Roar Guru
Joined February 2008
97.7k
Views
70
Published
671
Comments
Rugby Tragic, love all facets of the sport.
Published
Comments
A few days ago, I was cleaning out my books in readiness for a garage sale, because we are moving and downsizing to live in an apartment.
I was reading The Roar tonight and I couldn’t help thinking that the content is a lot richer this year, than in previous years.
Tonight was one of those nights when I got some nice thinking time in.
Michael Cheika is copping a lot of flak at the moment, and I thought I would chuck my two bobs’ worth in as a former amateur lower grades, women’s and junior schoolboys coach.
Rugby is, among many other things, fun. But it is always more fun when you are a part of a team.
At most levels of rugby, nobody goes out onto the paddock to be a thug. The sorts of offences that warrant a red card are more often to do with a brain snap or bad timing. Rarely, if ever, is it willful and the offending player is immediately contrite and apologetic.
The poor crowd last week at Bruce Stadium was not down to the weather. They didn’t all go skiing. They just stayed away.
If I had been able to catch up with Brad Thorn over the weekend, say, in a restaurant in Brisbane, I would have said something like, “Brad, I’ve been a Brumbies fan since day one, but I have never seen them play as badly as they did on Friday night”.
South Africa rugby is trialling a bunch of new laws in the Currie Cup this year to speed up and simplify the breakdown.
I just read a post on The Roar that talked about former internationals making good coaches.
The success of Super Rugby depends on (1) evolution and (2) tribalism.
The golden era of Australian rugby was the 1980s and early ’90s, regularly beating the best teams and producing some of the most exciting players the world has seen.
Why does the so-called ‘rugby establishment’ of Sydney and Brisbane have this sense of entitlement that automatically relegates the Brumbies, Rebels and Force to the group that should lose one of its members?
It’s time for a rant, Roarers. I haven’t done this for a while, as I do like to pick my targets.
I keep seeing these YouTube videos where American blokes provide their reactions to great rugby tries.
I saw a great quote yesterday – The All Blacks have never won a Rugby World Cup outside of Auckland!
This whole bonus point thing at Rugby World Cup is a worry. It was always going to happen, whether or not the Northern Hemisphere was originally opposed to it.
I know that there is a World Cup on, it’s finals time in the other codes, the Wallabies are out of sight out of mind in the UK, the rugby journos are all probably sorting out their digs and their watering holes in London.
What a travesty. Sorry to single you out Nic White, but this is a festering problem that has to be examined.
Jake White made it clear several years ago that he wanted the Wallabies job. He was in the middle of doing a good job with the Brumbies and, from all accounts, was on track to coach the Wallabies. It seems that he has some unfinished business in wanting to coach the Wallabies, and i would guess is even more determined this time.
Interesting that the alleged “phone hookup” with RA apparently got canned.
There is a lot we don’t yet know and I am sure it will all unfold for us before Christmas.
I’m guessing that RA is hoping to string this out over Christmas so that the Cricket and Golf and Tennis get the majority of the publicity, but the problem won’t go away, any time soon, folks and meanwhile, the RWC is creeping closer.
A role for White, but not as Wallabies head coach
What will it do for the development of Rugby in western Sydney?
NSW Rugby to receive new facility in $20m investment
I was very disappointed when he left the Brumbies and wrote articles here at the Roar, at the time.
He was getting somewhere with the Brumbies and Steve Larkham was catapulted into the top job when he left. Another year or two would have been great,
But I can’t help thinking that he is on a hiding to nothing if he takes over in 2019. Australians, unfortunately, want instant results, and I think it would take more than one to get things right. Presumably, he has been watching from afar, and has his spies here, so you would hope that he has an idea of a squad, going forward, but unfortunately, the current coaching setup hasn’t allowed any of us to get an idea of a ‘settled’ squad.
Then, again, it might all just be speculation and a press beatup.
Wallabies weighing up White stuff: report
I’m not usually gutted for anyone, but I feel for Kurtley.
Only the second time we have played in the indigenous jersey. He’s the only indigenous player in the whole squad. The Ellas got to have their photos taken in the jersey, but not Kurtley. He must be absolutely gutted…!
I suspect an act of bastardry at work here.
What else could it be?
Has he committed some sin on tour that we don’t know about?
He has taken it like a man and that is only to be expected with his training rooted in the best traditions of Marcellin Champagnat!
Feel for you, mate.
Just a jersey or a reason for Wallabies hope at Twickenham?
Completely agree with you, Cliff – In countries like USA and Russia and many others, sports only get elite level funding if they are on the Olympic roster – that is why it was so important that Rugby achieved Olympic status, even if it was only for 7’s.
