- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
That’s the thing about sports tickets as a birthday present. You never know quite how much the present you’re giving is worth.
When my brother gave me a ticket to watch the Bledisloe Cup it cost him, I don’t know, $120 bucks. But when that ticket means you get to watch the Wallabies vanquish the All Blacks for the first time that present becomes, as Mastercard would put it, basically priceless.
The Wallabies haven’t won this fixture in Sydney since 2008, in Robbie Deans’ first match as coach. That’s a long time to go without a win against a great foe at one of the two major Australian home grounds.
It felt like we’d been banging out heads against a wall watching the Wallabies play at Stadium Australia. That 2008 match, coincidentally, was the last time I went to a Sydney Bledisloe Cup match with a birthday present ticket.
It feels good to finally see a different outcome.
So, what happened?
The Wallabies found a scrum, lost their lineout, made some great tackles, hung in there, took some chances and won a Bledisloe Cup match!
That summary is a bit too simple and blasé; plus you can’t just submit something that short and expect people to talk about it in the comments, unless you write “Quade Cooper, Kurtley Beale and James O’Connor. Discuss.”
And I’d never do that.
Here are some of my takeaways from the grand, glorious and important Wallabies victory on the weekend:
The Wallabies overcame Nick Phipps
I don’t see how Nick Phipps can be in the starting side at Eden Park. He made so many errors throughout the night – some egregious and plenty of small ones – that I was in full support of benching him well before he was yanked after being sin binned.
His pass to the feet of no one that was fumbled by Dean Mumm killed a try. His pass to Matt Giteau, who wasn’t looking at all, was a horrible decision.
That pass also showed up the excuses of calls not being loud enough presented by the commentary team, he passed to a player who wasn’t ready at all, meaning he looked up and decided to take that option. His pass that ended with Bernard Foley tackled in goal could have easily cost them the match.
Then he was sent off for reacting poorly to a penalty and tackling Conrad Smith who took a quick tap twice within 10 metres.
His absence directly resulted in a try. The first Nehe Milner-Skudder try was a result of exploiting Phipps’ absence from the field. Giteau was trying to cover scrum half and his own position. He was back-peddling into his defensive position when Aaron Smith ran from the scrum to the other side of the field.
And that’s on top of a lot of floated passes, balls going a bit high and many not out in front.
I’m beginning to wonder about Phipps…
A hug from your mum is the best birthday gift of all, right Matt Giteau? (Photo: Tim Anger)
As Brett McKay noted yesterday, he played well as substitute for Will Genia against South Africa and was quite solid against Argentina, although I’d say he wasn’t spectacular there.
But the arc of Phipps’ career says that world class passing, decision making and response under pressure may be an exception rather than the rule.
His first great year at Super Rugby level was in 2014 with the Waratahs, but he reverted back to ‘energetic but erratic’ again this year in Super Rugby. He had half a game against the Springboks at a high level and a decent one against the Pumas before reverting back against the All Blacks.
Given his work after coming off the bench it’s time to have another look at Nic White to see if he should deputise Will Genia.
A number of players played themselves into clear first team status
Before the Rugby Championship the talk about this Wallabies side was only two players – Israel Folau and Stephen Moore – were certain selections.
The defensive efforts alone of Matt Giteau and Adam Ashley-Cooper first and then David Pocock and Michael Hooper have cemented them into starting 15 positions.
Adam Ashley-Cooper rushed off his wing with perfect timing numerous times to cut off the ball before an overlap was exploited. Matt Giteau made a couple of try-saving tackles, including one on Nehe Milne-Skudder near the start of the game. He was cleaning up breaks all night.
Pocock cut down Dane Coles before the line and two phases later Michael Hooper tossed Julian Savea into touch despite the hulking winger having about 10 metres of space to work in along the flank. Both made other fantastic tackles that turned the ball over or halted momentum of All Blacks movements.
Scott Sio and Sekope Kepu provided the Wallabies with a very solid scrum. They must be picked as the first team props now. I won’t spend too much time on this here, as others have written about it already.
The All Blacks made some mistakes
Throughout the early stages of the Test the All Blacks dominated field position and possession, but didn’t make the Wallabies pay on the scoreboard.
There were clear opportunities for points to be scored. One resulted in Sekope Kepu being sent off and the Kiwis settled for three points.
Another saw Richie McCaw running a great support line off a break, only to bobble the ball up into the air.
A third one saw Sonny Bill Williams drop a pass in support of a break as well.
Jerome Kaino, Kieran Read and Richie McCaw were outplayed as a backrow unit around the field
This anomaly is somewhat beyond my powers of analysis. But yes, the All Blacks’ back three was firmly held in check all night by the Wallabies.
I’ve sent investigative reporter Kate McClymont at the Herald an email asking her to check and see if there was any witchcraft involved in this outcome. It is a rare feat for a back row with those three names to be so thoroughly smothered.
I’d expect a more explosive Kieran Read, a more physical Jerome Kaino and a couple of big plays from Richie McCaw in the return match. If that doesn’t eventuate I think – dare I say it – Steve Hansen might have to look for a new combination at the World Cup. Surely not?
The flyhalf and inside centre combination was solved (again, at the risk of being a broken record)
Even the Fox Sports commentators couldn’t help but rave about the ability of Matt Toomua to straighten the attack in contrast to Foley’s efforts. When Toomua came on after 50 minutes the Wallabies were both more direct and able to secure possession for more phases, because the support was closer to the tackle.
Australia controlled the game well with him and Matt Giteau pulling the strings.
All this comes ahead of a daunting re-match at a venue where Australia hasn’t won since before I was born.
The chances of a win aren’t great, but I’m hoping some Wallabies fans are on birthday trips to Auckland for the weekend and they get to remember this year’s gifts with the same fondness I did.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.