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ANALYSIS: 'Gone past Lote', 'superior to Israel Folau' - where Magic Marika ranks in the Wallaby wingers all-time list

28th August, 2022
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28th August, 2022
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Marika Koroibete’s masterclass in Adelaide has thrust his name further up the list of all-time Wallaby wingers.
You might roll your eyes at yet another list but Koroibete’s urgency on the field demands we get urgent too.

It was quite something to witness the mark that a pure World XV player can have on a match and a team.

Never call an Adelaide Oval crowd uneducated in rugby. The biggest roar of appreciation post-game was for Koroibete being named man of the match. Even the AFL lovers who had gone to the Test out of curiosity knew the Fijian missile with the beard was something else.

The Roar rugby experts Brett McKay, Jim Tucker and Harry Jones and editor Tony Harper come together for the post-mortem after the Wallabies’ incredible 25-17 win over South Africa as well as Argentina’s historic 25-18 win over New Zealand in Christchurch

In the brutally physical modern game, it is quite something for a winger to set the tone.

The way he throws intent at every kick-off he catches or kick he chases to harass the catcher are the little things he does brilliantly before you even get to the big things.

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That missile launch that blew Makazole Mapimpi out of the sky on the corner post was eye-popping. It still is after watching it 10 times on replay.

Makazole Mapimpi of the Springboks is tackled by Marika Koroibete of the Wallabies during The Rugby Championship match between the Australian Wallabies and the South African Springboks at Adelaide Oval on August 27, 2022 in Adelaide, Australia. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

Makazole Mapimpi of the Springboks is tackled by Marika Koroibete. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

That was a covering tackle for fullback Reece Hodge but Koroibete flew past him to nail the South African.
Australian rugby now has four tackles to laud in the modern era.

The Gregan tackle always gets the raves.

In my book, you must also add prop Enrique Rodriguez making a super try stopper on his line when the Bledisloe Cup was won in New Zealand in 1986 and backrower Ben McCalman’s double-effort tackles to thwart Wales at the 2015 Rugby World Cup when Australia was down to 13 men.

So where do we peg Koroibete?

I think he has now gone by Lote Tuqiri as the best code convert winger for starters. He’s more consistent and has better hands than the sometimes mercurial Digby Ioane.

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With 48 Tests now behind him, he also has the longevity over six Test years to win a high rating too.

His tries matter too. His 17th was a clinical finish with footwork to burn the final defender off a Noah Lolesio pass.
Great wingers like the late Jonah Lomu inspired everyone around them.

In his own way, Koroibete now does something similar for the Wallabies. There is an energy beyond the simple act of scoring.

Adam Ashley-Cooper scored nine Test tries against the All Blacks which is quite remarkable.

He was a fine player with positional nous and excellent defence but not in Koroibete’s explosive ways.

Koroibete is superior to Israel Folau, in his wing days, because he hunts for work far more and works off the ball more. Folau’s aerial work to catch kicks for the corner were elite.

When all the analysis is done on Australian wingers since the game went professional in 1996, Koroibete is now in a threesome. Ben Tune and Joe Roff are the others.

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They won the biggest trophies and influenced those outcomes. Roff had gliding strength and evasive skills and was clearly the best kicker of the three.

Marika Koroibete of the Wallabies makes a break to score a try during The Rugby Championship match between the Australian Wallabies and the South African Springboks at Adelaide Oval on August 27, 2022 in Adelaide, Australia. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

Marika Koroibete  breaks through for his try. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

Tune was a joy to watch. He scored the try to set the tone of the 1999 World Cup final. He scored it on the French winger he predicted would be a target.

Skipper James Slipper said it well: “Marika puts his body on the line for his teammates and country.” It’s not one Test but game after game now. He was at sea in his early 2017 Tests. Now he’s the first Wallaby picked.

Enjoy what a World XV player brings to a team. Imagine too what a few more stepping up to that level could bring to the consistency of the Wallabies.

Winning in Adelaide was superb.

You can’t just fire up when berated by the media and fans for a shocker in San Juan. The Wallabies have to keep finding the internal fire like Koroibete does. Every Test.

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