Ireland 6N champs have no excuse presenting a poor team. Depth in a team does not mean your best 15, it comes from your best 30 players. Ireland obviously lack depth and the records show against Aus., Played 29: Ireland 8, Australia 19, 1 draw. Ireland being 6N champs cant live off this reputation if they cant back it with depth in their squad.

A 13-20, or a 18-20 win wouldnt matter, you take the win when its there, stats dont focus on scores, just who won. On this occasion, a draw was what Ireland played for. So in the Wallabies eyes it was a lose, Ireland a victorious draw!

As you pointed out directly before that, Ireland crossed your line twice. Lack of defence is why you drew with Ireland, who were unlucky not to get a third when Bowe was held up in the last ten minutes.

Attack was defintely lacking in the Scotland game, but was there in abundance in the game against the Welsh who were clueless, and missing too many of their first XV (albeit that’s Gatland’s problem, not Australia’s).

The one good team that Australia came up against in Ireland were rusty, and their subsequent games against Fiji and South Africa showed a lot more commitment and savvy on their part – weather allowing – it would be interesting to see how they do on a dry, unfoggy pitch. Both teams have work to do. And similar objectives – they have to be able to beat the All Blacks next year.

Something tells me they’ll arrive down South next year with a full squad ready to play – long season or not. It’ll be the reverse of this Autumn – they’ll have been playing the Six Nations and will be relatively match-ready – although the 6N finishes at end of March, and they have to finish out Magners and European Cup through to May. Pity they couldn’t organise some club games in advance of the tests and make it more than a three test tour.

“…the All Blacks, over this time, have won over 74% of their test matches…which is better, by a considerable margin, than any other national team playing rugby, and in fact is better than any other team who play in a professional league. Which is a marvellous achievement for the All Blacks – to be the number 1 achieving team in international sport.”

1. alexander
2. polota nau
3 robinson
4 hand
5 vickerman
6 elsom
7 smith
8 palu
9 holmes
10 barnes
11 turner
12 mortlock/horne
13 ioane
14 morahan
15 shepard

* would consider cooper or oconner for a utility bench spot along with either horne or mortlock

* hand is a late bloomer with a wealth of experience and and is considered by micheal foley as a top lineout general.

thoughts?

I think the odds of him doing a great job for the Force as FB are pretty high. Again I THINK give him some time and confidence and he’d be a brilliant for them.

This is my opinion and you shouldn’t take everything a person writes so literally

Incidently this crap about them being any good they would have a NRL contract as outlined below by brad is rubbish. Many of these young guys have knocked back contracts to remain in QLD and that’s why I see in a couple of years QLD will be well placed to return to being a force in Australian rugby. As it is, it has been mostly QLD’ers who have been the current ‘Force’!!

Of course tomorrow all those woud be selected ahead of him but come 2011 I think it would b a diff story.
He played extremely well for Aust in the U20′s WC and given the chance to gain some experience in the big leagues is just what he needs

Coincidentally..football seems to get the same treatment…Socceroos qualified for the WC in a relative canter yet receives relentless criticism and negativity……

..and which is the ..ahem ‘international ‘ sport in austrlaia that seems to always avoid such negativety or scrutiny?

Oh yes..the self proclaimed greatest game of all ‘..which just completed yet another utterly underwhelming 4 nations something meaningless tournament …in half empty stadiums with the usual predicatable result …
but ofcourse the conclusion was..’tournament a success ‘ and ‘hail our world champions’ ..

had the Kangaoos lost two matches then it would be hailed as ‘great result for international league’

maybe rugby and football could learn something from a provincial sport devoid of any insight or self-critisicm..

Vickerman will be back before the WC (my opinion), Sharpe will be in the mix. Lets see how Harrison goes, with the shortage of tall timber we have who knows. If I was coach I would look at his form.

It is good to have some younger players coming through but world cups are won by players with experience and confidence. We have a long way to go. Hopefully the S14 in 2010 will sort things out with some injured players back and new combinations on display. We also need to rediscover an Australian strength, creative backline play and get back to scoring lots of tries.

We also desperately need another world class lock (Mumm and Kimlin if fit look promising) and a credible halfback alternative for backup for Genia ( he and Pocock the highlights of this tour though both need further development)

I do agree that the press ( ie Greg Crowden) has been unduly negative and the campaigns against some players uncalled for. Leaving aside a poor kicking display against Scotland, Giteau excelled at 10 especially in the circumstances of having an inexperienced and sometimes flaky 12 outside him.

I also believe Cowan has proven at Super 14 level to be very good and has much room to improve.

Kepu scrummed very well when he came on during the four nations. The coach of the Wallabies believes O’Connor has it.

It is no fluke that once Chisolm came into the Wallabies our scrum has improved.

France & NZ have both made the ‘final four’ cut 5 times out of 6. France missed 1991, NZ 2007.

Australia has made the final 4 cut 4 times out of six. We bombed out in the QFs of 1995 & 2007.

Final four appearances for other countries – England 4 times (91, 95, 03, 07); South Africa 3 times (95, 99, 07); Wales (87), Scotland (91) & Argentina (07), once each.