Roar Rookie
Joined October 2019
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I love my dad. He is a man of great personal and physical strength. He is an intellectual who thinks deeply about the world…
Rust doesn’t excuse the Wallabies performance. They exhibited their long-standing trend of playing down against “lesser” opposition. Playing with too much width and not doing the hard yards in the middle first. Our forwards spent too much time waiting for the next run or pass (Matt Philip, looking at you) and we got duly worked at the breakdown. They need to tighten the screws before Scotland or they will lose. On the other hand, great to see Japan competitive outside of a World Cup. Let’s hope it continues
The Wrap: Wallabies shake off the rust while All Blacks raise the ton
All the things in the second part of your response are the reasons the Wallabies were woeful PK. I certainly wouldn’t underestimate Japan. As I said in my post, it was pleasing to see how they played: they are the future for rugby in the Pacific. Frankly, the Wallabies underestimated them and, as you indicated, they didn’t work hard enough and fell into the trap of trying to play wide and loose before winning the right to do so by winning in the middle, at the breakdown and the set piece. That’s why they were woeful
MATCH REPORT: Wallabies secure fifth straight win in hard-fought contest with Japan
The Wallabies were woeful. Japan were determined. But trying to keep a positive frame of mind. Plenty to improve on for the UK leg. Wallabies, keep it simple and direct: spreading it wide at all costs is not the way to go. And it’s wonderful to see the continued rise of Japan. They are the future in the Pacific.
MATCH REPORT: Wallabies secure fifth straight win in hard-fought contest with Japan
It’s not impossible Brett. They are bored and missing being home with families. But I am sure they have everything possible to mitigate both, unlike huge numbers of people around the world- who’ve lost their jobs, are isolated in tiny apartments in
Lockdown, cannot return home at all, are trapped with their families with abuse etc.
The Thursday rugby two-up: One bio-bubble too many for the ‘Boks and Pumas?
Didn’t want to say it, but that’s about as much hardship as anyone could face. So I’m sure these guys miss their families and probably are sick of the inside of hotels. But if we call it “suffering” and “hardship” then we have lost all perspective. And perhaps collectively we won’t be able to deal with some real hardships that may be coming our way (catastrophic global warming, nuclear war in the Indo- Pacific)
The Thursday rugby two-up: One bio-bubble too many for the ‘Boks and Pumas?
Wow. That would have been an interesting experience, Carlos. They faced legitimate hardship and, as far as I know, the survivors went on to have productive, “normal” lives. Six weeks in Australian five star hotels is no hardship compared to 72 days in the Andes in an aircraft wreck
The Thursday rugby two-up: One bio-bubble too many for the ‘Boks and Pumas?
Sure, their performance may drop after being away from home. But that is different to “hardship” and “sacrifice”. That’s all I’m saying.
The Thursday rugby two-up: One bio-bubble too many for the ‘Boks and Pumas?
Terrible conditions? C’mon. My grandfather spent three years in a German POW camp after being shot down over France. On the one occasion I spoke to him about it, he remarked that it wasn’t really a hardship. He was fed enough to live, he had companionship and he could see the sky. Much better than the Russian prisoners in the adjacent camp. All this talk of rugby players sacrificing and enduring hardships is rubbish. Unless they’re from the Old Christians club from Uruguay
The Thursday rugby two-up: One bio-bubble too many for the ‘Boks and Pumas?
The abnormal times have imposed greater restrictions on the players, there is no doubt. But my point is that they are not suffering any real hardship. Inconvenience? Yes. More time from home than they’d like? Yes. Actual hardship? Not at all
The Thursday rugby two-up: One bio-bubble too many for the ‘Boks and Pumas?
Sorry, I’ve got no time for the claims of hardships faced by these rugby players. They earn big money to play rugby. Their bubbles are five star hotels with all the best laid on for them. They are required to do not much more than train and a few photo shoots. I’m sure they miss their families but let’s be real about “hardship”. They’re not like the foreign workers from the sub-continent who are building the stadiums in Qatar, paid a pittance, don’t see their family for years etc, or our service personnel deployed for up to a year straight with only 10 days with family (I’ve been there), or indeed the impoverished of Soweto etc who never get to set foot in a five star hotel. Harden up
The Thursday rugby two-up: One bio-bubble too many for the ‘Boks and Pumas?
Pay for a second string outside back from league and turn it all around. Good thinking Tahs. Didn’t work the first time, second time… twenty seventh time. But maybe it will this time
Waratahs sign Sea Eagles star in cross-code poaching raid
Most likely the Wallabies would have been beaten if they played in SA. History says they would have and there’s nothing about either of these teams that suggests they are any better than their predecessors.
Belief, brutal strength, bloody-mindedness: The Boks are bloody back, baby!
Thing is they’re not and never were. Wallabies had a game plan to beat them. SA had a game plan to beat NZ. NZ had a game plan to beat Wallabies. All teams good but beatable
Belief, brutal strength, bloody-mindedness: The Boks are bloody back, baby!
