What a game!
The first Bledisloe more than lived up to expectations, both sides played out of their skins and the intensity was incredible. I certainly did not expect a 10-0 margin in the first 10 minutes to either side.
All Black Brad Thorne showed the indelible print of the NRL by being sent of in the first 6 minutes for a tackle so high he was lucky he didn't take Matt Giteau's head off.
In the second half a penalty try should have been awarded for a try saving professional foul committed when Sitiveni Sivivatu was tackled without the ball trying to score. I am not saying it would necessarily have changed the result but it would have shored the ABs lead.
I thought early on that the hungriest team with the best leadership would win. I wondered what the impact of both Ritchie McCaw and Stirling Mortlock being unable to play would have. The answer is that the lack of leadership in the ABs has been exposed, the Wallabies have it all over the ABs in depth in that area.
Soiolo is the only choice to replace McCaw as captain, none of the other experienced players have the skills. Ali Williams and Ma'a Nonu, while they have enthusiasm and talent, both need to be controlled by a strong leader and I am not sure Millsy has the head for it either. To expect Rodney to step into McCaw's shoes as captain and Collins' shoes on the flank with a debutant at number 7 was too much I think.
On the other hand the Wallabies have Smith to replace Mortlock, Waugh to have impact from the bench, Giteau in the back line to balance out a young but committed side.
The Wallabies defended well and the managed to slow the linebreaks and force the ABs into some passing that didn't look solid it looked desperate.
Well I bet the NZRFU is just so pleased that they let Deans slip through their fingers. While I accept that Henry is one of NZ's most successful coaches he has been in the job for a long time. Robbie and his Wallabies have everything to play for and they showed it last night.
Roll on Auckland. Let's hope that game is as good as this one was.
Showing posts with label Robbie Deans. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Robbie Deans. Show all posts
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Winter Wonderland
I have been sick for the last week and you know what that means... no excuses not to spend hours in front of the tv watching sport.
First a confession... I didn't watch the Tri Nations. I do like the current Channel 7 advertisement for this weekend's first Bledisloe Clash though. Calling Robbie Deans a losing world cup coach is a bit of a stretch though since he was in fact John Mitchell's assistant but hey who's splitting hairs here? This weekend will be very exciting with the highly anticipated inaugural meeting of Deans' Wallabies and Henry's ABs... tough to pick a winner but for once I think the focus will be on the coaches and less on the players. It'll be interesting to see what they've got.
The AFL was an interesting weekend. Need to rethink my tipping strategy though, I got 3 from 8 this week. Saints looked awesome against Hawthorne who had some questions asked they just couldn't answer. Could be good news for the Swans who are only 2 and a half games behind them on the ladder. Mind you the form the Swannies showed against Carlton is a bit concerning. Darren Jolly and Jarred McVeigh have proved themselves real assets for the Swans. McVeigh has come into his own with the Barry brouhaha getting an opportunity to show his class up forward. I also like LRT on the forward line, his hands are good and he doesn't have to make too many decisions and let's face it the ones he does make are usually not very good. Ryan O'Keefe was great and so was Paul Bevan and they had to be as Goodes was not firing on all cylinders and Kirk had the almighty responsibility of attempting to contain Chris Judd. O'Dwyer, on debut, laid some good tackles and looks promising for the future.
I was very pleased (as always) to see Collingwood go down with North Melbourne showing what happens when Dale Thomas and Travis Cloke are rendered ineffective.
Geelong are simply terrifying. If they were going to be taken it should have been this week. Admittedly the Cattery is a tough place to win but the Ling and Ablett out and with David Wojcinski a late withdrawal the time was right. As we gathered round the water cooler on Monday however, it was pointed out that Geelong are not a two man team... and wasn't that made abundantly clear on Saturday. Having said that the Bulldogs should be disappointed in their senior players. Johnson only managed a single goal and so did Scotty Welsh. Robert Murphy got none. Now I am not saying that they are a two man side but when you are behind the 8 ball you need your big guns to fire and this weekend they didn't. In the end 10 goals separated the Doggies and the Cats and if that is a grand final preview I am not sure I'd be trying for tickets.
God I love Winter!
First a confession... I didn't watch the Tri Nations. I do like the current Channel 7 advertisement for this weekend's first Bledisloe Clash though. Calling Robbie Deans a losing world cup coach is a bit of a stretch though since he was in fact John Mitchell's assistant but hey who's splitting hairs here? This weekend will be very exciting with the highly anticipated inaugural meeting of Deans' Wallabies and Henry's ABs... tough to pick a winner but for once I think the focus will be on the coaches and less on the players. It'll be interesting to see what they've got.
