Wallaby Locks

[Braveheart81]

I reckon we'll probably end up picking 10 guys to cover numbers 4 through 8.

If you look at the most likely candidates the certain selections if healthy are:

Simmons (lock)
Carter (lock)
Fardy (6/4)
Palu (8)
Hooper (7)

The next few probables would be:

Horwill (lock)
Pocock (7)
McCalman (8)

That leaves two spots and I think you almost certainly need another specialist lock and a 6. The 6 could also be a player that plays lock as well or you could pick two players who play both 6 and lock.

If everyone is healthy (which they won't be) that probably leaves Higginbotham, Skelton, Jones, McMahon, Dennis and any bolters fighting it out for those last couple of spots.

 

[Brendan Hume]

The locks for the RWC will be Horwill, Cater, Simmons & Skelton

Only injury will change that

Everyone one else listed is potential only and hasn't been blooded

Are there normally four or five locks in a RWC squad? Agree with your view - if there are five spots it would be nice to see another specialist lock come in. I'm not a big fan of 6's being lock cover at test level.

 

[Braveheart81]

Are there normally four or five locks in a RWC squad? Agree with your view - if there are five spots it would be nice to see another specialist lock come in. I'm not a big fan of 6's being lock cover at test level.

Most sides took 4 specialists to the last RWC (including Australia; Vickerman, Horwill, Simmons, Sharpe).

As I said in the post above, 10 (or possibly 9 as that is what some teams picked) is the magic number of players to cover 4 through 8.

 

[GaffaCHinO]

Looks like cheika rates Coleman still may be I with a chance if he has a big year.

https://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/sport/rugby-union/a/26192646/chieka-predicts-godwin-to-star/

 

[Strewthcobber]

Are there normally four or five locks in a RWC squad? Agree with your view - if there are five spots it would be nice to see another specialist lock come in. I'm not a big fan of 6's being lock cover at test level.

I think we saw over the EoY tour how important the tight head lock is, and that's where we might be a bit light on. Carter can do it, Horwill should be OK but is very injury prone, Simmons is good but has nerve damage in his right shoulder (I think?) which may limit his use at TH. Without serious improvement, Skelton and Fardy can't do it.

I reckon we need at least one more lock who's effective on the right side, for injury cover if nothing else.

 

[fatprop]

Looks like cheika rates Coleman still may be I with a chance if he has a big year.

https://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/sport/rugby-union/a/26192646/chieka-predicts-godwin-to-star/

I would suggest it would be more likely in the November tour series, I expect to see a lot of newbies then, rather than at the RWC

 

[BDA]

I reckon we'll probably end up picking 10 guys to cover numbers 4 through 8.

If you look at the most likely candidates the certain selections if healthy are:

Simmons (lock)
Carter (lock)
Fardy (6/4)
Palu (8)
Hooper (7)

The next few probables would be:

Horwill (lock)
Pocock (7)
McCalman (8)

That leaves two spots and I think you almost certainly need another specialist lock and a 6. The 6 could also be a player that plays lock as well or you could pick two players who play both 6 and lock.

If everyone is healthy (which they won't be) that probably leaves Higginbotham, Skelton, Jones, McMahon, Dennis and any bolters fighting it out for those last couple of spots.

I'd call McCalman a certainty, but otherwise agree.

I think Skelton and Higgers are probably the most likely additions but Jones and even Dennis are in with a shot if they can demonstrate that they are genuinely versatile (6/lock).

 

[Jagman]

The November tour series has been cancelled for 2015 due to there being many injuries to Wallabies in 2012 after they did it in 2011. Won't be a test match after the RWC till June 2016.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[qwerty51]

That fact that there was even one of the cards is such a joke. I might look up how many Tests Australia have played since the start of the 2011 RWC to the start of this one and we're at least 7 ahead of the next I reckon.

 

[The_Brown_Hornet]

Tend to agree Qwerty. Who's bright idea was it to put that on the table? Surely the RWC should be enough to think about in 2015?

 

[RugbyReg]

That fact that there was even one of the cards is such a joke. I might look up how many Tests Australia have played since the start of the 2011 RWC to the start of this one and we're at least 7 ahead of the next I reckon.

52 until now. Doesn't include whatever we play this year.

 

[Wilson]

We should get playing cards made up

 

[qwerty51]

52 until now. Doesn't include whatever we play this year.

Everyone from the start of the 2011 RWC until now. I've included Barbarians matches.

AUS: 54
NZ: 49
ARG: 49
WAL: 44
ENG: 42
SA: 42
FRA: 39
SCO: 38
IRE: 36

Pretty staggering SA have played 12 less given they're in the same competition as us.

 

[Slim 293]

We should get playing cards made up

Somebody neglected to leave out the jokers...........

AUS: 54

 

[The_Brown_Hornet]

So our suspicion that our test team has been flogged a bit turns out to be true.

 

[Brumby Runner]

Tend to agree Qwerty. Who's bright idea was it to put that on the table? Surely the RWC should be enough to think about in 2015?

I'm not so sure that it would be a bad thing. Probably about half of the current Wallabies will be off o/s or retired from representative matches straight after the RWC. Would be an opportunity to blood some new players at that level before the mid-year and RC tests in 2016. Not sure who they'd play, but possibly Japan, USA and Canada would fit the bill and make a bit of money as well.

 

[The_Brown_Hornet]

I'm not so sure that it would be a bad thing. Probably about half of the current Wallabies will be off o/s or retired from representative matches straight after the RWC. Would be an opportunity to blood some new players at that level before the mid-year and RC tests in 2016. Not sure who they'd play, but possibly Japan, USA and Canada would fit the bill and make a bit of money as well.

But unfortunately we've got a history of playing these extra games against the like of NZ, England and Wales!

 

[boyo]

We should get playing cards made up

Or a drinking game.

 

[ACT Crusader]

So our suspicion that our test team has been flogged a bit turns out to be true.

They should be playing more games than anyone else given the massive pay packets they are on and they don't have the long domestic seasons......

 

[qwerty51]

Huh? I don't think our players are paid better than the others at all?

Also how are they playing less than the SA and NZ players? And just because the Euro players have 30 match seasons doesn't mean they play all 30.