Robbie, it’s time to be bold with your selections
Roar Guru By LeftArmSpinner, 27 Aug 2009 LeftArmSpinner is a Roar Guru
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- Bledisloe Cup, robbie deans, Rugby Union, Tri Nations, wallabies
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New Wallabies signings James O'Connor, Quade Cooper, coach Robbie Deans, David Pocock and Sekope Kepu at ARU headquaters, Sydney. (AAP Image/Dean Lewins)
The reality is that both the Tri Nations and Bledisloe Cups are gone for another year. The Springboks have been dominant in the Super 14 and the international season.
This is unlikely to change without some clever tactical and selection rethinks.
These re-thinks will also re-energise the players to believe that they have other options with which to crack the Springboks game plan and dominance.
The possession of the ball needs to become the first priority. Consider it as “Mother.” (With thanks to coach Mal Fraser of Hunters Hill for this tag!)
The playing tactics need to change subtlely.
1. Attack the breakdown with newfound ferocity all game. Bully the bully boys. They need some of their own medicine.
2. Keep the penalties to a minimum, and allow the Boks to have the slower ball from phase play. They will kick to the Wallabies anyway.
3. Reduce the amount of kicking. It has not worked and we are not good enough often enough. Also, our best out-of-hand kicker, Barnes, is out injured. Kick when in in your own 22.
4. Prepare to counter-attack from the Boks kicks. This requires more back row and back three support for the catcher.
5. Run the ball more and move it wide with plenty of dummy runners and support play. By moving the point of attack, the bigger Boks forwards will eventually tire, physically and mentally. Keep it in hand and move it progressively wider as you advance down the field.
6. There needs to be changes to the current 22. Some, such as Baxter and Sharpe, have already had their last chance and not taken it. Others need the chance to prove whether they can play at this level. My assumptions on availabilty are: O’Connor, Sharpe, Elsom and Barnes not available.
So 12 of the 22 are first choice, five are development selections.
My team:
1. Robinson (1st Choice)
2. Moore (1st Choice)
3. Alexander (1st Choice)
4. Horwill (1st Choice, when in form but not yet)
5. Mumm (Time to stand up)
6. Pocock (A chance to prove himself)
7. Smith (1st Choice)
8. Brown (no silly mistakes)
9. Burgess (1st Choice, but must keep improving)
10. Cooper (Development time, Giteau experiment has not worked, must find other solutions if and when Barnes is not around in the future)
11. Turner (1st Choice, but needs to get more involved)
12. Giteau (1st Choice, reflects the decision that he is not a 10)
13. AAC (1st Choice)
14. Hynes (1st Choice, in form and showing other wingers up)
15. Mitchell (Time to make 15 his own, if he can)
16. Fitzpatrick (development selection, but can throw straight)
17. Kepu (development, playing the house down at Randwick)
18. Chisholm (his experience gets him another chance, would have preferred Kimlin or Caldwell or Hockings)
19. Waugh (1st Choice) (or Hodgson: much of a muchness)
20. Genia (1st Choice) (Development more game time than last week’s 5 minutes)
21. Cross (safe utility for 11, 12, 13 14)
22. Beale (development and time to taste the big time, could do something special)
The bench also needs to stand up.
All players need to be ready to contribute positively to the Wallabies performance, rather than make up the numbers. At the same time, Fitzpatrick, Kepu, Genia and Beale need at least 20 minutes on the field, no matter the situation in the game, to give them a chance to show what they have at this level.
I don’t expect that Deans will make these decisions, but he should for both the immediate and longer term future.
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August 27th 2009 @ 12:11pm
ohtani's jacket said | August 27th 2009 @ 12:11pm | Report comment
Attack the breakdown with newfound ferocity + Keep the penalties to a minimum doesn’t work.
I think they should commit less players to the breakdown and fan out on defence. Force the Boks to take seven drop goal attempts instead of seven penalty shots.
The Boks are pretty much using a tackler and a support player to fetch. They only add numbers to the ruck when they have clear rights to the ball. That’s why the opposition are being penalised in defence, but the Boks are OK on attack. If a Wallaby gets tackled with the ball, he needs to release it regardless of whether a Bok fetcher pinches it. Tackle the fetcher and you have a chance at turning him.
August 28th 2009 @ 9:31am
LeftArmSpinner said | August 28th 2009 @ 9:31am | Report comment
OJ, maybe the concentration on defence is killing the attack because they are so exhausted. Who in their right mind gives the ball to the opposition.
