Reds v Tahs: ‘impartial’ head to head analysis

Feb 12

Posted by Noddy
26 Comments

Faster!

Messers Hickey and McKenzie have done their part, the teams are named. Now it is time for the real analysis. So let’s have a look through the teams, on a head-to-head basis and see who will come out on top on Saturday night.

Fullback: Sosene Anesi v Peter Hynes - Let’s face it. Anesi is an All Black cast off. And a one match All Black cast off at that. Injury prone, to put it mildly, the fact he has now played three games in a row means he WILL BE injured this game. It’s just a matter of what stage of the match. Tah fans should be hoping it happens earlier rather than later. Hynes just oozes class and has taken to fullback play like a duck to water, which was never in doubt considering his immense skills. A real danger player for the Tahs.

Wing: Lachie Turner v Digby Ioane - Ioane is now acclaimed as one of the most dangerous back line players in the world and had a remarkable 2009 Super season. Lachie Turner is still getting by because he once scored a decent try against the Crusaders. Hasn’t done a thing since. Read more »

Jan 20

Preview: Tahs vs Reds Trial

Posted by Moses
3 Comments

Need a hug?

The Super 14 trial match and between the NSW Waratahs and the Queensland Reds sees the Round 1 opponents going head to head in the far northern NSW town of Lismore.

As is the custom with these trial matches, the format is open to the interpretation of the respective coaches, but should loosely resemble a rugby game.

Ewen McKenzie has selected two teams to play a half each, with four replacements set to cover both periods. Softly spoken 21-year-old loosehead prop Ben Daley will lead the Reds by example as a reward for training hard.

Meanwhile, Chris Hickey has named a single team with 13 reserves. Daniel Halangahu will captain a Tahs team which sees the NSW debut of both foreign imports, former (if you pull a really long bow) All Black winger Sosene Anesi and the pride of pretoria, former Emerging Springbok Hendrik Roodt.

Oct 14

The Wallaby Tour: Rookie Watch

Posted by Noddy
51 Comments

The much vaunted 25th anniversary of the Grand Slam tour gets under way with a ‘meaningless’ fourth test against the All Blacks in Tokyo. Add to this a couple of scrounged together midweek games for the dirt trackers and the tour gives us seven games, five of which are test matches.

Does this justify a 35 member playing squad? I dread to think how many support personnel are traveling as well. The original grand slam squad of 1984 numbered 32 with a few injury additions, but they had to play 18 games, including the tour ending Barbarians encounter.

With the addition of the two mid-week games, against Gloucester and another to be confirmed you can be assured that every player (injury permitting) will get a run. So let’s take a look at the seven uncapped players in the squad and do some guess work on what their immediate and short term Wallaby prospects hold.

Apr 23

Reds vs Blues preview

Posted by Juan Cote
5 Comments

Sweet bro, it's the 'entertainers', hehe

This game represents the master versus the apprentice. Watching the Reds oscillate from famine to feast then back again by playing their particular style of ‘attacking’ rugby, one can’t help but think they are trying to model their game on a team similar to the Blues.

What the Reds lack spectacularly is the ability to do the simple things well. To be able to control attacking ball, to secure tackle ball, to have a reliable line-out and scrum, and to build pressure.

All these core skills the Blues have shown in the last few weeks. Read more »

Apr 18

Reds V Lions preview

Posted by Juan Cote
2 Comments

reds_logo

Both teams go into the game tonight with their season’s well and truly in the shitter. Despite some valiant losing performances, and an upset win to each, there has been precious little for them to crow about.

While this game may be the ultimate ‘dance of the desperates’, it does have some un-wanted significance. With the Cheetahs boil-over win last week and a string of home games to come, the loser tonight will no doubt become the front-runner to collect this season’s wooden spoon. Read more »

Apr 16

Wallaby Watch – Scrumhalf

Posted by Noddy
13 Comments

The incumbent(s):

Burgo Luke Burgess (NSW): Nice timing. He’s just been benched by the Tahs. I don’t know if it’s intended to be a wake up call for him. Or he’s being rested. Or he’s bearing the brunt of backlash surrounding the backline not…ummm…b..b..b..being good?. From my perspective he, along with Lachie Turner, have been the only NSW backline players who have even threatened to create something of late. He’ll be back.

Apr 10

Reds v Highlanders Preview

Posted by Juan Cote
3 Comments

Will Ezra punch his weight?

The Reds will be totally friendless this weekend, travelling to the end of the earth to play the mullet-headed pagans of Otago. This game has all the signs of ‘train wreck’ for the Reds, who have never beaten the Highlanders in Nu Zulund, and have not won a game outside of Qld since beating the now extinct, Cats, at Jo’burg almost three years ago.

