15. Kurtley Beale – His footwork, electric pace and vision in attack we’re almost getting used to, but the defensive effort this week matched up to it, holding up a Mealamu try and pulling down a runaway McCaw. Throw in a coupla booming punts and you’ve got the G&GR man of the match (9)
14. James O’Connor – Worked hard at the back all night with Gilbert and looks dangerous, before gliding through 3 All Blacks to score the winning try together with two conversions slotted from the sideline. How does he run so easily with balls that big? (8)
13. Adam Ashely-Cooper – Characteristic run and finish for his try in the first half. Still settling into those big Morty shoes but looking good (7)
12. Matt Giteau – The retraction of kicking duties are surely now a no-brainer but there wasn’t much else to write home about. What a difference when Barnes came on. Did we see a historical turning point for this back-line when he got yanked for Sookface? (3)
11. Drew Mitchell – Finished off Gilbert’s run and pass nicely, but didn’t have the same effect on the game as the rest of the back three. A loss in contact here, a slipped off tackle there. (5)
10. Quade Cooper – So hard to score. In attack he’s got the kiwis so worried they triple mark him while his passing cuts them to shreds and he goes and scores a try. In defence he was a train wreck with wobbly kicks to go with it. Liked the niggle with McCaw (6)
9. Will Genia – This still isn’t the Sanchez before the injury. Nothing wrong (apart from the odd defensive over-read covering for Quade) but the zip that Burgess showed in the last 10 minutes still isn’t back. Is it because he’s being sucked in defensively? (6)
8. Ben McCalman – Hard not to like this guy; he’s a battler. Still finding his way a little, especially with defensive positioning. (6)
7. David Pocock – Talk about Mr Consistent, as in Mr Consistently Fucking Awesome. Blew McCaw off the park at the tackle and is one of the go-to ball carriers. Developing a nice interplay with Elsom. (8)
6. Rocky Elsom – Some big carries – unlucky not to score a try, big hits and strong work at the tackle area. Seems to be getting to grips with this captaincy thing as well. (7)
5. Nathan Sharpe – Another balls-out display from the big man. Dominating the lineout, generating fantastic go forward, smashing rucks. My one gripe is that his ruck defence has gone walkabout. Perhaps because he’s so knackered from his work rate? (7)
4. Mark Chisholm – I saw him do four hit-ups and go precisely no-where, if not backwards in each one of them. Oh, and he butchered a lineout and fell off one of the Nonu tackles. Not good. (2)
3. Ben Alexander – For a first game back, had a belter. Was everywhere in the loose and made the right choices with ball in hand. Rolland didn’t have fucking clue in the scrum, no mark-downs there from me. (8)
2. Stephen Moore – Just so beautifully solid in all he did, with a question mark over just one or two tackles. (6)
1. Benn Robinson – Still to see the full Fat Cat from old. The scrum was such a mess through Rolland, you didn’t actually see that much, but you couldn’t say he was dominant. A nice steal though (5)
Reserves:
Luke Burgess – Helped up the tempo and made the right choices at the crucial time, and his passing definitely wasn’t crap! (7)
Dean Mumm – Got his head down with his time on the park and almost found his way to the line. Improved on Chis (6)
James Slipper – The youngster didn’t take a step back when he came on for Fat Cat. (6)
Berrick Barnes – Just so much more direct in attack and solid in defence. Surely played his way into contention? (7)
Saia Faingaa – Actually only thought one of his throws was a dud, one was Chis and the other mis-communication. He mixed it up but doesn’t have the impact of Moore. (5)
SCORING SYSTEM
10 – A legendary performance to go down in the history books
9 – Outstanding performance: Man of the match shoo-in
8 – Excellent all round game
7 – Good game with a few sparkles
6 – Solid performance
5 – Average – ho hum
4 – Below par
3 – Had a bad game
2 – Tell your story walking pal
1 – A complete joke
