Brumbies 2011

[Lee Grant]

As I have mentioned before: the impression I get, and it's only an impression, is that the Brumbies organisation has lost its blazing missionary zeal it had when they started up in 1996.

This zeal was evident in the players ranks also. Although they had good locals such as Larkham and Gregan they recruited many Sydney players who were unwanted by the Tahs. Some of these guys should have been retained in Sydney but some were turned into good players by the Brumbies coaches.

Everything they did seemed to tick all the boxes both in the front office and back office but in hindsight it seemed to end when Eddie Jones left. Sure they won a Super12 tournament under Nucifora but the seeds of dissension had been sown.

It's not unusual for this to happen in sports organisations and I think that the Force have lost their start up zeal also.

The wheel will turn and the Brumbies organisation will be back on their high horses, chips on both shoulders and thumbing their noses down the Hume Highway again. I hope they are doing this sooner rather than later.

 

[Biffo]

up the Hume Highway, please

 

[RugbyReg]

Patrick Phibbs may have played his last game for the ACT Brumbies with coach Andy Friend keen to canvas the free-agent market for off-contract scrumhalves.

The Brumbies begin their post-season review today with Friend confident he will retain the majority of his stars for the 2011 Super 15.

But for Phibbs, that means a nervous wait.

He played the majority of the season behind No.9 Josh Valentine and could be forced to chase an overseas contract should the Brumbies cut him loose.

"We're in the process of looking at what scrumhalves are in the market place," Friend said.

"I think Pat has done very well for us off the bench this year, we just need to assess what is there in the market and then make the right decision for us.

"It may be that Pat is the man, but it's something we want to take our time with ... I don't see a need to rush it."

Friend hopes to have his squad finalised in the next two weeks.

Captain Stephen Hoiles and Julian Huxley are the highest profile players off contract while Wallabies skipper Rocky Elsom has a get-out clause for next year.

Six other players including Phibbs are also at the end of their contracts.

Phibbs yesterday declared his intention to remain in the capital after spending the past five seasons with the Brumbies.

But he conceded his future was unclear.

The 29-year-old has not started contract negotiations with the Brumbies.

"I'm just waiting to hear from the Brumbies, so hopefully that's sometime soon," Phibbs said.

"But to tell you the truth, I don't know what's happening next year.

"I made my intentions clear that I wanted to stay at the Brumbies, so I'm just waiting.

"Obviously I have to start thinking about overseas and everything like that, but I still feel I have a lot to offer the Brumbies."

The Brumbies' finals hopes ended when they lost to the Canterbury Crusaders last Friday night.

Despite boasting one of the best rosters in the competition, they failed to secure a top-four finish.

Phibbs remained hopeful that the majority of the squad would stick together for the expanded Super 15 competition next year.

Friend conceded his side did not perform well enough to be playing in the finals and hinted changes would be made to ensure that it didn't happen again next year.

"We'll hopefully finalise [contract] things in the next couple of weeks," Friend said.

"We've just had a look at the [Crusaders] game so far ... it wasn't to be this year.

"We weren't good enough so we've got to make sure that doesn't happen next time.

"I think we'll retain the majority of people we want to retain and continue to build our squad."

who is available? I think I read somewhere that Nick Berry has a new contract overseas. He would have been a good option.

Brendan MacKibbon I guess is probably the leading candidate.

What's Matty Henjak's status????

I guess there's always a marquee player?

 

[Biffo]

Find the best Australian kid(s) available and give him (them) a go.

 

[mark_s]

There is something wrong at the brumbies. I can’t but my finger on what it is but they can’t keep finishing 5-9th each year without any clear progress despite one of the best rosters super rugby. There still seems to be too much trial and error in their tactics and play, e.g. why haven’t they built a backline around AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) but have instead used him as gap filler. I don’t know if its coaching, off field issues, senior player issues or all of the above, but I think a bit of a clean out is required.

 

[Lindommer]

Patrick Phibbs may have played his last game for the ACT Brumbies with coach Andy Friend keen to canvass the free-agent market for off-contract scrumhalves.

who is available? I think I read somewhere that Nic Berry has a new contract overseas. What's Matty Henjak's status?