We have not yet seen the full effect of it, but we are going to be left more and more behind over the next few years, because we have not changed our thinking or approach. I predict that we will slip further down the rankings and we need to lose the attitude that we are up there with the best before it is too late/
For love, not money: For thinkers, not robots
Not sure what you point is, Realist 271. The fact that your school has lost numbers is probably indicative of the fact that it doesn’t offer scholarships to good players, or maybe you are in an AFL catchment area, or that you have a lot more violin players who only play soccer – you just didn’t give us enough info to work with, and I would agree that Rugby is failing to maintain a relevant identity. Look as Western Sydney. That is lost to Rugby
For love, not money: For thinkers, not robots
Dead right Sheek – they are included under the banner of “candle stick makers” but that does not do them justice, because we had a high number of bushies playing at that level back in the day
For love, not money: For thinkers, not robots
Thanks, Sheek,
I hope I nailed the problem, but maybe I didn’t nail the solution. You made a very good point about the Kangaroos, and maybe it’s just a thing that will take time. Maybe we are still in transition from 1995. Maybe we are just slow learners, but we have to deal with the problem of the ethos of entitlement, and bed down an ethos of true professionism.
For love, not money: For thinkers, not robots
True and the tendency to carry the ball like Leaguies do, who can’t be stripped, often means that when you go into contact, you are presenting the tacklers with a great big gift! Just plain dumb.
For love, not money: For thinkers, not robots
I also made the point that teams were made up of professionals, tradies, students, apprentices, cops etc – nothing elitist about that and my real point was they all had a direction to go in, outside of Rugby.
For love, not money: For thinkers, not robots
Hey,
Nick, I didn’t mean go suggest that Dick Marks was a one man band. I remember doing my Level 2 course, back in 1994, and there were a lot of Rugby heavyweights in attendance, that weekend at Joeys, but the illuminating thing was that everyone was totally on the same page.
I made the point before about sponsors – a few of the Gould types might want to get around a few of them and guage their sentiment
For love, not money: For thinkers, not robots
That depends on whether the right people step up and it is quite possible that that won’t happen – obviously the crisis is not yet to the point where the sponsors start making demands – it’s probably only then that we’ll see some action.
For love, not money: For thinkers, not robots
isn’t Jake White looking for a coaching gig? Now there’s a bloke who can take a team back to basics, and maybe the Wallabies should play a bit of Jake-ball until they learn to do the little things right
Lost: Wallabies’ game management nous
Sheek,
As I was cleaning out my bookcase the other day, I came across Simon Poidevin’s book … entitled “For Love, Not Money” .. pretty much sums it up.
Rugby union is in strife – league is here to help
Good article, Wayne. Mate … you have no idea!
Rugby union is in strife – league is here to help
Yep – personal experience and on more than one occasion – tip – late at night with a few wines under your belt may not be the best time to write
The Roar of my favourite crowd
A great piece, Nachiket. It makes you wonder, in the light of this discussion that we are now having, particularly amplified as it is by the Invictus Games, how many other young potentially brilliant young guys may have fallen by the wayside, in past years, because they couldn’t heal themselves.
Good stuff and timely, too.
I hope the young bloke makes it back stronger, wiser and full of steel.
An open letter to Will Pucovski
Thanks, Spiro, agree.
For mine there are 3 issues.
First is that Nathan Grey’s defensive patterns are curious to say the least.
Secondly, we need an objective panel of 3 or more selectors – one selector equals subjectivity, a panel of properly selected people, meeting regularly to review equals objectivity. The old spreadsheet with 15 columns, one for every position and people in that position ranked 1 – 5. You move them up and down depending on their form, injuries, suspensions etc and come game time you pick the best 30, then 22 for game day.
Thirdly, it’s time the referees took a long look at themselves. That yellow card incident was ridiculous and completely unnecessary. If anything the AB that started it should at least have gone, too. At least we would have had 14 on 14. My mantra is 15 on 15 – wherever possible
– https://www.theroar.com.au/2018/07/09/seeing-red-need-even-playing-field/
Michael Cheika needs coaching help, because plan A is not working for the Wallabies
“His system” is to be the sole selector – I think that that is too flawed and would reintroduce a 3 or 4 man selection panel
Don’t cut Quade Cooper from World Cup contention just yet
Great to see that Pete Samu and Tom Banks are in the 22. Maybe Cheik can see the wood for the trees after all
Folau to 13 confirmed as Wallabies make a number of changes for Bledisloe 3
Yowser!!!
Harry, you are starting to capture the feel .. but don’t peak too early. We need much more of this insightful material
Sapporo awaits