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In a match substantially determined by penalty calls and successful penalty kicks, criticising selections may seem a bit harsh. However, there were several points in the match on Saturday that suggest Deans and Co should give thought to a different run-on side.
First, when Alexander came on for Baxter the scrum was just fine and we gained another ball carrier. When Genia came on for Burgess the service improved, and we got much a much quicker pair of hands and a cooler head when ball quality was poor. When Pocock came on and Palu left we got heart and pace and lost nothing. When O’Connor came on for Mortlock we got a rapidly moving target and lost a sitting duck.
At some point soon Elsom will be back and we can get rid of Palu completely. If Mortlock’s injury puts him at worst on the bench, it seems clear that O’Connor can handle fullback and AAC could go to 13 while we wait for Ioane to get well. Here the worst case should be Cross.
Some have suggested that Deans has shown his 2011 hand with this latest starting lineup. I hope not. It is loaded with problems. For the next match at I’d hope he tries the following:
1. Robinson (better with each match)
2. Moore
3. Alexander
4. Sharpe
5. Mumm (isn’t time to recall Kimlin?)
6. Pocock
7. Brown
8. Smith
9. Genia
10. Giteau
11. Turner
12. Barnes
13. AAC
14. O’Connor
15. Mitchell
Res: P-Nau (can he play TH prop?), Burgess, Cross, Horwill, Baxter, Hines, Palu/Waugh.
Also, I would rather have had a full team of South African refs on Saturday than the one-eyed lot we had. Australia’s penalties were mostly deserved.
What about the Boks?
With their aggressive attack of the breakdowns their penalty count defies explanation – or is it that they have suddenly cleaned up their collective act?
Brusseau alone should have been worth 6-9 more points to the Wallabies.
Really, three SA refs would have been better than that confused trio.
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August 9th 2009 @ 7:09am
ozsupporter said | August 9th 2009 @ 7:09am | Report comment
I think it’s clear after this game that Burgess has to go. This investment hasn’t paid off and it’s time to give Genia a chance. Barnesy must play first receiver, he managed to steady the ship when Gits and Brown were off. His kicking is more accurate and decision making superior. Palu was disappointing, again. I agree with this article that bringing Pocock on brought more enthusiasm and speed. Brown tries but seems to make little impact. Apart from that I think Will Caldwell should come inrto the squad while Horwill is out of form. O’Connor was impressive and must be a starting option if Mortlock is out. He seems to have a bigger punt on him than Ashley-Cooper, so may be a better option at full-back with Coops moving to outside.
The Springbok juggernaut was awesome once again and only a clinical performance will stop them when playing in SA. Now let’s see if they can take this momentum to Oz and NZ. Will personnel changes be made in the Wallabies, forced and unforced.
August 9th 2009 @ 8:04am
Ziggy said | August 9th 2009 @ 8:04am | Report comment
Some excellent points but please lay off the Refs excuse again! And I hope someone points out to Spiro that Giteau is not a Bok before he fumes on about their thuggish play. He only had eyes for the player he was trying to injure via decaptitation.Wallabies were lucky not receive at least another yellow for obstruction which was constantly used to disrupt the Boks chase to their kicks.
Any side that uses such negative tactics from the start has clearly conceded their inferiority. George Smith was just magnificent and without him we would have gone down by at least another 20 points.
Pity, because if we had played positively from the start I believe an upset was on the cards.
August 9th 2009 @ 8:23am
MarkH said | August 9th 2009 @ 8:23am | Report comment
Cant blame the ref, the laws in and around the ruck are poor. Allowing for a goal kicking practice. I do think our scrum worked the boks and they know it.
Barns at 5/8. Giteau to replace motlock.
August 9th 2009 @ 8:36am
Ziggy said | August 9th 2009 @ 8:36am | Report comment
Can any one name another past International Captain like Kearns who is so consistently wrong in his interpreatation of the laws of the game? I loved Kearnsey as a player but his comments are just embarrassing especially as most replays just underscore his ignorance. I thought the SA commentators were pretty poor but our guys should be renamed the one-eyed Wallaby cheer squad. Can someone clone Stransky with an Aussie accent and get him on our commentary team?
August 9th 2009 @ 9:06am
Hammer said | August 9th 2009 @ 9:06am | Report comment
We need to learn how to play rugby again. Too many penalties all over the park, “brain snaps” ETC. Don’t worry too much about the backs. We need forward’s to dominate, to help George. The forwards are big, slow, lazy, soft out of position, can’t carry, can’t stay on their feet, can’t ruck, can’t maul, can’t lineout, just plain hopeless. They should give their 12K game payments back.
We have the backs to “DO” any tea in the world. We have a bunch of imposters with one exception up front!
August 9th 2009 @ 6:19pm
Jack of said | August 9th 2009 @ 6:19pm | Report comment
Hammer I’ve got to agree with you. ‘Lazy’ was the word I kept coming up with to describe our forwards last night too.
