Agreed that Carters should not be considered yet. If he had a good 2014/2015 summer (backing up from his 2013/2014 NSW Sheffield Shield Player of the Year season) there would be a strong argument for his selection. But he didn’t. If he gets a few more 100’s this year, having a discussion about his selection would be more interesting.

Same. They looked good on the Spring Tour in 2013 and in the half game they got together in 2014. The skill sets they offer are complimentary.

I am not a fan of Beale in the team at all. But if you are are going to start Foley and have Beale in the team I would rather see the Foley-Beale combo and the Cooper-Toomua combo. I.e. start Foley-Beale and have Cooper-Toomua on the bench (or the other way around).

Just a thought.

I completely agree. I would rather have Pocock as a VC too. But keep in mind that Pocock has never played for Cheika and Hooper has been a favourite of his since he took charge of the Waratahs. In a way Australian rugby is starting to feel the same as it did during the end of the Deans era. Deans was criticized for favouring Waratah players too. I seriously hope Cheika leaves any Waratah bias behind now that his only job is the Wallabies coach. I hope Genia and Cooper (and others) get some time to impress, Smith gets included in the squad after the first two games, and Waratahs players having minimum influence in the line out. We will see though.

Same! However it would have been harsh to drop Hooper from leadership completely as he was captain last year. I am hoping he has been named vice captain as respect for his service last year, but Pocock starts. Don’t forget that Pocock has not been a Wallaby regular for a few years now and Hooper has. Given this, it is probably the correct decision to make Hooper VC over Pocock.

Wasn’t Giteau’s last cap for the Wallabies in 10? Against Samoa? We lost that absolute disaster of a match. Not saying it was all Giteau’s fault but I think it pretty much sealed Dean’s decision to exclude Giteau from the world cup. Giteau has always played his best rugby at 12 not 10.

Would Genia be the most feared halfback? Absolutely not. But the quote was comparing Genia to Phipps. I would fear Genia more than Phipps. Phipps is a good defender and has a great work rate. But his passing is as bad as Beale’s defense.

“Bernard Foley is a solid player but nothing more. I would not be threatened by him individually as a player, nor would I feel threatened by a Foley led team as an opposition player/coach.”

AND

“I genuinely think that almost every coach in world rugby would rather face the Wallabies with Phipps and Foley running the show, rather than Genia and Cooper.”

Two of the best lines I have read in summing up Quade and Genia’s benefits over Phipps and Foley. Good read!

Kurtley is more of a liability than an asset. He belongs as far away from the World Cup team as possible.

Agreed. Assuming you are right and all those player are starting (personally I don’t like the idea of Foley being guaranteed). Moore is my pick for captain too.

Someone has to be made captain and there are not five of the best players in Australian rugby competing for the Hooker spot. When Moore is playing well he is clearly the best option. Closely followed by Tatafu. Then there is a little gap between Charles, Hanson, Faingaa, etc. Yes making Moore captain would not be good for the moral of the other hookers, but it is significantly better than making a flanker captain. You could even argue that someone like Slipper should be looked at as captain. But I can’t see Cheika going there.

Don’t most coaches say that the captain is the first player picked? You would imagine that whoever is picked as captain now will lead the Wallabies at the World Cup. There is too much uncertainty and competition surrounding Hooper to keep him as captain. Think about what kind of message it would be sending to Pocock, Gill, Hodgson and Smith. It would basically be telling them that they are playing for a bench spot at best. Doesn’t give them a lot of hope. Personally I think Pocock has done more than enough to prove that he should be given the number 7 jersey back come Wallaby time anyway.

Completely agree. I think it is a mistake to play Toomua and Foley together. Both shuffle the ball along too much. Also can anyone remember a game they played together where we looked like challenging top sides? I like Toomua with Cooper, but if Foley is going to be wearing the 10 I think you need a player like Kerevi to be a serious threat to the defensive line. With Toomua and Foley you can be pretty sure that 99% of the time you will not need to worry about making a tackle until Kuridrani gets the ball. And chances are by the time he does get the ball the defense will be up on him and yet again our most dangerous ball runner, Folau, will be neglected of the pill. So you might as well pick a player with quick feet to keep the defense guessing a little. Give Kerevi a crack early on in the RC.

You make an interesting point about combinations. I hope you are right when you say Cheika will leave all Waratah bias behind him. For me there is no competition between a full strength:

Option 1: 6.Fardy, 7.Hooper, 8.Palu, 9.Phipps, 10.Foley and 12.Beale
Option 2: 6. Higginbotham, 7. Pocock, 8.Palu, 9.Genia, 10.Cooper and 12.Toomua

The first option does not have the strength to compete with bigger more dominate international packs. Pocock is a must for is ability to slow opposition ball. The rest of our forwards are not strong enough that we can afford to exclude a player who will take pressure off them. Plus this who unconventional 6 and 7 combination does not sit well with me. It did not work well with the Wallabies last year and I definitely can not see it working in the World Cup.

Now if we look at the back line, in option one, add in AAC and Folau and you basically have the Waratahs back line. I can not see how anyone could thing this is a good idea! The Waratahs just beat the Crusaders in the final last year and this year have only shown glimpses of what they did last year. How can anyone think that a back line of a borderline finals team could be appropriate for the World Cup. Having said that you could then argue that Reds were bottom dwellers hence should have limited Wallabies representation. But we all know that Cooper has not had that much time this year and Genia’s game seems to lift with Cooper. Time will tell if they can consistently get back to their best. Other than that the backline of option 2 is pretty evenly spread across the Reds, Brumbies and the Waratahs.

