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Captains Michael Hooper and Jim Furyk share a common denominator - both dead in the water

2nd October, 2018
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2nd October, 2018
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Wallabies captain Michael Hooper and Team USA Ryder Cup skipper Jim Furyk have a proven record to demand they never lead again.

Hooper has now led the Wallabies 33 times for just 13 wins – a ‘success’ rate of 39.39 per cent, by far the worst of any Aussie skipper who has chalked up a minimum of 20 Tests in charge.

Furyk led the USA to a 17.5 to 10.5 point defeat by Team Europe, even though he had the bulk of the world’s best golfers under his command.

Let’s kick off with Hooper, who has the aggravating habit of knocking back easy penalty goals when his side has problems scoring tries – and winning.

So far in this 2018 campaign, the Wallabies have lost six of their eight internationals, scoring 16 tries to 21, and 134 points to 197.

As a result, the Aussies are now ranked seventh in the world, their worst standing since rankings became official on 8 September 2003, a month before that year’s Rugby World Cup.

And the 23-19 defeat by the Pumas on the Gold Coast was the first to Argentina on Australian soil since 1983.

Obviously, the fans have had enough of parting with their hard-earned to watch the woeful Wallabies, with only 16,019 turning up at Cbus Super Stadium, which has a capacity of 27,400.

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A mere 58 per cent full.

Michael Hooper Australia Rugby Union Championship Bledisloe Cup Wallabies 2017 tall

Michael Hooper (AAP Image/Dean Lewins)

To be fair, selections have played a role in these problems.

David Pocock, Israel Folau and Kurtley Beale are the only world-class footballers on duty, and all three are playing out of their accepted best positions.

Openside flanker Pocock is at number eight, fullback Folau on the wing, and inside centre Beale at fly-half.

Tests are hard enough to win with the best in their rightful position – almost impossible when they are out of their comfort zone, playing a vastly different game.

But with coach Michael Cheika besotted by Hooper as captain, and the reasons escape me, changes are nowhere in sight.

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Dumping fly-half Bernard Foley to the bench has cost the Wallabies a proven goal-kicker who has won many Tests with his boot – Matt Toomua will never ever be as reliable.

And Cheika constantly changing selections for the two, three, four, five, and six jerseys isn’t helping the cause either.

One thing for sure this weekend: Angus Cottrell must debut at six.

How he’s been denied selection to this point defies description. He was a powerhouse for the Rebels this season, playing blindside eight times this season in 14 games, the rest at openside.

And if the Wallabies are to win at Salta at the weekend – and avoid the Rugby Championship wooden spoon for the first time – Cheika must bench Hooper, make Pocock captain at seven, and return Folau and Beale to their rightful positions, where the can fully utilise their x-factor talents.

Israel Folau receives a yellow

AP Photo/Rick Rycroft

As for Jim Furyk, he was a genuine bloke throughout his playing career as an individual, but he has had his problems coping with the Ryder Cup team atmosphere, with career stats of ten wins, 20 losses, and four draws.

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Those losses have now only been beaten by Phil Mickelson with 18-22-7, and Tiger Woods with 13-21-3 – and both were Furyk’s captain’s picks.

The other two were Bryson DeChambeau, and Tony Filau, and between them in ten matches, they collectively managed only two points, both by rookie Finau as Woods, Mickelson, and DeChambeau went pointless.

By comparison, Team Europe’s captain, Thomas Bjorn, selected Sergio Garcia, Henrik Stenson, Paul Casey, and Ian Poulter, and they accumulated 9.5 points between them – which was the difference in the end.

In the process, Garcia’s success took him to 25.5 career Ryder Cup points, overtaking Nick Faldo’s 25 as the greatest in the history of the tournament.

Yet Furyk had 11 of the world’s top 20 under his command. That has him marked ‘never to appear as captain again’.

The same should apply to Michael Hooper.

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