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Joined December 2012
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Long term rugby player, lover and arm chair analyst.
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Around the beginning of February every year, in a land far, far away, a rugby tournament kicks off that most Australian rugby fans don't…
I don’t think drawing a direct comparison to other sports, like cycling or athletics, and saying they scenarios involving doping in those sports should be used as a precedent to strip Watson of his medal is really a valid argument. We have never seen a situation like this in any of those sports. Never has a doctor employed to manage the sporting performance of athletes or cyclists intentionally and deviously coerced them into taking a baned substance that they were explicitly told was safe.
I think this case should be view on it’s merits and not compared to irrelevant situations from very different sports. The facts is; Jobe didn’t willingly take a baned substance and thus he doesn’t deserve to be punished.
If I paid every player at West Coast not to tackle Jobe yesterday, I would be guilty of of match fixing and so would the West Coast players. But Jobe benefited too, shouldn’t he be punished? No, he shouldn’t, because any alleged enhanced performance was out of his control, just like it was in the real scenario.
JOHNNO: No-one likes it, but Jobe Watson’s Brownlow has to go
I understand what you are getting at but what would be the point in letting 22 amateur rugby players get beaten 150-nil by the best players in the UK and Ireland? Neither the players or the rugby viewing public would enjoy it.
At least with the semi pros drafted in it was competitive at times and it allows the concept to endure.
Country players dudded a rare shot at Lions
I think the lineup for the first test match will be very similar to the team named to face the Waratahs, but with North and Cuthbert on the wings and maybe Gray in for Jones.
15. Leigh Halfpenny
14. Sean Maitland
13. Jonathan Davies
12. Jamie Roberts
11. Simon Zebo
10. Jonathan Sexton
9. Mike Phillips
8. James Heaslip
7. Sam Warburton
6. Tom Croft
5. Paul O’Connell
4. Alun Wyn Jones
3. Adam Jones
2. Tom Youngs
1. Mako Vunipola
Lions team beginning to take shape
I’m not sure whether the ARU has veto rights in the scheduling meetings around the Lions tour but I’m starting to get the impression that the warm up games have been designed to give the Lions as little quality opposition as possible to prepare for the test series. Apart from a potential financial boost and improved overall perception of the game the ARU really has nothing to gain from competitive warm up games. Even those reasons aren’t that solid, as a Wallabies series win would do more financially and perceptively for the game than less lopsided scores in the midweek games.
As far as the scheduling of the games in relation to other sports, I think it is mostly coincidental.
ARU bungles British and Irish Lions tour
Two open sides are a great way close out games if you are in the lead, as it allows you to maintain possession.
If you are behind going into the last 10 minutes I would rather have someone like Auelua on the bench to give us some go forward.
Wallabies squad announced: Folau in, no Quade Cooper - yet
My god Bruce! You ask a lot out of your captain. I’m sure the CEO of BHP wouldn’t have that many conditions placed on him and the reason for that is if they did place that many conditions on the job, nobody would apply for it.
You have laid out the criteria for the perfect rugby player and as we all know, they don’t exist.
I think the main characteristics a coach would look for in a captain of a professional rugby team can be counted on three fingers.
1. Must not be at risk of getting dropped (ie. best in his position in the team)
2. A key figure in the team culture (well respected member of the club)
Any players who conform to these specifications would be potential candidates, but there is another key factor that you have neglected to mention and that is the players ability in front of a camera.
In this age it is not enough for the captain of a professional team to be the best leader on the field, he must also perform in press conferences and at promotional events to be considered for the role.
Will the Waratahs finally win a Super Rugby title in 2013?
The talk around town is that the Force may finally be able to create a decent backline this year, and admittedly, a quick glance at the team Michael Foley has assembled could give that impression.
They have two internationally capped scrum halves in Alby Mathewson and Brett Sheenan. They also have a solid fly half who can dictate play, yet still possesses ample attacking spark, in Sias Eberson.
They also have an able deputy for Eberson in Kyle Godwin, who showed he has potential aplenty at the 2012 Junior World Championships.
The centres look strong with a good mixture of size, speed and skill brought to the table by Winston Stanley, Will Tupou and Jayden Hayward.
However, that is were the problems start.
I think Force fans (and Michael Foley) should be really concerned about the the lack of personel out wide.
Apart from the honey badger they have basically no options at wing or fullback.
The 15 jersey is a toss up between Sam Norton-Knight and Patrick Dellit, neither who have set the world alight in previous Super Rugby performances.
Over on the other wing the situation is even more dire with Alfi Mafi is the only real contender and he’s average at best.
Fingers crossed Ed Stubbs, who was recruited from the Australian 7’s team, finds his feet quickly in the 15 man game because otherwise the westerners are likely to find themselves wanting when it comes to finishing and counter-attacking.
Dissection of the 2013 Australian Super Rugby squads - Western Force
Heard the name but never seen him play so just looked him up on youtube.
He seems to have the acceleration and footwork of Shane Williams with the size and strength in contact of Jonah. Plus he is faster than both of them in top gear.
I don’t think there is anyway you could say he wouldn’t be successful in League or Union. You may say that he plays NFL so he doesn’t have to defend but I’m sure he could learn, and even if he missed 1 in 3 tackles I’d still have him in any side I coached just for his attacking ability.
Adrian Peterson would excel in league, union
Interesting that an article about who Australia’s next wicket keeper should be discusses only batting averages. Never mind if they can actually keep….
Is Tim Paine really Australia's second choice wicketkeeper?
The glaring issue with Australian rugby is the lack of a 2nd tier competition for development purposes and the concept of a player loan system directly addresses that problem by giving players on the outer of one squad the opportunity to get some real Super Rugby game time in another.
However I see the issue raised by Billy Bob as being a huge barrier.
Knowing the oppositions game plan and lineout calls/back line moves would be a massive advantage and those kind of secret tactics don’t really exist in soccer were the system originates.
It would quickly become the norm for teams to loan players out purely on reconnaissance missions and this would make the likelihood of team accepting loaned players very small.
A more feasible solution is the tallent squad Jake White as created at the Brumbies. It involves 20-odd players from the local Canberra competition meeting with a coach once a week to learn the Brumbies calls and be given access to their training and conditioning programs. The idea being, the gap between these players and the Brumbies in terms of skill and knowledge would not be as great if they were required to make the step up to cover injuries.
The progeam not only up-skills the players but is also a great drawcard for the local Canberra competition because it offers the opportunity for players in the comp to be part of the tallent squad.
An EPL-style loan system for Super Rugby
I think this is a game we could very easily lose.
The forwards are really going to have to man up.
I’m on team Higgers but I he doesn’t mind lurking out wide and avoiding rucks/mauls. We can’t really afford for the rest of the pack to have to cover for him; much better as an impact player.
Injury roulette set to answer questions for Australia