Wallabies prop and ACT Brumbies captain Allan Alaalatoa has paid tribute to departing club assistant coach Laurie Fisher, and given an insight into the first camp under Eddie Jones.
Fisher has announced he will hang up the bucket hat at the end of the current season, although Alaalatoa doesn’t expect the Brumbies mentor to put it away for good.
“I think he’s gonna probably going to down the coast, go fishing, have a few beers and he’ll still have the Brumbies bucket hat on,” Alaalatoa said on Monday.
“He’s someone that’s given so much to the club. he first gave me my opportunity in 2013 here at the Brumbies and was a huge part to why I stayed here. I knew that being coached under Lordy I was only going to grow as a player.
“He tells it how it is. Top man but no matter who you are in the club, he’ll just tell you straight and he’s someone that’s adapted well with the times.
“The boys are a bit devastated – he’s just so good at the job, it’s mainly just his attention to detail. The passion he shows every day, week in week out.
“He’s here on days off watching different club games from overseas and he’s always trying to find ways to grow his coaching game and find ways to make us better as individuals. I think he’s still going to be involved in rugby somewhere. I just can’t see him not being involved. “
Fisher, who was at the Brumbies for 25 years and has coached for 40, said: “I believe I’ve had a positive impact on everyone I’ve worked with and step away from the Brumbies with a great sense of pride, satisfaction, and accomplishment in the work I’ve done.
“It’s now time for others to step in, step up and take the team and organisation forward. I wish them every success.”
While he’ll be sad to see Fisher exit the scene, Alaalatoa was clearly excited by his first session with Jones at the Wallabies’ Gold Coast camp.
“It was good for our boys to get in front of Eddie for the first time. You’re only reading stuff that he says in the media,” Alaalatoa said.
“At the beginning of camp the boys weren’t too sure what to expect. We got stuck in and a lot of belief came from that.
“He had a cattle prod at one of the first team meetings that had the boys on edge. I think that’s just the way he is but it exciting. Definitely we’ve come away from a camp with a lot of belief.
“You got a good understanding of how, as individuals, we need to improve in the Super Rugby games coming up and what we need to take into the first Test in Pretoria.”
He said a message from Brumbies teammate and incumbent Wallabies skipper James Slipper cut through to the players.
“Slips stood up at the beginning of camp and said the most important thing is to waste no time and that continues on post camp.
“It’s about having a good understanding as individuals of how you need to grow what you need to do to be selected for the next camp. We can’t waste any time coming here to the Brums, we’ve got to get the most out of every day and make your gains to give yourself that opportunity.”
Alaalatoa also had a cheeky response when asked about a report that NRL clubs would receive salary cap relief to poach rugby players in response to raids on their talent.
“Someone asked me and I said ‘look if I’m going to go I’m going to play at 6 (five-eighth) and that’s about it’,” he joked.
Unfazed by a 34-point drubbing, the NSW Waratahs have wiped the slate clean and set their sails towards the Super Rugby Pacific quarter-finals.
The Waratahs slumped to 10th on the ladder after Saturday’s 55-21 loss to the Blues at Eden Park.
But without a galaxy of stars after resting key Wallabies including Michael Hooper and others unavailable through injury, Tahs coach Darren Coleman all but wrote off the Blues game even before a ball was kicked.
“There’s no point dwelling on the weekend. It is what it is. It was always going to be a tough game and that’s what it proved,” NSW defence coach Jason Gilmore said on Monday.
“So we’ll get around some of the guys individually but it’s full steam ahead.”
The Waratahs host the Highlanders on Friday night and face home games against the Melbourne Rebels, Fijian Drua and Moana Pasifika plus away matches against the Queensland Reds and Crusaders.
Three wins from their last six regular-season fixtures should be enough to clinch a top-eight berth – and Gilmore says there’ll be no excuses if they can’t achieve it.
“It kind of went in two halves. The first part of the season we played the top three teams and we competed pretty well,” Gilmore said.
