Wallabies 2020 thread

[Kahu]

I'd take him over Jordie but then I'd never pick JB on the wing ever anyway

[Thomas]

Surely there has to be someone better than Koroibete. You would think he would have learned a thing or 2 about rules at the ruck by now

Are you confused?

[Kahu]

Surely there has to be someone better than Koroibete. You would think he would have learned a thing or 2 about rules at the ruck by now

Are you confused?

Quite possibly, please expand

[towny]

I like the try MK scored.

[shanky]

Grievous ratings were agreeable to me

Bit hard on Samu though, one bad game etc

[Kahu]

Was a good try by MK. Nothing exceptional by NRL standards though. Did he do anything else in the game bar give away ruck penalties?

[Farva]

MK is possibly the best wing in the world. He reads the game well. He can score and move in really tight spaces. He is a strong defender. He is a finisher and knows where the line is. He gets involved in the game and knows when to come off the wing. He gets involved in the ruck when needed. He is quick and can score the long range try. He knows how to run great lines.

Only downside is he can’t kick.

[Kahu]

Fair dinkum solid post Farva. OK enough fishing from me. The Wallabies were excellent and look to have room for improvement. Hopefully they kick on from this and the next few years are filled with more of these epic Bledisloe encounters.

[Thomas]

Surely there has to be someone better than Koroibete. You would think he would have learned a thing or 2 about rules at the ruck by now

Are you confused?

Quite possibly, please expand

MK didn't give away any ruck penalties, I believe. Also, he won the award for best player in Australia last year.

He's one of the first picked.

[Bindi]

Definite changes.

Slipper out, Sio in (or AAA maybe)
Fiangaa out, Eulese in.
Samu out, Wright in - we need a lot more presence in the ruck.

Was very impressed with Daugunu and Banks easily exceeded my expectations. Toomua was a bit average, but worth sticking with. Why wasn't he taking the shots at goal?

Rest to stay the same.

[grievous]

Definite changes.

Slipper out, Sio in (or AAA maybe)
Fiangaa out, Eulese in.
Samu out, Wright in - we need a lot more presence in the ruck.

Was very impressed with Daugunu and Banks easily exceeded my expectations. Toomua was a bit average, but worth sticking with. Why wasn't he taking the shots at goal?

Rest to stay the same.

Exactly Tomua has kicked so well all year, no matter who coaches the Wallabies some decisions confound we supporters.

[towny]

He also came second in a maths quiz is year 9 or so I hear.

What’s your point?

That Godwin should play 7?

Go on, fess up

Ahead of Paisami he should!

Now..... where were we?

[towny]

Definite changes.

Slipper out, Sio in (or AAA maybe)
Fiangaa out, Eulese in.
Samu out, Wright in - we need a lot more presence in the ruck.

Was very impressed with Daugunu and Banks easily exceeded my expectations. Toomua was a bit average, but worth sticking with. Why wasn't he taking the shots at goal?

Rest to stay the same.

Slipper played well and Sio wasn’t visible.
No argument with the rest; except to say, Jordan Petaia is playing if fit. Someone in form is going to miss out.

[towny]

MK is possibly the best wing in the world. He reads the game well. He can score and move in really tight spaces. He is a strong defender. He is a finisher and knows where the line is. He gets involved in the game and knows when to come off the wing. He gets involved in the ruck when needed. He is quick and can score the long range try. He knows how to run great lines.

Only downside is he can’t kick.

I like MK but he’s not in my world XV. I’m not sure if he’ll make the team next week.

[Mog The Almighty]

So ... you fellahs posting laughy emojis when I picked Hodge ... still laughing?

Howitzer boot, covers multiple positions and is a great player, period. Clearly should be in the side.

The Wallabies were absolutely robbed.

[Farva]

He also came second in a maths quiz is year 9 or so I hear.

What’s your point?

That Godwin should play 7?

Go on, fess up

Ahead of Paisami he should!

Now..... where were we?

In the match thread, page 9 I think it was...

I’m more than happy to eat humble pie for my earlier comments on Paisami. He looks good and his defence seems fine.

[towny]

So ... you fellahs posting laughy emojis when I picked Hodge ... still laughing?

Howitzer boot, covers multiple positions and is a great player, period. Clearly should be in the side.

The Wallabies were absolutely robbed.

He missed.....

[towny]

He also came second in a maths quiz is year 9 or so I hear.

What’s your point?

That Godwin should play 7?

Go on, fess up

Ahead of Paisami he should!

Now..... where were we?

In the match thread, page 9 I think it was...

I’m more than happy to eat humble pie for my earlier comments on Paisami. He looks good and his defence seems fine.

Not enough. Eat another slice as I watch.

