The Chewsday Chew – are we there yet? (Ep18-2024)

Manuia le taeao Cobbers!

I hope all is well in your world and here’s hoping this missive makes it a wee bit better on this fine June Tuesday with the last ‘Team of the Week’ of Super 2024, the Team of the Tourney that comes out of it, some ‘Random Super Comments’ and we will then close it out with the now usual ‘Around the Campfires’ country-footy section.

But I’ll start this week with a massive congratulations to our Women’s 7’s outfit, taking both the Madrid tournament late Sunday night /Monday morning (our time) and in doing so also securing the 2024 World Sevens series with their 26-7 win over the Frog-ettes in the final. Along the way they had also knocked off their nemesis the Black Ferns in an epic semi-final encounter in-which the score was 19-all at full time with an Aussie conversion to come. Cometh the moment, cometh the woman and Tia Hinds stepped up and squirted the sauce from about the 15 yard line to take the semi 21-19. It was gorgeous, it was emotional, it was just bloody fantastic. And from there, well the poor bloody Frogs didn’t stand a chance.

And for the record, the lads came in 7th with their 21-0 win over the GB’s in the play-off. Unfortunately their run had been savaged by 38-5 loss to France, a 19-14 win over the GB’s in the pools and a 14-5 loss to the FISM’s.

Nutta’s Team of the Week (Wk15):

For the last time this year we’ll dive into the team of the week selected from the Aussie Super teams. As a reminder, the selection criteria is merely if you played for an Aussie Super franchise then you can get picked. But be aware, I’m not specifically picking on the basis of Wobbly qualification. And also, consider that this is MY pick only. I’m not St Joe. I’m not the Messiah. I’m barely a naughty little boy. I’m a 50yr old Frontie with all the bias and outlook that sort of perspective brings.

So with that in-mind, the TOTW from the last round is:

1. Alex Hodgeman – a really solid spell from the 4-test former All Black
2. Matt Faessler – in a season where it seems Hookers are jinxed, he has stood tall
3. Alan Alaalatoa – like all good props, you don’t realise how good he is until he’s not there
4. Jed Holloway – one of the few bright lights in sky blue
5. Izack Rodda – an imposing return to form
6. Liam Wright – has been a consistent performer all year
7. Fraser McReight – consolidating his spot as the no1 of the no7’s
8. Rob Valetini – a rock on which the Wobbs will be rebuilt
9. Ryan Lonergan – had a great game with clean service and good creativity
10. Noah Lolesio – the quiet conductor. I liked his clean out work, but not his scrum-feeds
11. Corey Toole – scored one pie, saved another and zipped everywhere
12. Hunter Paisami – his game has developed maturity to match the ‘bash’
13. Josh Flook – I still shake my head about how he didn’t go to RWC23
14. Dylan Pietsch – really tried hard, grabbed a pie and performed well
15. Tom Wright – some really polished touches underline that Tom may have matured
16. Jay Fonokalafi – Mr Concrete was tough, accurate and didn’t stop trying
17. Matt Gibbon – getting back to form at the right time 
18. Taniela Tupou – also getting back into shape. Round is a shape.
19. Jeremy Williams – a Lock picked at 6 on the weekend
20. Seru Uru – a 6 picked at Lock on the weekend
21. Tate McDermott – zippy, aggressive, opportunistic, but just lacks accuracy
22. Max Burey – some great, smart touches and really had a crack 
23. Andrew Kellaway – demonstrated real class in how he carried himself and executed skills

Now, given the regular rounds are over, let’s have a look at how the maths stacked up across the 103 names that appeared in the TOTW this year and so distill Nutta’s Aussie Super Team of the Tourney. A reminder that this was constructed as a combined effort of score and caps. Your score was a 5 for a run-on selection and a 4 for a reserve jersey. The first names up in general positions took preferred position, or else a conventional reserves slot on a 5/3 split bench. In the case of ties on score, it fell to the higher number of caps. And if still tied, it was my call based on a mix of experience and recent performance. So with that all in-mind, here is Nutta’s 2024 Aussie Super Team of the Tourney:

Out of interest, here also are the First XV names by pure score. Of note in this group is Lukan S-Loto who still made the top selection despite being injured in Rd8 (a nod to how dominant he was), and I also highlight Peni Ravai who made it on the numbers, but is ineligible for the Wobbs:

The prevalence of his selection (55pts from 12 caps) means that Liam Wright is the captain.