“We obviously wanted to get a couple more wins but there were some reasonable performances in there.
“The Blues game was always going to be tough with the Wallaby rotations but we’ve got home games now, so we should be ready to go.
“We’ve got our targets that we want to hit in these back six games so we’ll be ready.”
The Waratahs welcome back a host of Wallabies this week, including Hooper and fellow heavy-duty forwards David Porecki, Ned Hanigan and Langi Gleeson.
But even in defeat Gilmore said being able to blood young flanker Hunter Ward in Hooper’s absence against the Blues was priceless development and experience for NSW.
“For Hunter, it was massive,” he said.
“I had a chat with him in the sheds after. He now knows that he can compete at that level. He went toe to toe with one of the biggest forward packs in the competition.
“A couple of counter-ruck turnovers, 14 tackles in the game, that kid can play.
“So for someone like him, I’m sure he’ll bounce in differently today than he has in the past because he knows he’s a Super Rugby player.”
Western Force flanker Ollie Callan is expected to be released from hospital on Monday after being cleared of a severe neck injury.
Callan was rushed to hospital on Saturday night after injuring his neck while making a tackle in the opening minute of the 30-17 win over the Highlanders.
It’s unclear whether the 22-year-old will be able to play again this Super Rugby Pacific season, but he has at least been cleared of serious damage.
“We’re glad the worst-case scenarios have been ruled out and he’s in good spirits,” Force captain Michael Wells told reporters on Monday.
“The boys have made as much contact as we can. We’ve heard from the physio staff that he’s pretty stir crazy in (hospital); he was telling everyone that he’s fine.
“It’s a big relief for everyone, because Ollie is a big part of the team.
“When you see someone go down and get stretchered off, everyone thinks worst-case scenario.
“So it’s nice to know that didn’t happen. I’m pretty sure we’ll be seeing him in the building (on Tuesday) with the neck brace.
“The banter between the boys will start pretty quickly, and Ollie isn’t one to take it lying down either.”
Winger Toni Pulu is set to miss several weeks with concussion, ruling him out of Saturday night’s match against Queensland at Suncorp Stadium.
Pulu’s head slammed into the turf early in last week’s win over the Highlanders, and his history of head knocks means the Force will take a careful approach.
Zach Kibirige (hamstring) is a chance to replace Pulu.
The Force were thumped 71-20 when they faced the Reds in round two, with the heavy loss coming just a week after Simon Cron’s men opened their season with a fighting win over the Rebels.
“It was a skill set versus mindset question for us,” Wells said of the 51-point loss to the Reds.
“We’ve got the skillset, we didn’t perform last time against the Reds because we didn’t have the proper mindset.
“We had a bad training week because guys were complacent, they felt like we’d won a game, we were pretty confident in ourselves.
“It’s taken that reality check, and I’m glad we took it in round two rather than having it now.”
The Force moved from 11th to eighth on the ladder with the win over the Highlanders and can leapfrog the sixth-placed Reds with a win this weekend.
Joey
Roar Rookie
I think both teams were poor to rest their players as it was basically an admission of defeat. As a reds supporter, I am quite happy that many of our players don't have to be rested. The "we set a goal to be top 4 a couple of months back" was said by the coach which is perfectly fine to aim for however, you can't just say its only Brumbies fans saying it.
Qualify
Roar Rookie
Haha sorry, that's a typo. It's yip! In Afrikaans we spell it with a "J".
Just call me Campo
Roar Rookie
that must be very uncomfortable for the poor bloke. I hope he is ok
charels
Mate, I retired from journalism in 1991 and finished my PR career in 2012. Let the young ones have a go! But let us oldies also point out the occasional error of news judgement.
Vince Martin
Roar Rookie
The February champions ????
TJ-Go Force!
Roar Rookie
Reckon there will be more interest in rugby in build up to Lions than before WC.
TJ-Go Force!
Roar Rookie
What on earth is Jip?
