By nird99 -
July 12th 2009 @ 5:27am
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Loading ...Who is key for the Wallabies and All Blacks?
With the first Bledisloe and Tri-Nations games only a week away, we should have a look at which players we think will be the keys for each team.
Berrick Barnes. I think that he takes so much pressure away from Gits that he is the real key for me. He adds another dimension to the kicking game and allows Gits to take on the line when need be. He ensures that the Australian team is less one dimensional.
Luke Burgess. If he is able to give some quick service to the backs, the Wallabies may be able to get on the front foot in attack. With players outside of him that are able to break the defensive line (Mortlock, AAC etc) there is nothing more important than giving them the ball on the front foot.
Al Baxter and Benn Robinson. I never thought that I would include Baxter in something like this but his form (particularly in comparison to Alexander) has been very good this season so far. The front row really need to set a platform for the rest of the pack. This also helps players like Smith have a bigger impact if the others are holding their weight against the awesome black pack.
George Smith. I don’t think I can understate how important this player is to the Wallabies team at the moment. He is such a driving force for the rest of the pack to follow and such an influential person. It is also important because of his direct clash with possibly the greatest 7 of all time in McCaw. If he can any way put McCaw off his game (no matter how slight), he will have done his job in getting the Wallabies over the line.
Mils Muliaina. Mils forms a very strong combination with his wingers and is the key to counter attacking for the All Blacks. The Wallabies have shown that they have quite a strong kicking game this year and if Mils is able to make inroads into the Wallabies during kick returns then the All Blacks will be well placed.
Ma’a Nonu. With his ability to break the line and offload, he could be the key to setting the All Blacks backs into many attacking raids. With his test experience, he could be a useful support for a lesser experienced fly half.
Piri Weepu or Jimmy Cowan. Both of these players will have an important role because of the missing figure of Daniel Carter. Whichever one starts on the field will have the job, I believe, of not only directing the forwards around the park, but helping in a big way to run the backline. It is something that All Black half backs have not had to think about for a while, but they will have to take a much bigger role in offense.
Richie McCaw. What else do I need to say. An inspirational captain and leader, a lead from the front man if ever I have seen one. Richie seems to have the ability to turn a game on his own. He will make that amazing cover tackle, but better yet he will get to his feet, steal the ball and pass off to an explosive back to counter attack. George Smith has been brilliant this year and Richie will need to ensure he plays well to dominate Smith if he wants his team to win.
As for the match ups, lets see what starting teams are named and who is playing where.
I am looking forward to an amazing series and hope that these games continue to match up with the hype surrounding them. One of the first games of Rugby (having grown up in a League house) I watched was a Bledisloe game and every time I watch one it still brings back very enjoyable childhood memories.
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(30)
bennalong said | July 12th 2009 @ 2:43pm | Report comment
YOU’VE MENTIONED HIM in regards to Barne’s role, but I guess I’d put Giteau up there as the key figure against the Blacks.
He’s always been compared to Carter who isn’t there now so this pivotal position goes to the Wallabies! Can he carve them up?
Getting back to the classic Deans concept of two fly halves you would have to be happy with these two. One left footer, one right footer, and both gifted with line-breaking vision.
My tip is we’ll see a dour start with lots of kicking to the corners like in the BaBaas game. Turn ‘em around, turn ‘em around, hoping to frustrate them.
The second key area of course is the breakdown. The French test was encouraging because we showed a newfound enthusiasm to get numbers there, though we were far from as physical. McCaw won’t be fully fit so we have a edge there. If Sharpe continues his great form, amazing really, our back row will match theirs.
The French showed Nonu is neutralizeable and Mortlock has broken through on him in the past.Also, I really think Adam 2-dads has come of age and will be as dangerous as Mils Muliaina.
On paper, we’ll win !
mattamkII said | July 12th 2009 @ 2:47pm | Report comment
I have always though Mils to be a decent player but pretty over rated to be honest.
The 7’s and 10’s will be the key to both sides.
Stash said | July 12th 2009 @ 5:23pm | Report comment
I’m thinking that Leonard may run on – he was devastating in the Super 14. Very hard to contain – aggressive defence, and probably the fastest pass (maybe he can cut-out pass 10, that should help). The Nonu and Smith combination is what took the Hurricanes to the semis – even Mortlock will have hi9s hands fill there.
Giteau is a great player – and 10 is a huge problem for the blacks, but both Donald and McAllister have very good defence, so there is not really in any holes in that channel.
