- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
With the Wallabies’ win over the All Blacks on the weekend, there has been celebration in Oz, while many Kiwi posters have countered with the ‘dead rubber’ defence.
There has been much talk about the hoodoo being off the Aussies’ backs and that this could be a watershed game in their attempt to bring back Bill in 2011.
While this may all be true, the All Blacks’ hoodoo actually pales in comparison to another recent hoodoo that has infested the Australian side. That is the hoodoo of not being able to backup a good win with another good win.
All too often in recent times we have seen this side perform against the odds or put in a memorable performance and the next week be truly deplorable.
During a world cup, this has far a greater risk of derailing a campaign than any bogey side.
The fact is that the Wallabies are a fairly good team and were always going to beat the All Blacks at some stage. There are only so many close run things before one falls your way. If anything it has probably helped the All Blacks as good teams will always learn more from a loss than a victory, no matter how close as the win can paper over the cracks.
What the Wallabies need to learn is how to backup this win with another even more commanding performance against lesser (than the All Blacks) opposition. Without this attribute, to be able to play at or near your best week after week, you really have no hope of winning the World Cup.
To my mind the biggest area to be worked on is the defence.
The defensive effort is the bedrock of the modern game and the one that the All Blacks have successfully built their recent domination on.
Sure they can attack with the best, but if that is a little off they can rely on the defence to keep them ahead or at least close enough to get the result.
A solid defence will also increase turnovers and minimise the amount of ground gained by the opposition meaning they get more attacking opportunities against a disorganised line and also have less distance to travel to the try line to score.
The biggest Aussie culprit for me is Q Cooper. I think the thing that makes him such a potent attacking force is actually what hinders him defensively.
In attack he wants to show his skills with great flat long passes, the stutter step etc making him a difficult proposition. In defence he wants to dominate in the same way. He tries to belt the ball carrier, but lacks the size and technique making him more of a turnstile.
If he just turned it down a bit and just worked on the fundamentals he’d be fine. You don’t see Dan Carter truly clean anyone up, but no one questions his defence.
If Quade and the Wallabies can get their defence in order I think that long sort after consistency is theirs to take. When they shake THAT gorilla off their backs they can have a real tilt at the World Cup.
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.