Well after what was a fun Super Rugby AU, everything went crashing to earth very quick against the Kiwis.
What gets me is that all the issues with why we lose to the Kiwis are tactical and are easily fixed. I just can’t see how any of the coaching set up in the Australian teams don’t see it.
The issues have been the same for at least the last five years at least and have not been properly addressed.
I looked over the last weekends Super Rugby matches and two areas really stand out.
Forced turnovers at the breakdown
NZ: 26
AUS: 13
Kicks into opposition 22 from general play
NZ: 29
AUS: 10
Yep, there you have it. The Kiwis forced twice as many turnovers at the ruck. This is not due to them being magically better at the ruck it is just a fact that they contested more rucks and 1-15 contest rucks whenever the opportunity is there (even Damian McKenzie forced a penalty in the force game).
The New Zealand teams also kicked almost three times as much ball into our 22 than we did to them. When we get the ball around the half way line we predictably run it (often one-out).
They Kiwis mix up their game and they often aim to put kicks into the corners and pressure our full backs and wingers with great chases. David Havilli did this on multiple occasions for the Crusaders and Mitch Hunt did the same for the Highlanders.
(Photo by Graham Denholm/Getty Images)
In fact, in last weekend’s games not one Australian team won more ruck turnovers than their opposition nor kicked into the opposition 22 more often.
I don’t know how any teams expect to win when their opponents win twice as much ball at the ruck and keep them pinned in their 22 three times as often.
The solutions
1. Flood the ruck!
Make the Kiwis fight for every pill! If you don’t win the ball back at the very least it will give the likes of Aaron Smith slow messy ball.
Every player doesn’t have to be David Pocock to do this affectively. If everyone from 1-15 looks to counter ruck or pilfer when the opportunities are there penalties will still come from opposition players coming the side.
At the very least you will draw usually two opposition players to clean you out. Alternatively, just select more players who are naturally strong over the ball.
2. Kick and chase
When playing the ball near halfway have your ten and outside backs put in well chased kicks to the corners if there is no momentum after the first couple of phases.
As a Reds fan, if I were Brad Thorn I would be making some changes in the battle against the Crusaders this weekend.
To strengthen the ruck I would have Fraser McReight at 7 and Liam Wright at 6. Wright had a great game in a beaten team against the Highlanders.
These two players were the top two poachers in AU last season. But 1-15 must be looking to pilfer and counter ruck as much as possible (just as the Kiwis do).
Also, I would give James O’Connor, Bryce Hegarty and Hamish Stewart the order to put more kicks to the corners.
Both O’Connor and Stewart have done this occasionally during the AU season, but we just need to up the frequency.
Bryce Hegarty also has an accurate boot in general play and the two cross-field kicks to Suliasi Vunivalu were a joy to watch and really capitalised on Vunivalu’s brilliance in the air.
These same two issues have been plaguing Australian rugby the past five year. A couple of simple tactical changes can go a huge way to turning things around against our rivals from over the ditch.
The Ewen McKenzie-coached Reds had a record of 14 wins and only five losses versus Kiwi opposition from 2010 to 2013.
If you watch the replays of the 2011 semi final versus the Blues or the final versus the Crusaders you can see why.
They played smart rugby. The attacked dominated the ruck and it wasn’t just the backrow – James Horwill at lock, Anthony Fainga’a at centre and even Jono Lance at fullback forced turnovers.
They also kicked very smart and found grass in the 22 as much as they could.
Come on Australian rugby coaches, make some tactical changes and play smart rugby again!
Wyn
Guest
Some good points made, but the bottom line is that the pool of talent in NZ is just much greater than our pool. I think the Australian teams in general performed quite well over the weekend and many of the Kiwi tries came from unstructured play, individual brilliance and intuitive support play, more than likely developed as youngsters at school. I was at school in the Eastern Cape and there were a number of schools with about the same number boys. Year on year the rivalry was fierce and the side very mostly even. Then there were coeducational schools that had less boys and these schools needed exceptional individuals to be competitive. On the other side of the spectrum was Grey Bloemfontein, well known as a rugby school and they had probably 50% more boys and additionally attracted most of the Free State's aspiring rugby players. They could be and were occasionally beaten, but the general outcome year after year was a good thumping at the hands of these boys. As far as the future of the trans-tasman competition is concerned, in its current format it is a waste of time. At least one can watch movies at the same time so one can double the waste of time :)
Gustofoe
Roar Rookie
Rennie just choked on his toast then rushed back to his laptop and made a note for his first team briefing.
