Banks eyes Folau's vacant Wallabies jersey

Careful Ken, don't get distracted by riddler when srguing with Eagle nor by Eagle when arguing with riddler... They only show up together when 1 is under prezsure, if you know wot I mean. Nudge, nudge, wink, wink

Fionn – Madocks has ordinary defensive stats this season and i would not have him as my last line of defense at 15 in WC. He has missed 20 tackles of 45 – almost half! this year already which is very poor defense. He knows his way to the try line but he doesn’t know how to stop them one might say and in WC that will prove to become a serious liability where teams will attack his defensive weaknesses.. I would have him on the bench as cover. Hodge would be my pick as he has great boot on him that sure, needs some refinement, but I think he is better suited there than on the wing and in the centres he is battling with Beale, Kerevi, Kuridrani, KMH, and even Meakes. Banks is quick but is he consistent enough? The short answer right now, is no. Hodge has only missed 10 tackles of 59 which is pretty damn good. DHP is the best positional player at 15 and arguably the best all round in terms of skill set and he can be an elusive runner in the tight much like Ben Smith is but without his lightning step off both feet. So for me it’s a toss up between Hodge and DHP for now anyway. Beale has also missed 12 of his 35 tackles which is not that crash – over a third. Compare that to KMH who has only missed 9 of 53 or even Nonu who has only missed 6 from 39 or Crotty who has only missed a staggering 5 from 74 – this is one reaaon IMO KMH should be at 12 for the Wallabies not Beale. Beale is still not a great defender despite his heroics one on one with SBW last season in one particular game and at international level the centres defensive qualities are as important as their attacking, and something that get lost in the hoop-lah of attacking play in Australian rugby and yet where teams of late have found plenty of holes through the Wallabies middle and out wide. Beale for me, like Madocks, is a bench player at international level, but if Cheika plays him a 15 then I would have KMH at 12 or Kerevi at 12 – where he has only missed 16 of 64 this season and his stats improve in the D when he plays at 12 as apposed to 13.

Goodness me you are probably right. The horror.

Or throw some of it at Chieka to pay him out the balance of the next six months.

I agree, he is just another overhyped player that will be average at test match level.

I think the chance of seeing Foley 10 - Beale 12 for the Wallabies is remote. Cheika says he likes combinations but this one has rarely worked, nor will they have a chance to find form as a pair. Why? Because surely Gibson will play Beale at 15 and Hunt at 12.

English has been the form 13 for a number of seasons but can’t get a look in when it comes to Wallabies selection.

Quade missed Maddox, they have developed a great combination and Maddox has the rugby smarts to know exactly when to pop up on Quades inside shoulder and what line to run. As I’ve said elsewhere it’s starting to remind me of the Quade / Digby combo that was so devastating for the Reds and the Wallabies. I’m not saying Maddox is the power-runner Digby was but probably finds space a little better and runs slightly better angles probably because he doesn’t quite have the brute strength Digby had to break tackles.

He did early on and I feared a Mack Masonesque game. But he bounced back. And he has some toe.

Hodge 15, Banks 11, Maddocks 14.

Yep, KCOL we can definitely agree on that. And a team that shows plenty of commitment and ticker.

Toomua will struggle to get more than a bench run at the Rebels. I like him as a player but no way he is going to replace current in-form players like Quade, Meakes and English at the Rebels. He would’ve been better off signing for the Reds. If Toomua ends up on the plane to Japan it will be on past performances I expect.

Plus Folau is constantly out of position so not available to attempt the tackle. His stats look far better than they really are because he isn’t actually missing tackles, rather he simply is often not in a position to attempt them. Maddox might not have the size of some of his rivals but he has a good rugby brain, if and yes I get it is a big if, Quade is going to play 10 his combination with Maddox shouldn’t be discounted. Maddox can ball play, great kicking game and runs those great lines off Quades inside shoulder that Digby used to back in the day. That’s the biggest thing Quade has missed over his last few seasons (and was badly missed on fri night against the stormers) is that inside runner that knows exactly when to pop up to keep the defence in two minds.

EJ, thanks for your response. Yes, it is a touchy subject. No you didn’t use all the cliches I mentioned. Fair point. I stand corrected on that point. We will have to agree to disagree on your belief that we do not possess a ‘clearly superior’ 10. Anyway, hope we see superior tactics and a better attack in the Wallabies this year. Surely we agree on that.

I think you are a little sensitive KCOL. I put forward s pretty fair analysis of his game. You have said you didn’t watch the game. I did. I gave context to Cooper feeling the pressure. After another dropped ball that led to the Stormers scooping it up and scoring under the posts. He was rattled. He walked to halfway and kicked the restart barely 5m. That was on top of quite a few errors. And a general inability to cope with a rushed defence. Despite having a mountain of possession and time to adjust. Once the game was gone we saw the first short kick in behind the defensive line. Too little, too late. Nobody mentioned “rocks & diamonds”. Or the other “critiques” you’ve clearly memorised and have hurt you in the past. I have praised QC a number of times this year. He’s clearly in front at present for the Wallabies 10 jersey. He’s shown a level of maturity not seen in the past. But beyond the hyperbole he has also had concerning moments in each and every game. As I’ve said many times, all of our options at 10 have weaknesses. The notion that one is clearly “superior” is just not the case. Each has their strengths. And weaknesses. Right now I’d be happy to see QC rolled out at 10 for the Wallabies. But there is a long way to go.

Riddler, to clarify my reference was to dropped passes and kicks from Cooper. Others have the stats. I trust that his service was dropped 5 times in that match. I honestly appreciate that you want the best for Oz rugby. We are sweet there. I agree that no player should be ’protected’. But the highly debated topic of 10 (and 12) selection will attract passionate views. Especially after multiple seasons of average Wallaby attack. I am obviously in the camp arguing for a change from the incumbent. The Rebels have just played one poor game. By trusted accounts Cooper was not great. Not a shocker but not great in a soft team showing. And that seems to be all that some need to flick the switch to ‘gone to water under pressure’. I have absolutely no problem with Cooper criticism. What I object to is agenda laden critiques that trot out unconstructive cliches like ‘can’t tackle’ and ‘goes to water under pressure’ and ‘rocks and diamonds’ that ignore the context- the context being our incumbent’s poor defence, ‘charge downs under pressure’ and ‘rocks and polished pebbles’.

Hodge should be at full back to provide us with another option for exit kicking - if you still consider Foley a good option. If Beale is picked in the first 15 I will despair. He has shown little warrant starting in any position but may be a serviceable finisher.

Also out of interest Cooper defence was only 1% different then Foley.

The Analysis was done on Fox a few weeks ago. The result was clear with Coopers winning record and his more positive style. Rather make mistakes having a go then losing trying what did not work last time.

toomau will be on the bench i think. depending on how his form is when he gets back. at the moment he wouldn't make the 23