Most important individuals? Henry and Deans – Henry has to instill (make that demand) that kicking for territory (and kicking out) is a valid facet of the game. The all blacks need to be out their own 22 and absorb pressure elsewhere in the park. Deans – he needs to make replacements in the second half earlier than later (it was his undoing last year). Deans is not going to be comfortable in Auckland, and neither are the Wallabies – and that seemingly affects their steering of the game when playing in NZ.
Who Needs Melon said | July 12th 2009 @ 5:29pm | Report comment
I’m struggling to nail down one or two players who I would consider ‘key’ but, from an Australian perspective, there are a lot of things I’m looking forward to seeing in these tri-nations games:
1) How telling will the absence of Carter be? Will our backline be able to exploit his absence? How lessened will the All Black attack be for his absence?
2) McCaw vs. Smith. A guy coming back from injury and a guy playing his 100th test, both seemingly still at or near the tops of their game. As ever it will be enthralling to see if either has pulled ahead or closer to the other.
3) How will our scrum go? We seemed to make good headway last year but I was a little unimpressed against Italy and France. Will it come down to a referees toin coss again?
4) The lineout. An area I consider a traditional strength of aussie sides but, again, I was unimpressed so far this year. Seemed to not contest a lot of the time. Perhaps through focus more on 7s than on lineout jumpers?
5) Our backrow. Will Elsoms (eventual) return be all it’s been blow up to be? Will it inject the much-needed mongrel into this area? Will it match the SA and NZ backrows?
6) Will any of the backlines for any of the teams fire all do the teams all know one another too well by now and, like local derbies, they all be low scoring arm-wrestle affairs?
7) Our newbies. How will JoC and Genia go (assuming they get a run)? And Pocock? Are these the x-factors with a bit of unknown about them that might spark something in the backline?
9) Will SA implode? If so, when?
Ahhh… bring it on.
Sam Taulelei said | July 12th 2009 @ 11:56pm | Report comment
Key player for NZ and Australia will be whoever is named at tighthead prop. For arguments sakes I’ll name Neemia Tialata and Al Baxter. An accurate indicator of which team will gain ascendancy in the forward pack will come at scrumtime. If the scrum is doing their job then the openside flanker has a headstart on the opposition ball. The halfback and first five are on the front foot and the backs will have a solid and reliable platform to attack from as well as defend. Nothing is more unsettling for a team than their scrum being disrupted on their own feed or going backwards. The pressure on an unsteady front row ripples through the rest of the team in a similar fashion to a dysfunctional lineout. NZ’s lineout has been one of the few shining lights of their past three tests and they may decide to attack the Wallabies in that area more than in previous encounters. The NZ scrum will have to match or exceed its lineout. The same is true for the Wallabies who although are the more settled and confident side haven’t yet been subjected to intense pressure from quality opposition so the jury is still out on how good this side really is. For the team that wins the scrum battles, forget about any great influence being exerted by the opposition number 10. There won’t be any.
Knives Out said | July 13th 2009 @ 2:29am | Report comment
Surely Robinson and Baxter. If that pair mangle Mtawarira and Smit as they did in the Super 14 then Australia will have a great foundation.
ohtani's jacket, said | July 13th 2009 @ 9:30am | Report comment
The key for both sides will be the backrow.
Henry and Co. will likely go with the backrow that won it for them last year — Kaino, McCaw and So’oialo, whereas Deans doesn’t appear to have his first choice backrow available. I still wait it as a 50-50 game, as opposed to the usual 70-30 odds in favour of NZ, but NZ have the better forward pack on paper.
The backs will only make a difference depending on who wins the forward battle. There’s not a single back in either side who can’t be contained by a first up tackle and I expect a defensive tussle for the most part.
Jameswm said | July 13th 2009 @ 10:44am | Report comment
Geez at this level everyone has to play well. They’re all good so we don’t know who will end up as the key player.
Knives Out said | July 13th 2009 @ 10:52am | Report comment
Can’t ignore the foundations, Ohtani. The tight five must come first. To that extent a big tournament is required from Woodcock, Hore and Thorn.
Hayden said | July 13th 2009 @ 11:08am | Report comment
Sam, couldn’t agree more. Never mind the show ponies and hair highlight brigade, whoever crunches the other guy up front will win. If Henry can get his forwards riled, or Deans for that matter, the rest is just window dressing.
ohtani's jacket, said | July 13th 2009 @ 4:09pm | Report comment
You can get around deficiencies in your tight five if you dominate the breakdown.