Scotty
Guest
The 2011 Reds were also very effective at counter attack off kicks as they often had Cooper dropping to fullback and his passing game allowed them to counter using the whole width of the field. It probably stopped some teams from kicking as much against them. No other Australian team since has gone anywhere near the threat they posed.
Faith
Roar Rookie
Force already down.
Faith
Roar Rookie
Force already down.
Faith
Roar Rookie
This could become tricky without a exit game and poor line-out. Kick it out and the Saders come back to them. Again and again. Playing without ball against an effective team like the Saders in the Red zone won't mean much. This is not Super Rugby AU where teams are not as efficient. They will be caught out with the speed and physicality of Reece and Fainganuku ...
Rhys Bosley
Roar Pro
I don't think one of our players taking their game to the next level is bad luck at all. ASY spent plenty of time out with injury, good on him for making the most of it when he got his chance, even if it was through Wright's injury. Wright is competing for his spot like everybody else is, it is up to him to win and keep a starting jersey.
haha Everyone should see Unicorns so I say players, coaches etc should all have the option. I wont advise refs as I think many are already enjoying the magic ones already :laughing: :laughing:
HiKa
Roar Rookie
So, Jacko, should the players be supplementing their diets, or is it just the supporters that need the mind altering effects?
Muglair
Roar Rookie
I personally am not that excited with him as a 7 and the Reds were a better (and winning) side last year with FM at 7. The big disappointment for me is how much the pre-season injury has impacted on LW. As 6 and captain, one of my favourite players last year and I hope he starts to get more game time, bad luck ASY has taken his game to the next level. Just checked and he is 6 and cc. I also just wonder if LW is one of those few who grows as a player when he is captain. I will watch for that I think.
Unicorns appear after you eat mushrooms.....
Paulo
Roar Rookie
I got tricked, 3 Aussie games, but 1 game reffed by a Kiwi. Either way it was still a clean sweep and the home town refs they did have didn’t help - despite Berrys best efforts.
Pinetree
Roar Rookie
Bugger, I stand corrected for liking your post :laughing: Your information is usually spot on, and I just trusted you were right! :laughing:
LifestyleSpecialist
Roar Rookie
100% spot on mate. I was screaming at the TV with all the aimless kicks and crap ruck work, especially our offensive ruck i.e. supporting the ball runner. Just a repeat of the last 5 years. Unless our sides have a clearly dominant pack, which they rarely do, they just go completely to pot. I'd have thought with the 50/22 in play all year our kickers would have learnt but alas. Ruck is harder to fix but Brums and Force show what can be done.
Rhys Bosley
Roar Pro
Fair enough though I think LW is a very good seven, it is just that he has to compete with FM who is excellent. As I have said elsewhere it may be a matter of finding a combination not present at the Reds, to show his true value. I think he would match up well with Valentini, because his lineout jumping is complementary to Valentini's grunt.
Muglair
Roar Rookie
I was only commenting on the suggested change of FM coming in at 7 and LW moving to 6. I don't think LW at 7 has been a success. Other than that I don't have an opinion on the mix at 6 and 8. ASY is not giving BT an easy decision.
WEST
Roar Guru
Kicking can’t be aimless. It has to have an effect. Territory- to put the opposition deep into its own half to try and break out from. Or kick n chase to regather and score tries. Kicking it directly to a NZ full back or wing is pointless, unless it’s heavily contested with a strong prospect of winning the contest. The other best option is to find open country between players force them to scramble and cover. Again! Pointless if the team isn’t closing down the space and time for the opposition (bloody kiwis) to launch a counter attack.
WEST
Roar Guru
Yeah totally. Opportunistic is one thing. That’s game awareness. Your results are an expression of your level of awareness. The only way to increase results is to improve your level of awareness. Or as you say my bro “Chalk and cheese on rugby smarts” :thumbup:
HiKa
Roar Rookie
I've had a long day. When I first read the second last line, I saw it as "... Australian Rugby Unicorn supporters." Yes, that's the level of magical thinking required to be a long-term rugby supporter on this side of the Tasman Sea. :silly:
HiKa
Roar Rookie
Very likely a long-term coaching issue. I watched a NZ v Aus schools match a few years back. Kicks to wingers told a story. Aussie wingers running kick returns ran up the sidelines (no doubt dreaming of scoring a magical try) and were tackled into touch. Kiwi wingers returning kicks ran a line towards the goal posts so they had plenty of support around them by the time they were tackled. Chalk and cheese on rugby smarts. The result was never in doubt.