Re-watching the match it’s clear the Wallabies put in a great defensive performance that killed Fiji stone dead. The second half fade however raised questions we hadn’t asked this season. All of this goes into the Wallabies player ratings against Fiji. (I’m on holiday, so the reserves are over to you.)
[one_third last=”no”]
1. Scott Sio
Great scrum performance and tidy around the field. 7[/one_third][one_third last=”no”]
2. Stephen Moore
I won’t put the whole line-out shmozzle of the second half down to Squeak, but his all round game was unsqueaklike. Is he 100%? 3[/one_third][one_third last=”yes”]
3. Sekope Kepu
Put the meat on the plate in the scrum and then poured over the gravy with a pie. 7[/one_third][one_third last=”no”]
4. Kane Douglas
Workmanlike but brought his weight to bear and put in the graft. 5[/one_third][one_third last=”no”]
5. Rob Simmons
Is clearly integral to the line-out. No doubt upping his workrate but impact and the miss on Volavola knocks him back. 5[/one_third][one_third last=”yes”]
6. Scott Fardy
Busy at the breakdown but on the wrong side of an errant Jackson (and spilled the last pill). 6[/one_third][one_third last=”no”]
7. Michael Hooper
Not his freakish ball-running self but still put in a great defensive openside performance. 7[/one_third][one_third last=”no”]
8. David Pocock
From his first steal after 67 seconds it was clear we were in for something special. How far his all round game has come on. GAGR MoM 9[/one_third][one_third last=”yes”]
9. Will Genia
Sharper at the base but still taking a step and/or looking both ways first. Kicks were aimless as well. 4[/one_third][one_third last=”no”]
10. Bernard Foley
Characterist ically solid, including with the boot and in defence. Doesn’t shirk. 6[/one_third][one_third last=”no”]
11. Rob Horne
He wasn’t selected for his razzle-dazzle. Did what he was put there to do; keep Big Nads quiet. 6[/one_third][one_third last=”yes”]
12. Matt Giteau
Another performance dominated by a cool head and fearless approach to the tackle. 6[/one_third][one_third last=”no”]
13. Tevita Kuridrani
Seemed shaken by this match. His late yellow card hampering a bonus point could be costly. 4[/one_third][one_third last=”no”]
14. Adam Ashley-Cooper
The Earl’s first two touches were uncharacter istic errors (knock on and kick out on full), but he pulled it back 5[/one_third][one_third last=”yes”]
15. Israel Folau
Absolute class that the Fijians were rightly wary of. He even pulled off a turnover! 8[/one_third]
THE PATENTED G&GR RATINGS GUIDE:
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