August 28th 2009 @ 9:41am
stillmissit said | August 28th 2009 @ 9:41am | Report comment
LAS and OJ – This could be well worth an article on the stupidity that the concentration on defence and almost total neglect of attack has brought us to.
August 27th 2009 @ 12:18pm
Sam Taulelei said | August 27th 2009 @ 12:18pm | Report comment
It’s funny OJ, Dan Crowley calling last weeks game for channel 7 was of the opposite opinion and was calling for the Wallabies to send more players in to contest the breakdown rather than fanning out in defence. Deans coached the Crusaders to only commit a minimum of players in defence unless they spotted a chance to turnover the ball and then they would flood the breakdown to counter ruck. I sense this is what he’s trying to achieve with the Wallabies but it’s not intuitive to them yet. They were able to do it well enough at certain times, particularly in the first half.
August 27th 2009 @ 12:58pm
stillmissit said | August 27th 2009 @ 12:58pm | Report comment
Yeah Sam I agree, we dont ruck well anymore and the easy option is to fan out in the defence. We also seem to lack the thinking necessary to judge what to attack and what to leave alone and leaving all breakdowns alone has major issues.
The problem is that defence isnt our problem it is lack of ball. In modern rugby if you are incapable of either winning opp ball or retaining your own ball at the breakdown it is going to be a hard day at the office. Of course you can always sit back and hope the opp make a mistake and you can get to kick at goal. Sounds pretty piss weak to me though!
OJ – you are just too smart. I believe you are trying to undermine Australian rugby for your own nefarious kiwi ends. I will only read your posts that are not about how to improve things in Australia.
August 27th 2009 @ 1:12pm
ohtani's jacket said | August 27th 2009 @ 1:12pm | Report comment
What I mean is that only the tackler and support player(s) should contest the breakdown. If the tackler makes a ball-in-all tackle, he has rights to that ball. If he doesn’t, the support player can try to fetch it (provided he’s on his feet.) This is what Heinrich Brüssow and Pierre Spies have been doing in tandem.
If you flood the breakdown, everyone will go off their feet and the ref will make some sort of decision based on who he thought had the ball before the whole thing collapsed. The players on the fringes of the ruck need to get smarter at deciding whether to join a ruck or stay in the defensive line. Too often the supporting players knock their own guy off his feet. There may be times when a lack of numbers to the breakdown means your side gets cleared out, but somebody in the IRB thinks holding on is a big no no.
August 27th 2009 @ 3:09pm
Rusty said | August 27th 2009 @ 3:09pm | Report comment
the question of the breakdown is always an interesting one. I believe that by contesting through numbers you lessen your defensive capability. Perhaps this is why the Wallabies have such a good defense, there are simply more numbers in the backline waiting and less securing ball or effecting turnovers. There has also been some note on the decline of the Boks defense and I think this can be attributed to a greater attempt at turnovers by commiting more bodies. Its pretty hard to balance though and I guess thats why you have to pick your opportunities, commit to the wrong ruck and suddenly you are exposed
August 27th 2009 @ 1:00pm
ohtani's jacket said | August 27th 2009 @ 1:00pm | Report comment
Well, I think they need to remember where they are on the field. I wouldn’t commit too many numbers to the breakdown within Steyn’s striking distance.
The Boks haven’t shown that they’re any better in open play than the All Blacks, so let them attack. The Wallabies are too eager to win possession from the ruck. Let the Springboks knock it on or bundle them into touch. Target their outside backs. The Boks have looked poor passing long, so there’s your counter rucking opportunity if you can nail an outside back.
If the Wallabies win a turnover from a dead ruck, then they’ll have to kick for touch and God knows if they’ll win their lineout. They might as well kick for as much territory as they possibly can. But if they manage to pick off an outside back, they could potentially counter attack, and you reallly do need to attack these Boks in broken play.
August 27th 2009 @ 1:09pm
stillmissit said | August 27th 2009 @ 1:09pm | Report comment
OJ – I didnt see any of this “The Wallabies are too eager to win possession from the ruck.” in Cape Town. In fact all I saw was the Wallabies forwards fanning out in defence time after time. Sharpe being # ONE at that ploy only to take the ball up and flop down or more likely miss a tackle.
Our forwards need to harden up and also show some thinking and control during the ruck. At the moment we are miles behind SA and NZ in this area.
