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Last week we saw Australia push France with structure and belief in the system, but they ultimately fell agonisingly short by one solitary point. Wales pushed the All Blacks until the last 20 minutes before being put to the sword, and looked tired after all their efforts.
The Pumas played a great tempo game and stuck at it for the full 80 minutes while England looked like a team lacking ideas along with tries. New Zealand struggled in a warm-up game against Japan in what was effectively a B side, the team kept kicking the ball away with no effective plan attached to it and Japan seized upon it.
NZ then played Wales and used the forwards with proper grunt and power which Wales struggled with, and that effectively decided the game as the All Blacks ran away with a comprehensive win.
Moving forward a week and how things have changed with the results, some supporters will have their heads spinning wondering and feeling perplexed.
Everyone knows how pressure can lead to players making basic unforced errors and bizarre decisions, and the supporters are left thinking ‘Why did you come up with that play?!’
During the majority of the Rugby Championship, Ian Foster was the coach under the most scrutiny from All Blacks fans for choosing players out of position, not choosing the correct players and having an ever-changing game plan.
Ian Foster (Photo by Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images)
Dave Rennie for Australia had to deal with multiple injuries that no team could cope with by still providing consistent results, he has built up real depth for next year. Many could see the positives with what he is doing, and varying the style of play.
Eddie Jones received the normal ridicule from the media after the loss to Argentina – maybe the English press did not realise that they were up against a very good Puma side.
The New Zealand-born Welsh coach Wayne Pivac was under pressure after facing the All Blacks and heading into the Argentina match. He had to get his players up for the game especially considering Wales had only won one test in seven.
Wales turned in a much-improved effort, especially in defence. They came out on top and Argentina did not help themselves with poor kicking in general play.
England came back to defeat Japan but still have plenty of work ahead of them before playing the All Blacks. Another performance like that and the English media will be sharpening their knives once more.
New Zealand will play Scotland in the early hours and will look to further improve on their performance against Wales, but the men in Black are looking strong so some of the pressure is off Foster. For now at least.
But with Italy beating the Wallabies for the first time in history, and the way Australia played with so many changes, there is one clear coach under the most pressure. Rennie appears to be lost in translation and is lacking any clear direction for the team. I can only imagine how the players are feeling about exactly what their roles are and what the path is moving forward.
Ireland having just beaten South Africa will be looking for a clean sweep against the best Southern Hemisphere teams by defeating Australia, what will Rennie have to do to inspire the team against the men in green in front of their passionate Irish supporters?
Eddie Jones. (Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images)
Fellow Roarer PeterK mentioned Jake White could be the coach to take the Wallabies forward. I fully concur with this. White has successfully coached in Australia with the Brumbies, so he understands the culture and aspirations of the team and supporters. I feel as though Rennie does not have those qualities, he also has to be questioned about the ongoing discipline issues that do not show any signs of improvement.
But would a new coach be under more pressure than Rennie, if he can show similar improvement as Foster is starting to show with the All Blacks?
Over to you Roarers – how do you think Rennie and the other coaches are going?
What can you suggest to how they can improve to provide more strength to their teams? Is the responsibility more with the players or coaches?
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.