'Could be a big deal' - Robbie Deans could be at the centre of Japanese Rugby's 'Coolum effect' - and he's been here before
Saitama Panasonic Wild Knights’ crushing 38-14 defeat of the Chiefs in the inaugural Cross Border Rugby series in Japan last weekend might not seem…
Hi Intotouch. Thanks for the feedback. I didn’t really have the space to explain that point in the piece so I will explain now. At test level, the contest at the breakdown is much more physical. Teams are trying to shut the opposition down, as opposed to looking to play with speed themselves, especially in World Cup elimination games which are often a bash fest (remember England in the semi-final). In Super Rugby, the aim is to take the ball away from the contact zone as soon as possible to play with width. In big test matches, teams kick a lot more, apply more set piece pressure than you generally get in Super Rugby, and carry a lot closer to the contact zone. This gradually drains the energy of the opponent while also limiting clear turnover opportunities against a fractured defence: something which can be fatal against teams like the All Blacks. The refereeing is another big factor, referee’s do tend to let away a lot more in Super Rugby, because the emphasis is on the speed/flow of the game, that players don’t get away with in tests, especially with northern hemisphere referees. I had a quiet laugh to myself when an All Black told me after they got back from SA that the reason they had been so heavily penalised at Ellis Park was because the referee was quite ‘technical’. It wasn’t technicality, the All Blacks were defending South African mauls by blatantly pulling them down, something the players had often got away with in Super Rugby but didn’t with Luke Pearce, who is an outstanding English referee, one of the best. To their credit, the All Blacks adapted their defence strategies and it is now one of their strengths. But it is another instance of how Super Rugby – both in the way it is coached and played and the way it is refereed – is becoming increasingly less fit for purpose as far as big test matches go.
The fatal flaw the Wallabies and All Blacks share