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I’d been thinking of contributing a piece on the woeful drop-off in the skill level of all of Australia’s Super Rugby teams for a while.
I deferred, but then Michael Cheika, on the ABC Outsiders programme on Sunday, proclaimed that, at Wallaby level, it was all about our mental approach.
I beg to differ.
It seems to me our most basic of skills – catch, pass and kick – are at an almost all-time low. Cheika may well be up to his customary mind games, but I suggest he needs to do a lot more than address the mental skills of his players.
Clearly (as ever) the New Zealand Super Rugby teams have set the benchmark this season and nowhere is that more evident than in their skill levels. So a bit of benchmarking might be useful.
Firstly, let’s start with an obvious one, goal kicking. Anything sub 80 per cent is simply unacceptable given the (regrettable) crucial importance of penalties. Our ‘best’ goal kicker Bernard Foley is (from memory) sub 70 per cent, and he also has distance limitations.
Surely he and all other leading Australian goal kickers have a simple solution: practice. Jonny Wilkinson allegedly spent one to two hours per day practising not just goal kicking but kicking out of hand – another chronic shortcoming of Australian inside backs.
These guys are full-time professionals. They must spend an extra hour or so a day, outside regular training. The same applies to our kicking in general play. Where is the Beauden Barrett? Where is the Aron Cruden? Where is the Sopoaga?
I have singled out Foley but Jack Debreczeni is poor, Christian Lealifano has deteriorated. They need to practise those skills.
Passing. Why oh why can’t all of our Super Rugby players put the ball in front of the man, why can’t they adjust the passes so they can pop pass? In the final regular round, our (arguably) only candidate for a world XV threw two passes to his own teammate’s feet!
Which brings me to halfback, surely the one or two step sideways movement before passing isn’t taught. Have all our Super Rugby halves watched Aaron Smith for just 20 minutes and then practised passing straight off the deck? Surely it is not that hard?
And box kicking. Why oh why can’t an Australian halfback box kick with accuracy? Surely (again) it is as simple as practising?
And lest you think I am aiming up at backs alone, I’m not done yet. Why can’t our forwards learn the simple arts of off-loading and being on the shoulder of their own players? Why can’t they execute pop passes?
I could go on and talk about basic skills such as lineout throwing as well. None of these are difficult and all are surely capable of being fixed with some (sadly) basic skills training.
Maybe these guys are spending too many hours in the gym bench pressing 4,000 kegs or beep testing or being psycho-analysed.
Maybe just maybe a few hours (per day) re-learning apparently lost basic skills is the answer.
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.