Thanks Hamish…! I wonder if the business is the one that then allows the symbolic load or it is the other way around. In the case of the installation of Moana and Drua, the island culture pre-existed the business initiative. The same for the case of Jaguares.

Totally agree with you, Harry. Breakdown problems for the Wallabies were a constant even before RWC2023. We are talking about an explosive mix of ineffectiveness, inexperience and a ‘relative threshold’ of developable skills, which triggered an average of 12 penalties awarded per match in RWC2023 (vs 9 for ARG and NZL, and 8 for RSA).

Hi Harry, good essay: scathing and sometimes very precise. I like Tane Edmed. It took me some trouble to accept that I was relegated to Australia A instead of integrating the Wallabies for RWC2023. He has excellent timing in making decisions under pressure and a slightly broader vision than CG in his position. Ditto with his kicking game structure. I would love to see him perform from a more central place at this TRC2024.

Excellent read, John…! The value of placing an extra man in the attacking ruck configuration is notable. It will reflect better chances of breaching the line beyond the second phase, if the defense takes the risk of allocating an additional man to contest that ruck. Greetings

How are you, Harry…! Excellent chronicle. It was an extremely predictable game from the lineup announcement. After Rd#1 and #2 SCO concentrated 16% of the total points marked in 6N, just below IRE. That reason already positioned him as a rival to fear. After Rd.#3 SCO is a serious contender, maintaining a net point difference of +6. they possess the best attacking metrics after IRE and one of the most effective and fastest defenses in 6N (tackles + / opponent passes). The only obstacle in the way for SCO is his own luck (remember FRA’s risky final try in Rd # 2) and IRE’s luck. They should only propose IRE as a target to beat.

Hello Harry, excellent ´racconto´ of 2023…! I think islanders rugby is still a great reservoir of talent. But the plan should be to retain talent beyond SRP’s club and franchise activity. Fijian rugby has a high exposure to ‘fresh’ and unstructured movements and an incredible degree of fidelity to game patterns where sealed play and the absence of kicking game prevail. It has left behind its stigma of ‘messy equipment with enough batteries to last only 50 minutes of play’. I was surprised by the performance of Caleb Muntz (current Fijian Drua) in the friendlies prior to RWC2023 and I could talk about different productions in Fiji, when he is absent from the team. I would love to see a new Fiji-based franchise at SRP and the return of our Jaguars, in a medium-term move.
Final observation: the RSA game gave me the confidence to plan a dynamic game dashboard, with metric tracking focused on eliminating restrictions and improving possession game.

You’re a great rugby writer, Harry…! I do not know the details and details of Rassie, but it is clear to me that if a product does not work we must manage the necessary changes so that it does. From this point of view, the brutality in the substitutions made since 1H vs ENG could be a vision of how coaches could work in the near future: with little romanticism and with too much energy.

Yes Harry…!

Great article Harry, excellent exercise…! I answer my feelings about Argentina. Although many experts and prognosticators have brought Los Pumas to the doors of SF, there is something that does not convince me about them. It is about inefficiency in areas of extreme definition (which places them above Chile and well below England in their pool) with 2.1 points originated in each Visit 22 M. The other thing is something intangible and not quantifiable: have you seen that Felipe Contepomi and Michael Cheika do not exchange words during the match, not even when making fundamental decisions or celebrating a conquest…? In a few days the skein will begin to unravel.

Personally I have followed the relationship between phases executed in 22 M Opp and conversion into tries and in the case of Wallabies it is 8 on average. The one who demanded the most effort was Los Pumas with 18.9 phases per try.

That’s right Brett, I agree with you. M. Carreras’ work rate is very good, both in attack and defense. But his contribution in tries is impressive. Do you remember his try vs Bristol Bears at Premiership…? Greetings Brett.

In NZL, DMac as 10 never ceases to impress me, but I stopped to applaud Jordie Barrett in 12 and Beauden in 15. No revelation, but a brutal confirmation. Same consideration for Le Roux in position 15 in RSA, Juan González (8) Julián Montoya (2) and Mateo Carreras (11) in ARG. Revelation for a Rugby Test: Carter Gordon (10) showed the flash that often sets the darkness ablaze. With enough work he will be able to properly detonate as 10 AUS.

I agree with you Andrew. In test rugby, if we exceed the digit on penalties we are in trouble. If the percentage of penalties focused on the breakdown exceeds 50% of the total, then we are close to a massive fail.

Hello Sam, how are you…! Good performance-based read. AUS during 2022 accumulated 33 penalties originated in scrum during 14 games played. In this metric it sometimes outperforms ARG. Discipline is the main job to take into account in a world cup, because you would run the risk of being at the mercy of the best kickers in the world 🏉

I agree with your reading, Harry…! The problem in 2022 was 100% of the final quality of the execution, basically in the breakdown. Greetings

Throughout 2022, the quality of the breakdown execution left a lot to be desired in AUS. Also discipline. Solving these situations, without a doubt they would be placed at the next level.

