Wallabies v. Springboks, 18th July 2015, Suncorp, Brisbane

[BDA]

The schedule before the world cup really isn't that intensive. Only 5 games over 9 weeks. I don't know if there's any need for players to be "rested" per se. Players with niggling injuries should perhaps by wrapped in cotton wool, and obviously the current squad depth means there'll be a need to give different players some game time.

 

[qwerty51]

Go look at how many minutes our top players have played so far in 2015 compared to NZ and SA.

 

[Train Without a Station]

Ben McCalman 1156
Tetera Faulkner 1104
Matt Hodgson 550
Adam Coleman 718
Ita Vaea 903
Ben Alexander 872
Scott Sio 706
Stephen Moore 934
David Pocock 955
Scott Fardy 1280
Sam Carter 972
Rory Arnold 719
Scott Higginbotham 1199
Paul Alo-Emile 939
Laurie Weeks 309
Toby Smith 1040
Sean McMahon 1086
Luke Jones 1232
Lopeti Timani 879
Caydern Neville 273
James Slipper 929
James Hanson 837
Greg Holmes 638
Liam Gill 1121
Rob Simmons 622
James Horwill 855
Jake Schatz 927
Wycliff Palu 869
Will Skelton 1030
Dave Dennis 1162
Benn Robinson 1123
Tatafu Polata-Nau 450
Tolu Latu 638
Sekope Kepu 903
Michael Hooper 1266
Dean Mumm 86

All Blacks

Wyatt Crockett 777
Dane Coles 566
Owen Franks 766
Brodie Retallick 427
Sam Whitelock 857
Jerome Kaino 622
Richie McCaw 911
Kieran Read 784

Springboks

Tendai Mtawarira 678
Bismarck du Plessis 783
Jannie du Plessis 733
Eben Etzebeth 712
Victor Matfield 644
Marcell Coetzee 1167
Schalk Burger 773
Duane Vermulan 846

 

[Joeleee]

Go look at how many minutes our top players have played so far in 2015 compared to NZ and SA.

Sure, but it will have been 3-5 weeks since players have played a game, plus I don't think another 60 minutes on top of the 1100 or so have already been played will make a huge difference. I don't think the Wallabies have all that many players who will benefit more from rest than they will from Test match game time, when their schedule is the aforementioned 5 games in 9 weeks. If anything, they should be playing now when they've had time off, and resting later to give them a longer break between games. For the record, the players that I think might benefit would be the likes of Palu and TPN.

 

[ACSC]

Just got back from the wallabies training at Caloundra. A few things I noticed.
For the entire session (not even any changes during full team opposed session), this backline ran together
9 Genia
10 Cooper
11 AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper)
12 Touma
13 Kuridrani
14 Tomane
15 Folau
Couldn’t see much of the forwards scrumaging as too far away but during the full team session
Hooper was always in the same pack as Moore and Fardy
Mainly Simmons and Skelton with Arnold subbing for Simmons
Macalman no8 (Palu didn’t take part)
Mumm subbing in for Fardy
Also Drew did the warmup then stood with coaches for the rest of the session
Giteau did not even put boots on and stood with coaches for the whole session

 

[qwerty51]

Grouped..

James Slipper 929
Wyatt Crockett 777
Tendai Mtawarira 678

Sekope Kepu 903
Jannie du Plessis 783
Owen Franks 766

Stephen Moore 934
Bismarck Du Plessis 783
Dane Coles 566

You'd be naive to think these won't have an impact in the last few Tests of 2015.. In fact I'm pretty worried now, damning stuff.

 

[Marcelo]

Grouped..

James Slipper 929
Sekope Kepu 903
Jannie du Plessis 783
Wyatt Crockett 777
Owen Franks 766
Tendai Mtawarira 678

Stephen Moore 934
Bismarck Du Plessis 783
Dane Coles 566

You'd be naive to think these won't have an impact in the last few Tests of 2015.. In fact I'm pretty worried now, damning stuff.

Then Sio and Holmes should start the game. It would be interesting to see this duo against the Springbok front-row

 

[Mr Pilfer]

I am starting to like the balance of this backrow now.... Higgers, Pocock, McCalman. With Hooper replacing McCalman at 50/60 and Higgers going to number 8.

 

[Groucho]

Grouped..

James Slipper 929
Wyatt Crockett 777
Tendai Mtawarira 678

Sekope Kepu 903
Jannie du Plessis 783
Owen Franks 766

Stephen Moore 934
Bismarck Du Plessis 783
Dane Coles 566

You'd be naive to think these won't have an impact in the last few Tests of 2015.. In fact I'm pretty worried now, damning stuff.

