Bledisloe II (Christchurch)

Remove this Banner Ad

S

Swans120

Norm Smith Medallist
Dec 14, 2008
6,351
9
AFL Club
Sydney
Other Teams
Manly, Waratahs
http://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,8659,27491106-5016959,00.html

Not good news to start this thread. Rob Horne out for the year with a fractured elbow. Will cause a reshuffle of the backline. It seems the options are...

Either: AAC to 13, Beale to 15.

Or: AAC to 13, O'Connor to 15, Shepherd to 14

Shepherd, Higginbotham, McCalman have been included with the match day 22 (minus Horne) in a squad of 24 for the trip to NZ.
 
I'm actually happy to see that Horne is out. Didn't deserve the spot in the first place and realistically was chosen due to potential. Was very very average before he got injured and was average against the boks.

I understand Deans thinking that Barnes would be a better matchup defensively to Nonu, but Barnes missed a truckload of tackles. I never want to see Barnes play for the Wallabies again. If you want someone to blame for our capitulation, Barnes is your man. Firstly the charge down then to be unable to find the touchline from a penalty is criminal in professional rugby, not to mention the fact that we had all the momentum until that very moment. He continually tries to overplay the situation (the grubber kick, when we had a 4 to 2 overlap with a paddock to run into)

1. Robinson
2. S Faainga
3. Ma'afu
4. Simmons
5. Sharpe
6. Mumm
7. Pocock
8. Elsom

9. Genia
10.Giteau
11.Mitchell
12. A Faainga
13. AAC
14. O'Connor
15. Beale

16. Moore
17. Slipper
18. Higginbotham
19. Brown
20. Burgess
21. Barnes
22. Sheperd
 

Log in to remove this ad.

Giteau at 10=fail.

I am sorry but he has been tried, again and again at 10 and has been absolute trash in each game. He is an inside centre, pick him there. Then pick you best 10 available. Pretty simple concept.

Elsom is not a no8, have we not gone down that debacle once before..
 
bombersno1 said:
Giteau at 10=fail.

I am sorry but he has been tried, again and again at 10 and has been absolute trash in each game. He is an inside centre, pick him there. Then pick you best 10 available. Pretty simple concept.

Elsom is not a no8, have we not gone down that debacle once before..
Click to expand...

Just because a player failed to impress previously does not mean that we shouldn't try him there again. If Deans held that approach players like Cooper wouldn't be in the test team.

Elsom was the best player in the northern hemisphere earlier this year and the position he played was No. 8. Dick Brown playing at 8 isn't working. We need something different.

So your suggesting that Matt Touma play 10? Because i sure as hell wouldn't want Barnes playing at 10. + have you already forgotten the Giteau of 2008/2009, the same Giteau that would dominate teams and singlehandedly win games?

There's no doubt that Giteau is the better inside centre. But as far as our best option at flyhalf, it has to be Giteau. What other options do we have? O'Connor? Beale? Fa'ainga? I don't think you realise how bad our depth is currently.
 
Elsom is not physically big enough to play in that position, as it is Brown is undersized. Plus he is the best no6 we have. I hate this fixation that to somewhat strengthen one position (maybe at best), we severly weaken another position!

I'd play Beale at 10, as at least he has organisational skills, again Giteau is your best 12, pick the bloke there. Pick a solid 10 if you have to. I probably would not put Barnes at 10, as he is probably a 12 as well. So pick one of Giteau/Barnes at 12. Then pick your best 10, and if that happens to be Toumoa, so be it.

Giteau was so good in 2008-9. What did we come in the tri nations again? How did we go against NZ? Face facts the bloke is a spud at 10.
 
Well looks like I might be on the money though..as who did I see running at fly half at training tonight..BEALE. But it is more likely only going to happen once the Giteau/Barnes fiasco fails again and we are down by 30 as Giteau is not a playmaker at all.

Halangahu would not be the worst option..and he is a better goalkicker than the one we have!
 
