Australia’s Squad
As the World Cup nears, all the competing nations are announcing their 33 man squads. Australia’s will be live streamed on Stan and the Wallabies YouTube channel at 6:30 pm tonight (Thursday 10 August).
Darren Walton reports that Stirling Mortlock is now positive about the Wallabies. “I have been a lot more positive and optimistic than a lot of other people that I’ve been speaking to in and around the game,” Mortlock told AAP on Tuesday. “I have been to both the home matches that we’ve had and I’ve seen improvements from every test match. Although we’ve lost all four, there’s certain aspects of our game where I’ve seen definitive improvements.”
He’s absolutely right and those “other people” he’s been speaking to need to get on board.
South Africa’s Squad
South Africa have announced their squad of 19 forwards and 14 backs. Injuries ruled out Handre Pollard (calf), Lukhanyo Am (knee) and Lood de Jager (chest) who have been placed on standby. If there is any “weakness” it is that the relatively inexperienced Manie Libbok is the only specialist five eight. As expected this is a strong squad:
Forwards:
Props: Steven Kitshoff (Ulster, 74 caps), Vincent Koch (Cell C Sharks, 45 caps), Frans Malherbe (DHL Stormers, 61 caps), Ox Nche (Cell C Sharks, 19 caps), Trevor Nyakane (Racing 92, 61 caps).
Hookers: Bongi Mbonambi (Cell C Shark, 60 caps), Malcolm Marx (Kubota Spears, 61 caps).
Locks: Eben Etzebeth (Cell C Sharks, 112 caps), Jean Kleyn (Munster, 2 caps), Marvin Orie (Perpignan, 14 caps), RG Snyman (Munster, 26 caps).
Loose Forwards: Pieter-Steph du Toit (Toyota Verblitz, 69 caps), Siya Kolisi (c) (Racing 92, 75 caps), Kwagga Smith (Shizuoka Blue Revs, 33 caps), Marco van Staden (Vodacom Bulls, 12 caps), Duane Vermeulen (68 caps), Jasper Wiese (Leicester, 22 caps).
Utility Forwards: Deon Fourie (DHL Stormers, 7 caps), Franco Mostert (Honda Heat, 65 caps).
Backs:
Scrumhalves: Faf de Klerk (Canon Eagles, 48 caps), Jaden Hendrikse (Cell C Sharks, 12 caps), Cobus Reinach (Montpellier, 25 caps), Grant Williams (Cell C Sharks, 4 caps).
Flyhalves: Manie Libbok (DHL Stormers, 7 caps), Damian Willemse (DHL Stormers, 31 caps).
Centres: Damian de Allende (Panasonic Wild Knights, 72 caps), Andre Esterhuizen (Harlequins, 13 caps), Jesse Kriel (Canon Eagles, 61 caps).
Outside Backs: Kurt-Lee Arendse (Vodacom Bulls, 9 caps), Cheslin Kolbe (Suntory Sungoliath, 25 caps), Willie le Roux (Vodacom Bulls, 86 caps), Makazole Mapimpi (Cell C Sharks, 38 caps), Canan Moodie (Vodacom Bulls, 6 caps).
Trinbago 2023 Commonwealth Youth Games
The 2023 Youth Commonwealth Games, currently hosted in Trinidad and Tobago, includes Rugby 7s. The Aussie women’s side has gone undefeated to take the gold medal with a 50-0 win over Canada.
The games were live streamed and are still available via YouTube. Watching from a cool Sydney, boy the Caribbean weather looks inviting.
Money Talks
Ian Cameron of Rugby Pass reports that each of the French 33 man squad will be paid slightly under €200,000 (about A$330,000) if they win the World Cup. Each. Just think of how many untested league players RA could poach with that sort of money.
Front Row Moves
Nathan Williamson reports that the Reds are losing prop Harry Hoopert to the Force while they’ve confirmed the re-signing of Peni Ravai and the signing of Junior Wallabies prop Massimo de Lutiis. Reuniting with coach Simon Cron was apparently a factor in Hooper’s decision. I don’t know that this sort of shuffling helps either team’s development.
World Cup Preparation
Games coming up this week for RWC participants:
Live on Stan
France v Scotland` Stade Geoffrey-Guichard, France Sunday 13 August 19:05 GMT
England v Wales Twickenham, England Sunday 13 August 16:30 GMT
Broadcast/Streaming Not Known
Georgia v Romania Mikheil Meskhi Stadium, Georgia Sunday 13 August 14:00 GMT
Tonga v Canada Teufaiva Stadium, Tonga Thursday 10 August 0:00 GMT
Portugal v USA Estadio Algarve, Portugal Sunday 13 August 20:00 GMT
Namibia v Chile Estadio German Becker, Chile Sunday 13 August 21:00 GMT
The last couple of weeks may seem tough for Aussie rugby fans. Why is it lineball between winning the Bledisloe or the RWC for a lot of us? Why do we enter a lot of sporting challenges with the yardstick “as long as we beat New Zealand”? Two island nations, each with different first nations cultural histories and timelines. Both with a British colonial past and modern migration story. One that has long had a treaty with its first peoples and the other more recently coming to grips with its full history. Yet despite our differences, our most sacred day is held in honour of both nations. There is a bond between the two nations such that if either was threatened, there is an unspoken certainty, the other would be there. The rivalry and unstated affection has often been likened to that of competitive siblings.