Good analysis, Harry…! I am surprised that you forgot our great “wizard” Juan M. Hernandez or, going further back in time, Martín Sansot. Personally, I adore the work of Willie Le Roux: he fit and will fit perfectly into the Springbooks strategic bomber scheme. For this SanzarTRC, Los Pumas will probably plant Santiago Carreras, if Nico Sanches is reinstated at 10. Greetings…!

Totally agree with you about the ´caterpillar´ issue…! That formation needs variations right now because it doesn’t add enough unpredictability or surprises. Technically, it is a kick executed with the mark away, which would ensure a certain degree of precision and final effectiveness on the opponent. The kicking game metrics show that today we are far from that configuration.

Interesting monitoring, Lindsay…! The rule indicates that the faster the game is, the greater the chances of generating penalties in contact both in attack and defense. Speed and imprecision are the great factors that conspire against discipline in contact. This without counting the human factor that the referee and his team contribute, and that could tip the game to its antipodes in minutes. From my reading, the Chiefs managed to run an average of 8 sucessfull rucks before being penalized versus 13 for the Crusaders. Eliminating the ‘discipline’ variable, Hamilton’s men executed 19 rucks before losing 1, versus 22 for the Crusaders.

Thanks Jacob…! Interesting vision, about some men. Carter Gordon in particular is the kind of talented player any team would want. I think about Lolesio’s first steps and how he stalled his game at the Brumbies. Gordon, or his skills trainers, should establish a plan to improve the game that leads him to lower the number of -forced- errors that he makes in extreme situations, as I saw in SRP2023. With that improved detail he would already be at the next level. I love his style of game, when he looks to breach the transition zone.

I agree with the article, Lindsay. The maul is under analysis and I suppose that at the end of RWC2023 we will have news or modifications to the way of playing or defending it. Regarding the efforts of the Chiefs against the Crusaders, I think the key was the high indiscipline in the breakdown (9 penalties) which resulted in opportunities and points conceded. Another fact that speaks of the power of the Crusaders in the ‘red zone’ is that 57% of the visits to 22 M broked the end zone, between the 5 M line and the ingoal. Finally, I think that high performance rugby cannot be played with 14 men on the field. It is impossible to structure a team defensively and the Chiefs suffered from it.

Excellent note Geoff…! I really liked the approach you made to the issue of disputed arbitration. In Argentina we usually say that it is more comfortable to “play with the referee than against the referee”. Wasn’t it enough for Sam Cane, for example, to see the way refereeing resolved Bernard Foley’s controversial delay in taking a penalty at TRC2022…? We are all on notice about the rules. Adapting to them allows us to lessen, sometimes, the effect of excesses or deviations in their application. The rest of these stories, including the scripted participations of Rassie Erasmus, are part of the ‘society of the spectacle’, where the appearance takes the main role in front of the being. The Crusaders thing was a masterpiece of depth in his squad, and beyond the defeats in SRP2023, he kept his attack indicators firm and on the rise.

Remarkable the performance of Crusaders 👍 . They are nothing short of infallible when the trumpets sound. With fewer meters traveled, they edged out Blues in AVG Meters per Carrie. That speaks of power and direction of the attack. The rest of the magic is the effectiveness of Mo’Unga, on the one hand, and the evanescence of Barrett on the other. I would love to see the Brumbies boys pat the podium. Could they make it…?, is the question I ask myself. If the Aussies generate enough chances and solve them efficiently in the last 15M of the red zone (as they did against the Hurricanes) they could pull it off 🏉

These proposals, although they still remain on the drawing board, do nothing but ask me again about the abrupt cut of Jaguares, the Argentine Rugby Union franchise. Various arguments were put forward whose accuracy we were never aware of. Now we know the following idea-force: Make the competition grow by adding more teams… But isn’t this argument the reverse of the one used to cut the Jaguares’ tour and the RSA conference teams…? Personally, I am interested in the proposal to install a player draft that allows players to enjoy a sort of ‘amplified nationality’, since they would retain the chances of playing for their countries of origin. For the rest, I would love to see the Jaguares again in SuperRugby.

Thanks Sam for the article…! I bet my small savings that the Brumbies manage to defeat the Hurricanes and advance to SF. The relationship between the Rucks and Kicks executed, which would give us the measure of the style of play adopted by the teams, shows the Australian side much more devoted to the game of Kicks (3.28 rucks per kicks vs 3.69). With a little more control in game retention, the main risk to be assumed by Brumbies is to Optimize the opportunities generated. And I agree with you on this as well. Greetings.