If we do what we have done in the past the results etc etc We have to change the game plan to suit ourselves not play to the oppositions strengths ie kicking, chasing and counter rucking.
LAS has something here but it needs a smarter guy than me to put a plan forward. OJ dont put your hand up – thank you!
August 27th 2009 @ 1:25pm
ohtani's jacket said | August 27th 2009 @ 1:25pm | Report comment
They don’t need to be more physical at the rucks, they need to be smarter.
The Wallabies were physical at the rucks in Sydney but couldn’t keep it up for 80 minutes. The Boks used to start off ferociously and die in the final 20 minutes. Why do you think the All Blacks always have that sudden surge at the end of Test matches? Whenever they try too much at the rucks at the beginning of the game, the ref penalises them. IMO, they do a much better job of pressing at the breakdown after 40 or 50 minutes. They also prefer a scrambling, cover defence to the type of structured defensive lines than the Boks and Wallabies employ.
In the South African Tests, both New Zealand and Australia were pinged for holding on (waiting for numbers to arrive) and offside play (over eagerness to win a turnover)
August 27th 2009 @ 1:11pm
Sam Taulelei said | August 27th 2009 @ 1:11pm | Report comment
Agree and instead of moving from one setpiece to another Australia will have to try and create broken play and upset the Boks rhythm. I’d target Francois Steyn and Pietersen to effect a turnover and rush up on Fourie. Morne Steyn isn’t going to threaten the line with his running and he doesn’t have a long passing game so force him to kick where you want him to.
August 27th 2009 @ 1:26pm
stillmissit said | August 27th 2009 @ 1:26pm | Report comment
That sounds like the start of a plan Sam and it targets another area I think the Wallabies have been weak in and that is cutting down the opp’s space. It seems like we dont rush up in a line and cut down space anymore. Why would this be so?
F. Steyn is perfect to put pressure on he does get flustered easily and JP only looks good because Australia has given him space to run in.
The bottom line is that we have not been able to put any pressure on SA either during the S14 or in Cape Town and at the same time our lneout has become quite poor.
August 27th 2009 @ 1:29pm
ohtani's jacket said | August 27th 2009 @ 1:29pm | Report comment
Didn’t you watch the Sydney Test? The Wallabies rushed up and cut down the All Blacks’ space for most of the game.
August 27th 2009 @ 1:43pm
stillmissit said | August 27th 2009 @ 1:43pm | Report comment
No didn’t notice that. Was too busy swearing at our forwards for not winning any ball for the backs and watching the AB’s getting stronger and stronger in the second half.
August 27th 2009 @ 1:45pm
ohtani's jacket said | August 27th 2009 @ 1:45pm | Report comment
You should’ve been swearing at the backs for kicking the ball to the All Blacks in broken play, because there wasn’t any other way the All Blacks were getting through the Wallaby defence.
August 27th 2009 @ 5:03pm
Ben C said | August 27th 2009 @ 5:03pm | Report comment
OJ
I thought the tactic of kicking straight to Sivivatu, in my view the most dangerous winger in World Rugby at present and certain the best at broken field running, was a particularly inspired tactic.
The forwards were solid in the first half when the AB’s tried to move the ball but couldn’t cope with the AB pick and drive in the second half which allowed the AB’s to camp in the Aus half and maintain a strangehold on possession. Too many easy metres were allowed then.
August 27th 2009 @ 2:55pm
reds fan said | August 27th 2009 @ 2:55pm | Report comment
here is the team. not one surprise….
15. James O’Connor (Western Force)
14. Lachie Turner (NSW Waratahs)
13. Ryan Cross (Western Force)
12. Adam Ashley Cooper
(Brumbies)
11. Peter Hynes (Queensland Reds)
10. Matt Giteau (Western Force)
9. Luke Burgess (NSW Waratahs)
8. Richard Brown
(Western Force)
7. George Smith (Brumbies, Captain)
6. Rocky Elsom (Brumbies)
5. Mark Chisholm (Brumbies)
4. James Horwill (Queensland Reds)
3. Ben Alexander (Brumbies)
2. Stephen Moore (Brumbies)
1. Benn Robinson (NSW Waratahs)
Run on reserves:
16. Tatafu Polota-Nau (NSW Waratahs)
17. Al Baxter (NSW Waratahs)
18. Dean Mumm (NSW Waratahs)
19. David Pocock (Western Force)
20. Will Genia (Queensland Reds)
21. Quade Cooper (Queensland Reds)
22. Drew Mitchell
(Western Force)
August 27th 2009 @ 3:11pm
TommyM said | August 27th 2009 @ 3:11pm | Report comment
I AM surprised that Genia is not starting :-S
August 27th 2009 @ 3:32pm
reds fan said | August 27th 2009 @ 3:32pm | Report comment
i’m not. Deans is too scared to do much different, due to his increasing need to win. He strikes me as the type who would continue hoping his team wins eventually instead of swapping and changing looking for a win.