Aside from key lineouts and scrums, set pieces aren’t a big part of Bledisloe Cup Tests. I’m sure the Wallabies will put pressure on the All Blacks lineout and at at the restarts, but mostly it’s about the rucks and mauls. If the All Blacks win, it’ll be because our tight five played like auxiliary flankers.
OldManEmu said | July 13th 2009 @ 4:29pm | Report comment
KO – I agree with you – The Wallaby front row is the key.
My opinion, which I expect Boks fans to scorn, is that The Beast will be exposed this Tri Nations – time will of course tell
Hammer said | July 13th 2009 @ 4:38pm | Report comment
Like always it’ll come down to the ref …. if he insists that Baxter stays up instead of heading for his standard munch on the grass on the Aussie put in then NZ will be well on their way to winning this one – their engine room is better and I expect the AB loose trio to dominate the breakdown …
it appears Henry now has a choice of who to play at 1st 5 with both Donald and McAllister running freely at training today – so I expect a conservated Donald to be more than capable of running the show …
Mike said | July 13th 2009 @ 5:33pm | Report comment
There is no “standard munch on the grass” by Baxter. His work in recent seasons has been quite good.
The performance of either pack will depend heavily on the competence of the referees – they have been occasionally good in recent tests, but still need to lift their game. Too often, poor setting at the start frustrates the forwards on *both* sides; the ref then looks for a scapegoat to cover up his own shortcomings.
OJ – agreed. The breakdown is key. The French gave Wallabies a lesson in counter-rucking in Sydney – if we haven’t learned from that, it is where ABs always hurt us badly.
Agreed on importance of Barnes at second pivot – Giteau plays so much better with him outside.
Knives Out said | July 13th 2009 @ 9:14pm | Report comment
Ohtani,
Look how the Springboks scrum gave them such an advantage in the 1st Lions test. I think that the Australian scrum has improved but I do recall Al Baxter being allowed to drop scrums last year, and that the referee in two of the Bledisloe tests simply allowed Burgess to feed from the dropped scrum. If a referee decides to be pedantic or try and assert himself as Lawrence did in the 1st Lions test then any team could be in for a real hard time. Likewise, look how the Lions scrum gave the Lions an advantage in the 2nd and 3rd tests. A weak scrum can be circumnavigated, but not regularly and a lengthy tournament like the 3N will reveal any weaknesses.
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OME,
I think Mtawarira has been exposed. He’s a gimmick, IMO. That said, he’s a young prop who used to be a flanker so I am willing to presume that he will improve. However, overally he has not had a massively impressive start to his test career.
Who Needs Melon said | July 13th 2009 @ 10:51pm | Report comment
What happened to this topic?!? It’s been hijacked by a bunch of old fatties bandying truisms around thinly disguised as opinion? Most important position is tighthead. 2nd most important is reserve tighthead. And all that rubbish. Don’t give me that! I want to see JoCs long, flowing blond locks fluttering as he dives over majestically in the corner. Not Al Baxters 42″ arse during another in a series of endless scrum resets!
Knives Out said | July 13th 2009 @ 11:04pm | Report comment
I think Carl Hayman’s financial adviser might disagree with you, Melon.
van der Merwe said | July 14th 2009 @ 8:35am | Report comment
Define “massively impressive” Knives. Most young top level loose-head props would relish the opportunity of adding “humiliating legendary columnist Phil Vickery” to their résumé.
Regarding the initial topic: I suppose the real question is whether Henry can worm his way to another TN title with a sickly McCaw and someone like Stephen Donald (or worse) at the helm, That would be quite an achievement.
Knives Out said | July 14th 2009 @ 8:44am | Report comment
Ok, Mtawarira has had a tough opener to his test career. He was very mediocre (Almost invisible, in fact.) during the previous 3N and he struggled against Jones and Vickery during the subsequent SA European tour and was destroyed by Murray. Humiliating Phil Vickery (Who I believe is a rugby player and not a journalist.) would clearly have been a high point, however one high point was followed by two low points as Adam Jones taught him a lesson in propping and Vickery reasserted himself. In any case, I don’t think any proper rugby fan would ever label Vickery a top scrummager so all of a sudden one match of illegal scrummaging suddenly rings very hollow.
CronullaKiwi said | July 14th 2009 @ 9:57am | Report comment
Anyone know who the referee is? Hoping Baxter will scrum legally.
