Caveat, it was only the Waratahs, who have been hapless all year.
The Rebels will not have an easier game to win in 2021, and Rob Penney has some serious questions to answer about his coaching ability if the mish mash on display at AAMI Park on Friday night is anything to go by.
But one consistent feature on display in this game, as it has been all season, was the Rebels’ willingness to patiently build scoreboard pressure from the kicking tee.
Yes, they scored three well worked tries that hint at an increasingly coherent back line. But taking the three remained a feature with Matt To’omua and Reece Hodge bagging four penalty goals. Without them, we’re looking at a 21-14 scoreline, and a much more even game.
It’s no secret that the Rebels are behind the Reds and Brumbies in the Australian competition. But the steady accumulation of penalties against the Waratahs (to add to seven against the Reds and eight against the Brumbies) shows a viable way to even the odds, particularly when opponents are more skilled in open play.
(Photo by Jason McCawley/Getty Images for the Melbourne Rebels)
The Rebels have shown the ability to turn a mismatch into a scrap. They know that if they can win enough penalties, they can beat even more fancied opponents. The Wallabies and the Australian teams have to adopt this approach to succeed against our counterparts across the ditch.
Before hardcore fans turn on me for gutting the spirit of the game, turn your minds to the Wallabies’ most recent win over the All Blacks in Brisbane last year.
Tom Wright set the tone with that early try to put the All Blacks on the back foot. And Taniela Tupou’s unyielding play up front gave him a vital late try that effectively sealed the deal.
But in between, Reece Hodge potted four crucial penalties and a conversion to keep the Wallabies in front. Nobody was complaining after the match about the spirit of the game.
Nor were they when James O’Connor took three points late into the game against the Brumbies last week. He knew the points were more valuable, setting his team up for one last shot at the try line they duly took.
Like it or not, neither the Australian Super Rugby teams nor the Wallabies can hope to go blow for blow with New Zealand, France or even England. The swashbuckling style of the Michael Cheika years, while capable of producing magic on occasion, is simply too naive and open.
Moreover, Australian rugby has struggled with the basics for the past few years. Unforced errors won’t go punished in the local competition but they will at international and Trans-Tasman level.
(Photo by Matt King/Getty Images)
This means less ball to play with and it makes penalties even more important to keep in touch with better-coached and more adept teams from New Zealand and Europe.
Tactical kicking also plays a massive part. It will take years to get beyond Cheika’s run-from-everywhere mentality, but the process is worth it if the Wallabies learn to gain territory and win penalties further up the pitch.
If Australia is serious about a local team winning the Trans-Tasman competition and the Wallabies winning the Bledisloe Cup this year, fans, players and coaches alike must accept the gritty realism of the Rebels and to a lesser extent the Reds.
Penalties win games. No longer must we watch in agony as Michael Hooper directs yet another kickable penalty to touch only for the rolling maul to break down, a forward to knock the ball on or one of the centres fail to catch the ball.
Remedy these failings first and then we can talk about free-flowing rugby. For now, though, the case is clear for success against our international opponents in 2021: make it a fight at the breakdown, kick for territory, and above all, take the three.
fiwiboy7042
Roar Rookie
what "crowd" there is to watch them live. The Brumbies were already dealing with falling attendances before covid.
Phantom
Roar Rookie
If they win the crowds will applaud.
Guess
Roar Rookie
They know that if they can win enough penalties, they can beat even more fancied opponents Don't you see the irony? They didn't beat them.. Despite having so many PK. Penalties didn't win the game as you claim. But in between, Reece Hodge potted four crucial penalties and a conversion to keep the Wallabies in front What's your point? They had 3 PK advantage in one game against (easier than the AB) Argentina as well but it didn't help. Learn to score the tries if you want to win Bledisloe. Or wait when the AB will lose one themselves out of boredom lol
Tooly
Roar Rookie
Easy . Play the ABs in Brisbane again with Murphy or Berry refereeing.
Short memory
Guest
How clever do you need to be to discuss results after the event. How many times did Hooper point to the goal last year only for the kick to be missed, we would have won the tri nations and Bledisloe last year if kicks to win had been made, All three draws were ours to win with an accurate kick. In fact we only had a chance to win the second Argentina match because Hooper went for a line out with 5 minutes to go and we scored a try. I’m sure with every failed penalty kick half the fans say we should have gone for a line out, and with every poor line out or collapsed maul the keyboard experts say we should have gone for goal. Unfortunately the wallabies goal kicking has not been consistent or world class for a long time. I can remember plenty of games we won because we scored tries instead of going for goal, and unfortunately I can also remember far to many we lost due to our kicking not being at the same standard as the opposition. All the kickers mentioned in this article kicked for the Wallabies last year, what were their success rates?