Nic Berry's signed with Wasps for the next season. Henjak is somewhat in limbo at Toulon. From their website:

"Henjak was released from Toulon's domestic squad in November 2009, but remains on the club's books for the European Challenge Cup, and captains Toulon in European matches.

Under French league rules, clubs are restricted to two non-European Union players on their rosters. The non-EU slots are currently filled by Argentines Contepomi and Fernández Lobbe; Henjak was released from the domestic squad to make room for Contepomi, who had just recovered from a knee injury suffered in May 2009 while playing for Leinster. Although Toulon's roster contains far more players whose sporting nationality is outside the EU, they do not count against the quota for various reasons."

 

[Lee Grant]

Henjak was, surprisingly, playing well in the Top14 before he had to be discarded but for a loophole in one of the competitions they were in this year. He's still drawing a paycheck so he should be fresh if he comes home.

A pity about Berry. He is one of the overseas players I thought may have come home - but that notion was in ignorance of his hopes and interests - as will always be the case in pontificating about the likely movements of Oz players overseas.

Biffo

There ain't a lot of young blokes around. There hasn't been a decent schoolboy 9 in Oz Schools rugby since Josh Holmes 6 years ago, except for Turner. Jeremy Sua has been in the Tahs stable before and is decent, but I haven't seen him play for a while.

 

[tranquility]

Genia wasn't shit house.

 

[Lee Grant]

No he wasn't, but believe it or not Genia was not an outstanding schoolboy player. He made the bench in the Oz A Schools team and played in that famous victory for Oz A against the NZ Schools dirt-tracker team at Victoria Barracks in 2005. He as not selected for the Oz Schools EOYT to Europe and was not somebody then who you would flag as a future Super rugby material. For example: he didn't compare to Turner a few years later as a schools player.

He's done a lot better than the 3 scrummies rated above him in 2005 though and it came through a grim determination to be prepared physically and to not be as laid back in his attitude to the game as his elder brother was.

 

[Zinzan]

No he wasn't, but believe it or not Genia was not an outstanding schoolboy player. He made the bench in the Oz A Schools team and played in that famous victory for Oz A against the NZ Schools dirt-tracker team at Victoria Barracks in 2005. He as not selected for the Oz Schools EOYT to Europe and was not somebody then who you would flag as a future Super rugby material. For example: he didn't compare to Turner a few years later as a schools player.

He's done a lot better than the 3 scrummies rated above him in 2005 though and it came through a grim determination to be prepared physically and to not be as laid back in his attitude to the game as his elder brother was.

Well said LG,

Off memory Genia was behind

1. Thomas Tusitala (ACT)
2. N. Sievert (NSW)
3. Schwalger (NSW)

I recall that win at the Barracks, Peter Betham crossed after the siren & Christian Lealiifano kicked winning conversion as Ben Lucas was injured in that last play. Genia came of the bench & was skinny kid with the afro.....he had a solid game but wasn't physical enough & as seen in the last 2 years, his man body came & everything else fell into place for him.

 

[topo]

Well said LG,
Off memory Genia was behind

1. Thomas Tusitala (ACT)
2. N. Sievert (NSW)
3. Schwalger (NSW)

Sievert is back playing good footy for Southern Districts after a couple of years with knee trouble including at least one recon. If he lasts the season, he will definitely be worth a look. Still only about 22.
Schwager was a great player at school. Played Joeys 2nds behind Sievert and still got picked for GPS 3rds, NSW 2s and went on the EOYT to England after Sievert was hurt. Currently playing 2nds at Uni and seems to have gone off the boil a bit. Very good player but pretty small.
Eddie Bredenham played a bit of JWs this year and is in 1st grade at Uni. Looks pretty good so far. Nick Phipps is another Uni player currently on the 7s tour who would be worth a look. He was the Colts captain last year.

 

[fatprop]

Yeah I like Sievert, decent sized nine, good pass and kicks goals for Southern.