I can’t understand why we didn’t try to up the tempo and run their forwards everywhere & compete with them at every level until finally the wearyness of playing the B&I Lions and the All Blacks worked in our favour. As it was we never ever had them on the ropes. We’re jus way too soft and too often go missing in action.
Mortlock’s injury should have been the ‘call to arms’ for the senior players to really try harder and lead the way. Barnes did just that and Sharpey also to a degree.
That effort by Sharpey to score a try needed a few of our forwards on his tail pushing him forward and over. Where were they? Lazy!
August 9th 2009 @ 9:24am
reds fan said | August 9th 2009 @ 9:24am | Report comment
Hammer I agree. Its the pack that needs to get its act together.
And Ziggy, the Wallabies adopted the obstructing runner tactic from the Bokke, who trialled during the Super 14 via the Bulls. They did it last night and were not penalised once. It was a truly baffling performance from the ref.
However, the Bokke execution and intensity is the key to dominating with what is a game of limited range and imagination. But hey, why take risks when you can win so clinically.
The Wallabies, and in particular Robbie Deans, need to understand exactly what the new laws have done to the game. The Bokke have found the advantage they give to the attacking side, and they have the strategy and personnel to execute.
We need to wise up, or we’ll continue to lose.
Our execution was woeful. Deans needs to seriously look at his selections. Many players have obvious shortcomings that they haven’t been able to correct. Burgess can’t pass and gets easily flustered, Baxter can’t scrum and doesn’t do a great deal around the park, Palu – was he on the paddock? That big mountain should be leaving a trail of distruction. The Gits/Barnes combo isn’t working. I think it needs to be one or the other but not both. If he insists playing both get Barnes into 10. Give Gits some room.
August 9th 2009 @ 9:51am
fred said | August 9th 2009 @ 9:51am | Report comment
RED,you know we talk about the bok simple but effective game plan and bothas ill discipline etc but watching the telecast seeing the blatant yellow cards of wallabies it really amuses me more than the poppycock from the australian commentators;how pathetic are they?
from blatant offside poaching to tackling without ball to giteaus charge to george smith tapping of ruck ball close to line;these are an example of compensation for lack of ability /coaching and should be acknowledged when criticising the bok.
August 9th 2009 @ 9:54am
Nick said | August 9th 2009 @ 9:54am | Report comment
Palu is picked for his size and line-out options, Pocock, Brown and Smith as a backrow has been tried, and it failed. They are three ball-fetchers with no go forward. The ARU has dug their own hole to be fair, they should never have let McMeineman go, he was a blindside/second rower who not only got over the advantage line everytime, but tackled hard and was an obvious line-out option.
Unfortunately Palu is our only serious option at number 8, the idea of going in with someone as small as Brown against a team like the All Blacks and the Bokkies will continue to give us these results…
August 9th 2009 @ 10:12am
Citron said | August 9th 2009 @ 10:12am | Report comment
Why are we so stupid – as to kick the ball away from half-way, when our lineout / lineout throwins are so woeful ?
Twice we kicked the ball dead in goal … from attacking positions … and back for a scrum we went.
Who is calling these dumb options ? Can the “super” Coach please ensure the simple plan of running the ball from half-way is Foremost in our plan !!
Throwins: Moore & P-Nau are not reliable, why not give Benn Robinson a go at this task ? he does everything else so well !
August 10th 2009 @ 4:47pm
Rusty said | August 10th 2009 @ 4:47pm | Report comment
if Palu is a lineout option why have we never seen him competing or catching a lineout ball?
August 9th 2009 @ 10:41am
Mike said | August 9th 2009 @ 10:41am | Report comment
The reserves made a big difference, and some of the starters were less than impressive… Whens Elsom back????
I’d say it’s time to make a few changes:
Robinson
P-Nau
Alexander
Sharpe
Mumm
Elsom
Smith
Brown
Genia
Barnes
Turner
Giteau
Cooper
Hynes
O’Connor
Reserves
Moore
Baxter
Horwill
Pocock
Burgess
Cross
Mitchell
August 9th 2009 @ 10:43am
JK said | August 9th 2009 @ 10:43am | Report comment
I thought every reserve outshone thier starting counterpart, TPN did very well, a few crooked ones aside, at least we won some when he came on. Alot of Mumm bashers around, I thought he was OK, Alexander did very well at tighthead, so why has he not come on before?.Genia speaks for himself, my nine year old daughter could tell the difference when he came on and I like Barnes at 5/8, move Gits out one. Cliffy is becoming an enigma, some games he fires up, Robbies needs to find what potion he drinks on those day’s. In saying this I beleive the players are there, they just need a better idea of what coloured glasses the ref will be wearing in advance, and prepare accordingly, because it appears that is the biggest area where they are failing.