[Farva]

MK is possibly the best wing in the world. He reads the game well. He can score and move in really tight spaces. He is a strong defender. He is a finisher and knows where the line is. He gets involved in the game and knows when to come off the wing. He gets involved in the ruck when needed. He is quick and can score the long range try. He knows how to run great lines.

Only downside is he can’t kick.

I like MK but he’s not in my world XV. I’m not sure if he’ll make the team next week.

Your team selection is shit.

[Farva]

What’s your point?

That Godwin should play 7?

Go on, fess up

Ahead of Paisami he should!

Now..... where were we?

In the match thread, page 9 I think it was...

I’m more than happy to eat humble pie for my earlier comments on Paisami. He looks good and his defence seems fine.

Not enough. Eat another slice as I watch.

It’s not too bad, raspberry I think.

[towny]

MK is possibly the best wing in the world. He reads the game well. He can score and move in really tight spaces. He is a strong defender. He is a finisher and knows where the line is. He gets involved in the game and knows when to come off the wing. He gets involved in the ruck when needed. He is quick and can score the long range try. He knows how to run great lines.

Only downside is he can’t kick.

I like MK but he’s not in my world XV. I’m not sure if he’ll make the team next week.

Your team selection is shit.

Where is Petaia going to play?

[towny]

Ahead of Paisami he should!

Now..... where were we?

In the match thread, page 9 I think it was...

I’m more than happy to eat humble pie for my earlier comments on Paisami. He looks good and his defence seems fine.

Not enough. Eat another slice as I watch.

It’s not too bad, raspberry I think.

Humble pie is usually tasty

[Mog The Almighty]

So ... you fellahs posting laughy emojis when I picked Hodge ... still laughing?

Howitzer boot, covers multiple positions and is a great player, period. Clearly should be in the side.

The Wallabies were absolutely robbed.

He missed.....

Obviously, by a whisker. But you want him there for exactly that reason. And we ended up with the ball back, under the posts in a position where if we had good referees (see my robbed thread) we would have won. That's exactly why I wanted him in the team (plus his versatility) and it was obvious there that it was a good call.

[grievous]

Grievous ratings were agreeable to me

Bit hard on Samu though, one bad game etc

Thing is hes been here before. Like FF he was given another shot and cant cut it, sounds harsh, at best a bench player. We need a bigger player at 8 that has a few facets to their game.

[towny]

So ... you fellahs posting laughy emojis when I picked Hodge ... still laughing?

Howitzer boot, covers multiple positions and is a great player, period. Clearly should be in the side.

The Wallabies were absolutely robbed.

He missed.....

Obviously, by a whisker. But you want him there for exactly that reason. And we ended up with the ball back, under the posts in a position where if we had good referees (see my robbed thread) we would have won. That's exactly why I wanted him in the team (plus his versatility) and it was obvious there that it was a good call.

[Farva]

MK is possibly the best wing in the world. He reads the game well. He can score and move in really tight spaces. He is a strong defender. He is a finisher and knows where the line is. He gets involved in the game and knows when to come off the wing. He gets involved in the ruck when needed. He is quick and can score the long range try. He knows how to run great lines.

Only downside is he can’t kick.

I like MK but he’s not in my world XV. I’m not sure if he’ll make the team next week.

Your team selection is shit.

Where is Petaia going to play?

I’d stick him at 13. Paisami, who played well, either goes to the bench or out of the team. Probably the bench as he covers so many positions, and Toomua can be the other play maker.

[towny]

MK is possibly the best wing in the world. He reads the game well. He can score and move in really tight spaces. He is a strong defender. He is a finisher and knows where the line is. He gets involved in the game and knows when to come off the wing. He gets involved in the ruck when needed. He is quick and can score the long range try. He knows how to run great lines.

Only downside is he can’t kick.

I like MK but he’s not in my world XV. I’m not sure if he’ll make the team next week.

Your team selection is shit.

Where is Petaia going to play?

I’d stick him at 13. Paisami, who played well, either goes to the bench or out of the team. Probably the bench as he covers so many positions, and Toomua can be the other play maker.

I’ve only ever seen Paisami play 13.

[Farva]

He played all over the backline for the Reds. He was routinely the 23rd man for that reason.
Did you not watch your team?
For shame.

[Ellafan]

Well, nobody saw that coming. The NZrs looked a bit flabergasted in the interviews; maybe they believed the press and went in overconfident.

Still, it showed up some serious problems that Rennie needs to sort out.

The first one is that Tupo is not functioning as a #3. That means his primary job is the set pieces. Our scrum was dished up today, with ref talking to him repeatedly. Our line out, on the rare occasion it was thrown straight, was also a mess - and that is the fault of all involved, including the lifters and blockers, not getting it right. His secondary job is to clear bodies away from the breakdown and protect the ball carrier, and retain possession. Our breakdown was poor as well. Not entirely his fault but he is part of the equation.

