Why Wallabies scrum fell apart in 2005

[Sully]

This article on rugbyheaven.

Ewen McKenzie says

- "The purpose of the front row is to battle with the opposition, but also to direct the force and pressure delivered by the back five of your scrum. If there is little or none of that, it is a hard contest to win."

- "Hugh McMeniman was on the right-hand side scrummaging lock position, which he was no expert nor physically suited to play. The yawning gap between he and Nathan Sharpe makes it impossible for the front row."

- "The selection of the smallest and lightest back row in Australian rugby history was not a good omen. [Their] instinct . . . is always the play after the scrum so the generation and resistance of force is not a strong suit."

- "The back row would be outweighed by 10 kilograms per man minimum by any other international back row in Europe."

- "George Gregan is in the sin bin and, with George Smith at halfback, there is no No.8. Seven versus eight is tough, and that is where technique and aptitude and tactics count."
Ben Darwin says


- "England focuses all pressure on Wallabies Nos.2 and 3 and throws No.1 Dunning's hips out, placing all pressure on McMeniman, who is fundamentally a No.6 but on the right of second row as Sharpe prefers the left."

- "At the time, Sheridan was a bit of an unknown entity, and he really shook things up with a strong performance. No one had seen a 6 foot 4 [190cm] prop before."

- "John Roe is a flyer for a No.6. Phil Waugh and George Smith are genuine No.7s playing at No.7 and No.8 respectively - a calculated risk to offset an advantage at the breakdown for a weakening of the scrum."

- "With halfback George Gregan in the sin-bin, things got tougher as an attacking scrum is always less powerful with Smith at No.9 because Wallabies hooker No.2 Brendan Cannon cannot push on the strike."

- "Australia was really playing with four out of the back five being breakaways."

Then this from Rupert Guinness
http://www.rugbyheaven.com.au/news/news/truth-of-twickenham-revealed/2008/11/14/1226318928695.html?page=fullpage#contentSwap2

 

[Lee Grant]

I liked this comment:

The Wallabies' second row was also ill-positioned. Nathan Sharpe was on the left side he prefers, but his strength, size and experience was suited to the right where a smaller Hugh McMeniman, on his Test start debut, played.

I know bugger all about scrummaging but even I had this view at the time and have bored people with it many a time. I wonder why no coach, at any level, has trained Sharpe to play on the TH side just in case there was a need for him to play there - as when his team has to pack down with 7 men and there is an inexperienced, lighter guy on the TH side.

I forgot that Oz had a man short in that scrum. As McKenzie said: "It was like taking a knife to a gun fight"

So Baxter and Dunning are smelling like roses, if one will pardon a weak pun. Let's see the proof tonight.

 

[Pfitzy]

Question though - why the hell was Smith standing at halfback? He should have packed in at 8 and at least kept the locks together.

Pretty damning stuff for MMM though. But he was a rookie at the time and lock is not a position to be screwed with.

 

[Lee Grant]

Question though - why the hell was Smith standing at halfback? He should have packed in at 8 and at least kept the locks together.

Pretty damning stuff for MMM though. But he was a rookie at the time and lock is not a position to be screwed with.

Geez we were spoiled this year when we had two 2nd rowers who were TH locks for their S14 teams - Vickerman and Horwill - but Vickerman watched that infamous scrum in the photo from his lounge room in Sydney. Both Sharpe and 3M lost their bind on the hooker that time and Sheridan seemed like one of Patton's tanks of the same name driving through the gap.

As to why Smith didn't pack down: Geez the Pom scrummie could have just taken off with the ball especially if the scrum had wheeled clockwise a bit taking Smith further away from his line of run.

 

[Spook]

Doesn't explain why Poms murdered it in 2007 and the Welsh destroyed the Aussie scrum in the same tour as the Twickenham diasaster.

 

[naza]

Doesn't explain why Poms murdered it in 2007

That's still within The Yellow Scarf statute of limitations of 'Its Eddie Jones' fault !'.

 

[Pfitzy]

It was only partly the hangover from Eddie's time at the helm naza - as he has admitted. Mostly those issues were Knuckles' mantra of Bigger Is Better. Robinson has utterly destroyed that theory.