Interesting to see Huxley gone, very inexperienced backs now at the Brumbies. Valentine, Gits & AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) & ............

 

[Biffo]

Interesting to see Huxley gone, very inexperienced backs now at the Brumbies. Valentine, Gits & AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) & ............

Wonderful opportunities for To'omua and Lealiifano.

 

[Scotty]

Yes, the Brumbies should be building their backline around these two instead of Giteau.

 

[Lee Grant]

Zinzan,

I was there too and it was one of the most stirring wins by an Oz Schools team I have seen. I was right behind that last goal kick and wasn't it bedlam when they won? I went over to the players afterwards like everybody else, like a kid with an autograph book.

Lucas was hurt a bit in that game and it showed what a lot of ticker he had to play through the pain. They wouldn't have won it without him. That was the year of the four gun schools flyhalves. Lucas and Lealiifano were the incumbent flyhalves from the year before but were demoted to the Twos in 2005 with the advent of Beale as the starting flyhalf in the Ones and Cooper on the bench.

I think that it's been a shame for Lucas to be marginalised as a halfback and even a fullback and would like to see him playing 10 again. For his sake I'd like to see him at the Force or the Rebels and working up to a starting role as flyhalf.

Yeah Genia was not that physical at school but he was always fast. According to him he hit the gym a couple of years back being resolved to do something different to get the no. 1 spot with the Reds, and look at him now.

topo

Thanks for that info.

Yeah I remember Schwager, one of the line of Schwagers at Joeys. He must have often regretted that his career at Joeys, NSW Schools and Oz Schools, aligned with that of Sievert; but apart from anything else, Sievert was a fair goal kicker.

Sievert has been in the Tahs stable and actually got on the park at the SFS fin the S14 one night, but he didn't seem to kick on as a senior player. Schwager took a gap year after school and I seen little of him as a senior player - that I can remember, at least. I saw Ed B a couple of times for the JWs this year but he didn't take my eye as McKibben did.

Geez McKibben has to get a S15 gig somewhere next year, surely. It's inconceivable to me that Cordingley was acquired by the Rebels instead, at his age, but as usual, one doesn't know what the thought processes are on either side. I thought that they or the Force, with O'Young retiring, would pick him up by now.

 

[tranquility]

Re: Genia.

The fact he didn't make Aussy schools had nothing to do with skill or physicality. He went to BBC in Brisbane which is rubbish rugby school but it does produce a freak here and there, think James Horwill. He was the age groups dominant player from 8 through - however in year 12 and maybe year 11 as well he was forced to play flyhalf because he was out and away the best player. He suffered when he went back to halfback for the GPS trials and obviously slipped through the net.

Genia has long been a prodigy in Brisbane and had been talked about for a long time. Someone gave fast Eddy the word and the rest is history. He played super 14 before he played senior rugby.

 

[Lindommer]

Genia...went to BBC in Brisbane which isa rubbish rugby school...

I don't think Churchie supporters would agree with you.

 

[Lee Grant]

tranquility

I saw him as a schoolboy only in the 2005 schools tournament - that's only 4 games - plus that Oz A schools game. It's not a big sample but it's all I had to go on.

You have given a reason why he didn't shine in the tournament, but because he didn't is why I didn't rate him as a schools player, not knowing anything else. Mind you I wouldn't have rated Cooper playing for Qld schools the following year based on his poor form in the tournament, but he had already played for Oz Schools the previous year and I knew his quality.

Genia seemed to be skilful player in those 5 games I saw, but more certainly didn't have the physicality against the players he was playing against then, compared to the physicality he has playing against the players he plays against now.

For me it was as Zinzan described Genia in an earlier post: ".. wasn't physical enough & as seen in the last 2 years, his man body came & everything else fell into place for him."

What Zinzan doesn't mention is Genia's determination to build up his body after school as he said in a recent issue of the Inside Rugby magazine.

 

[RugbyReg]

I didn't think Genia played rugby until his teens? And started on the wing? Thought I read that somewhere.

 

[amanda]

Hux has gone to the Rebels. He said something about it fitting his holistic approach and the Rebels offering as much off-field as on.