Tries not all important, says Deans
By Russell Jackson, 26 Oct 2012 Russell Jackson is a Roar Guru
- Tagged:
- robbie deans, Rugby Union, wallabies
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Wallabies coach Robbie Deans says people are too hung up about his side’s lack of tries, as Australia endures its leanest try-scoring season of the professional era.
Deans maintains last Saturday’s tryless 18-18 Bledisloe Cup draw with the All Blacks in Brisbane was a good spectacle and contained plenty of passages of attractive rugby.
The Wallabies have scored just 12 tries in 11 Tests this year, an average of 1.09 a game, compared to the All Blacks’ 33 tries in 10 Tests at an average of 3.3 a match.
Overall, Wallabies teams averaged 3.15 tries a Test since the game went professional in 1996 and the only other year they have scored less than two a match was also under Deans in 2009.
Deans was asked on Thursday if he’d like to see the Wallabies score more tries on the upcoming four-Test tour of Europe which begins against France in Paris on November 10.
“Obviously you like to score tries but ultimately you like to win,” Deans said.
“I think people get hung up with tries being scored and not scored.
“What you want to see is expansive and ambitious play and there was ample of … both of those elements last week.”
New Zealand coach Steve Hansen described the Brisbane Test as the ugliest game he’d been involved in but Deans disagrees the match was a shocker to watch.
“I don’t think so. That was a great spectacle last week. If you look at it from a written word perspective there were six penalties a side, it was a great contest,” Deans said.
“There was lots of movement, there was width in both teams’ attacks.
“They deny you access to the tryline but the good thing was we were able to deny them access as well and that’s the nature of international rugby now.
“The ante has gone up. Normally post World Cup it seems to abate a little bit but I think what you’ve seen this year is the intensity of games and the resistance in the defensive lines has been retained from the World Cup where you’ve got the ultimate incentive.
“It hasn’t abated at all and teams are very loathe to let tries in … it’s getting harder (to score tries).”
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- robbie deans, Rugby Union, wallabies
October 26th 2012 @ 3:10am
HardData said | October 26th 2012 @ 3:10am | Report comment
When did a coach every say tries were not important unless his team was not really scoring any?????
October 26th 2012 @ 4:19am
Johnno said | October 26th 2012 @ 4:19am | Report comment
And he is right it is just non rugby people who don’t understand 1 thing about the sport or muppets who have been following the sport for 5 minutes. Think if no tries are scored then something is wrong. I feel really sorry for Deans as he is a rugby man , rugby expert been in rugby at an elite level his whole adult life, he has to put up with undecuted people on the subject of rugby. The fact he has to acknowledge these people as the media generates the hysteria is so annoying and exparspirating for Deans, I feel for him.
If i recall England did not score many tries in there finals matches int he world cup of 2003 that they won, or in the 2007 world cup yet still made the grand final. I don’t recall the AB’s scoring many tries int he world cup grand final nor France yet everyone said it was an exciting game of rugby one of the most exciting ever. You don’t need tries in rugby, nor do you need goals in soccer, for both sports to be fun. I myself enjoy 10 man rugby as i have been following since the amateur era and love 10 man rugby, and the old grinding way that England teams used to play big forwards grinding away. And I love 5/8′s like ROb Andrew. They too mee is what makes rugby exciting. And I love good scrummaging, and the Argentina way of Hugo Porta kicking a lot like rob andrew, and legendary scrums.
I like 10 man rugby and scrums, and setpieces and old school rugby. So yes tries are irrelevant if you ask me, like soccer goals are irrelevant. Give me a good 1-0 win over 120 minutes of extra time any day of the week. Remember we the soccer’s in 2005 only beat Uruguay 1-0 and won on penalties, yes it was the most exciting 120 minutes in aussy soccer history and have never seen so many aussies so excited about a sports event in my lifetime.
October 26th 2012 @ 4:27am
HardData said | October 26th 2012 @ 4:27am | Report comment
Wouldn’t it be Hansen moaning first about the lack of tries if that was a genuine grievance???
I thought it was a great game but Robbie’s defending something else regarding more than just the last game.
October 26th 2012 @ 4:19am
Frank O'Keeffe said | October 26th 2012 @ 4:19am | Report comment
It didn’t bother me that the Wallabies didn’t score a try on the weekend. The ref kept blowing the whistle and you have to take the points when they’re on offer.
If Joubert had less of an influence, maybe the Wallabies would have had more chances to score tries. But 3 points of offer against the Blacks… you got to take it.
October 26th 2012 @ 7:55am
mace 22 said | October 26th 2012 @ 7:55am | Report comment
Right on frank and you don’t see the all blacks turning down three points that often. The lack of tries isn’t the problem. It’s the spectacle in which these lack of tries occur. Is it with accuracy and skill or mistake riddled and bumbling.
October 26th 2012 @ 5:24am
yahyah said | October 26th 2012 @ 5:24am | Report comment
Expansive rugby? Cant recall too much expansive rugby from the Wallabies on the weekend. However I do agree. Winning is more important for a struggling team. First, these Wallaby fans complain that they arent playing well. When they do put up a decent performance, they will start to complain that they arent scoring enough tries. Where have all the purists gone?