Kurtley Beale, James O'Connor, Adam Ashley-Cooper, Anthony Faingaa, Drew Mitchell, Matt Giteau, Will Genia, Richard Brown, David Pocock, Rocky Elsom (capt), Nathan Sharpe, Dean Mumm, Salesi Ma'afu, Saia Faingaa, Benn Robinson. Reserves: Stephen Moore, James Slipper, Rob Simmons, Matt Hodgson, Luke Burgess, Berrick Barnes, Cameron Shepherd.

Wow, talk about turning the team over.

Changes:

Horne injured so AAC to 13, Beale to 15, A.Faingaa replaces Barnes at inside, S.Faingaa replaces Moore at hooker, Shepherd comes onto the bench
 
Faingaa might be pretty good running off Giteau. Giteau does tend to crab across the field a little and with Faingaa running a straight line off him that could potentially be dangerous.

Would have liked to see more changes in the pack. Very surprised there hasn't been a change at 2nd row.
 
Anyone else put money on Australia? I chucked on $20 before the kickoff because I figured $6.15 was stupid odds.

Who knows if it'll come off but it's looking like good value at the moment.
 

(Log in to remove this ad.)

FFS Kaplan grow some balls. First he lets a guy smash Faingaa from behind and then stands back and lets McCaw do whatever at the breakdown. I swear McCaw pays the ref before the match starts. I know number 7s push the rules, but McCaw simply has no regard for them. Double standards.

Played very well, I thought. Just lacked that last bit of skill to score. May have scored with Cooper, Ioane and Hynes. Good game from Beale. Giteau offered nothing. Genia looks like he is not quite match fit. Pocock was awesome.
 
Geez...McCaw gets a yellow warning and reoffends and stays on the ground.
:thumbsdown:
I wonder who or what Matt Giteau needs inside or outside him to start playing??
I always thought George Gregan wasn't quite the same player without Owen Finnegan around...wonder if Giteau needs a stable pony like Phil Waugh or something.
Not a bad effort tonight though.
 
There is definitely a double standard with the refereeing this tournament for NZ.

I thought that was a good match from Australia. The ABs are clearly on a different level, but at least tonight we played up to our full potential. We matched it with them, and on a different night - with a bit of luck, and Carter having an off night like he did against the Boks - we might have got over the top.

The real question is why we can't buy a decent forward pack to save our lives. There's something seriously wrong with our development.
 
Caesar said:
There is definitely a double standard with the refereeing this tournament for NZ.

I thought that was a good match from Australia. The ABs are clearly on a different level, but at least tonight we played up to our full potential. We matched it with them, and on a different night - with a bit of luck, and Carter having an off night like he did against the Boks - we might have got over the top.

The real question is why we can't buy a decent forward pack to save our lives. There's something seriously wrong with our development.
Click to expand...

Both TPN and Alexander are injured. Both would be walk up starts.
 
You take Horwill, TPN, Alexander, Palu out of a pack and you will struggle.

As for the game if ANYONE tells me Giteau had a good game, I'll neck them. Said it before the game, the game was over when the idiot was named at 10. Giteau was great at BOMBING a try when Mitchell made 70m when he had not ONE, but a THREE man overlap!
 
Only saw the first half because I had to go see shitfest 3000 at Subi oval.

Showed some okay signs but the All Blacks are just a class above.

And yeah, McCaw is a champion, but christ they're lenient on him.
 
bullish23 said:
Palu comes back next year.

I think the team really lacks a Sam Scott-Young character. An absolute mad-dog who isn't afraid of anyone.
Click to expand...

Hopefully Higgenbotham can perform that role.

bombersno1 said:
Happy that Giteau is FINALLY being blamed for the loss! As expected an all QLD 9,10, 12 will happen in Sth Africa!
Click to expand...

Hell yeah!! :D Just need Ioane and Hynes back.
 
Hynes is not viewed as a first string winger, bench player though. Mitchell is much better off the wing than Hynes, and Hynes is not a test standard fullback. Iaone is a given on the wing but like a few players, has very bad shoulders.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Remove this Banner Ad

Back
Top