Australia was a conservative side for the best part of the past decade, as was (and is) SA. The ELVs have nothing to do with that. If you watched the Ireland v Australia game you would have noted that Ireland tried to run the ball and that Australia didn’t. Deans had Australia playing conservative rugby under the ELVs and he still did during the recent tour. You should recall that there was more kicking under the ELVs than there was prior to their introduction, and most significantly that the hands in the ruck rule was kicked out by everybody, hence no country trialled the full ELVs. One only has to contrast the backplay of the Lions tour to the most recent 3N to make your boring NH comments redundant. NZ is the only side in the 3N that likes to run the ball.

is it all Deans fault though? I mean, they did beat SA in the 3ns, they were leading the Abs in practically all 3 games at half time and got over-run… sure, perhaps the tactics werent quite right for the second half, but he got them to half time leading with the right tactics… ultimately the players couldnt close out the second half..

conservative rugby, well, once the NH got their way and threw out the ELVs without even trialling them all, it was always going to take the SH sides time to re-adjust, hence suiting SA because their style is the most similar to the NH.

I don’t think the Scotland hiccup was the biggest issue, more the 3N hiccup and the inherently conservative brand of rugby.

Rome wasnt built in a day, and after 2 years at the helm Id think a lot of Australian rugby fans are becoming excited about the potential in your side.. Sure, a hiccup against Scotland, but is that Deans fault, or the most over rated player in rugby having a poor day with the boot ?

He took a very good rugby side and blew the World Cup.

He was also responsible for Mark Ella retirng at 25.

Rod Macqueen and Bob Dwyer are the best coaches in Australian rugby with Alan Jones a lucky footnote

Realistically, it’s more about protecting current state sponsors, and not allowing future sponsors a “freebie” in terms of publicity…

Re the naming thing, I also wonder if the Vics decided that ‘Melbourne Rebels’ is already a known entity (dare I say “brand”) in terms of rugby in Victoria, and it just made more sense to stick with that rather than go with “Victorian Rebels” or as John O’Neil would have preferred, Victoria/Melbourne Anything-Other-Than-Rebels.

I think the new A-League team might face a similar problem, in that “Heart” (or Hearts) is already so ingrained now as the name that to go for anything else would be difficult.

I’d prefer ‘Victoria’, but realistically, we’re all so used to talking about Rebels and Brumbies and ‘Tahs, not to mention Crusaders and Bulls of course, it probably doesn’t make much difference..

There are early day but everything Macqueen has said and done suggests to me that he has been thinking hard about what he should do to get the best rugby program and team up and running for the Melbourne Rebels.

I should have mentiioned that the one blot on the Macqueen record with the Brumbies was the creation of a player-power mentality that he encouraged and controlled but which went rogue after he left. The result has beeen in the last few years, particularly when – ironically – David Nucifora was the second Brumbies coach (along with Eddie Jones) to win a Super Rugby title, that player power has emasculated the club with no more titles sine then.

Macqueen’s latest comment about not tolerating ‘money-grubbers’ indicates that he is perhaps aware of what happened with player-power and the ACT Brumbies.

On another pioint you and Sheek discussed, I can only assume that the fact that this team is called by capital (Melbourne) whereas other Aust teams are state means it must have been a negotiating point in discussions btw ARU and consortium…there are pros and cons to having Melb but I would think bigger (state) is better than capital.

Do we think other Aust S15 terams might now try and re-brand to capitals?

So in theory, they’d be announcing international signings and/or code-jumpers first…

Regarding the alleged moaning of the British media about the England team, that has been more to do with personal agendas against Johnson from Stuart Barnes and Stephen Jones. The problems of the England team during the Autumn was never framed as an illustration of the modern problem, more the problems that Johnson has allegedly wrought onto the England team.

I think England will do OK during this 6N. Key players are returning but Johnson still has the problem of how a comparatively callow team can mature by 2011. I think I’d rather be in the English camp than the Welsh or Scottish camp.

Did it?

“English = British and British = English a lot of the time in English/British journalists minds.”

Not really, because the Heineken Cup has been fantastic to watch.

Telegraph, Times, Sky Sports, Independent, scrum.com, have all had articles on this theme during the year. The France/NZ match gave everyone pause for thought though.

England will do well in this year’s Six Nations – possibly win it – and will break out of the shackles (many self-imposed) that have been hindering their game.

It’s history now that a spleen of British journalists and the RFU (England’s rugby union) reduced the number of ELVs allowed into the laws of the game.

These same journalists and the RFU are now complaining bitterly about the boring play of England and the lack of tries in the English tournaments. But that is another story ‘

And the drum keeps on beating. As far as I’m aware the British media and the RFU did not reduce the number of ELVs allowed into the game. Regardless, I would have thought the ELVs only served to illustrate how out of synch Macqueen was/is with modern rugby. Incidentally, what is it with this constant boring tirade about British journalists – and why would British journalists be moaning about English tournaments (tournament – btw, Spiro)? There is a difference between GB and England – but as it happens the media has generally complained about how the breakdown is refereed and the 22 kicking rule (I wonder whose idea that was?). Macqueen may prove to be a great solution, or he may prove to be a disaster in the manner of Woodward. Simplisticly going on past records does a disservice to a man who will have to prove himself all over again.

If you don’t mind me asking, you said, “… including David Knox who under Macqueen’s coaching became Australia’s leading five-eighths for a few years.”

Are you suggesting Knox only became Australia’s best five-eighth once he joined the ACT Brumbies? The reason I ask is: weren’t you a strong advocate, around 1994 (after the Samoan Test), for the inclusion of David Knox in the Australian side?

If I’m recalling correctly (and I’m not sure if I am!!!) you suggested perhaps Knox should replace Lynagh (which apparently offended Noddy). If this is the case, how can you attribute Knox’s success to MacQueen when he was already regarded by you as the best five-eighth in Australia, yet two years away from playing with the Brumbies?

Or in the alternative are you suggesting that he became Australia’s best five-eighth under MacQueen’s guidance as NSW coach? Because Knox was Randwick, as you know, and MacQueen was only NSW coach from 1991-1992. Can Knox’s success really be attributed to MacQueen?

I know it’s a tiny point to remark about, but I am curious.

I enjoyed reading that. It’s like when you read ‘The Quiet American’ these days you think, “Graham Grenne saw all that happening before it ever happened.” Clearly MacQueen has something special about him that makes him an awesome coach.

I rate him alongside the great Alan Jones as Australia’s best ever coach.

A very good point indeed. The quality of the board I would say is second to none and by the looks of it they are getting the on-field right. MacQueen was always the best option anywhere in the world IMO and its great we have him.

If Waldron (who I admit have little time for as a personality) can be as valuable as the board has judged him to be then the Rebels are a long way to creating a succesful club.

I cant wait to start sifting through membership options, hurry up!!!!