacements.

    So, of the injury concerns I reckon only Rocky and TPN are a real worry unless the others are rushed back too soon. Most of the back-ups are either solid Super performers or young guys on the way up. Last year was an injury disaster but with a bit of luck and careful management we could go much better than 6th. We might lose a couple in the first month, as we bed down the new coaching team and bring some key players up to speed but after that we will trouble everyone.
Click to expand...


  1. TPNs mojo is a victim of his ludicrous head first technique.
    It looks as if the tahs have worked very hard in the off season on their excuses but they'll need to do better to explain how they let mowen go when foley knew that elsom had been afflicted for 3 seasons with the same injury and had been able to play only 1 game for the Brums in 2011.
    plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose


    Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
MrTimms

MrTimms

Ken Catchpole (46)
Hawko said:
Horne has bulked up his legs considerably (see photo a few pages back). Unless this is the underlying cause of his hammy problems, I think this could be his breakthrough year. Him at 12 and Carter at 13 would be awesome.
Click to expand...

I hope it is his breakthrough year, but why move such a good 13 to 12?

We need a good specialist at 13, leave him there.
 
fatprop

fatprop

George Gregan (70)
Staff member
Inside Shoulder said:
and carter doesn't have the pace or guile to be a good 13


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

agreed, but in a squad of 30, at some stage, if injuries hit deep he may need to fill the gap; and he will not let anyone down because you can rely on him to put in 100% each game
 
waratahjesus

waratahjesus

Greg Davis (50)
Inside Shoulder said:


  1. TPNs mojo is a victim of his ludicrous head first technique.
    It looks as if the tahs have worked very hard in the off season on their excuses but they'll need to do better to explain how they let mowen go when foley knew that elsom had been afflicted for 3 seasons with the same injury and had been able to play only 1 game for the Brums in 2011.
    plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose


    Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Mowen left, the Tahs had a contract on the table for him. I'm over it already, guy is a good squad player but him leaving has made people suddenly see him as some sort of god whichnis just BS. He is a decent Super Rugby player yes, match winner, no. Dave Dennis had already overtaken him anyway so were talking about a bench option and an impact player he isn't.

TPN is an impact player, sometimes it goes wrong. But his long term injury last year actually occurred due to a ruck falling awkwardly on his knee, nit him going head first into things.
 
waratahjesus

waratahjesus

Greg Davis (50)
Slim 293 said:
Rocky will be battling it out with TPN and Horne as to who is the best player watching from the stands...
Click to expand...

rocky is in a positive enviroment for the first time in a couple of years with a first world medical staff (and well practised one) i dont see him being the lazy brumbies creation of years past.
 
Bruce Ross

Bruce Ross

Ken Catchpole (46)
Nothing like dowsing the glowing embers with a liberal splash of petrol, wj. Do you have inside knowledge of the standard of medical practice in the ACT?
 
T

TOCC

Guest
Bruce Ross said:
"Married in the off-season, Barnes said he hadn't suffered any headaches other than a self-induced episode following his wedding night in Orange."

My money's on he banged his head on the bedhead. Any other theories?
Click to expand...
Id always thought he might be gay lol
 
N

Newter

Guest
Hawko said:
The pedant in me counts six Wallaby squad members but maybe Dennis doesn't have a cap yet. That team would give a good account of itself and win a lot of games. Missing from that team as first choice picks are:
  1. Robinson: Had a bad injury run last year but is usually pretty healthy. I'll back him to have a good one this year.
  2. TPN: Someone has stolen his mojo. Please bring it back. If it isn't returned then I think Fitzpatrick and Ulugia will be capable if unspectacular replacements.
  3. Vickerman: He came back last year from three years off to be a first choice Wallaby. He'll be there when the whips are cracking, moving rucks single-handedly.
  4. Rocky: Everything depends on the surgery but you'd have to say he is 50-50 at best. Maybe this year's first major casualty unless his operation has fixed the underlying problem. But Mumm and Dennis are top quality back-ups and last year at the end of the Super comp Dennis was easily in the top six number eights.
  5. Palu: Was going gang-busters when he broke his collarbone in that freak incident with Thompson. After that he just ran out of time. He needs to be brought up to speed slowly by judicious use of the bench in order to get him match fit and hamstring ready. If he is he will have a huge year - you heard it here first.
  6. Barnes: Everyone here seems to think Berrick is going to get concussed again. But the invisible man had similar problems two years ago and now has a WC winning captaincy in his CV. It doesn't have to be, I think pessimism has got in the way of realism here. And Hangers is a very capable first choice back-up.
  7. Horne has bulked up his legs considerably (see photo a few pages back). Unless this is the underlying cause of his hammy problems, I think this could be his breakthrough year. Him at 12 and Carter at 13 would be awesome.
  8. Mitchell will be back. He hasn't got the WC timetable pushing his recovery too fast, when he does restart he and Turner will be lethal
So, of the injury concerns I reckon only Rocky and TPN are a real worry unless the others are rushed back too soon. Most of the back-ups are either solid Super performers or young guys on the way up. Last year was an injury disaster but with a bit of luck and careful management we could go much better than 6th. We might lose a couple in the first month, as we bed down the new coaching team and bring some key players up to speed but after that we will trouble everyone.
Click to expand...

You're right I think Dennis does have a cap. So, six Wallabies. Not a bad fall-back team at all. And as you say, the first liners will all play at least a few games here and there to push the standard even higher.

On Halangahu, I hope he has a better season in 2012 than last year. He seemed to go backwards dramatically. What happened to the aggressive running flyhalf who used to sprint at the line before passing? I remember Halangahu winning the starting jersey with such performances a while back.
 
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