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Joined July 2013
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Supporting the Wallabies is a bittersweet decision. While you can have moments of euphoric elation, these are often interspersed with crushing defeats or insipid…
Darren Coleman’s acceptance of the poisoned chalice which is the NSW Waratahs has been met with resounding applause and fanfare. He is seen by…
Jumping on board the Waratahs' bandwagon in 2015 turned out to be both a blessing and a curse. It gave me the taste of…
The Queensland Reds beat the NSW Waratahs for the first time in 11 matches on Friday night, winning 32-26. As a Waratahs fan, I’m…
Fairly sure we’re agreeing 😁
All of what you say makes sense, and I agree about the quality of Fardy prior to his dumping. I’ve often wondered about his axing, and in an interview I heard (read?) with him he seemed to be holding back opinions about Cheikas tenure and his own non-selection.
Perhaps he wasn’t onboard with the direction Cheika was taking and was vocal about it..
Australia’s other forgotten man stands up at Suncorp
Hugh, out of interest which podcast was it?
Australia’s other forgotten man stands up at Suncorp
This is less directed at your comment, but the vitriol in general that Hanigan received. I think he offered Cheika, at the time, a line-out jumping #6 with a large engine to balance the Pooper. I can see why he was chosen, even if I disagreed with it.
Unfortunately as almost all of us can see, he was just too small to be able to have the impact required of an abrasive #6 at international level. He has definitely bulked up, and I just hope that his concussion issues are behind him so that he can have an extended run. I’m excited to see where he can go this season (though I don’t think he should be picked yet for the Wallabies).
Australia’s other forgotten man stands up at Suncorp
From my memory, Maddock’s didn’t get a chance to start at FB prior to the lockdown, as KB had a mortgage on the position.
I don’t inherently disagree with your argument, but think that Maddocks has simply taken his first proper run in his preferred position and shone, and (as a Tah’s fan) would like to think he’d show the same class against non-Aussie teams. Perhaps we’ll see over the coming weeks, particularly against the Brumbies.
Australia’s other forgotten man stands up at Suncorp
I’m honestly finding the pronunciation hard, and I trying to learn. A mate and I do a weekly rugby podcast so it matters. Currently it’s a mix of YouTube videos combined with following NZ commentators and how they pronounce it.
Should we expect a guide to be made, perhaps where each club intros a player with the correct pronunciation? Is that wrong?
Super Rugby AU: A new hope for the Waratahs?
Right, what a mature and insightful response!
Who said the current setup is sustainable? My original statement was that this current iteration of SR AU is essentially meaningless, you haven’t convinced me otherwise.
Super Rugby AU: A new hope for the Waratahs?
There’s a part of me that’s choosing to ignore the gap in quality between AU and Aoteraroa. I think the intensity/niggle made last night’s match really enjoyable, but agree that overall the standard of the NZ games were higher. Are we that surprised though?
Super Rugby AU: A new hope for the Waratahs?
Thanks, been ghosting around the site for the last 6-7 years, finally thought I’d try my hand at an article!
You’re last point is so true. They simply MUST beat the Western Force. Even with all I’ve said about inexperience, there is enough quality in that team to beat the Force so long as they match them for intensity/commitment.
Super Rugby AU: A new hope for the Waratahs?
Are you that down on Dempsey? What’s your read on his form?
Super Rugby AU: A new hope for the Waratahs?
Re Staniforth, that was my read too. He was obviously pinned in there and was trying to roll.
Super Rugby AU: A new hope for the Waratahs?
Yep! It’s a stand-alone competition manufactured out of crisis, that won’t bring enough revenue to be sustainable in the future. Heck, even now the broadcast revenue doesn’t cover the competition costs.
In many ways it’s meaningless in the long term, although it’s the only rugby we have now and for that I’m thankful!
Super Rugby AU: A new hope for the Waratahs?
Jez, should the third penalty have been a penalty try rather than a YC?
What did you think of the Reds’ decision to take the 3 rather than push their forward advantage?
Super Rugby AU: A new hope for the Waratahs?
I didn’t realise how young Swinton is! He’ll calm down over the next season or two, I just hope he keeps the aggression and uses it more appropriately.
Super Rugby AU: A new hope for the Waratahs?
That’s the hope isn’t it… We can forgive losses and some mistakes if there is an overall upwards trajectory. Last night was an indication of their potential.
Super Rugby AU: A new hope for the Waratahs?
Re Swinton, he seems to be adding some other areas to his game. He was consistently a reliable lineout target, and gave that beautiful inside pass for Maddocks’ try.
I think Bell will take it as a learning experience and continue to develop. I wonder how much of the front row weakness was due to Bell, HJH, or Abel. I’ve never really rated Abel, and wonder if having a stronger hooker would help both the props.
Super Rugby AU: A new hope for the Waratahs?
He’s definitely bulked up from where he was around 18 months ago. Do you think that will impact his utility at the lineout?
Having a jumping #8 would be pretty useful, especially with Simmons as a more than competent lineout general.
What we know ahead of Super Rugby AU Round 1
It’s tough being a Tahs fan right now isn’t it?
Do we naively hope for a top-3 finish, or would we be happy to place 4th, scrape into the finals, and simply show more consistency?
Honestly I wouldn’t mind the latter considering the horror start to the season. Watching the embarrassing losses hurt…
What we know ahead of Super Rugby AU Round 1
Fair! Will be up later this afternoon, thanks again.
Edit: Also, I checked with my Mrs about the pronunciation of McKay, she claims it’s a difference between clans/family units from Scotland and Canada. Different areas pronounce it differently. Turns out I haven’t been calling her the wrong name all these years 😂 The things you learn…
What we know ahead of Super Rugby AU Round 1
This was a great read, thanks for providing some context to DR that excites me even more for his work with the Wallabies!
A Chiefs fan’s tribute to Dave Rennie
Hi Brett, our chat last night was more timely than I realised, you’d already written about most of our questions!
Has there been any word about whether or not Ned Hanigan will be playing? I’ve heard he’s been doing full-contact training, but has he overcome what I assume were recurring concussion issues?
The other point of interest is Blake Enever. First he gets a release for compassionate reasons and heads back to QLD to be with family, but then the next minute he’s signed with Leicester Tigers. Are both able to be true at the same time? Is this a Honey-Badger style ‘needing money for my family’? Or was his initial request just a sneaky way of gaining released from his contract?
What we know ahead of Super Rugby AU Round 1
Love the Squidge reference.
The Wrap: The patience of rugby players and fans is about to be rewarded
LSL definitely back to lock, Liam Wright confirmed it in a recent interview/podcast he did.
The Wrap: The patience of rugby players and fans is about to be rewarded
Thanks for this, I’m interested to see where this series goes! Definitely a bold attempt 🙂
First and most obviously, you haven’t said what you replace Super Rugby with. You can’t just claim $50mill in savings without at least signposting what you replace the premier competition with.
How to fix Australian rugby, Part 2: Reducing operating costs