It could equally be an advantage. The way to be at maximum fitness for rugby is to play rugby. If it had been New Zealand players who had played the most minutes, then people would be bemoaning our players' relative lack of match-hardening.

There'll be an optimum amount of rugby to have been played before the competition begins, and what that is, is anyone's guess at this stage. It could be at the upper or lower range of what our players have played. As others have pointed out, the playing schedule between now and the world cup is pretty sparse.

The great risk of having played so many minutes is that those players could have been injured, but this year, touch wood, we've been relatively injury-free.

 

[The_Brown_Hornet]

Just got back from the wallabies training at Caloundra. A few things I noticed.
For the entire session (not even any changes during full team opposed session), this backline ran together
9 Genia
10 Cooper
11 AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper)
12 Touma
13 Kuridrani
14 Tomane
15 Folau
Couldn’t see much of the forwards scrumaging as too far away but during the full team session
Hooper was always in the same pack as Moore and Fardy
Mainly Simmons and Skelton with Arnold subbing for Simmons
Macalman no8 (Palu didn’t take part)
Mumm subbing in for Fardy
Also Drew did the warmup then stood with coaches for the rest of the session
Giteau did not even put boots on and stood with coaches for the whole session

Thanks for that, good to get some inside running on what Cheika's thinking. I like that backline, though I think Phipps has overtaken Genia at halfback. Interesting with the back row make up. I guess the thinking is that Hooper can provide the running and Fardy the breakdown menace.

 

[dru]

Just got back from the wallabies training at Caloundra. A few things I noticed.
For the entire session (not even any changes during full team opposed session), this backline ran together
9 Genia
10 Cooper
11 AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper)
12 Touma
13 Kuridrani
14 Tomane
15 Folau
Couldn’t see much of the forwards scrumaging as too far away but during the full team session
Hooper was always in the same pack as Moore and Fardy
Mainly Simmons and Skelton with Arnold subbing for Simmons
Macalman no8 (Palu didn’t take part)
Mumm subbing in for Fardy
Also Drew did the warmup then stood with coaches for the rest of the session
Giteau did not even put boots on and stood with coaches for the whole session

Interesting info. Did you see any line outs?

 

[barbarian]

Apparently Giteau has been spending a lot of time training at 12 outside of Genia and Cooper. Could be starting in the first game.

 

[KOB1987]

So all that really happened today is that the proposed squad for this game went from 40 to 31 with another 8 to be cut at the team announcement next week.


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[KOB1987]

Assuming a 5:3 bench, the following needs to be cut to get to 23:

2 locks
2 loosies
1 'playmaker'
3 outside backs


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[Blue]

Michael Chieka presents the waratahs plus guests wallabies to play those big dutch c*nts.
1. Cuddly looking fellah from up north
2. Short angry bald guy from that boring city I smashed a door good in
3. Keps
4. Mummsy
5. Big Willy
6. Tall angry bearded guy from that boring city I smashed a door good in
7. Hoops
8. That big mexican fucker that looks like a pirate
9. Phippsy
10. Foles
11. French Tah Mitch
12. KB (Kurtley Beale), first picked as usual
13. Two dads
14. Taquito naya. nayav. Taqs
15. Izzy

Tongue firmly in cheek.

You sure that's not tongue in ass?

 

[BDA]

Go look at how many minutes our top players have played so far in 2015 compared to NZ and SA.

that's a fair point. but looking at the schedule before the world cup, there is a fair bit of time for players to recharge batteries

 

[BDA]

Apparently Giteau has been spending a lot of time training at 12 outside of Genia and Cooper. Could be starting in the first game.

I reckon the plan is for him to come off the bench. On HQ Giteau seemed to suggest that he's still behind To'omua (as he should be)

 

[something]

Just got back from the wallabies training at Caloundra. A few things I noticed.
For the entire session (not even any changes during full team opposed session), this backline ran together
9 Genia
10 Cooper
11 AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper)
12 Touma
13 Kuridrani
14 Tomane
15 Folau

That's noice. I'd be interested in seeing Phipps over Genia but i'm very happy with that

 

[fatprop]

I reckon the plan is for him to come off the bench. On HQ Giteau seemed to suggest that he's still behind To'omua (as he should be)

That makes sense, and it isn't surprising to see unit out of the system for a while being given plenty of time in training to get up to speed.

 

[Marcelo]

Any idea about the starting props?