Random Comments from a Random Guy:

• I invite our Dear Readers to go back to 6:25 in the Rebs v Drua game and tell me if Drua No14 Waqa Nalaga did, or did not, spit on Andrew Kellaway after the try was scored. There was discussion among the Craparazzi Crew over this on the weekend. My vote is ‘Yes’, he looked straight at Kellaway and spat.
• Also in that game, I look forward to resident law expert KARL explaining on Wednesday how Drua firebrand Frank Lomani did not see red for his shoulder to the head of Rob Leota.
• How poetic was the Tahs showing on Friday night? It highlighted so much about their season. That said, it may have been a one-off ‘flash in the pan’ run, but wasn’t it clear to all and sundry how much fun Paddy Ryan was having? No he’s not 40. He’s a sprightly 35 (born 1998). But if he wasn’t the epitome of the ‘Old clubman prop called out for one more game’, then I don’t know what is. Again, it shows the doldrums NSW are in. And yeh, he lost. But he went down swinging. And that’s all you can ask of Crom.
• I hear chat that Jake Gordon is being considered for Wobbly no9 and possibly even captain. I remind folk that this guy is the no9 for the worst franchise in the country AND was openly trying to walk away from the team he IS captain of. Dear God, say it isn’t so Eddie Joe…
• I echoed the comment of others a few weeks ago, saying that the Reds were playing to the level of their opponents. And we saw that again on Friday as they let a team so clearly inept as NSW get back into that game. Now that bodes well for finals in the sense that the Reds will rise to the occasion and opponent. But it also bodes poorly as it means they lack the emotional fortitude to stand on their own and set their own standards – rather they are emotionally tied to their opponents. The Reds should’ve put 50pt on the Tahs on Friday night. And that inability to put the foot down is not the stuff of winners.
• I wonder if the Brumbies will FINALLY get a crowd worth opening the gates for this weekend? It’s prime time stuff with a 7.30pm Saturday night kick-off in a quarter-final against the Highlanders. They are two good sides, playing good rugby, and will put on a cracker of a match. So I wonder if that’s enough to get CBR folk to bother showing up? Or will they just moan some more about not having gold-plated buses to the front gate? And the cold? Pfffttttt. Harden up.

Around the Campfires…

Up in the Western Plains competition, the table is starting to take shape as the Warren Pumas continue to set the pace and top the table with 4 wins from 4 for 19pts following their 57-12 win over the middle-table Coonamble Rams. Meanwhile, Walgett Rams are holding 2nd spot with 4 from 5 for 19pts following their 36-10 victory over the Nyngan Bogan Bulls. But the game of the weekend was a more middling of the table affair as the Bourke & Brewarrina Barbarians did clash with the Gulargambone Galahs at Gulargambone Oval.

Up first, the Flamin’ Galahs took on the BaaBaa Ewes in tri-tag rugby. The Gular ‘spine’ combination of Sarah Chandler, Caitlynn King, and Pete Bradley quickly established control of the ruck area and that allowed Kelsey Hutchison to make a screamer of a debut into the team in the centre position to bag a pair of pies and set sail from there. By the end of the show it was 36-0 to the Flaming Galahs, which all conceded was probably not a fair reflection of the BaaBaas’ tenacity and resilience. Points were awarded as 3pts to Kelsey ‘2-pies’ Hutchison on debut, 2pts to Alanna ‘Casino Kid’ Clark and 1pt to Sharna ‘Just Sharns’ Steedman.

That display of running rugby had only whetted the appetite of those assembled and in such atmosphere did the best of Gular and Bre/Bourke then meet head on. Given the heaviness of the pitch and the generally prevailing conditions, it was to be a day of direct play and heavy collisions. And neither side did disappoint with hard-hitting and great tackling from the start. Both teams got into the grind and continual hard runs by forwards Mitch Graham, Will Bowman, Jack Bradley, Steve Owens and Luke Vagg for the Galahs were wearing the BaaBaa forwards out. And in the absence of Archie Haling, Zac Ferguson and Tim Bowmen were marshalling play remarkably well.