Some of this was evident in 1944 in Stalag XVIII-A, Marburg a Drau, Slovenia (then in Yugoslavia) when the Aussie and Kiwi prisoners of war played a game of rugby (nine a side). How did we get the pictures above? Well of course they bribed a German guard to use his camera.
We know the names of some of these men: Alexander “Alec” Murray Connor, from Parkes, NSW, Ernest Arthur “Snow” Boardman, from Sydney, NSW, Len Hewleet, and New Zealander R.G. (Paddy) Symes of Temuka, South Canterbury.
Thanks to his excellent memory, letters and notes we may know the history of Alec Connor* and can assume each of these men followed a similar path and privations.
Alec was born in 1920 and played rugby in the Orange High School First XV, as well as a local club and sometimes for the First Orange Troop Scout team. After leaving school he moved to Queensland, where he commenced training as an accountant.
He joined the second A.I.F. because the news of the collapse of Europe under the weight of a Nazi Government became a very real threat. He was determined to join a fighting division when old enough (at 20) and so put his age up a year. This despite his father’s observation that, in advancing his age, he had now declared his mother was an immoral woman.
After limited training in Darwin and the southern states he travelled to Palestine via Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) and the Suez Canal. The men disembarked at El Kantara on 2 February, and by 10 March were in the field. Moving between defensive positions and very poorly equipped the whole group was captured in early April 1941.
He joined miscellaneous captive groups including Sudanese, British and Australian units, all under guard of a German armoured group. No one was allowed to leave the vehicles despite the virulent form of dysentery that had spread through the group. Food was confined to Italian hard tack biscuits and a little water.
They were driven at bayonet point into Italian barracks. The latrines were flooded and the men were ill with dysentery. The exhausted lay down and slept where they could. As they slept, the Italians stripped them of any valuables and gear. They were shipped by boat and train to Capua in Italy where they became lousy. Food was lacking, punctuated only by occasional Red Cross inspections, when more was provided. The men made it a rule not to discuss their hunger.
After several moves from October 1941 until mid 1943 Alec was interned in the infamous Campo 57, also known as Gruppignano where conditions remained poor.
On April 25th, 1943 the Italian command relented and allowed the prisoners to celebrate Anzac Day. In fact they were led to believe it was a religious day. To their amazement, all the Kiwis and Australians appeared on parade, smartly dressed as possible, shaven and boots cleaned. The senior R.S.M. fell in the parade, the orchestra converted to a band for the occasion and the parade marched past the NZ padre (who held the rank of Major) with great precision. A full salute, completion of the march past and the parade was then dismissed. Next day the men appeared just as lackadaisical as ever in front of the puzzled Italian commander.
In September 1943, after the Allied landings in Italy and the fall of the Italian Fascist Government the camp was taken over by German troops and the prisoners were then moved by train out of the Italy to Stalag XVIII-A. In October, the camp itself was moved to the goods yards at Marburg Slovenia and the prisoners sent out to work on the railway line to Klagenfurt.
“Our guards were all old men who were fairly reasonable in their attitude….
….As the winter thawed out a little, a group of us persuaded the guards to let us play Rugby Union football, nine a side. The guards thought we were stupid, tackling one another but we enjoyed ourselves. I had the bad luck to injure myself following a tackle by a tall Irish Kiwi, R.G. (Paddy) Symes of Temuka, …. One of my knees was badly twisted and became extremely painful. I was put to bed with some morphine to ease the pain.”
As the war came to a close in 1945 the risks escalated with SS guards taking over checkpoints and summarily shooting anyone without papers. Concerned about the SS and about falling into the hands of advancing Russian troops Alec and other prisoners left the camp with no food or supplies to make their way to American lines. On the way, they were captured by a Russian armoured group, They bided their time and recrossed the Enns River to the American side. On 31 May, 1945 they made contact with the American troops and after several years were finally free.
Rugby is a great game, rich with tradition and a rivalry with New Zealand built on shared values and history that transcends the game.
* Alec lived to 100 and donated to the Australian War Memorial notes on his experiences. His son is collating and writing his history. I hope he completes his work and this becomes generally available via a book or movie. The full story is fascinating and the men are worth the honour.
Eddie’s Squad
The 33 man squad will be out at 6:30pm this evening, streamed on Stan and YouTube.
Eddie has refined his selections, so other than knowing the balance Eddie wants, it’s a bit less of a guessing game. Maybe this is the squad, although he’ll probably take another forward and only two halfbacks:
Hookers
Matt Faessler
Dave Porecki
Jordan Uelese
Props
Angus Bell
Pone Fa’amausili
Tom Lambert
Zane Nonggorr
James Slipper
Taniela Tupou
Locks
Richie Arnold
Nick Frost
Matt Philip
Will Skelton
Back Row
Langi Gleeson
Jed Holloway
Tom Hooper
Fraser McReight
Pete Samu
Rob Valetini
Halfbacks
Ryan Lonergan
Tate McDermott
Nic White
Flyhalfs
Quade Cooper
Carter Gordon
Centres
Reece Hodge
Len Ikitau
Samu Kerevi
Izaia Perese
Jordan Petaia
Back Three
Andrew Kellaway
Marika Koroibete
Mark Nawaqanitawase
Tom Wright
Have a good one.
