Worst Australian Team I've seen.

[JJJ]

I'm glad I missed most of the game now. What a shocking scoreline. Hard to think that any home union wouldn't fancy their chances of a win against us on the EOYT. Even Scotland with their pack would have an eye on making history. The question now has to be whether we were that good in Brisbane or if SA were just that bad. Whichever it was (I'm leaning towards the latter, along with the rest of the world) our forwards are in trouble. I've been consoling myself with their improved showing at scrumtime whenever they get dominated in the loose (which is usually), but now I don't even have that to cling to. I'm not sure if Robbie's ever had to coach a team who have so little go-forward at the breakdown. I'm starting to think that having such good fetchers at our top two S14 teams for so long has retarded our forward (tight 5) development in this area. Maybe they're so used to leaving it all to Phil and George and not wanting to knock them off their feet that they don't know how to ruck properly? Our tight 5 could all do with a stint up north to learn how to operate as a unit in this area. Hopefully Vickerman will come back and help there a bit. After Saturday's showing his agent will have upped his asking rate about 30% I'd think.

The only chance I can see for a 2011 win in NZ given how completely the ABs have got the wood on us mentally is if our super 14 teams start doing really well and build up some confidence. I'm thinking mainly of the Brumbies there since the other teams are probably rooted.

 

[louie]

I'm glad I missed most of the game now. What a shocking scoreline. Hard to think that any home union wouldn't fancy their chances of a win against us on the EOYT. Even Scotland with their pack would have an eye on making history. The question now has to be whether we were that good in Brisbane or if SA were just that bad. Whichever it was (I'm leaning towards the latter, along with the rest of the world) our forwards are in trouble. I've been consoling myself with their improved showing at scrumtime whenever they get dominated in the loose (which is usually), but now I don't even have that to cling to. I'm not sure if Robbie's ever had to coach a team who have so little go-forward at the breakdown. I'm starting to think that having such good fetchers at our top two S14 teams for so long has retarded our forward (tight 5) development in this area. Maybe they're so used to leaving it all to Phil and George and not wanting to knock them off their feet that they don't know how to ruck properly? Our tight 5 could all do with a stint up north to learn how to operate as a unit in this area. Hopefully Vickerman will come back and help there a bit. After Saturday's showing his agent will have upped his asking rate about 30% I'd think.

The only chance I can see for a 2011 win in NZ given how completely the ABs have got the wood on us mentally is if our super 14 teams start doing really well and build up some confidence. I'm thinking mainly of the Brumbies there since the other teams are probably rooted.

again

 

[junior]

I've been consoling myself with their improved showing at scrumtime whenever they get dominated in the loose (which is usually), but now I don't even have that to cling to.

I reckon that the Wallaby scrum has been so shit for so long, that in many ways it has masked many other deficiencies in the Wallabies' forward play, especially rucking. There seems to have been a general consensus (admittedly I take this from what I read in the media and on internet chat forums) that once the scrum was fixed (which it appears to have been), forward dominance would ensue and herald a new golden era of Wallaby rugby. Finding a couple of decent props has merely papered over the cracks in the Wallaby forward pack IMHO.

 

[chief]

Deans is absoloutely dreadful. What was with not using replacements. I would rather Phil Mooney then this guy, at least he has some pride in his country.

 

[Gagger]

:nta: Aus has been blown away at the breakdown for most of the tri nations.

We just don't get enough bodies there, last night we were as crap as we were in SA.

Until our pigs and coaches realise they have to get up and get to that next ruck, and drive past the ball; this will happen again and again.

We continue to think that we can hold the ruck, not commit numbers and place the ball deep; so we end up being driven off the ball by more committed sides

From a piece that Grumbles did with Adam Thompson post the debacle on Sat:

When asked if they ''had the wood'' on the Australian loose trio, Thomson said: ''By the end of the game, I thought we really did. We got a lot of go-forward and we talked about winning that metre. This means making the tackle, getting up on your feet and getting over the ball. Most of the time we were doing that and getting the turnovers. We were enjoying that advantage. It involved some good old-fashioned rugby.''

When you know that's the 'swing thought' in the AB forwards minds, it all makes sense. It also makes you wonder what ours is.

PS - like the new avatar FP

 

[ACT Crusader]

:nta: Aus has been blown away at the breakdown for most of the tri nations.

We just don't get enough bodies there, last night we were as crap as we were in SA.

Until our pigs and coaches realise they have to get up and get to that next ruck, and drive past the ball; this will happen again and again.

We continue to think that we can hold the ruck, not commit numbers and place the ball deep; so we end up being driven off the ball by more committed sides

From a piece that Grumbles did with Adam Thompson post the debacle on Sat:

When asked if they ''had the wood'' on the Australian loose trio, Thomson said: ''By the end of the game, I thought we really did. We got a lot of go-forward and we talked about winning that metre. This means making the tackle, getting up on your feet and getting over the ball. Most of the time we were doing that and getting the turnovers. We were enjoying that advantage. It involved some good old-fashioned rugby.''

When you know that's the 'swing thought' in the AB forwards minds, it all makes sense. It also makes you wonder what ours is.

PS - like the new avatar FP

That part of the AB game even impressed the "hard to please if not Australian" Phil Kearns

It's something that the ABs haven't done that well this year and sort of fell off last year. The loss of form from Rodney has had a big impact as he would be cleaning opposition bodies out allowing McCaw to compete or drive through or "fall awkwardly"

 

[Gagger]

Fuck me, even dickheads like this can see it

By Chris Rattue http://www.nzherald.co.nz/rugby/news/article.cfm?c_id=80&objectid=10598550

Richie McCaw responded superbly with the pressure on. But the All Blacks' intentions were best summed up by Adam Thomson and Ma'a Nonu as referee Craig Joubert gave them a licence to kill the Wallaby frills.

Nonu, old hand-signalling butterfingers himself, barrelled Aussies who were barely in the same suburb as the ball, while Thomson stood wherever he pleased in rucks.

And the Aussies stood by and let them get away with it.

The biff has been taken out of rugby but that doesn't mean test footballers are supposed to run around like Paddy O'Brien on a coaching course. Rugby rules are only a rough guide at the best of times and test match rugby is a game in which you set out to bend them until the opposition breaks.

It didn't take much to knock over these Wallaby wimps.

Most of them looked like George Gregan in his retirement tour years - only the immaculate Berrick Barnes and powerful Adam Ashley-Cooper appeared world class and to my mind, the Tri-Nations has shown Matt Giteau to be overrated as a test No 10.

 

[Scotty]

There is two points there:

1. Incompetence of Joubert - why does he keep getting selected when everyone knows he is so poor?
(the article mentions the exact points on Thompson and Nonu that I brought up)

2. Wimpishness of our forwards - why can't Williams harden them the fuck up?
(I lost count of how many times our backs were rucking against their forwards)

 

[cyclopath]

It isn't just Joubert Scotty. The ABs have perfected the play that Thomson was exhibiting at the breakdowns over the past God-knows-how-many years. Rodders does it, Anton Oliver was a master, Richie does it, Jerry Collins was pretty good too. I say good on them. If the refs are too stupid / weak or whatever to sort it out, then all power to the ABs. It has been well pointed out by you and others that the Wallabies had the option of doing something (other than waving their fingers at the ref) but exhibited point 2 of your post, WIMPISHNESS!!!

 

[Scarfman]

THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE DURING OUR TECHNICAL PROBLEM.

Our Chief Technical Officer is momentarily out of earshot. As soon as we find him service will be resumed. A full inquiry will be undertaken. Names will be named.