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November 7th 2009 @ 3:56am
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Daring Deans throws Cooper into hot seat
Rookie Quade Cooper is under express orders not to overplay his hand after being thrown into the hot seat for the Wallabies’s most significant match of Robbie Deans’s 25-Test coaching reign.
Deans’s daring selection of the mercurial Cooper and the explosive Digby Ioane as an untried Test centre pairing for Saturday’s high-stakes encounter with England has [...]
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(9)
Parisien said | November 7th 2009 @ 6:35am | Report comment
Great to see Cooper getting his chance, and even better to check out the history between the two nations: 21 wins out of 36 for Australia despite playing more often in England than Australia, giving away the home ground avantage. Well done Wallabies!
Dave said | November 7th 2009 @ 9:00am | Report comment
This Wallabies side is the best we can field (outside of injuries). The balance is still not right with Cooper at 12 and Gits at 10, but it should shine through during the match who is best at directing the attack (Cooper).
Still for the time being – I am just glad that we have Cooper ad Ioane on the field! Finally some ability to threaten the opposition!
Pippinu said | November 7th 2009 @ 9:38am | Report comment
Geez, looking at the fact box, I’m surprised that we have split the last 10 games evenly with England. We won there last year, but Jonny boy wasn’t playing.
Wayne Smith presents some interesting stats of his own this morning:
Deans has won 13 of 24 tests with the Wallabies.
With Jonny boy, England have won 77% of their tests, without him, a mere 43%.
fred said | November 7th 2009 @ 12:08pm | Report comment
DEANS according to apologist growden is taking an enormous risk which could go either way.a hero if he beats a depleted england but refreshing,daring and courageous with his youth policy otherwise.
however growden assures us even tho defeat agst an injury riddled england would be catastrophic for deans”IT WONT MEAN A CHANGE OF COACH”
WE CAN ALL SLEEP EASY NOW;couldnt stand it if deans had to coach to a well thought out strategy with consistent selections and combos ;much more exciting the lucky dip approach with rationalisations and spin.a win-win situation.marvellous.
cookie said | November 7th 2009 @ 12:27pm | Report comment
FRED you took the words right out of my mouth mate, im with you 100%
deans will beat a below strength england with his lotto selection and become the guru whose losses in tri-nations
were an aberration.nobody listens to growdens “objectivity”
jeznez said | November 7th 2009 @ 12:39pm | Report comment
Why was there only one change in the piggies? Seems to me that we have lost the last two matches up front. Alexander in particular has a very obvious flaw in his scrum time foot positioning but it hasn’t been corrected since his tighthead debut.
Harry said | November 7th 2009 @ 4:00pm | Report comment
Finally someone else wakes up to the fact that we can’t expect Alexander to be a test match standard tighthead, he has played less than 10 games there his whole life and is still learning. I trust these so called professional coaches also noted this jeznez. Good thing Sheridan isn’t playing … And lets see if the lineout has improved, it was truly a complete failure last week, astonishingly inept for full time professionals who have had a month to practice … what on earth do they do at these camps? Not contested scrummaging, kickoffs and lineouts obviously.
Still i will watch with hope and good luck the Wallabies.
MarkH said | November 7th 2009 @ 4:04pm | Report comment
Ive been watching Cooper for a while like most. I recon he is the X factor the Wallabies are looking for. On his game, he can make you look pretty stupid in defence.
Sheridan wouldnt have worried the current front row, hes not the power house he once was.
The Wallabies will win this one.
Even Looser said | November 7th 2009 @ 5:21pm | Report comment
For me anyway Cooper’s selection is like a breath of fresh air, as is Ioane at O/C. Would have liked to see Gits at 12 & Cooper at 10 but this is the next best thing.
All champions eventually come to the end of their career. Hopefully this is the case for Jonny Wilkinson.
I think we will win against England & win well. Do this and we can build momentum for the tour.