Rennie: Rankings rise will be hard work

Nah. He played 12 for the Wallabies in 2013. There was a lot of talk in 2014 about him playing 10 for the Brumbies but 12 for the Wallabies and Larkham dug his heels in and refused to switch them. Then he switched them a year later.

Didn't he get switched to 12 before 2014? There was always a bit of swapping between him and Lealiifano, but Lea ended up first choice 10 and I couldn't quite understand why.

Ah ok well there you go

Of course the obvious counter to this complaint is that Australia gets two cracks at NZ every year, sometimes three. Losing to them, particularly recently, costs them absolutely nothing in rankings points - nicking the odd win rockets them up the rankings. It's often over inflated their ranking position. SA have also benefited from this frequency to a lesser degree.

If you're saying SA beat NZ in the truncated RC, you'd be wrong. It was a draw. The last 2 seasons produced 2 wins, a loss and a draw for NZ v SA.

I think the big lesson for the Jags is to build on last year's success by rotating the squad more and not exhausting their best players. They have the depth. Rennie is a good bloke. He will improve the culture, which will be a big start.

In 2019, when the Boks drew with the AB's in Wellington, Hanson claimed that NZ were focussing on the World Cup. I personally thought it was rubbish at the time. Both teams badly wanted to win the Wellington game. Well, we all know the rest, New Zealand currently sit at number three in the rankings. Let's see if Ian Foster can get them to reclaim the number one ranking. I have a strangest feeling, that he has his work cut out for him. It's not going to be easy. With Eddie Jones retained, and Jacque Nienaber (Rassie in disguise) a resurgent youthful French team (won the U20WC) and hopefully a stronger Wallaby team, it's not going to be walk in the park. Exciting times ahead.

Rennie is wise to set lower expectations with a rankings rise. It will be really tough for Australia to make the top three, by the end of the year, no matter how good they get. For example, South Africa went into the WC ranked 5th, despite showing clear improvement against New Zealand in particular. In truth that's also because Boks were well beaten by Wales and Ireland when touring in the Northern Hemisphere. That's another reason why it's tough to climb the rankings, Southern Hemisphere teams play the Northern teams at home, every year.

Taylorman, I agree with your M.Cheika philosophies but look what has just happened, '' I thought that M.Cheika was unemployable. I was wrong. ”Former Wallabies coach Michael Cheika has switched codes with the decorated rugby mentor joining the Sydney Roosters coaching staff. Cheika, who has enjoyed a long friendship with three-time premiership-winning coach Trent Robinson, has been working with the Roosters for the past month. Cheika is the club’s coaching consultant and is also spending time working on the Roosters’ attacking skills.”

I suspect his attitude towards referees will improve. But fundamentally, I’ve never seen anything to make me think he will be smart as a captain.

Oh I think he’ll respond well, don’t think assuming he’s tied to the Cheika way now will hurt him. He’ll see the pluses this brings and I think the better structure of the wallabies will improve his game. He might not want the captaincy to focus on his game. Hooper looks the type who never runs from a challenge. He’ll need it to prove he can physically cut it under Rennie, who is certainly used to employing more physical looses, and that may be why he’s singled him out, he may not be a Rennie selection, and is providing his out now. With SH sides clinging to players before they go north, that’s an ominous comment at this time of the season. Rennie will have more than enough Hooper knowledge by now.

Yeah but you’ve only considered the external factors there, and Rennies got no control over that. Oz issues were hugely internal and with improvement in that area alone will result in a rankings shift, without a doubt. In this very article he mentions ‘speedy’ shift of talent through the ranks. In another he mentions not rushing players back., both items that served to stall oz rugby development. Checks took a conservative at best approach in bringing talent through , and relied on past wallabies in key areas. With the numbers leaving oz can’t afford that. Players have to know there’s a path to the wallaby jersey if they want one. There are huge internal shifts that can be made, all ignored by Cheika who lacked vision for oz rugby, focussing only on the next match. Another is he has adopted a no favourites approach, Hooper told clearly he must win his role and captaincy. Cheika was far to loyal in that respect. One challenge he may have is getting the Super franchises humming to a similar, if not identical tune, where Rennie is the pied piper. But for sure, fix those things, and a few more and sixth will be a thing of the past.

Yep the joke is on stupid people like me (sorry I’m not clever like you). I’m forced to pay fees to the ARU, who I don’t want to support. They then spend money on overseas administrators and coaches who I don’t want to support (nothing personal against them) all while they destroy the fabric of the game and it’s core principles. We Have lost the support of two of the three largest media organisations in Australia (one of them in the world) and will receive a ~30% revenue reduction to show (hide) games on Optus. Attendances and viewership will reach new historical lows this year. (Real) Playing numbers will do the same. You support Clyne, his team and his plans - I don’t. I want them to go and for the games administration to be reshaped and to take a different direction. It’s that simple. The proof will reveal itself over the next 18 months - and no, winning or losing games is not the core metric I’ll be using.

Given that whoever lost out of South Africa and New Zealand got an easier draw, you might have your explanation.

I haven’t actually. I’ve said multiple times it may be the case, but I will base my opinion on the observable evidence, until we get some evidence to the contrary.

Rennie sounds like a sensible bloke, I hope he wasn’t overcome by smoke. We just need the best we have in their best positions, based on this years form against SA and NZ sides. Nothing more. There is an argument that those discarded and exiled by Cheika should be considered on their form in exile. Fardy, McMahon, Dennis, Gill and Skelton. Fardy and Skelton, I have seen and are outstanding. Rennie too will discard players, he should proceed carefully, and not need to bring them back. It will be hard to rise from 6. More selection of the players who took us there under Hooper is not the answer. Good luck Dave Rennie. Don’t listen or cling to dills.

Yes they did. But there is a history of teams (well the all blacks) aiming up less in the RC. Like when they didn’t win it in 2011 & 2015. Where as a pool game affects your finals position, so you target that as a priority.

they beat them earlier in the year tho twas

Some are, I didn’t say you were.

Well you seem intent to ignore it as a possible issue. This would all be resolved if Hooper had not stepped down this year for the Tahs but it’s not like he captained that way under Link. I think I remember a 6-3 win vs France in fact.