An additional comment:
Personally I have thought that the Wallabies back line looked the best in the Spring Tour of 2013 and in the last game in 2014. When the Wallabies had the Cooper Toomua 10 12 combination. Not only did they link up better but they seem to create more room from our X factor players like Folua. Add in additional threats like Kuridrani, possibly O’Connor and Speight and you are a backline that is starting to look incredible dangerous.

Completely agree. When Quade has the ball he requires close watch by all the defense in close proximity. Early in his career they could rely on a silly unforced error occasionally. But he looked good last night and I am hoping it is the start of better things to come.

Foley is a good player and will certainly not let the Wallabies down. But I just can’t help that think Cooper helps Genia play a little better and will help create more room/time for players like Folau, O’Connor and Kuridrani. If all 5 of those players have a strong game and providing our forwards are competitive I think the Wallabies are starting to look like a more dangerous team.

Great stats TWAS. They are exactly right and prove a great point! When people rave about about Foley having a great kicking game I have noticed that most of the kicks have been from roughly in front and about 30-40m out max. He is not a terrible kicker but the fact that some suggest that he is a must pick for the Wallabies because of his kicking does not sit well with me.

If it was a non World Cup year I would definitely think they should be given the Wallabies 9 and 10. But I can’t see that happening until after the World Cup. With the limited tests we have this Winter I would be surprised if Cheika brings in too many new players.

Isn’t Digby off contract after this European season? As far as I can tell at the end of 2013 he signed a two year deal to play the 2014 and 2015 seasons in France. Doesn’t that mean that he could sign a contract with any Super team and be eligible?

Personally, I think this is a great change! It will create space in Super Rugby for new young talent and allow players who have committed to the Wallabies for the long term to be rewarded. Something had to be done about selecting overseas based players and I think this is a great first step.

Fair points.

I completely understand your point. You are probably right $300K is a bit low. But there is a huge difference between AFL, NRL and ARU. I don’t know if the 2014 AFL profit has been announced yet but I think I remember something about the 2013 profit being around $16m. The ARU has always been smaller than the AFL and NRL and it seems to me that they are losing ground. If the ARU is going to keep losing ground is it really worth paying so much for someone? Hence why I said “LARGE bonuses” should be included in his package. Bonuses that would get his salary up to the standard of the other codes. If he can get the ARU profitable again and gain ground on the AFL and NRL then he deserves to be paid a fortune.

I’m not sure if he should be sacked. He has done a lot of good work. But his salary seems a bit ridiculous to me! How can it be justified? Should be something like a base salary of say $300K, then large bonus incentives for profits (obviously adjusted for abnormal years of profits like the Lions Tour and hosting a World Cup).

Hypothetically, I bet if the ARU was floated on the ASX Pulver would not be accepting stock options as a performance incentive. The odds of profit increasing anytime soon do not look promising.

My biggest concern is still the match day experience. After going to the last few home Brumbies games I can not see anything that is being done to make the game more appealing. I took a friend who had never seen rugby before and I was embarrassed by the lack of show put on for them. Why would anyone who doesn’t love Rugby go? The food is terrible and expensive, parking is frustrating (people who arrive early are ushered to the parks furthest away from the stadium), and the entertainment is as dull as it gets. Plus the games (especially against the Cheetahs) have been anything but a spectacle. The ARU just seems to be sinking deeper and deeper.

Completely agree. I don’t understand why Foley has been given a deal like this when others haven’t. Admittedly I don’t know anything about the contract negotiations of other players but surely if deals like this were being offered more players would be taking them. Of all the players to retain, Foley – while a solid player – would not be high on my list. Foley has pretty much reached his full potential. I can not see him getting remarkably better anytime soon. If anything playing an extra season of rugby in Japan will strain him and make him less valuable for the Wallabies. I would much rather see players like him go and younger players be given a chance.

Personally I think we should seriously start looking at picking overseas players for the Wallabies. Super Rugby should be used to find new talent and grow younger players. Then the Wallabies should be for our best players. Its not like crowd numbers are that spectacular even with maintaining some of our better players domestically.

We know what we have with Foley. Let him go to France or Japan and give some young talent a go back home. Then if nothing is working out call Foley back to play for the Wallabies.

I don’t think Foley is a bad flyhalf. He is definitely good. But it wasn’t his amazing skills that won it for the Tahs last year. I would put it more down to the forwards, strong defense, and a solid backline. I don’t think Foley puts too much fear in international teams. Sadly I don’t think any of our other flyhalf options do. We probably have bigger issues that our flyhalf dilemma though.

Good call. It is better for Australian rugby if O’Connor stays on the wing as that is where he will potentially play for the Wallabies. Frisby has had ample opportunity to prove himself. Since their season is over its a great opportunity to test new potential.

My argument it that if our forwards are not up to par, chances are we are not going to win. But Quade is more likely to be able to create match winning play than Foley or Toomua. So for me it is worth the risk of picking him, because no matter what realistic Australian forward scenario, I can not see us winning the cup with Foley or Toomua at 10 and Phipps or White at 9.