Wallabies really need a specialist goal kicker

I see what you are saying, we always need a reliable kicker, however I stand by my original statement. As for your 'struggling' and 'need support' comments: 1991, Noddy and NF-J were both acknowledged leaders of their team. I read somewhere that the coach (AJ) was virtually ignored as far as game plan and analysis were concerned. In other words the brains and heart of the team were in the thick of the action. This leads to the ideal Rugby situation where the players take responsibility for what happens on the paddock and charge themselves with dealing with the outcome. Similarly, RM, The coach of the 1999 campaign empowered his men to do just that which is why he is such an effective mentor. In fact you could make the argument that Australians only flourish in a team environment when they know they are solidly 'in the loop'. Those coaches who think they are indispensable or invaluable to the team will only stifle this important team skill. That is the primary thing our current Wallabies need to comprehend. I suspect Deans wants it too but there is something undermining the process. Too many current players give the impression they are looking over their shoulder rather than playing the instinctive Rugby that got them selected in the first place. At first I thought it was nerves but they have been together for long enough now.

No need for an apology, TW. I wasn't being forceful or stroppy. Unfortunately it's hard to convey tone during internet 'conversation'. To be fair to Martin Johnson he has tried to steer English rugby (bar the 2009 Autumn internationals when England had 25 players injured) away from a kicking game. This is probably the first time since 2003 that England has had a host of capable backs, and the current laws don't necessarily facilitate excess kicking.

My apologies, Ben S. No, not in the two tests this year. I can't find my folder of notes, so don't remember much of last year's test. My DVD recorder has broken down, and we're just too busy to get a replacement, so I rely now on pen and paper. I may have been (wrongly) promoting the long-held stereotypical view that English rugby relies on kicking to win games.

'I am not advocating a wholehearted embrace of kicking as we see in England' Do we see this in England?

I believe the poster above was referring to Dan Parks and his recent form, both as a goalkicker and a player. I felt the urge to answer that query (I hope that didn't offend you). Thus, I thought of Brock James, a fantastic player for Clermont who is considered a very good kicker (the answer to Australia's problems perhaps?), but can be shaky under pressure (not the answer to Australia's problems perhaps?) I therefore hope that answers your slightly irreverent question.

Unfortunately, Sixo, we have a team that is struggling. It needs support. (If the Prussians had not attacked the right flank of Napoleon’s army, Wellington’s troops would have been routed at Waterloo.) My plea for a specialist goal-kicker is a TEMPORAL solution. This team is not of the same caliber as the one which Lynagh led in Dublin – yet. At the heart of our lack of alacrity for a specialist goal-kicker lies a deep-seated Australian disdain for any reliance on kicking in the game. (See Ben S' post below.) I first encountered this back in 1994, in the second State of the Union match between NSW and Qld at Concord Oval. The atmosphere was tense. In the earlier SOTU match in Brisbane, Campo and Damien Smith had nearly come to blows. Qld had won that first match. At the time, Qld was depicted as a team that relied too much on kicking to win. Well into the match at Concord Oval, someone in the north bank cried: “Paul Kahl (the Qld flyhalf), you boring t*@#!” The crowd around us laughed. I nonetheless thought that the remark was cruel and hostile. Mercifully, the NSW v Qld antipathy has subsided, but I think there remains a sentiment against kicking, lurking in the Australian rugby psyche. I am not advocating a wholehearted embrace of kicking as we see in England, Scotland, and South Africa. I am asking for a specialist goal-licker that will relieve the pressure on our faltering team. It is foolhardy to "live and die (for tries alone)"..

'We love the try in Oz and live or die by it.' I think Robbie must have missed the memo ;-)

Mr October. (aka Reggie Jackson)

We'll get by as we almost always have done without someone of JW's standard. We love the try in Oz and live or die by it. I don't think anyone who has worn a Gold guernsey wants to change that. If some 'magic boot' steps up then good. Winning by penalties is bad enough but to train to win by scoring a field goal makes most of us want to be sick, in fact it is sick - stuff the record books! Ps: remember Lynagh's gee up to beat the Irish, that'll do it.

And your point about kicking is,,,?

Brett, perhaps it was wrong for me to have put that ball-park percentage of 90%, because, as many have pointed out, it may have been unattainable bar Chris Patterson (as per Ozxile). I should have emphasized that it is coolness under pressure that matters most. This whole idea of a specialist goal-kicker came to me while watching Rod Kafer (in the Rugby Club) demonstrate how Giteau’s kicking stance in the second England test deteriorated as the match wore on. At the moment, Giteau looks rattled. He is given to berating his team-mates when moves go wrong. If only he had the coolness of Stephen Larkham. To me he is the benchmark for Cool. Also his uncanny ability to read the play on the field. I attribute these to the many long hours he spent playing chess with Joe Roff. Mat Rogers remarked how strange it had seemed to him to see both head for the chess table after training. (Not to mention the games of Trivial Pursuit the Wallabies played. He even learned the meaning of “aglet”.)

