Waratahs v Reds Match Thread

[I like to watch]

K, I think you are being a bit harsh. He didn't pick himself in the Tests, he seems humble & likeable from what I have seen.
But I hope & expect TPN to give him a lesson on the weekend.

 

[waratahjesus]

TPN will have little direct impact on the Reds throws, but I'll grant you that his throwing has improved over the years from the pies he used to toss and now he throws as well as Fainga'a.

I have NFI about scrums but I have this preconception that there are 8 players from each side packing in them, and that I don't recall the Reds getting smashed last year or last week. I'm not saying the Reds scrum is a strength over the Tahs, but can they feed it and get the ball out? If they can, they are doing better than the Wallabies managed for 2010, and they won a few.

Retain possession, recycle, build phases. Avoid stupid errors. This was easy for the Tahs last week and hard for the Reds, and a big part of it was the work of the Force vs the Rabbles.

i know TPN wont have direct impact on reds throws, but the tahs line out "unit" will as i said, he will be under pressure and like when quade was on sunday he will fold like the lightweight he is.

the reds lost the scrum battle to the force, if your saying losing a tighthead by so much that the opposition 8 picks it up in the place you fed it then im not sure how you rate scrums at all.

daniel braid is the biggest loss to any australian team this year by a long way and the breakdown will obviously be something they will work hard on all week. i dont think the tahs have the same scavaging prowess the force have but they do have fantastic strength at teh ruck and if quade doesnt get quick ball you have a centre combination outside him that only works when running onto a ball and there going to get hammered.

the major things the reds lacked was impact from runners, while horwill will be better for the run and higgers starting is positive, its getting consistantly over the gain line that is the only thing that will kill the tahs. i see the major difference between the two teams performance on the weekend was maturity, the reds panicked when things didnt go there way, while the tahs stayed composed and just kept defending until there chance came and when it did they took it with composure, they didnt snap at it like a kid to candy like the reds did.

 

[Larno]

As a (relative) neutral, I'd probably back the Tahs to take this one based on the weekend's performances.

Nonetheless, nothing is ever certain in sport, even at this level. Should be a good game.

 

[I like to watch]

attitude I reckon. Intensity. Purpose. All those things. The Reds played poorly, so it seems obvious to say it, but massive improvement comes in playing better. Not many of those guys played at their best. So there's plenty of room for improvement

Reg are you really saying that the Reds weren't up for it in their first game of the year?
That says an awful lot about the playing group.

 

[RugbyReg]

what do you suggest it says and does it say anything different to what it said about the Tahs last season?

 

[waratahjesus]

what do you suggest it says and does it say anything different to what it said about the Tahs last season?

i think it says more about the reds than it did about the tahs last year, the tahs had a newplaymaker and as the next few weeks showed struggled to find there best combinations and it resulted in a stunted attack for the first half of the season.

the reds entered with known combinations and a settled squad besides a number 7, there was no excuse for the backline failures really other than nerves, if it was poor attitude then that performance would have done the job of bringing them back to earth without link having to get into it, but you have to worry that if it was attitude then winning might have been the worst thing for it.

 

[I like to watch]

daniel braid is the biggest loss to any australian team this year by a long way and the breakdown will obviously be something they will work hard on all week.

I think the Reds miss his influence more than anything.He used to drag the rest of them along with him.

i see the major difference between the two teams performance on the weekend was maturity, the reds panicked when things didnt go there way, while the tahs stayed composed and just kept defending until there chance came and when it did they took it with composure, they didnt snap at it like a kid to candy like the reds did

.

I agree, that is also basically the difference between the 2 ten's. Berrick is solid under pressure, who plays to the pattern or game plan.QC (Quade Cooper) is everything off the top of his head, he has no idea on how to close out a game & control it.

 

[I like to watch]

what do you suggest it says and does it say anything different to what it said about the Tahs last season?

