Deans on a roll, Gatland to be rolled

Devastatingly poor insight! Could a piece be more inaccurate! Love the line about BOD!!!!

Final proof that most Aussie rugby opinion is a) biased b) ill informed c) just plain bollocks! Well done the Lions, right series result even if the margin should have been 3 - 0.

"Garlands played his cards badly" phahaha!

Even when you lose the opposition gets no credit. The thought never occurs that you hot outplayed by a better team on the day.

I'm less judgmental, David. Charles Dickens’s A Tale of Two Cities famously begins: ‘It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness’. The same could be said of A Tale of Two Coaches, the modern version being played out tomorrow (I'm writing this from the UK). It’s impossible to know before the game who will have the best of times, who the worst of times. But it seems safe to say that either Warren Gatland or Robbie Deans will be called wise and the other foolish after the event. One coach’s reputation will be enhanced, the other’s perhaps fatally trashed. Unless of course it’s a draw, in which case both will be judged foolish for not having selected X, for having dropped Y, or for playing Z out of position. Under X you can fill in the name Cooper, while O’Driscoll most obviously fills the Y box, and O’Connor box Z. I think all of those selection decisions are bad, for the same sorts of reasons that other Roarers have given (you need O’Driscoll’s ‘grace under pressure’, Cooper’s capacity for the unexpected, O’Connor’s flair in the sort of broken play he rarely sees at flyhalf). The hardest thing for coaches, I’d imagine, is that once the game begins the sheer uncertainty and speed means that anything goes, that freakish events happen, that one mistake by players or officials can determine a win or a loss that will go down in history, along with glorious names of the lucky winners and the tarnished names of the unlucky losers. Who thought a week before the World Cup of 2011 that Stephen Donald would emerge a hero and haul the All Blacks to a desperate victory? Not even Donald. Who knew a day before? On the day? At halftime? Until the fulltime whistle went, which meant that France couldn’t pull off one of those speedy, freakish pieces of magic that they have done so many times against the All Blacks, nothing was certain. And if the French had managed what they had done in the past? Graham Henry would be title-less in several senses, the coach with the worst record in World Cup history, a man who should never have been given a second chance, hounded for the rest of his days by unforgiving fans who never had to make the tough decisions, let alone stand by them. He probably would have ended up giving advice to countries like, say, Argentina. So pity Robbie Deans and Warren Gatland, just a little. They have both made bad choices, but only one of them will be made to pay. Unless it’s a draw, when they get the chance to share the worst of times between them.

Divvie did win a lions series though ... Something Deans could very well do tomorrow. For all his antics, his stats are better than Meyer's so far.

You'd be the same if you won 90% of the time.

That's a funny one coming from a kiwi. Since when do you guys ever give credit to the opposition?

Don't worry about it Betterredthandead, its pretty common in Australia I believe, and rampant in NSW. If Australia lose on Saturday It wouldn't surprise me to see a few members of the Australian rugby team down at the grave yard looking for bit of action.

I think Deans is a bit old fashioned in some ways, he believes in loyalty and he's pinning his hopes on his men that they will pull threw, some how some way like last week, just win, never mind how. Or what it looks like, just win, so when the history books open it will read Wallaby's succeed. So Beal and JOC have extra pressure to perform not just to country and jersey. but that loyalty from Deans is justifiable

NO, AAC is OK. Agree on the rest!

The Brumbies believe that Horwill stamped on Dan Palmer as well. That is behind Fisher's slap.

Which is what I'm getting at, I think people are missing the point with regards to what the second hearing entailed, but it's done now.

Doesn't say much for their coaching prowess then. 1 good year out of 4 from a RWC winning side.

PDivvy only did the press conferences. The team was coached by SMit and the other old season campaigners which is the reason iwhy it was so difficult for younger guys to break into the team as they kept their places for that one final run.

+1

IMO Gatland has done a far better job on selection than Deans. The Lions in the second test were weak at LHP so he puts Corbisoro back in who demolished Alexander 1st test. SOB has caused the Wallabies a lot of heart ache before so a great replacement. BOD has not really threatened in attack and I believe Roberts and Tuilaga are better than BOD, I would of had BOD on the bench at best but keeping the power and size at the centres maybe have Davies on the bench. Davies is on about par with BOD. BOD is well past his best. All the changes Gatland have done is to strengthen the team, after a loss he identifies where they have weaknesses and improves the team. Deans on the other hand is pig headed. CL received the ball 4 times in the second test. Considering he is the real playmaker and not JoC how poor is that. The backline made 1 whole break. It is so obvious JoC has not performed and he retains him. Also Alexander has struggled at THP against Corbisoro and still retains him. Beale and JoC made 6 and 5 errors in the last game (combined more than half the team) yet he retains both in the same positions. Beale is a poor defender and drops the high ball. A self aware reflective type of person would move JoC and put Mogg in at F/B and drop beale or have him on the bench at best. Look at how poorly Deans handled the questions re the backline and JoC as a playmaker on rugby HQ. My heart wants the Wallabies to win especially in style since I will be at the game. My head says the Lions will win.

What we used to know as a sport is actually an industry, as Mr R. Deans (Canterbury franchise) said in an interview about how Mr W. Gatland (Waikato franchise) made longtime skilled worker Mr. B. O'Driscoll redundant. "He is a legend of the game but he has been around long enough to understand the nature of the industry." I hope the Australian division of the industry makes a profit tomorrow night.

haha Dave good one

Do you really think BOD will cry when he realizes he wasn't in fact playing tiddlywinks?