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Waratahs training session. Photo by Oscar Jimenez
I was at the Waratahs match on Saturday night and I saw in the side a combination of poor coaching, poor skills, poor option taking, a slowing of the pace, a one dimensional back line, and forwards carrying the team.
Poor Coaching
I exclude Michael Foley from this. If there is a game plan (and I can’t see it), there is no plan ‘B’. All this year, we have reverted to the kicking game when in trouble, even when our kicking game is significantly worse than the opposition’s (as it was on Saturday night). So we revert to a losing strategy and we stick to religiously. We either hope they drop it or that our forwards can get the ball back. But if the opposition is playing well, like the Bulls, we have basically given the game away at that point. I see no strategy in the backline play, no variety, and an inability to get over the advantage line.
Poor Skills
Our turnovers were terrible. Because we could not convert possession to position, we tried desperate passes which our players do not have the skills to pick up. Our positioning and passing is poor. Phil Waugh delayed one pass until his player was in front of him and still passed it. And if we are going to rely on kicking, why in a country where kicking an oval ball is bread a butter for so many, do we have such poor kickers? Even American football recognises our ability to produce kickers of oval balls. Before committing to a kicking game, we must get our kickers to be able to out-kick any of their opposition. Employ some AFL coaching.
Poor Option Taking
How about the long throw in our 22? How about the number of times we kicked aimlessly on first phase? How about that free kick that went into the centre of the field where we had no players? How about the number of grubber kicks when there was enough opposition that it hit their legs and rebounded past our players?
Slowing the Pace of the Game
This persistence in waiting with the ball at the back of the ruck while nothing is happening except the opposition getting more time to set their attack really gets under my skin. The best way to beat South African teams over the years has been running them off their feet, so their big forwards run out of steam. But there we were, slowing the play down and the Bulls were playing at speed.
One Dimensional Backline Play
Where has the loop gone? (Lynagh’s try in the corner against the Irish at the World Cup and Ella’s four tries in each Test in the UK are examples of an art we have lost) Where has hitting the line at a different angles gone? The fullback does not chime in to create on overlap or another option. Our opposition just needs to make sure they are properly lined up opposite one of our players and we go nowhere. This means that we do not get over the advantage line and causes our backline to think the only way through is to kick. Our backine coaching is not producing backline plays that create mismatches or disception. It relies completely on missed tackles.
The forwards are Carrying the Team
I love seeing our scrum dominate week in week out. Lose a tighthead and move a 20 year-old in and it still dominates. Wow! But the strength of the forwards is giving our backs the easy option of kicking and papering over their failings.
I do not like Kaplan, but he does not contribute to any of these points I have mentioned. It is not the referee.
It is not the ELV’s, as other teams are able to play attacking rugby and the issues above would be issues with any mix of rules.
Phil Waugh said after the game that the team was flat. Therefore, it was attitude.
One thing I did see was a team that put the effort in. It just didn’t have the strategies or skills to succeed.
It is poor coaching and poor skills that are the Waratahs’ biggest hurdles and I can’t see how they can address either of these this season.
I love my rugby and have been a loyal supporter for many years but I am not spending any more of my limited funds on this team until they really address the fundamentals, even if they manage to get a home final.
At the life members’ function after the match, I heard many others saying the same thing.
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.