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Watching last night’s Dally M awards made me realise just how far the Wallabies are behind rugby league in natural talent.
Even taking into account the vast law/rules differences, strategies, and coaching, a head-to-head shows glaring shortcomings in the Wallabies.
NRL fullback of the year: Ben Barba.
The most electric footballer of either code, was also the Dally M and Provan-Summons medallist and shared top try-scorer of the year on 21 with Cowboy Ashley Graham.
Wallaby counterpart Kurtley Beale, on his day, can be just as electric, but his days are too far apart. Barba performs week in, week out – a priceless asset.
NRL winger of the year: Aquila Uate
This is the third successive season Uate has received the award. He is blessed with blistering speed and knows where the white line is thanks to plenty of chances.
If Wallaby Digby Ioane just kept his station instead of looking for work, he would die of either pneumonia or boredom as his inside backs keep booting the soul case out of the football. Given a level playing field, there wouldn’t be a struck match between Uate and Ioane.
NRL centre of the year: Josh Morris
Morris had a great season, but can count himself lucky South Sydney moved Greg Inglis to fullback, or GI would have been the standout selection as centre of the year. No Wallaby is in the same suburb as Inglis, what a coup he would be for the 15-man code.
NRL five-eighth of the year: Johnathan Thurston
Thurston is a genius, who reads a game minutes before it happens, is a champion goal-kicker and a huge bonus to whatever team he plays for. Wallabies Quade Cooper and Berrick Barnes have their own vastly different brands of rugby to offer. But apart from the occasional stroke of genius from Cooper, neither Wallaby can change the course of a game through consistent sheer brilliance like Thurston.
NRL halfback of the year: Cooper Cronk
Cronk is the unsung hero of both the Storm and Queensland Origin teams. There’s nothing he can’t do on the football field, as an all-rounder who unselfishly sets up supports more than starring himself. Wallaby Will Genia used to be like that until he switched to a George Gregan-slow service, negative pattern of play that has killed backline structure. Unless Genia goes back to being himself and matching Cronk, the Wallabies will remain very beatable.
NRL lock of the year (no 8 in rugby): Paul Gallen
The inspirational captain of the Sharks and NSW Origin, Gallen is a workaholic in attack and defence every minute he’s on the field. No Wallaby 8 can match that work ethic, although Radike Samo can in short bursts, far more so than Scott Higginbotham who has been a bitter disappointment at Test level. The injured Wycliff Palu is a better bet than any other Wallaby 8, but that’s his problem, he’s always injured.
NRL second row of the year (lock in rugby): Nate Myles
Myles is an unfashionable footballer, but gets the job done better than anyone else. Out of all the positions won last night, this is the weakest link with Wallabies, with Nathan Sharpe and Setaleki Timani not improving the situation. Caderyn Neville will if the selectors ever come to grips with his undoubted talent.
NRL prop of the year: Sam Kasiano
A man-mountain – standing 196cm, and weighing 122kgs – Kasiano is a one-man destruction unit in attack and defence. No Wallaby props are within cooee of Kasiano, although Benn Robinson, Sekope Kepu, Ben Alexander, and James Slipper would like to be.
NRL hooker of the year: Cameron Smith
A magnificent all-round footballer-cum-quality goal-kicker-cum-captain, Smith is easily among the world’s top five rugby league internationals. Wallabies Stephen Moore, Tatafu Polota-Nau, and Saia Fainga’a are all bigger than Smith, but can’t match him anywhere on the paddock.
To make the glaring differences in natural talent more obvious, Ben Barba, Johnathan Thurston, Matt Bowen, Greg Inglis, Billy Slater, Brett Stewart, Cooper Cronk, and Cameron Smith would all make it big-time in rugby.
Only Digby Ioane, and the real Will Genia, not the current one, would make it in league.
Let’s see if the Wallabies can bridge the gap against the Boks on Saturday in Perth, and the following Saturday against the Pumas on the Gold Coast.
If they can’t, it will be a disastrous Rugby Championship for the men-in-gold, and coach Robbie Deans.