Hammer said | July 14th 2009 @ 10:02am | Report comment
CK … just been announced that Mark Lawrence has been replaced by Craig Joubert for personal reasons …
Mike said | July 14th 2009 @ 10:09am | Report comment
Yes, everyone hopes that the kiwi forwards will also scrum legally. And that Joubert does his job and prevents illegal charging at rucks, a la Bakkies
van der Merwe said | July 14th 2009 @ 10:56am | Report comment
Invisible is a tad inaccurate. He was easily one of SA’s standout players in last years’ TN. Besides a number of impressive runs, I recall him doing very well against Somerville and and in one instance slaughtering the Wallabies’ front row. As for our cauliflowered scribe reestablishing himself, need I mention Chiliboy?
The more neutral Lawrence being replaced by Joubert favours the All Blacks as the latter is usually very partial towards NZ sides.
CronullaKiwi said | July 14th 2009 @ 10:57am | Report comment
Joubert not so good for us. Lawrence would have done a good job luike last year. Personal reasons indeed…
ohtani's jacket, said | July 14th 2009 @ 1:47pm | Report comment
Lawrence would’ve been better.
He’s lets the game flow, even if the choirboy Wallabies have their hands at the bottom of every single ruck.
KO, after years of watching Hayman and Woodcock destroy the Australian scrum — and not only receiving sweet eff all for it, but having Gregan weasel a penalty out of it — you’ll have to forgive my skepticism over the scrums.
The All Blacks may pride themselves on their scrum, but they don’t attack through the forwards like they did in the past. You’d never see them execute the kind of maul that South Africa did in the first Test. The scrums are there to grind down the opposition forwards. When was the last time you saw the All Blacks work a set play from the back of a scrum? They attack more on defensive scrums than their own feed.
True Tah said | July 14th 2009 @ 1:54pm | Report comment
KO
Beast was Man of the Match when the Boks smashed us at Ellis Park, not just for his scrummaging, but also for his general play and mobility. The ARU should have had scouts running around Zimbabwe!!
Heres a tip, in the Southern Hemisphere our props are expected to being able to run with ball in hand and make cover tackles.
retired rucker said | July 14th 2009 @ 3:36pm | Report comment
What is Jouberts hstory ala the Trestle? Does he have a grip wrt the scrum?
As I recall he does not have a problem with off the feet missiles ala Bakkies. The way to counter this is to stay on your feet and present quick maul ball to burgess but i’m not sure this is in the Deans quiver.
Any way i’m geting well excited, 3 weeks no rubgy in winter is too long
Nird99 said | July 14th 2009 @ 6:45pm | Report comment
I certainly think that the tight five is very important but there have been plenty of teams with a great tight five who have finished poorly and not won games through poor options, such as kicking possession away or silly mistakes from the backs. On the other hand there are the teams that have tight fives that perform poorly, yet still manage to scrap enough ball at breakdown time and give their backs a chance to run.
Australia have been starting to perform better and I think part of this is the front rowers learning to scrummage better, but i think a big part is the way in which the team uses the ball from kick returns. the wallabies seem to be taking better options, securing the ball and putting the opposition under pressure, rather then themselves.
I dont think it matters who the Referee is, the front row seems to be a guess for them all. “ohh it looks like….. didnt touch before binding, it must be his fault the scrum collapsed”. It is not very often you see a ref that has been a frontrower and knows what goes on in there.
CronullaKiwi said | July 14th 2009 @ 9:16pm | Report comment
Nird99 – pretty good post I thought
Knives Out said | July 14th 2009 @ 10:33pm | Report comment
I certainly didn’t notice that last year, van der Merwe. It seems I’ve just I just can’t recall accurately, as Tah has pointed out, but I really can’t remember any SA forwards looking good during the last 3N. I’ll have to concede defeat and blame faulty memory. Regardless, since then he has been pretty poor, both for the Boks and for the Sharks. Since that 3N he has had one good game against Vickery, in contrast to two bad games against Vickery, and if you say Chiliboy then I can say A.W. Jones and Mears. Further, aside from his games against Vickery he has had some very, very bad games against Murray, Jones. However, I did say that he is a young prop.
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Is that right, Tah? That probably explains why Baxter, Tialata, Afoa and Smit look so good with the ball in hand and make so many punishing runs. Btw, if you think the Beast is a wonderful prop then read my response to van der Merwe. He isn’t. Maybe you’re not a front ranker but I’m going to let you into a secret – Robinson is a good prop.
If you want to talk history then I’m more than willing to argue that the NH started the trend for props to run with the ball.
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That’s fair enough, Ohtani. Can’t fault that logic. But you can’t ignore recent refereeing, something that Nird alludes to. On a base level if the referee thinks you have the power then you have carte blanche.