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After Saturday night’s abysmal showing, Waratahs coach Darren Coleman has a real test of faith ahead of Friday night’s quarter-final against the Blues at Eden Park.
Matches at the graveyard of Australian rugby are generally lost on the little moments; a kick booted out on the full, a ball that goes to ground and a wobbling set-piece.
On Saturday against a physical Moana Pasifika side with threats across the park – Solomone Funaki is destructive, Levi Aumua is a beast and Timoci Tavatavanawai is a tackle-busting machine – the Waratahs’ young backline struggled to execute under pressure.
The Blues offer a similar threat to Moana Pasifika, they’re just a lot better.
Coleman must now consider whether the players he thought were best equipped – Ben Donaldson at fly-half, Mark Nawaqanitawase at fullback – are indeed just that.
On the evidence of the past two weeks, it seems increasingly like the answer is no.
The issue is, Coleman has few options to turn to given the shortage of No.15 options. Nor did Donaldson seem like the answer at fullback when he played there at the start of the season.
Is Ben Donaldson the right man to wear the No.15 jersey against the Blues? (Photo by Kelly Defina/Getty Images)
To begin with, Saturday night’s shellacking came as the Waratahs failed to execute the basics and show Moana Pasifika the respect they deserve.
While the Auckland-based side have been overrun countless times, they’ve taken it to the Brumbies and Crusaders before being overwhelmed. The Waratahs needed to be more direct, more accurate on both sides of the ball, and more clinical in the opening half-hour. Instead, they found themselves trailing 21-7.
Donaldson must cop his share of the blame, with his defence again struggling, a kick-off going out on the full and another missing touch. They’re inexcusable blunders.
And given the Waratahs didn’t rate Donaldson enough to meet Rugby Australia’s top-up requirements, could they turn to Tane Edmed now?
Nawaqanitawase, meanwhile, was given an audition in the fullback position after Max Jorgensen’s season-ending injury.
While the night started well for the electric outside back, the errors piled up for the 22-year-old as looked like he was thinking about his next move rather than nailing his basics first; a fumble at the back near his own goal-line, a spilt pass, and two passes missing his target in the backline made it an uncomfortable watch for Coleman and, indeed, Eddie Jones.
Mark Nawaqanitawase struggled against Moana Pasifika in his return to the No.15 jersey at Allianz Stadium on June 03, 2023 in Sydney. (Photo by Jason McCawley/Getty Images)
Multiple injuries out of the loss, including Izaia Perese’s hip issue, added to a frustrating night that could have the Waratahs’ season on life support ahead of a treacherous trip to Eden Park.
Coleman has three options of who he could chose to wear the No.15 jersey against the Blues: Nawaqanitawase, Donaldson or Harry Wilson.
Whether Perese takes the field or not could on Saturday could settle it
In all likelihood, Australia will have just one Super Rugby side make the final four: the Brumbies.
The Waratahs are long odds of beating the Blues at Eden Park and the Reds are even longer odds of beating the Chiefs less than 24 hours later on Saturday.
Whether the Brumbies can bounce back to form by beating the Hurricanes remains to be seen. Who watched Ardie Savea’s side beat the Crusaders? They’ll take some beating in Canberra despite the Brumbies holding a good record against the ‘Canes at home.
The one benefit from Australia’s underwhelming show in Super Rugby is that he will get his hands on Wallabies hopefuls earlier. (Photo by Joe Allison/Getty Images)
What Jones makes of it all will be fascinating. Despite his provocative comments to Lawrence Dallaglio last week, Eddie Everywhere has gone quiet as the international season nears.
He won’t be impressed by Australia’s poor performances, but he won’t be surprised either.
Depth remains Australia’s Achilles heel – no side can compete without a hardened tight-five – and the injuries to Taniela Tupou and Angus Bell have showcased how dependent our local sides are on their star young props.
But the one blessing, which makes a mockery of the decision to rest players on top of byes throughout the rapid season, is Jones will get his hands on most his Wallabies squad a week or two earlier than he might have planned.
Picking a Wallabies team isn’t easy. There are holes all over the place, with very few players easy picks.
Rob Valetini is a lock, ditto Samu Kerevi and Len Ikitau and Marika Koroibete. But who else?
As well as hooker, the blindside flanker role is wide open for the taking.
There are multiple options: Jed Holloway, Nick Frost, Lukhan Salakaia-Loto or perhaps Valetini if Jones sees him as a six.
The genuine bolter of the mix is Brumbies’ rising star Tom Hooper.
Tall, heavy and bruising, Hooper packs a punch with ball-in-hand and has work-rate written all over him. He grabbed Michael Cheika’s eye last year and he’s still turning heads despite taking a week or two to find his feet after missing the first-half of the season.
If he aims up against the Hurricanes, and perhaps a week later too, Jones will know he’s ready for the international stage. A match-up against Savea’s Hurricanes will provide the physical test he needs.
The Reds’ heavy defeat to the Drua won’t have shocked anyone. After all, Mick Byrne’s side beat the Crusaders and Hurricanes at home.
But it was the manner of the Reds’ defeat that was of concern.
Few of their big names fired as balls were dropped and kicks failed to find touch. It was a poor performance from the Reds, who like the Waratahs, weren’t direct enough and failed to find any go-forward from general phase play.
You could understand why Brad Thorn moved James O’Connor closer to the action to allow Hunter Paisami to slot in at inside centre and Josh Flook outside of him, but the Reds might well reconsider that selection against the Chiefs.
Could Tom Lynagh return to the No.10 jersey against the Chiefs? (Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)
When the Reds beat the Chiefs, albeit missing their key forwards last month, they did it off the back of a smart kicking game and a rock solid defensive line.
Lynagh’s kicking game could well help this weekend, while O’Connor has looked more comfortable at inside centre this season too.
Talk of Donaldson going to the Force had been around for a month before his looming move west strengthened last week.
His utility value means he wasn’t just being seen as a fly-half option, particularly with Reesjan Pasitoa still to return. Speaking of Pasitoa, the 21-year-old would benefit from a season in the NPC after playing just a handful of games since 2020.
But the fly-half they should look at closely is Max Burey, with the Northern Suburbs playmaker one of the few that impressed against the Chiefs on Saturday.
Max Burey has impressed for the Force since debuting against the Crusaders. (Photo by James Worsfold/Getty Images)
Burey has a go, but he’s also got speed and a willingness to take the ball to the line.
In Super Rugby, pace is king.
Word is the Force are in conversations to lock him up, and so they should.
Tom Lambert, Billy Pollard, Sam Talakai, Jeremy Williams, Ned Hanigan, Tom Hooper, Brad Wilkin, Taleni Seu, Nic White, Jack Debreczeni, Corey Toole, Ollie Sapsford, Len Ikitau, Andy Muirhead, Tom Wright.
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.