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The Roar

The Roar

Bentnuc

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Joined May 2019

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Hahaha true! I’d say a goat could win a psychological contest against Cheika in his later coaching years 😂

Did the All Blacks pick the right successor to Hansen?

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Rugby
 
4d

Well said. I grew up watching and playing league. Then I started playing union and still really didnt understand it by the time I was done! But it’s a great game because the older you get the more you understand it and enjoy it 🏉

Foxtel versus rugby: The next battle

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Rugby
 
2d

Excellent article LED 😊 Very good point that foxtel is failing and their declining viewers might be adding to Rugbys decline. It might be a godsend for the game to head elsewhere. Would love some FTA games to get some casual viewers interested

Foxtel versus rugby: The next battle

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Rugby
 
2d

Very true Nick. The first match is a home game and we will have the element of surprise to a certain extent. The ABs have lost a lot of experienced players and so have we. The difference is the ABs experienced players have been winning them matches and ours haven’t!

If we can get up on that one the pressure will be on. The second match is at least away from Auckland too so that hoodoo wont be there. Anything can happen! Hopefully 😁

Did the All Blacks pick the right successor to Hansen?

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Rugby
 
4d

Yeh the US to be a powerhouse is an interesting one. Coincidentally I was in the US in 2003. I was speaking to a south african fella who was the coach of the college team where i was working. He made the same statement then. It didnt happen then but their rise in the 7s cant rule out anything

What does the next ten years look like for Australian rugby?

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Rugby
 
4d

Hahaha nice one! Well we have been hoping for a long time and quite frankly this is the best chance for change in a long time! Probably get 20 to 1 at the bookies on it 👍 but we will know more when we see the squad

Did the All Blacks pick the right successor to Hansen?

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Rugby
 
4d

Great article Nick 😊 With all these changes (hopefully Wallabies positive and kiwis negative) what chance do you give of a Bledisloe upset this year? We have 2 home matches too

Did the All Blacks pick the right successor to Hansen?

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Rugby
 
4d

Cheers, will check them out

The one change that can ensure Wallabies success

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Rugby
 
6d

Yeh it has definitely been a wallabies strategy just not to compete at the ruck as well

The one change that can ensure Wallabies success

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Rugby
 
6d

Cheers Crashball. Thanks for the info. Will have to check it out 😊

The one change that can ensure Wallabies success

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Rugby
 
6d

Probably right Ken. It’s a shame he didnt get to end his career on a high. Absolute champion though. The ‘bradman of the ruck’ in oz rugby

The one change that can ensure Wallabies success

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Rugby
 
6d

Cheers Trevor 😊

The one change that can ensure Wallabies success

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Rugby
 
6d

Cheers David 😊 yeh Liam was a star. Shame he has missed out on a lot of international rugby. At least there are a few promising queenslanders who might get a decent shot in Wright and McReight

The one change that can ensure Wallabies success

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Rugby
 
6d

Thanks Bobwire 😊 I guess the positive is that smart selections can go a long way to fixing the ruck very quickly.

One area I found when comparing with the ABs where the Wallabies have an advantage was stealing lineout ball.

Rhodda was in the top 5 in all of super rugby for total lineout steals and steals per minute and so was Luke Jones. If we tie this in with a decent kicking game then there this is an area we could take advantage of (a la the Eales era)

The one change that can ensure Wallabies success

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Rugby
 
6d

Very true Harry. There is no aggression in defence

The one change that can ensure Wallabies success

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Rugby
 
6d

True Rhys. That’s a good point. The main thing is that we need many players in different positions that have pilfering skills to be able to complete with the All Blacks and other top teams. Hence, big selection changes are required.

The one change that can ensure Wallabies success

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6d

Hi TWAS, yeh I was using the Fox sports stats as I could not find any other that were as in depth. They say Hooper 5 and Wright 13. Whats the web address for those ones? Would always be keen to look at stats from different companies to compare and combine the results to get a better view.

The one change that can ensure Wallabies success

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6d

Cheers Jimbo 😊

The one change that can ensure Wallabies success

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6d

Cheers Ken 😊

The one change that can ensure Wallabies success

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Rugby
 
6d

Brilliant point Purdo! The influence of league is massive. I know personally I played league growing up before changing to union and my mindset in defence was just tackle and wait for a mistake so it was our ‘turn’ to attack again.

As soon as we get in our heads that there is no distinction between defence and attack and they are just two ends of a scale (both capable of bringing scoring opportunities) we can then succeed.

We have strong over the ball players, we just need to select them in a balanced gameplan!

The one change that can ensure Wallabies success

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Rugby
 
6d

True. Hooper can do it as he did earlier in his career. I just wonder now if there are better options than him?

The one change that can ensure Wallabies success

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Rugby
 
6d

Good point. However, all I got from watching Pocock was he was nowhere near 100%. Even his technique for attacking the ball had changed. The rumour was it wasn’t his calf but his neck all along. It sure looked like it to me as he was protecting himself. Back a few years ago when the changed the rules that a tackler has to get to his feet and then come back behind the ruck everyone said Pocock and the like would be less effective. However, Pocock, Savea, Cane etc. adapted and they were as influential as ever

The one change that can ensure Wallabies success

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Rugby
 
6d

Hi Dave, that’s exactly the point of the article. The ABs aim to select many good pilfers at different positions. Whereas we do not select our good pilfers at all (11 ABs from their top 20% only 4 Wallabies from our top 20%). Amazingly, even though Pocock only played 3 games in SR. He was still ranked 2nd at how frequently he got turnovers per min played (Kirifi from the Hurricanes was the only one higher although he gave away a lot more penalties to get them).

The one change that can ensure Wallabies success

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Rugby
 
6d

True Jeff. He was and still is a brilliant player

The one change that can ensure Wallabies success

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Rugby
 
6d

Hi TWAS thanks for the comment. You raise some good points. Here are some of the figures for the players mentioned:
Wright – 1 steal every 98 mins. 1.9 steals to every penalty conceded
Samu – 1 steal every 192 mins. 1.25 steals to every penalty conceded
McReight – 1 steal every 9 mins (only played 9 mins last season and gave away no penalties)
McCaffrey – 1 steal every 128 mins. 0.6 steals to every penalty conceded
Miller – 1 steal every 169 mins. 2 steals to every penalty conceded
Hardwick – 1 steal every 125 mins. 0.6 steals to every penalty conceded
Hooper – 1 steal every 224 mins. 0.4 steals to every penalty conceded

As you mentioned McReight is young but if you watch him in the under 20s and NRC he is a machine at the ruck. He would be a pretty safe bet to step up this year and will be pushing Wright who had a excellent season last year and played well in the mins he got with the Wallabies (I would like to see them both start for the Reds). The other players mentioned all get steals at a greater rate and concede penalties at a fewer rate than Hooper.

Personally, I have always liked Hooper as a player and was happy with him in the team. But, when I looked at the numbers it challenged what I thought about him as a player.

The Brumbies back row of McCaffrey, Miller, and Samu looks pretty good to me. It could compete with any back row in Super Rugby (especially now Ardie Savea has a bad injury)

The one change that can ensure Wallabies success

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6d
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