Cec
Roar Rookie
Ditto
Paul D
Roar Rookie
All this time replying to me. You could have written an article by now…
Cec
Roar Rookie
Neither am I actually. If you take Lordy deserves his own article rather than sharing this space with cellar dwellers. as “moaning” then that’s your issue not mine. Just a comment like you and everyone else here.
Paul D
Roar Rookie
“plenty of comments & no articles from you either” I’m not the one moaning about what articles are or are not written….
Cec
Roar Rookie
:laughing: like I said I’ll just comment here just like yourself(plenty of comments & no articles from you either). The story has already been covered elsewhere like a segment on Stan Between Two Posts last night. Nice tribute from Hoiles & Morgs who discussed how players sought out Lordy to get better. Big names came to Brums over the years like Moore, Elsom, Pocock, Slipper (all WB Capt). Googs at Rugby Heaven I suspect will pick this up on Thurs as he’s a Brum. Perhaps you and I are writing this article for Lordy now with our discussion which I’m enjoying as a trip down memory lane :thumbup:
Big Dave
Roar Rookie
I was hoping for better from them this year. I kind of feel like Gamble is the difference to be honest. He was the heart of the team last year, this year he has played few minutes or out of position, then got injured. Hooper really hasn't been himself and isn't making the impact Charlie made last year. I hate to say it, but I think the loss of Beale has hurt as well, they seemingly had no plan B at 15. Or maybe poor Will Harrison was the plan B....
Passit2me
Roar Rookie
Oh well, we see it differently. I like Mark Nawaqanitawase, he is so full of intent and Jorgensen belongs on the wing where he was effective. At FB, he hasn’t a clue which is understandable. He shouldn’t be back there in his first year, when he’s a winger. Last year, I saw very fast ball movement and regular dynamic offloads from the Tahs that really kept the opposition on their toes. I’m just not seeing it this year, they look in slower motion to me with noticeably less intensity.
Big Dave
Roar Rookie
That would be enjoyable but I'm not sure I see it.
Big Dave
Roar Rookie
I don't see it. Apart from the blues and to a lesser extent the hurricanes, the tahs have been well and truly in every game this year. Their problem has been discipline, a disappointing failure to progress from their two 10s and the lack of a strong tight 5. I don't see players taking it easy or checking out at all. The only game you would say they should have won would be the rebels, but the rebels are better this year so even that wouldn't have been a given.
Passit2me
Roar Rookie
I feel for Jorgensen, he is a winger not a fullback. He looked very composed on the sideline but is all at sea at the back.
Hazel Nutt
Roar Rookie
I definitely prefer Edmed, but he’s been out injured right?
Big A
Roar Rookie
It’s this whole sense of entitlement thing with the Tahs – a few examples incl young Jorgo – I like the look of the kid but to rocket propel him into wallabies is a joke – he’s totally gone off the boil in the past month and obviously reading all the hype – same with Edmed and Donno – again the sense of entitlement is bewildering – HJH looks like a goer but his attitude is all wrong – he talks the wrong way to the refs – he should be pulled for a couple of weeks and told to pull his head in – he struts his stuff like he’s one of the worlds best props – the simple truth is that he hasn’t done anything yet – then you have the captain – Gordon – couldn’t believe the arrogance he displayed after his team had just been smashed. The only two guys that buck the trend are Marky Mark and Pietchie – two players who just get on with it and seem not too interested in all the hype. All this has to be on DC who perpetuated everything with all that hype in the pre-seaon he will be lucky to be around for next year. The whole season has been a balls up
Big A
Roar Rookie
I think that's on DC - something not quite right is it - I watched one of them maul tries in Auckland on their own line - Holloway lying on his back barely held down and the number 5 standing up on the other side the maul goes straight past him without a care in the world - these blokes look like they were not even interested - something wrong - I guess if the white flag is hoisted before the match then why are we even surprised - this whole SRP is a joke and a complete waste of time and money