Paul
Roar Rookie
Great article with your points well articulated. I think there is a caveat involved, and that is know when it's time to go for the corner. Toomua had a fantastic year generally but his kicking has been spot on. The Rebels back three found a way to get involved against the Force. Against the Brumbies and the Reds the Rebels were able to defend very well but being able to turn pressure into just 1 try in each game would have them sitting 4-0 instead of 2-2.
joshyuvaraj
Roar Rookie
Yes, would have been handy in Wellington last year if O'Connor or To'omua could have slotted a droppy!
Doctordbx
Roar Rookie
Rennie is wrong. The way to beat the All Blacks is to score more points.
Poco Loco
Roar Rookie
Hey Joshy, you are right. Building scoreboard pressure is part of the game and we need to good in all departments of the game and we need to know when to hold them and when to fold them and keep Hoops out of the decision making. However we are missing an important element, the drop goal. When was the last time you saw one in a Oz? These can be easy points if we have kickers with the skills, but where are they? Cheers
fiwiboy7042
Roar Rookie
Tsuru, rugby australia will win no new friends if they can win ONLY by kicking penalties. The greater community wants to see Koroibete score a try, not Toomua lining up another shot at goal.
blerp
Roar Rookie
Rennie stated that to beat the ABs you need to keep them to around 15-16 points. In other words, you’ll never outscore them in an open game. They are also notorious for cynical play in the 22, preferring to concede the 3 than allowing 7. Continuing to chase the 7 is just playing into their hands. Defend well, play territory and snap up any chance at points. That’s how you beat the All Blacks.
Paulo
Roar Rookie
Going for 3 isn't a bad option, but it relies on discipline issues being persistent and the opposition not reacting to the ref, or the circumstance, or the trend, and changing mid game. Of the ABs and Wallabies, there is typically one of these teams that has shown they can change tact half way through a game - not all the time though (would have been nice if they had changed things in the RWC, but oh well). Wallabies, at least the Wallabies of the past, have shown an inability or unwilling newness to change tactics in a game when it isn't working. I think the Crusaders give a good model of the ABs and have shown that they give ALOT of penalties at the start of the game then change things and stop the penalty flow - see the Crusaders v Blues game as an example. so, while you mat accumulate some points while the penalty tap is on, it is generally not going to be enough by the end of the game. Unless you have a solid big length kicker, who can get them over from way far out. Then you can try and slot so much more.
Ankle-tapped Waterboy
Roar Rookie
In truth, the discussion about what attracts the fickle viewing audience reduces to one of those two-by-two managerial grids that were popular a few years back. The bottom axis that goes from left to right has "ugly" shifting to "sublime". Meantime the vertical axis has "lose" at the zero point and "win" higher up. Therefore the bottom two squares on the grid are "lose ugly" and "lose sublime". The top two squares are "win ugly" and "win sublime". The key in the diagram is that line between losing and winning. Above the line has "crowds" "profit" and "big yacht to sail on Sydney Harbour". Curiously, even below the line you still get get crowds and revenue, especially if the rugby is at the sublime end of the range. But as the poet said, "'tis better to win ugly than lose sublime". Captains and coach of the Cheika era didn't pay attention when this grid was discussed in High School English, which is why I find it necessary to repeat it here.
tsuru
Roar Rookie
Fiwiboy, a team containing Nick White, Matt To’omua, and James O’Connor wouldn’t be handicapped in goal kicking by an injury to one of them.
Purdo
Roar Rookie
:laughing:
Mo
Guest
Well said. From high school to low grade club rugby I always had an 80 percent plus kicker. They did practice but did not have specialist coaches like fox or halligan
Gazza
Guest
Exactly, winning is everything. Unfortunately the rules encourage dull play. Teams play for field position in order to pick up a penalty as it is worth too much compared to a try’s worth. Also when defending in front of goal line the same rule discourages adventurous play. With our referees frequently penalising the attempted jackal with their particular version of the gate rule, teams won’t risk a penalty. Time theory was worth 5 points.
Goady
Roar Rookie
Amazing if it is so inaccurate they manage so may tried from line out mauls over the past 5-10 seasons.
Goady
Roar Rookie
No, he does not.
Haha and he signed in under one name and wrote one of his other names as a sign off....its not just maths that he is bad at