Yeah ok, so I was dealt the short straw this week and I had to do the player ratings. I watched the game at home with a few mates and in the end it was bloody hard to assign points.
Players did some things well, and work rates were ok. But for me there was a distinct lack of intensity. We didn’t play like it was a test match. Like we expected the Poms come in and take it to us. Me? I’m blaming the pack. Perhaps we spent too much time on the scrum (which improved, well done Pato!) but was it at the detriment of other areas?
So I tried to employ the same scale Juan Cote did last week, with one slight adjustment. I basically marked every forward down one point. To me they were the ones to blame. This may be harsh as the back line were flakey. But I expect that from our backs. They’re going to play lose (some of them not as loose as this game) but we need our forwards to harden the hell up. What can we expect though? Without the likes of Cliffy, Big Kev, Fat Cat, Squeak and Taf it is somewhat understandable. And just another lesson for some of our younger brigade.
To the points:
15 JOC – Overplayed his hand. Created opportunities but went himself too often when others could have taken advantage of the break – 4
14 Diggers – Was effective when he got involved but doesn’t seem involved enough. Does he have the roving commission he had at the Reds? Should he? Injured now, so a moot point – 6
13 Horne – doesn’t impose himself on the game enough for the position. Not like Morty, Herbie et al did. We need physicality here and with AAC we can get it – 5
12 Gits – The QLD Origin team has natural talent much like this Wallaby team. But they also have Lockyer to control the game. That’s what Gits should be doing. He isn’t and it was needed v the Poms. Didn’t play badly, but not doing what we need him to do. Like, ummm, kicking penalties in front of the posts – 6
11 Schmoo – Not as sharp as usual and seemed out of the game. Has been dynamic this season, but was not in this game. Some nice touches but was outpointed – 4
10 Quade – Shut down largely by the Poms but still looked our most dangerous back, albeit after a dodgy start. Looked very composed under pressure and chose his 
options well – 7
9 Sanchez – Looked a little slow in my mind, which was somewhat understandable considering it was his return from injury. Didn’t so much meerkat as slothed it a bit – 6
8 Brown – high work rate and some big hits but he just doesn’t seem to be able to cope at the back of the scrum. Also gave away a stupid penalty which resulted in crucial opposition points and a crucial time. Not for the first time in test rugby – 5
7 Bam Bam – Looked to be the only Wallaby forward who really gave a damn. Others did what they did, but were almost going through the motions. Pocock played with test match intensity and was a nuisance at the ruck – 7.
6 Rocky – I thought this was his best game for the Wallabies in a while as he was busy and aggressive in tight. Initial stats don’t seem to back this up, but I’m backing my first thoughts. Not convinced about his captaincy still, highlighted by his decision to let Gits take that penalty shot straight after being hit hard and illegally – 6
5 Sharpie – continues his impressive form and was not far behind Bam Bam in terms of his effectiveness. Is doing a lot of work with the ball, without overplaying his hand, whilst busy in defence too but I don’t think the intensity was there – 5
4 Mummy – this game reconfirmed my theory that Mumm aint up to test match footy. At least at lock. He’s strong in the lineout, sure, and has an ok work rate, but there’s no physical presence about him and that’s what we need at the moment – 4
3 Ma’afu – improved the scrum and had a decent work rate, but it’s not enough. Our defence, so fantastic last week, was soft and our tight five were all a part of that. Doesn’t have the fitness for test footy yet – 4
2 FaingaaS – did the little things right, decent line out, headed an improved scrum, made tackles. But his physical presence isn’t significant enough for test match footy yet – 5
1 Daley – like Salesi and Sai he’s just not test match hardened. Scrums started well, but a lack of strength and fitness soon showed and he became less effective. Again, a decent work rate, but minimal actual effectiveness or impact – 4
The scale:
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