If the Reds were lacking in "attitude,intensity & purpose" in their first game of the year, as you suggested,then they are non winners and
will be in for a very long season.
This is totally different to they tried to hard, were rusty,tactics weren't right, combinations didn't gel etc etc. The latter you can fix, the former is a death sentence for a football team.

In regard to the tahs, no one ever accused them of turning it up, the criticisms were to do with Hickeys pattern of play, and the lack of flair exhibited by the players.

 

[Hawko]

If Link's been reading all these posts about how the Tahs pack is going to completely dominate the scrum, it's a safe bet he'll opt for a 5/2 split on the bench. On the other hand, a 4/3 would show he's not too concerned.

Btw, who is the Ref? Hopefully not that dickhead from Sunday.

Bryce Lawrence, who is fairly even handed with his mistakes overall but he makes a hell of a lot of them. Should be reffing U/15's.

 

[ChargerWA]

I hope the Waratahs are as cocky as their fans, they'll be in for a big surprise.

Oh the fucking irony......Go back and read the Reds fans posts in the Force V Reds thread.

I think it will be a close game, but I expect the Tahs to close it out by less than a converted try.

 

[daz]

s.finger will have his work cut out for him, he is a very distant third when it comes to hookers in this country and im not sure he is even third as fitzpatrick is coming along nicely. TPN will eat him alive.

Here's hoping Baxter shares some of the pies pre-game so this doesn't eventuate....

I am a bit worried about the scrum. The Force monstered the Reds pack a couple of times last week and they just don't seem to be "on" at the moment. Hard to say after one game, to be fair, but if they are off this week the Tahs will have a lot of options and possesion...

 

[daz]

Reg are you really saying that the Reds weren't up for it in their first game of the year?
That says an awful lot about the playing group.

I take your point, but there are so many variables in sport. For mine, it really appeared that the Reds had already worked out how the game was going to go against the Force, and had a bit of trouble adjusting when the Force didn't follow the script.

 

[Richard D. James]

Berrick is solid under pressure

Is he? I recall quite a few times when Berrick has bombed it when under pressure.

 

[Bradley]

I hope Al Baxter scrums better this game. He hit the deck far too often against the Rebels. It brought back bad memories

 

[fatprop]

The Reds will be better for the game, I think they thought it would be easy and they have now had their reality check.

Link will be kicking arse this week, but he has to get his selections right as well.

I expect a very close, hard game on Saturday

 

[fatprop]

I hope Al Baxter scrums better this game. He hit the deck far too often against the Rebels. It brought back bad memories

and after 20 minutes he had domination and was walking the scrum 15m

 

[Gagger]

HEAR YE, HEAR YE, HEAR YE

You'll notice we binned the last version of this thread as it had turned to shit, thereby giving everyone a chance at redemption.

Stuff like this

I hope the Waratahs are as cocky as their fans, they'll be in for a big surprise.

Will earn you a 2 week rest from this post forward, regardless of who you are.

There are going to be more derbies from here on in so we need to just grow up a bit, otherwise the whole forum will go down the crapper.

The mods from here on in will be shooting first and asking questions later.

Release the hounds


PS - "but you're spoiling our fun" whining will go too

 

[Penguin]

Irony? I think most people were saying that it would be closer than last years game..... and they still won didn't they?

Oh the fucking irony......Go back and read the Reds fans posts in the Force V Reds thread.

I think it will be a close game, but I expect the Tahs to close it out by less than a converted try.

 

[Penguin]

I'm sorry, but I don't see whats inflammatory about that statement at all. I wasn't playing at any particular poster & have seen much worse written in this site. What about the bloke who hopes a player is taken out for the season? Thats hardly sportman like..I could go on but whatever.

 

[Gagger]

Usually it may well make it through as an isolated incident, but with about 5 pages full of this stuff in the last week we've hit the limit.

And yes, the

What about the bloke who hopes a player is taken out for the season?

would go now too