Coach Phil Mooney has brought back Wallabies Marcia Hynes and Spuddie Holmes as well as including Brando Va’aulu, Otago old-boy, Ezra Taylor and academy player and Australian 7’s winger, Luke Morahan, on the bench. Read more »

Apr 2

Force v Reds preview & teams

Posted by Juan Cote
7 Comments

Dick Brown is back

While the Force and the Reds may kid themselves they are still a chance to make this year’s finals, realistically, they are not. In fact, both teams are at their lowest point of the season after suffering losses in crucial games at their last outing.

The Force have been strengthened with the inclusion of Nick ‘Frampton’ Cummins and Richard Brown while the Reds have also made a couple of changes, Higgers comes into the run on side and Ezra Taylor replaces Tasi Luafutu. The Reds replacements are both at the back row, interestingly the area were the Reds were well beaten last week. Read more »

Mar 26

Reds v Chiefs preview

Posted by Juan Cote
2 Comments

Big Kev - the Reds' Massiah returns

The good news this week that Big Kev Horwill and Van Humphries are returning to the Reds’ team has been tempered with the really shit news that Peter Hynes has been ruled out with a knee problem. This late change gives newcomer Rodney Davies the task of making Lelia Masaga, not an easy thing to do I’d imagine. But still it could be worse; he could be on the other wing and have to mark Sitiveni Sivivatu, like Blair Connor has to…..

The wings are the area where the Chiefs are the strongest whereas the Reds are the weakest, and it is this weakness that could be the Reds un-doing. It is an irony that the Reds forwards this week look stronger than the Reds backline, the demotion of Scott Higginbotham to the bench to make way for returning players confirms this.

Mar 18

Australia’s got talent

Posted by Gagger
31 Comments

The old guard

While watching the games over the weekend, I was struck with the thought of how much young backline talent we’ve got on show in the Super 14 this year, some of which has already had a year or two’s experience. It got me to thinking about what the Wallaby backline could look like, should the current one fark off to France en masse after we win the RWC 2011.

So here it is, my stab at what it could look like. My one rule is that they need to have already played a game of S14. So none of your schoolboy tipoffs for this one. In brackets is how old they’ll be in 2012. As you’ll see, plenty of these guys will have a lot of running left in them! Read more »

Mar 17

Genia gets a month off

Posted by Juan Cote
3 Comments

Tonight news has come through that Reds half-back, Will Genia, has been suspended by the SANZAR judiciary for a month, meaning he will miss three games due to the Reds having the bye this week. Read more »

Mar 1

Reds v Cheetahs review

Posted by Juan Cote
6 Comments

McLinden - sweaty ex mungo

Games of rugby played in extreme conditions are always rubbish, be it rain, wind, cold or in today’s case, heat. A 36 degree day in Brisbane certainly qualified as being extreme conditions.

At times the game seemed to be just one big knock-on, punctuated with kicks and stoppages in play, the Reds tried to play sexy rugby but it just wasn’t to be.

From the kick-off the over-heating Cheetahs looked as if they were playing for the final whistle. The first half was owned by the Reds who played their usual up-tempo fast break rugby, indeed, the first half stats revealed the Reds had over 70% of possession.

What the Reds did with that possession was an abomination. Read more »

Feb 26

Reds v Cheetahs preview

Posted by Juan Cote
1 Comment

You can run, but you can't hide

At the naming of the Reds’ side to take on the Cheetahs this Sunday, Coach Phil Mooney was at pains to offer the usual platitudes when a team is a raging favourite and facing a virtually un-backable outsider.

“We won’t be under-estimating the Cheetahs on Sunday, they’re a side with a lot of ability that hasn’t had much luck in starting the season.” offered Mooney. Surely this is coach speak for “If we don’t roll these guys by at least 20, I’m gonna be mightily pissed off!”

Whether the Cheetahs have been unlucky is irrelevant, the relevant point is Read more »

Feb 25

Reds go Mad

Posted by Juan Cote
10 Comments

Angry Man is Back

Not since the return of Jesus Christ has a comeback been more anticipated. Hugh McMeniman will make his debut this weekend after a leave of absence from the first two games of this year’s Super 14.

This is a major boost for the Reds who have produced some creditable results on their tour of South Africa, despite playing with an under-powered forward pack against the behemoths of the Bulls and Stormers.

Although the return of Madness may herald a new found authority, he will not return at his preferred position of blind-side flanker, but Read more »

Feb 11

Reds v Bulls preview

Posted by Juan Cote
19 Comments

MMM - out, but not through injury!

The Reds two game tour of South Africa could not have begun on a worse note with the news that both Hugh McMeniman and Morgan Turinui, will be missing from the squad to take on the Bulls this weekend.

Morgs has finally succumbed to a case of ‘pie-eater’s shoulder’ after struggling with it throughout the trial phases, while Madness, who was in some doubt with a shoulder injury of his own, has flown home on compassionate grounds. While the loss of Morgs can be covered in some respects by Charlie Fetoai, the loss of McMeniman will leave an un-pluggable hole in an already weak Reds pack. Read more »

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