The AFL was an interesting weekend. Need to rethink my tipping strategy though, I got 3 from 8 this week. Saints looked awesome against Hawthorne who had some questions asked they just couldn't answer. Could be good news for the Swans who are only 2 and a half games behind them on the ladder. Mind you the form the Swannies showed against Carlton is a bit concerning. Darren Jolly and Jarred McVeigh have proved themselves real assets for the Swans. McVeigh has come into his own with the Barry brouhaha getting an opportunity to show his class up forward. I also like LRT on the forward line, his hands are good and he doesn't have to make too many decisions and let's face it the ones he does make are usually not very good. Ryan O'Keefe was great and so was Paul Bevan and they had to be as Goodes was not firing on all cylinders and Kirk had the almighty responsibility of attempting to contain Chris Judd. O'Dwyer, on debut, laid some good tackles and looks promising for the future.
I was very pleased (as always) to see Collingwood go down with North Melbourne showing what happens when Dale Thomas and Travis Cloke are rendered ineffective.
Geelong are simply terrifying. If they were going to be taken it should have been this week. Admittedly the Cattery is a tough place to win but the Ling and Ablett out and with David Wojcinski a late withdrawal the time was right. As we gathered round the water cooler on Monday however, it was pointed out that Geelong are not a two man team... and wasn't that made abundantly clear on Saturday. Having said that the Bulldogs should be disappointed in their senior players. Johnson only managed a single goal and so did Scotty Welsh. Robert Murphy got none. Now I am not saying that they are a two man side but when you are behind the 8 ball you need your big guns to fire and this weekend they didn't. In the end 10 goals separated the Doggies and the Cats and if that is a grand final preview I am not sure I'd be trying for tickets.
God I love Winter!
Monday, July 7, 2008
conversions
Timana Tahu is getting his first run at being a Wallaby since converting from league this year.
He is a member of the 30 man squad but whether that will translate to selection is a different story.
Personally I remain unconvinced by conversions from league. It seems to me that the biggest problem league players have is working in a game that has unlimited phases of play. Admittedly Lote Tuquiri has done well but then he plays on the wing and generally speaking is required to do little more than catch the ball and run.
Tahu on the other hand has been playing in the centres for Australia A a position that asks a lot more of a player. Centres need both strong defensive and attacking skills, they need a brain for the game to create opportunity and to link with the forwards and the backline. While Tahu may have "starred" for Australia A, we are tlaking about a side who's most serious competition was NZ Maori, and who lost that game.
It remains to be seen whether Tahu can fulfil his apparent promise in the 15 a side game.
I would like to see Australian Rugby commit to spending more time developing the talent they have then recruiting converts from league. It is an indictment of the code that a player can spend less than a year in the game and be selected in the Wallabies squad, elite sportsman or no. It seems that there should be more competition for selection and players should have to earn their stripes to play at that level, certainly by doing more than competing in pastings of Tonga and Fiji.
The Wallabies themselves have hardly been tested and the impact of Kiwi Robbie Deans will not be truly felt or seen until the Wallabies play their first tri-nations match. A win against a mediocre French side is not an accurate test of a rugby team, even if it does set a record.
He is a member of the 30 man squad but whether that will translate to selection is a different story.
Personally I remain unconvinced by conversions from league. It seems to me that the biggest problem league players have is working in a game that has unlimited phases of play. Admittedly Lote Tuquiri has done well but then he plays on the wing and generally speaking is required to do little more than catch the ball and run.
Tahu on the other hand has been playing in the centres for Australia A a position that asks a lot more of a player. Centres need both strong defensive and attacking skills, they need a brain for the game to create opportunity and to link with the forwards and the backline. While Tahu may have "starred" for Australia A, we are tlaking about a side who's most serious competition was NZ Maori, and who lost that game.
It remains to be seen whether Tahu can fulfil his apparent promise in the 15 a side game.
I would like to see Australian Rugby commit to spending more time developing the talent they have then recruiting converts from league. It is an indictment of the code that a player can spend less than a year in the game and be selected in the Wallabies squad, elite sportsman or no. It seems that there should be more competition for selection and players should have to earn their stripes to play at that level, certainly by doing more than competing in pastings of Tonga and Fiji.
The Wallabies themselves have hardly been tested and the impact of Kiwi Robbie Deans will not be truly felt or seen until the Wallabies play their first tri-nations match. A win against a mediocre French side is not an accurate test of a rugby team, even if it does set a record.
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