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I caught up with Rex Goodwin after he got back from the Wallaby tour. Rex has been watching league and union since, as he claims, the Cambrian period, and has been called a vampire because, even though he’s a huge Wallaby supporter, he’s been snacking on the blood of the Wallabies, and their coaches, ever since they lost the RWC to Wilko’s boot.
ME: Welcome home, REX:
REX: Thanks, but I’m back with a red face. I predicted the Wallabies would lose to England, France and Wales. I was wrong about France because the selectors stuck with Skrela after the game against the Pumas in which he was woeful and got steadily worse. I was wrong about England because nobody expected them to implode once let alone three times in a row.
ME: What’s the main problem with the French side?
REX: Lievremont has taken the teeth out of them. Not so long ago if you stopped to flick a blade of grass out of your eye, you’d look up to see Dominici scoring in the corner. Now the backs are no threat, and the only players who consistently performed were Dusatoir, Harinordoquy and Picamoles, but three men do not a team make.
ME: And England. Were they really that bad?
REX: They were worse than bad. Cipriani is a find but he couldn’t handle the pressure. Noon and Flood are not international class, and Sackey just trotted into the defence. But it was the pack that was the big surprise.
Borthwick is a big man but if Johnson thought he was getting a replica of himself to lead the team to glory he knows now he was wrong. The props were selected for their scrummaging but the pack was technically lacking so that didn’t work. Mears is a spark plug but they’re missing a big, intimidating rake. I’ve seen the back row individually turn in first rate performances in club matches but these were tests in an England jersey, and that’s different.
ME: Is that because test matches are played at a faster pace?
REX: Partly. But don’t forget, a team buys into the pep talk in the dressing room before the game. They’re geed up and ready to rip. Then about ten minutes into the game the neophites in the side suddenly realize they’re playing the World Champion Boks or the legendary All Blacks, their confidence fizzles, and they start making mistakes. England pressed against the Wallabies. Playing at home they expected to score maybe two tries and a couple of penalties in the first half, but when they found they were playing a well-drilled team, they plowed in like bulls maddened by the picadores, Giteau put on a masterful display of place kicking, and that was that.
ME: The Welsh game?
REX: Wales played with great spirit. The Ws didn’t expect them to start like a house on fire. Wales were carrying Shanklin but the backs did enough and the forwards were irrepressible.
Tactically, however, if Dan Carter had been playing for the Ws he would have wanted Tuqiri facing Williams and put in some high chips to him. It used to be Ireland the Ws had trouble with. Now it’s Wales.
ME: You correctly predicted the ABs would sweep the board.
REX: That was a no brainer. They’re the best team around. I was delighted to see Nonu come through. When it comes to I/C I’m a fan of gunboat diplomacy. Mils also starred.
It was a pleasure to see him score that first try against England. Timing and pace – that’s what it’s all about if you want to be a first class FB. And the way he plucked Carter’s little chip out of the air – it wasn’t meant for him – did my old rugby heart a world of good.
But I think Ali Williams deserves some kind of award. A tower of not only strength but resilience.
The ABs have yet to unearth a great No. 8 – Rodney does a good job, but they’ll need a mover and shaker at that position for the next RWC. And I’d like to see two Jeff Wilson clones replace Rokocoko and Sivivatu who no longer make the opposition shudder.
ME: The Boks.
REX: Always formidable. And they’ve found a fine replacement for the sometimes lamentable James. Burger is a terrific player and would have held his own in any era. And their locks are the best combo going. Bakke, Matfield, Williams, I thought that, after Johnson and Eales hung ‘em up, we’d no longer see the second row as the glamour position, but here we are.
And after Sharpe’s form and Vickerman’s wonderful sprint, it’s like people are going to be coming to games asking not who’s playing 5/8 but who’s playing second row.
ME: What do you see ahead for the Wallabies?
REX: Success. I’m not sure If Blake will be available but he’d make a fine addition. No problem with the locks. I’m not sure how long a great player and servant like Smith can go on for, and I don’t see Waugh in the equation, so 7 could be up for grabs.
If Rocky is ineligble, 6 could be, too. 8, the hardest spot to play, is iffy. Could Palu be another Kefu? Not sure. In the backs we need a halfback who can confidently grab the ball at the base and fire a rope to his 5/8 who could be Cooper.
If it is, then that gives Giteau his proper spot at 12.
The back three will be a dogfight between O’Connor, Turner, Hynes, Ioane and Mitchell. If they all develop within the next two seasons, what an Alladin’s cave to chose from.
13 remains the most problematical spot going forward. I don’t see Cross figuring in it, nor, for maximum thrust, Mortlock, but how do you drop a player of his quality who can also calmly kick a three-pointer?
I’m almost alone in recommending Tuqiri for the spot but he’s capable of terrorizing his opposite number on defense, and a move inside would give him that much more room for the dazzling lateral steps we so rarely see.
Another combo that’s been suggested is AAC at 12 and Giteau at 13.
The Boks are settled with de Villiers and Jacobs, the ABs with Nonu and Smith because neither team has to concern itself with who plays 5/8. The Wallabies don’t have that luxury, so the jury’s still out on who our centres should be.
ME: Thanks for the views, Rex.
REX: You’re welcome, but they’re just that, views. And even if I go on watching rugby for another 65 years, which is extremely doubtful, I’ll still end up being wrong a lot of the time. But that’s show business.
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.