October 26th 2012 @ 10:16am
formeropenside said | October 26th 2012 @ 10:16am | Report comment
I’m complaining that Deans is a poor selector who picks bad teams.
October 26th 2012 @ 10:16pm
yahyah said | October 26th 2012 @ 10:16pm | Report comment
is that taking into account the injury toll?
October 26th 2012 @ 5:45am
Bazza all black supporter said | October 26th 2012 @ 5:45am | Report comment
I am mixed on this.
The game at weekend was a shocker to watch until the end – horrible handling both sides but good defense.
Winning is important first, but I do miss the fear we had playing the wbs before deans, they used to be the only team that could score a all black try , I.e. from their own 22 or through some back line misdirection and magic.
That is how the abs kill teams often, broken or return kick tries from any where, and a couple of 7 pointers need a lot of penalties to catch up,
Converted tries are important to put a team beyond reach. As seen at the weekend , when the golden team let The Darkness back in, if the wbs had scored one try it would have been all over.
I miss being scared of the Aussie backline and awesome tries instead of this team which currently has more in common with England or boks – good defense, punish mistakes but rarely threaten the line.
Scoring tries is the way back to greatness…
(And a well timed droppy helps too…)
October 26th 2012 @ 6:32am
richard said | October 26th 2012 @ 6:32am | Report comment
But how can this be, everyone knows the wb’s have the ” best backline in the world” and only oz play a “running game”.Deans is looking for excuses to justify his lack of success at the top level.I always find it amusing how the NH are criticised for playing boring, ten man rugby, but when oz ( and sometimes nz to be fair) play in this manner, its being pragmatic.
October 26th 2012 @ 7:38am
Darwin Stubbie said | October 26th 2012 @ 7:38am | Report comment
It wouldn’t actually be that much of a problem if Aust actually looked capable of scoring try’s … But they don’t – I wonder what Mr Campese said when he heard Deans say this
October 26th 2012 @ 7:52am
Red Kev said | October 26th 2012 @ 7:52am | Report comment
I’d check hospital admissions because I reckon Campo had an infarction when he heard it Darwin!
October 26th 2012 @ 7:36am
mace 22 said | October 26th 2012 @ 7:36am | Report comment
A great contest he must be joking. It was mistake riddled game of mediocrity, With both teams playing at a poor standard. Because it was close game was it’s saving grace. You can have great games with no or a lack of tries, if both teams play with accuracy and skill. But I’m afraid the game on saturday was not one of them.
October 26th 2012 @ 11:25am
Blinky Bill of Bellingen said | October 26th 2012 @ 11:25am | Report comment
I concur. A pretty poor level of footy. Even allowing for the slippery ball, we just dropped too much pill to ever threaten the line. Of course unsettled combinations didn’t help.
I have to take my hat off to the League guys here. When I recently watched the Kiwi’s take on the Kangaroos, it had me wondering why they can hang onto the ball 99.99% of the time and we can’t. What gives?
But I say again, that game was there for the taking. If only we had slotted a late field goal instead of looking for a penalty, we would now be feeling warm and fuzzy about our prospects for the Northern tour.
October 26th 2012 @ 7:47am
Rabbitz said | October 26th 2012 @ 7:47am | Report comment
I think Dingo has forgotten that it is the ‘people’ who pay for the game.
If ‘people’ think that no a game with no try’s is boring, they will not watch. If they don’t watch, the ticket sales and ratings wane. If the ticket sales and ratings wane the advertisers don’t get value for money. If the advertisers don’t get value for money, they stop paying for air time during rugby broadcasts. If the advertisers stop paying for air time during broadcasts the TV Networks lose money on the deal. If the TV Networks lose money on the deal then the ARU get fewer bucks into the coffers. If the ARU get fewer dollars into the coffers the players get less money and the coach gets sacked.
So if the ‘people’ want to see trys and winning then Deans need to make sure that is what is delivered.
October 26th 2012 @ 8:01am
mace 22 said | October 26th 2012 @ 8:01am | Report comment
Your theory makes sense . It’s the time line in which this is all suppose to happen that confuses me.
October 26th 2012 @ 9:11am
Rabbitz said | October 26th 2012 @ 9:11am | Report comment
Given the modern media landscape, I don’t think that the time between ratings drop and advertiser reluctance is that great.
It is hard to judge because contracts tend to be for a fixed period, but it will be more obvious once the broadcasts move to the Ten Network – they have to find new sponsors and advertisers.
October 26th 2012 @ 7:53am
MAJB said | October 26th 2012 @ 7:53am | Report comment
Talk about self justifcation to hide lack of imagination. Tries are what sets Rugby apart from Soccer and AFL. Unbelievable!
October 26th 2012 @ 8:05am
Riccardo said | October 26th 2012 @ 8:05am | Report comment
Last Saturday was an examination of mediocrity from both teams with the only real enterprise displayed in the dying minutes.
The cause was not helped by Joubert who’s affair with his whistle is comparable to the Prom King and Queen on Valentine’s day.
I accept low scoring games can still be riveting. Porter or Botha befind big grinding packs or the stalemate between two teams at the top of their game, but they are a far cry from the mistake ridden dross that was served up last weekend.
The Wallabies deserve to have their lift in intensity acknowledged but this is just an attempt to disguise what was an average performance form both sides.