Bright idea, Katzilla! Maybe we could persuade Morne Steyn to do a Tiaan Strauss. We'd put him at fullback. In time for 2015. :-)

"BTW, Dan Parkes would no longer be eligible to play for Australia, would he? How did we let him get through the net?" Because he wasn't/isn't very good. Apart from this season, he was the definition of mediocre. Brock James is a far better player, but is shaky under pressure.

Thanks for the support, Ozxile, Very well said. I wouldn't invest so much energy in writing these rugby stuff if I didn't believe in them strongly. It may smack of a "crying-in-the-wilderness" complex, but hey, we all like to win, don't we? BTW, Dan Parkes would no longer be eligible to play for Australia, would he? How did we let him get through the net? Cheers.

Thelma, absolutely correct. Teams win games when everyone does their part - sometimes even that isn't enough. The whole system has to work and discounting the importance of any contribution appears to suggest that those who do so don't understand the game - not true for contributers here but it does look like it at times. Every team and individual flaw has an impact. Missed tackles, dropped balls, bad lineout throws, dropped scrums...but such flaws are often lost in the run of the game. No goal kicker ever won/lost a game by themselves. Unfortunately for kickers the immediate impact of their flawed effort is palpable in terms of points, and team perceptions of how things are going. A kick made at any time means points and almost always gives the team an important psychological boost.

MB, Scotland was not much to look at during Paterson's run. However, the team knew that he would not let them down if they got anywhere near kicking range. Did he improve their performance? I'd say that he did. If you recall any of their matches during that time frame they battled on knowing that it was always going to be worth it to attack and get at least within kicking range. Patterson by himself could not improve the others but he gave them a legitimate sense of purpose so they did not give up. The Wallabies have systemic flaws that have plagued them for some time. However, suggesting that kicking is not a high priority is akin to suggesting that the elastic in their shorts isn't something to worry about. The fact that no one thought Giteau would miss the sitter in the England test speaks well for him generally, but the worry that such things can happen at all is highly problematic. The Wallabies had the match won with that kick - not - but that wasn't the only one and best case scenario would have been that it did not matter at that point. But it did. Details count - including those from the first minute of the game and players and particularly kickers at the test level need to get a grip on that much more so than the current Wallabies. Each missed tackle, inane penalty, dropped ball has repercussions, psychologically and often in terms of points. Unfortunately for kickers the world is focused on them when they go about their bit of business. A hooker who cannot consistently deliver a ball at lineouts is just as much a liability but the spotlight shifts much more quickly. Scottish rugby hasn't been much to watch in recent years, but both Patterson and Parks (an Aussie) have both been instrumental in providing a lot of points, winning kicks and hope. A more efficient goal kicker, however boring, would be a blessing - keeping the scoreboard ticking over right from the beginning is just as important as making that last match winner. That match winning opportunity isn't even there in most cases because the kicking efficiency isn't there throughout the match. Between Giteau, Cooper, O'conner, Beale, etc. we have the kicking talent. I'm not convinced that they are sufficiently 'professional' about their obligation when given the responsibility.

I am not talking here of the Wallabies relying SOLELY on goal-kicking to win a match. I view goal-kicking as complementary to what goes on in the park. However, I remember too well how goal-kicking determined our fortunes in three World Cups: 1995, 1999, and 2003. How can I forget how Rob Andrews quashed our hopes in the quarter-final of 1995, with his drop-goal…the worry in Peter Slattery’s face as the minutes ticked down to the final moments. How my daughter, who had savoured our triumph in the 1991 World Cup, was at home crying while her sister fetched me from the Sydney Film Festival. In 1999, how tense were the moments in extra time in the semi-final against South Africa, caused by a brain explosion by Owen Finnegan in the dying minutes of regular time. He gifted South Africa with a penalty and the scores were level. Steven Larkham, who had never scored a drop goal before, nailed a beauty and we went on to the finals and eventual victory. In 2003, again in extra time, how Johnny Wilkinson’s drop-goal saw us lose the final. It’s harrowing! So I can’t understand why we should deny how vital a solid goal-kicker is.

Quite simple really - just do not have Giteau in the side & the backs will score trys.............................

Still waiting for my daugher. The dentist must have a lot of work to do... The message in the job description I gave in the article has been too detailed and therefore misleading. What we really need is a clutch player. Like Joe Montana in American gridiron and his two-minute drill. Like a clutch baseball batter (can't name one, the last time I watched, the greats were Willie Mays and Sandy Koufax). Like Robert Horry for Houston, Lakers, and Spurs You know, will win the game at the death.

Question is, how much did Chris Paterson's metronomic goal kicking improve Scotland's rugby performance? Of course goal kicking is a vital skill for an international rugby side. Giteau's performance has been fine. Really this skill can be replicated from Super 14 to International level. Giteau kicked well in the recent Super 14. A good, consistent goal kicker is a good goal kicker. Dan Parks was an excellent goal kicker in Shute Shield then performed well for Scotland...Sexton has started well, as a newbie at Test level, for Ireland etc.. What if Giteau's not in the team? I recall Shepherd was highly regarded as a goal kicker before his lengthy injury absence. Reliable goal kicking is important, but not the biggest priority for the current Wallabies, in my opinion.