August 27th 2009 @ 3:50pm
Brett McKay said | August 27th 2009 @ 3:50pm | Report comment
I’m a little surprised Mitchell made way for Hynes, I thought Turner might have been tapped on the shoulder..
August 27th 2009 @ 3:58pm
reds fan said | August 27th 2009 @ 3:58pm | Report comment
i guess it was pretty hard to ignore those two rather large blunders Drew made at the end of the game…
August 27th 2009 @ 4:01pm
Brett McKay said | August 27th 2009 @ 4:01pm | Report comment
Reds, that’s a fair point, but I can’t even remember Turner on the field…
August 27th 2009 @ 4:04pm
reds fan said | August 27th 2009 @ 4:04pm | Report comment
he was on the other side having trouble keeping their outside backs from scoring… his defence is a bit dodge… neither of them had a good one did they.
August 27th 2009 @ 4:16pm
Brett McKay said | August 27th 2009 @ 4:16pm | Report comment
true Reds, but that was mainly because Cross had gone missing several times..
Sam hits on this below, I also thought they might have played O’Connor at 12, but left Ashley-Cooper at 13 and played Mitchell or Turner at the back. Maybe even Quade Cooper at 15 as a smokey..
Anyway, it’s all academic now. Time to work out how to beat some Springboks with the 22 as named…
August 27th 2009 @ 4:18pm
reds fan said | August 27th 2009 @ 4:18pm | Report comment
yes… im not going to re-state my tip for the tournament as I’ve been labelled a pessimist! lol.
August 27th 2009 @ 8:57pm
Ben J said | August 27th 2009 @ 8:57pm | Report comment
That looks like a hell of a backline if sevens type rugby is your game, if the Wallabies want to win they need to get the ball to those guys, the Boks midfield are not as fleetfooted and can be dummied all night if the passes can stick.
August 27th 2009 @ 4:06pm
Sam Taulelei said | August 27th 2009 @ 4:06pm | Report comment
Midfield looks unbalanced to me, you’ve got two players in Ashley Cooper and Cross who are similar in style and I don’t know if Cooper has the ability to act as a playmaker like Barnes. Deans could have swapped O’Connor and Cooper around instead. However they’re both solid lumps and should be able to defend strongly as well as get over the advantage line and set targets for the loose forwards. Perhaps an indication of how Deans wants to play this match, keeping the ball in hand more often.
Chisholm after a long injury layoff from the Super 14 and only a handful of club games is a ballsy selection, I reckon he’ll be good for about 50 minutes before being replaced. Otherwise as has been stated many times before, there isn’t a plethora of options for most positions and regardless of what the future may hold, they have to win this test.
August 27th 2009 @ 4:16pm
reds fan said | August 27th 2009 @ 4:16pm | Report comment
perhaps O’connor and AAC will swap in attack, with O’connor dropping back to defend at 15.
August 27th 2009 @ 4:34pm
Sam Taulelei said | August 27th 2009 @ 4:34pm | Report comment
Agree with Brett, the squad and starting XV is named and they have to get on with it. Clues from the All Blacks win last week that the Wallabies can learn from.
Improve your catching under the high ball in attack and defence
Improve your consistency in winning the restarts – how frustrating is it to score a try or penalty to take the lead and then concede possession at the kickoff and immediately fall under pressure. Sustain the pressure on the Boks by retaining possession after scoring.
Drive the ball more often and attack through the middle of the rucks, the Boks tend to fan out and rush because they anticipate you want to spread the ball wide.
Pace yourselves during the game – it can’t be a coincidence that the Wallabies start strongly and fade in the second half in each Tri Nations test
Improve your discipline – especially you Richard Brown
Mix up your lineouts – use short lineouts and quick lineouts, don’t give Matfield and co. time to get set and attack the throw, keep it simple
Target Francois Steyn and JP Pietersen in the backs to force the turnover.
Adapt to the referee – you won’t always get the rub of the green but don’t drop your bundle, change what you need to and minimise the impact of his decisions.