I enjoy your writing Harry, but this excuse making for the losses to the Wallabies is beneath you. The Springboks were poor and outplayed in both games. That’s all that matters. People never allow the Wallabies excuses for poor matches. Similarly the Boks don’t deserve a free pass
Belief, brutal strength, bloody-mindedness: The Boks are bloody back, baby!
Ha ha ha. The Wallabies only won because the Lions had softened the Saffas up before. The excuses just keep coming.
Belief, brutal strength, bloody-mindedness: The Boks are bloody back, baby!
I’m with you BiB. But surely you’ve been around long enough to know only Australia benefit from dead rubbers, NZ taking the foot off the gas etc. And we know the wins against the Boks were just gifted because they were warming up for NZ. And on it goes. Wallabies never win, they get gifted games. Springboks never lose. They get robbed or they choose not to try because they’re saving themselves for NZ.
Belief, brutal strength, bloody-mindedness: The Boks are bloody back, baby!
The “without delay” part is interesting. I imagine it is written as such so that it can be applied to amateur games, but I cannot see why in the professional games they cannot have a timer for this. 20 seconds to form up from the whistle. Could be applied to goal kicks, scrums etc
The Wrap: Tense, gripping clash of styles falls the All Blacks' way
And you are likewise MK 😁 I love having Argentina in the comp. They’ve always been my second favourite team. I love that they have embraced rugby without it being handed to them as a colonial relic like other Tier 1 nations (France excepted and maybe Italy if I’m generous). And I think intelligent rugby fans know their value to RC. They provide real competition (unlike the previously mentioned Italy). I just don’t get the upset from the article. It’s just rugby and another opinion writer trying to earn a quid.
The Wrap: Tense, gripping clash of styles falls the All Blacks' way
No, it was just an opinion piece for an Australian online magazine. No different to the countless pieces calling the Wallabies no hoper powder puffs (try reading a Marc Hinton, Wynne Grey, Stephen Jones article through Australian eyes) There are bigger issues in the world to be concerned about. TBH, I thought Cleary’s article was making the point that Argentina’s tour is virtually anonymous, unlike the days of Porta who brought glamour and interest with the team. Nothing more offensive than that. It’s unfortunate that this photo business has added weight to the idea that Argentina are being treated disrespectfully. I don’t think Cleary engineered that mistake though
The Wrap: Tense, gripping clash of styles falls the All Blacks' way
Nice read as always Geoff. Obviously the “heavyweight” undercard gets the most attention, but a few thoughts on the Wallabies/Pumas. Overall I am pleased to be in the position to be churlish about a big enough Wallabies win, but I was disappointed in their performance. After the initial burst of tries, they overdid the running rugby and come down with a bad case of collective white line fever. If they had stuck to what has been serving them well: penetrating the inside backs THEN playing with width they would have scored a lot more. Instead they reverted to type: addicted to spinning it out at all costs. It was enough for Argentina but I really want to see them continue with their narrower focus. If it becomes the default they may trouble NZ next year. Lineout was a shambles. Argentina showed other teams that it is generally useful to get jumpers in the air rather than always setting for defence. But final positive: I’m pleased they weathered the period of ascendency Argentina has in the early second half. For a few minutes I thought “here we go. They’ll blow it.” But they held on and got back on top. Positive signs
The Wrap: Tense, gripping clash of styles falls the All Blacks' way
No, good bin works. As in “good one- we’ll have you patched up in a sec Mate”. Then you have the bad bin “bad luck, son. You’ll be seeing stars/pi$&ing blood for a week”.
The Wrap: Tense, gripping clash of styles falls the All Blacks' way
It’s not perfect in Australia by any means but the growing recognition and public interest in our Indigenous cultures is a positive step forward, irrespective of the low participation in Rugby union. Out of interest, what picture should Australian’s have of Argentina’s recognition of the various Amerindian groups? It looks surprisingly like a team formed from the well-to-do from a Spanish lineage that doesn’t reflect the composition of the broader Argentinian society. Maybe we should stick to the rugby and not get all wound up over sleights perceived or actual. As an aside, I am a big fan of Argentina and their rugby. Was disappointed they didn’t wear that beautiful blue and white jersey against Wallaby gold.
The Wrap: Tense, gripping clash of styles falls the All Blacks' way
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. As a neutral Wallaby fan it was pretty hard to sit through as I had no skin in the game. I imagine it would have been tense and exciting at the end for fans of either team. I don’t like the Springbok game plan, but I appreciate the diversity. Rugby matches have different characteristics and I think that’s a great plus. It’s a contrast to League (which I also like) where the games are much the same
The Wrap: Tense, gripping clash of styles falls the All Blacks' way
Don’t know what the telly numbers were but it was great to see a big crowd in Townsville. I think that will go some way to helping us get World Cup hosting rights.
Clash of cultures: Quade Cooper versus Los Pumas Anonymous, a 'generic Springboks Lite'
That’s the point. They are performing well.
The Wrap: Wallabies shake off the rust while All Blacks raise the ton