In the to and fro, an early unsauced pie to the BaaBaas was well answered by the baby-faced Galahs backs manouevering Elten Walker into space down the left side and, showing some of the speed of his father from about 25 years ago, he set sail to bag the pie and tie up the scores. Jaylem Peters squirted the sauce and the Galahs held the ticket. Unsurprisingly in the heavy conditions, tempers got a bit frayed thereafter and, 3 pieces of cheese later, the BaaBaas grabbed the critical ‘first and last 10min’ unsauced pie before oranges and the break was called at 10-7 to the BaaBaas.

Despite the best of endeavours, the 2nd spell was pretty much just pig on pig impacts. And while entertaining, those activities tend not to trouble the scoreboard guy. As such, while the half was predominantly spent in BaaBaas territory, neither sides chalk was disturbed and full time was blown as still at 10-7 in favour of the BaaBaas. Gulars points were awarded as 3pts to Jack Bradley, 2pts to Tim Bowman and 1pt to Lachy Ferguson on a tough day out.

Over in the South Coast & Monaro competition, it was billed as the clash of the titans as, hot from their 80-7 demolition job on the Hall Bushrangers the week before, the Braidwood Redbacks had been eyeing off giving the Jindabyne Bushpigs their first defeat in over two seasons on the weekend just past in sunny and salubrious Jindabyne. However it was not to be. The table-topping Jindy were at their polished and opportunistic best in dealing with the 2024 second-placed upstarts by 36-21.

Elsewhere in the SC&M, Hall Bushrangers bounced back from their Redbacks bite to record an impressive 38-13 win over Crookwell Dogs, while Yass Rams continued their recent trend of close wins by pegging the Taralga Tigers by 26-21. Meanwhile it’s turning into a tough old season for the Cooma Red Devils, dropping to the ADFA folk by 57-13.

Those results leave the Jindy Bushpigs as still the table-topping front-runners at 6 from 6 on maximum 30pts, followed by the Braidwood Redbacks on 4 from 5 and 20pts. The Mudchooks are 4 from 6 and 20pts as well and from there the table falls away to the Bateman Bay Boars, still battling away but yet to jag a win (keep truckin’ lads).

Lastly for today, a quick look at Central West (South) shows that the Cootamundra Tricolours had an emphatic 66-10 win over Grenfell Panthers, while the Harden Red Devils were lucky to get away with a 19-17 win over the Blue Rams in the ever sunny and welcoming Blayney over the weekend. Meanwhile the Young Yabbies had their nips up in taking down the Temora Tuskers by 49-21. But in the fixture of the round, the Boorowa Goldies welcomed the West Wyalong Weevils for a day’s ‘set to’ on the Goldies Ladies Day.

The day opened with the Goldilocks taking on the Weevettes in a great game of running rugby. From a bit of a slow start, with a lot of stoppages while some rhythm was found, the second half opened up as combinations gelled while fatigue kicked in, culminating in a fantastic piece of play and a pie as Jessie Abnett combined with Emily down the western touch line. All up the tight finish was a fitting outcome with the Boorowa girls taking the chocolates, only to be sharing them wholeheartedly as the Ladies Day festivities kicked into gear.

For the men, it was a rugged, typical ‘small town meets small town’ affair. As ever, the Weevils showed up committed to make a stand of it and the scoreboard was not a reflection of their tenacity. But in the end, it was the Boorowa reserves bench that meant fresh and capable legs overcame tired ones, no matter how hard they may have tried. 69-0 to the Goldies in what turned into ‘a bit of a flogging’.

Anyway, there are my musings for this week. Remember that rugby is only rugby because we all make it so. So get down to your local club, be they a thumping big city club or a one team collection of misfits and freaks akin to Average Joes, and pay the gate guys, buy a beer or six, and maybe even pull on the boots. Play hard. Run straight. Tackle brave. And always remember that Saturday is rugby day (somewhere).