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2016 hasn’t been the easiest year for the Wallabies.
It’s not been much easier for the supporters, though; we’ve sat through like the astute armchair selectors we occasionally are, watching loss after loss. The redemption has begun with two wins, which illustrated moments of promise, but to say that we’re in a state where we can sit back, relax and feel comfortable facing the fellow Rugby Championship competitors is foolhardy.
It won’t take much scrolling through articles of the last few months to notice some common trends among fans’ questions.
Why do we have so many players out of position? Should Michael Hooper and David Pocock play at the same time? Can Quade Cooper and Bernard Foley play at the same time? Did we need to bring back every European-based player? Why is our captain complaining so much? Most infamously, what does Cheika see in Dean Mumm?
However, the query that has been piquing my interest is of all the debutants the Wallabies have employed this season, who has been the most influential?
After a World Cup year, the exodus of players generally means most teams go through a rebuilding phase. In the wake of the South African Test in Pretoria, the Wallabies have a very real possibility of fielding their tenth debutant of the year, should Sefa Naivalu keep his spot on the currently extended bench and then take the field.
So far this year Nick Frisby, Allan Alaalatoa, Rory Arnold, Lopeti Timani, Tom Robertson, Reece Hodge, Samu Kerevi, Dane Haylett-Petty and Adam Coleman have all donned the green and gold for the first time.
Frisby got his opportunity, though limited, while Will Genia was preoccupied overseas. Since returning home, Genia and Phipps have claimed the two halfback positions in the team, which is a fair call given their experience and ability.
Alaalatoa and Robertson have done well off the bench, jumping in to bolster the scrum. Injury has halted any further caps for Alaalatoa for the time being, who was terrorising opponents at will. Any man game enough to square off with Eben Etzebeth has won my respect.
Robertson, fresh off making his debut, is a new spark to the team and has held his own in his limited exposure. Similar to Timani, he hasn’t really been given enough minutes to be judged alongside some of the others on this list, but you could see the intensity he gave when he got his chance and one of my biggest hopes is that his opportunities to play for the Wallabies keep coming.
Arnold has been handy, getting through a lot of work and really putting his height to use in the lineouts when given the chance. He’s not a polished player yet, but is really developing into a quality lock both at set pieces and around the field.
Kerevi had a rough initiation, being played somewhat out of his more recently-honed position, lining up at inside as opposed to outside centre for his first two Tests. Though a bit lost in his debut, he’s been solid at 13 since replacing Tevita Kuridrani, incorporating a handy running and offloading game and creating a real threat for opponents to try to contain.
Haylett-Petty has been one of the most consistent performers for the Wallabies in the recent few games. As the only debutant to have appeared in every fixture for the men in gold this year, it speaks volumes about the kind of qualities he brings to the team.
He’s not the fastest bloke out there, but has a great turn of speed, is a decent playmaker with a handy kick from the back three and a more than reliable jumper under the high ball. His work in defusing bombs has saved our skin a few times, but his defence on the wing, which is admittedly a position he was fairly new to, still needs a lot of working on as he’s been exposed on the outside a few times too many.
Despite the aforementioned players’ earnest efforts, the two standouts for me have been Hodge and Coleman. Following countless injuries, Hodge got his chance coming off the bench early in the 29-9 loss to New Zealand where he scored three points on debut courtesy of an impressive long-range penalty goal. Since then, his desire to sneak into an inside-runner role has been a great way of denting the defence and putting the Wallabies on the front foot.
On top of that, his duties have been extended to kicking for touch after penalties. Currently, he exists as a jack-of-all-trades type player, capable of playing across nearly every backline position. His ability under the high ball, kicking game and his finishing ability has held him in good stead since his debut and every time he touches the ball I wait with bated breath to see what he will produce.
Coleman, though not as flashy, has been arguably even more influential. At a time when the locks weren’t superstars demanding selection, Coleman came into the squad and has taken each opportunity with more vigour and enthusiasm than any recent debutant.
Forced to have meals through a straw for entire weeks between games, his determination to tackle every player with maximum effort and hitting up the ball as if he knows it’s his last run often leaves him with a bruised body. Coleman’s ability in the lineout hasn’t gone unnoticed either and all of his efforts were rewarded with a momentum-changing try in the Wallabies last Test against the Springboks courtesy of a lofty ball thrown from Genia that only he or Arnold would have reached.
Who has been your favourite debutant of the year and which of the players who have debuted this year do you think have earned a spot in our best available 23?
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.