Swanning around with the skirt-wearers and pretending to be a #12 is not part of the job description. I think he needs to go back onto the reserves bench for a couple of years while he learns the dark arts, and for that matter finishes growing (at about age 26) before he can be considered as a cemented starting 3. His alternative is to go and play the lite code, and he may well do it - he can be a "backrower/centre" there. If he does not have the mental attitude required to focus on his primary positional role - and I really hope Brad Thorn can help him here - then maybe he should take the money.

Next, Dugunu is an excellent attacking winger - but some of his turnstyle tackling fails reminded me of a couple of wingers from a few years ago, who were in and out of the Wobblies for a while, until the penney dropped - their defence was shit and it wasn't getting any better. Did anyone else notice that the defensive pattern was always to have a backrower or someone standing up Dugunu's clacker to make sure of his tackles. You really want your 6 & 8 doing other stuff. It reminded me of the days of Quade Cooper being hidden in defence.

Simmons - would not get a look in if certain other people were fit/available, but at least that is a short-medium term problem.

FF needs to learn to throw the ball in properly. It is a necessary core skill, and if he can't do it, then that's tough - he's out of the squad. Get someone who can. You'd think he'd be embarrassed by his shit throwing.

Rennie needs to cut off Nick White's right foot.

Last thing for now, our guys playing speed while in possession was slower than the ABs; on the turnover the tempo seemed to accelerate and look dangerous, not ponderous like Eddie Jones'/Chubby's Randwick '2 pod' system. Quite how Rennie addresses that, we shall see. I wish him luck as it requires a bit of a sea change in thinking from the top down, put if you have 4 guys playing 6 or 7 at each breakdown, you should not be surprised to be turned over. Also please see my comments above about Tupo standing wide with the 5/8.

[Bindi]

Well, nobody saw that coming. The NZrs looked a bit flabergasted in the interviews; maybe they believed the press and went in overconfident.

Still, it showed up some serious problems that Rennie needs to sort out.

The first one is that Tupo is not functioning as a #3. That means his primary job is the set pieces. Our scrum was dished up today, with ref talking to him repeatedly. Our line out, on the rare occasion it was thrown straight, was also a mess - and that is the fault of all involved, including the lifters and blockers, not getting it right. His secondary job is to clear bodies away from the breakdown and protect the ball carrier, and retain possession. Our breakdown was poor as well. Not entirely his fault but he is part of the equation.

Swanning around with the skirt-wearers and pretending to be a #12 is not part of the job description. I think he needs to go back onto the reserves bench for a couple of years while he learns the dark arts, and for that matter finishes growing (at about age 26) before he can be considered as a cemented starting 3. His alternative is to go and play the lite code, and he may well do it - he can be a "backrower/centre" there. If he does not have the mental attitude required to focus on his primary positional role - and I really hope Brad Thorn can help him here - then maybe he should take the money.

Next, Dugunu is an excellent attacking winger - but some of his turnstyle tackling fails reminded me of a couple of wingers from a few years ago, who were in and out of the Wobblies for a while, until the penney dropped - their defence was shit and it wasn't getting any better. Did anyone else notice that the defensive pattern was always to have a backrower or someone standing up Dugunu's clacker to make sure of his tackles. You really want your 6 & 8 doing other stuff. It reminded me of the days of Quade Cooper being hidden in defence.

Simmons - would not get a look in if certain other people were fit/available, but at least that is a short-medium term problem.

FF needs to learn to throw the ball in properly. It is a necessary core skill, and if he can't do it, then that's tough - he's out of the squad. Get someone who can. You'd think he'd be embarrassed by his shit throwing.

Rennie needs to cut off Nick White's right foot.

Last thing for now, our guys playing speed while in possession was slower than the ABs; on the turnover the tempo seemed to accelerate and look dangerous, not ponderous like Eddie Jones'/Chubby's Randwick '2 pod' system. Quite how Rennie addresses that, we shall see. I wish him luck as it requires a bit of a sea change in thinking from the top down, put if you have 4 guys playing 6 or 7 at each breakdown, you should not be surprised to be turned over. Also please see my comments above about Tupo standing wide with the 5/8.

Drunk as usual, Sluggy?

[CrazyIslander]

I thought they played really well. Tupou played a more suited role for the first time in his career. They don't need to work on anything, the ref was biased in the scrum tbh. I can see what they're trying to do in the lineout. You can't expect a mistake free performance.

They need recovery more than anything. Don't change too much. They were robbed.

[Ellafan]

You can't blame the ref CI. Tupou is too raw to understand the method of countering whatever it was his opponent was doing to milk the penalties.

