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Robbie Deans has stated that he intends casting his net wider across Australian rugby in preparing his squad for the upcoming Grand Slam tour in Europe.
He will look at players from club level and consider new developing players for bolstering his squad in advance of WC 2011.
It’s clear that Graham Henry has some work to do, and no doubt the New Zealand squad travelling north this November will have a few new faces.
Of the three Southern Hemisphere nations, Peter de Villiers is the coach sitting most comfortably. He has talked previously about the strength in depth of the Boks squad, albeit they were found wanting in the third Lions Test earlier this year.
So how do fellow Roarers view the upcoming matches, and how do they rate their teams’ chances?
And those of the Northern Hemisphere competitors?
More recent comments on here would suggest that the Southern Hemisphere whitewash of last year (Wales excepted) won’t be so easily repeated this time round.
The clean sweep executed by the All Blacks last November seemed to be a racing certainty before they’d even landed on European soil.
With New Zealand heading for a battle with Australia for the Tri Nations wooden spoon, Graham Henry might be more circumspect about his team’s chances in seven weeks time.
Will he view it as a chance to develop the team, and attempt to persuade the All Blacks fanatical supporters in advance that development of players is more important than achieving an expected 100 percent record?
Australia have dubbed their tour of Europe as a Grand Slam tour – so the expectations are set before they’ve hopped on a plane.
Some commentators on here would believe that the standard of the top three in the IRB table is still well ahead of the rest. So how do they view this tour?
As for South Africa, will Peter De Villiers and his men carry a public expectation that they should sweep all before them, as they have done in the Tri Nations?
Or do they treat the tour as a developmental one that allows them to claim it as a preparation exercise for the World Cup?
Argentina are also touring the Northern Hemisphere, and the recent news that they have an opportunity to be part of a four nation competition in 2012 might give their players some heart and additional motivation.
Finally, Fiji are also batting on behalf of the Southern Hemisphere.
Some might regard them as easy fodder for the Northern Hemisphere teams, others might look to their World Cup performances and see a couple of surprise victories on the cards.
Italy, England, Wales, Scotland, France and Ireland are looking forward to the tours to give them a health and status check before they begin the new Six Nations tournament, and with a longer-term eye on their readiness for the World Cup.
By end of November, could the two and three spots on the IRB table have different names against them?
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.