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Despite NSW's good start, Cheika and McKenzie have problems up ahead

10th March, 2014
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Ewen McKenzie kept a tight ship when it came to Wallaby player behaviour. (AAP Image/Dan Himbrechts)
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10th March, 2014
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The Super Rugby draw could not have been worse for Michael Cheika.

The Waratahs coach knows only too well success is all about momentum. But his troops have been cut off at the pass with a bye after just two games in which they had pummeled their opponents to the tune of 75 points to 26.

And next Saturday in Canberra the Waratahs clash with the Brumbies, who have played three games straight and definitely have momentum with two successive wins.

How Cheika overcomes that problem will go a long way to proving how substantial the Waratahs’ campaign will be in 2014.

He has the cattle, no doubt about that, with one reservation – Nick Phipps.

Until the former Wallaby halfback gives quicker service from set play and gets more involved in general support play, all those exciting backs outside him will not be seen to advantage.

Yet they have scored 10 tries in two games, with Israel Folau scoring half of them.

And he’ll score a whole lot more once Bernard Folley can feed Kurtley Beale quicker ball so he can link earlier with Folau. They loom as a devastating combination, and it’s early days.

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Naming Beale at inside centre was a Cheika masterstroke, as it will prove in the weeks to come.

But while a spectacular 10 tries have been scored in just two games, I reckon six to eight more have been bombed through either impatience or being over-keen.

Either way, New Zealand and South African sides will have a picnic on the scrap pickings if that trend continues.

So Saturday will tell us a lot about the Waratahs, and it will tell Wallaby coach Ewen McKenzie plenty as well.

His main problem is all four potential Wallaby halfbacks are not firing.

On his day, Will Genia is head and shoulders above his peers, but those days are few and far between.

Gone are the days when he has without peer as the world’s best No 9. These days he’s struggling.

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The Brumbies’ Nic White is second choice if you believe the selectors, but he’s become a bit of a show pony. And his continual bickering with referees reminds me of George Gregan at his worst, and that’s the biggest turn-off possible.

Rebel Luke Burgess is still doing what he did playing for the Wallabies and the Tahs, before he went to France. He’s still taking what seems to be an eternity to clear set play, with the ball just sitting there until the referees tell him to “use it”.

Does Burgess have to be reminded of his basic job?

Phipps slots into that same category, although to be fair, he’s not nearly as bad as Burgess.

So McKenzie will be looking to one of the four halfbacks to stand up and be counted before the French arrive, and The Rugby Championship gets underway.

As for the other 14 Wallaby positions, McKenzie has increased Robbie Deans’ depth in all positions.

But special mention must be made of David Pocock’s injury, which sees him sidelined for the second season in a row.

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It’s rotten luck for the champion open-side flanker, which must raise serious doubts if he can ever play again.

Two full knee reconstructions in a year is a damning fact, and despite being as tough as teak, it appears his knees are not as resilient as the rest of his body.

Fingers crossed for a positive result, but he will be a huge loss to Ewen McKenzie for the rest of the year.

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