Do you think the result of the game might have differed, had the Wallaby scrum been solid?

[towny]

He played all over the backline for the Reds. He was routinely the 23rd man for that reason.
Did you not watch your team?
For shame.

I watched all the Reds games - can’t recall him playing anywhere but 13.

[towny]

You can't blame the ref CI. Tupou is too raw to understand the method of countering whatever it was his opponent was doing to milk the penalties.

Do you think the result of the game might have differed, had the Wallaby scrum been solid?

Wasn’t he getting the Wob scrum for early engage? Seems like this might be caused from unfamiliarity with that particular ref.

They know Gardner next week - I think we will have at least parity at scrum time.

[Olo]

You can't blame the ref CI. Tupou is too raw to understand the method of countering whatever it was his opponent was doing to milk the penalties.

Do you think the result of the game might have differed, had the Wallaby scrum been solid?

Wasn’t he getting the Wob scrum for early engage? Seems like this might be caused from unfamiliarity with that particular ref.

They know Gardner next week - I think we will have at least parity at scrum time.

Put Uelese between TT and Slipper and I think we will stuff them.

[Ellafan]

You can't blame the ref CI. Tupou is too raw to understand the method of countering whatever it was his opponent was doing to milk the penalties.

Do you think the result of the game might have differed, had the Wallaby scrum been solid?

Wasn’t he getting the Wob scrum for early engage? Seems like this might be caused from unfamiliarity with that particular ref.

They know Gardner next week - I think we will have at least parity at scrum time.

Put Uelese between TT and Slipper and I think we will stuff them.

Uelese did improve the scum, a bit. But the ref was also talking, albeit it was hard to hear, about some sort of lateral movement after the engage. Tupou could be the at the beginning of a long and successful career, but he's got a bit to learn. Can we get Mario Ledesma back?

[towny]

You can't blame the ref CI. Tupou is too raw to understand the method of countering whatever it was his opponent was doing to milk the penalties.

Do you think the result of the game might have differed, had the Wallaby scrum been solid?

Wasn’t he getting the Wob scrum for early engage? Seems like this might be caused from unfamiliarity with that particular ref.

They know Gardner next week - I think we will have at least parity at scrum time.

Put Uelese between TT and Slipper and I think we will stuff them.

Uelese did improve the scum, a bit. But the ref was also talking, albeit it was hard to hear, about some sort of lateral movement after the engage. Tupou could be the at the beginning of a long and successful career, but he's got a bit to learn. Can we get Mario Ledesma back?

Mario? Nah. Reds scrum has Lillicrap - he doubles as a physio so is a bargain.

Uelese and Tupou might work well; however big height difference. I’d give BPA a run with Slipper and Tupou and leave Uelese with the Bumbies’ lads.

[Farva]

He played all over the backline for the Reds. He was routinely the 23rd man for that reason.
Did you not watch your team?
For shame.

I watched all the Reds games - can’t recall him playing anywhere but 13.

He played 23 most of the season. I think he started two games?
If you want to keep Paisami at 13, then JP comes in for Daugunu. Let’s not drop the Wallaby player of the year after a good game.
To be honest, if you want to keep Paisami at 13 then JP goes to 23.

[Farva]

You can't blame the ref CI. Tupou is too raw to understand the method of countering whatever it was his opponent was doing to milk the penalties.

Do you think the result of the game might have differed, had the Wallaby scrum been solid?

Wasn’t he getting the Wob scrum for early engage? Seems like this might be caused from unfamiliarity with that particular ref.

They know Gardner next week - I think we will have at least parity at scrum time.

Put Uelese between TT and Slipper and I think we will stuff them.

Uelese did improve the scum, a bit. But the ref was also talking, albeit it was hard to hear, about some sort of lateral movement after the engage. Tupou could be the at the beginning of a long and successful career, but he's got a bit to learn. Can we get Mario Ledesma back?

Mario? Nah. Reds scrum has Lillicrap - he doubles as a physio so is a bargain.

Uelese and Tupou might work well; however big height difference. I’d give BPA a run with Slipper and Tupou and leave Uelese with the Bumbies’ lads.

Uelese is the best hooker in Australia bar none.

[CrazyIslander]

You can't blame the ref CI. Tupou is too raw to understand the method of countering whatever it was his opponent was doing to milk the penalties.

Do you think the result of the game might have differed, had the Wallaby scrum been solid?

Perhaps, but finally the Wallabies are using multiple battering rams off quick ball with some added second pass. For so long we've selected designated ball carriers who then get smashed by the opposition. Everyone if given some time and space, via quick ball and passing, can make metres. Tupou finally has become a prolific ball carrier, they all were.

The ref was bias at scrum time. And around the ground.