at last --- some real sense.
thank you, Mr Pfitzy.
the Wallabies will suffer in the locking department for some time yet.
i think their best long-term prospects are Neville, Coleman and Staniforth.
meantime, they will have to rely on what they have got, which ain't much.
i hold out little hope for Simmons, Carter and Horwill although TGC may be able to revive the last-named.
Skelton is half a chance to make it, if well managed.
i wish the parrots with their "unfit for test rugby" would just STFU.
there is a very good reason Skelton usually plays 40-45 minutes for the Tahs and it has nought to do with his fitness - it is all about best use of the squad by a master coach.
the parrots don't seem even to notice that sometimes Skelton plays the first half and sometimes the second half and that he shares his job with Douglas some times and JacPot at other times.
rather profligate to allow Sitaleki Timani, Kane Douglas and Jake Ball to wander off, wasn't it?
OK, that's it.
What the fuck, exactly is wrong with out current set of locks?
(this is aimed at everyone btw)
In Simmons, we have a good lineout caller, a very good tackle, who pushes his arse off in the scrums and smashes rucks. He might have shit for brains, but, well, he's a second row.
Carter is a big, hard, tight working lock. He makes a shitload of tackles each game, is one of the best we have at smashing rucks and clearing the ball, he runs well (a little high sometimes but there have been plenty of runs this year where he's smashed his would be tackler and started pumping his legs and gained 10-15metres. Yes, against the ABs), is a good lineout option and does well in the scrums. MOM in his debut (with a fucked ankle = mentally tough), 23 tackles @ 100% against the Boks in CT)
Horwill: known quantity trying to regain his former aggression and form.
I'm struggling to think of a game that we could blame our locks for losing? Simmons and Carter have actually turned into quite a good unit, for a pair that are about 6 games into their partnership. Our scrum has been very good this year, our lineout as good as you'd expect it to be after losing Moore,
People: to build a team, you pick your best options from Super rugby (which we've done), and then you play them. If they aren't very good at a certain thing, you don't just shitcan them, you work on it with them. You let them get more than half a dozen caps before discarding them, because it takes 10-15 caps before you mentally feel like you belong. How many games have Whitelock and Retallick played together? Do you think either of them haven't had a bad game from now and then?
We are not getting above 2/3 in the world for a reason: Every week, our team is different. We are atm, a 'team of champions', not 'a champion team', and that is the difference. We have enough raw talent in the 23 to be 3rd in the world without really gelling as a team. Imagine what we could do if a clearly defined 23 actually gets the chance to build as a team!?
Cheika took 18 months to beat the Tards into shape, playing virtually the same 23. It takes time!
Saying that one lock, who wasn't good enough to be selected over the current test lock, at a LOWER GRADE, is suddenyl going to be better than that lock at a HIGHER grade, is just fucken retarded.
As things stand, our starting pack is this for the world cup. If Pocock/Moore or other injured players regain their position with form, then we're all the better for it, but right now this is it:
Slipper
Fainga'a
Kepu
Carter
Simmons
Fardy
Hooper
McCalman/Higgers (it's not clear who's ahead at this stage).
Yes, Pocock, Moore, Palu, Taf etc would improve it, but this is our pack. They need to get gametime together, as an 8, and gel as a unit.
Cadyrn Neville ffs...
