Who is key for the Wallabies and All Blacks?
Roar Rookie By nird99, 12 Jul 2009 nird99 is a Roar Rookie
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- Al Baxter, All Blacks, Benn Robinson, Berrick Barnes, Bledisloe Cup, George Smith, Luke Burgess, Mils Muliaina, Rugby Union, Tri Nations, wallabies
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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.
Wallabies
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.
All Blacks
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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July 13th 2009 @ 4:09pm
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.
July 13th 2009 @ 4:29pm
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
July 13th 2009 @ 4:38pm
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 …
July 13th 2009 @ 5:33pm
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.
July 13th 2009 @ 9:14pm
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.
July 13th 2009 @ 10:51pm
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!
July 13th 2009 @ 11:04pm
Knives Out said | July 13th 2009 @ 11:04pm | Report comment
I think Carl Hayman’s financial adviser might disagree with you, Melon.
July 14th 2009 @ 8:35am
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.
July 14th 2009 @ 8:44am
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.
July 14th 2009 @ 9:57am
CronullaKiwi said | July 14th 2009 @ 9:57am | Report comment
Anyone know who the referee is? Hoping Baxter will scrum legally.