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These Wallabies aren't good enough

23rd August, 2009
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Roar Guru
23rd August, 2009
39
2148 Reads

Despite Jonathan Kaplan providing the Wallabies with many favourable refereeing decisions, the Wallabies were not able to prevent a surging All Black team from winning the contest.

The current Wallaby playing group is simply not good enough.

Now that the Wallabies are left to only to play for pride, it is time to make both positional and generational changes.

Mat Giteau and Berrick Barnes positions should be swapped.

Giteua’s kicking under pressure is woeful whereas Barnes has a superior kicking game. Giteau was rated amongst the best No 12’s – the same cannot be said for his play at 10.

For the short while when Giteau was off injured, Barnes’ composure playing 10 in the last test against South Africa was a revelation.

Luke Burgess does not have the passing game required for test rugby. It is time to start with Will Genia.

The Wallabies backline will not go anywhere until the halves are sorted out. Digby Ioane’s explosive running provides the Wallabies with an X factor that they desperately need.

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Drew Mitchell’s wrong option taking presents an unacceptable risk to Wallabies.

The time has come to impose further generational change.

Baxter and Sharpe should drop out of the Wallabies Squad with young Wallaby Sekope Kepu (currently playing brilliantly for Randwick) joining as the fourth prop.

In a previous post I suggested that the ARU should do what is needed to bring back Dan Vickerman, nothing has changed. We need his lineout generalship and more importantly his mongrel general play.

Dean Mumm does not impose himself – he needs to toughen up. No 8 continues to be a problem, sitting in the sin bin during the last two tests does not do Richard Brown nor the Wallabies any favours.

Unfortunately Brown, as this stage of his career, does not appear to be an effective ball runner. Hopefully Palu’s time out of the playing group will be the jolt he needed to understand that he needs to play for 80 minutes.

The sad fact is that the Wallabies tried hard and were just not good enough. It is time to move on and find a side that is.

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