Brumbies 2014

[Gagger]

To pull a Mowen
Phrase - to leave before the big event
E.g. "If only he'd pulled a Mowen they wouldn't have a third kid under 4"

 

[KOB1987]

Maybe an ARU top up might have avoided this move?

Significant factor I suspect..

 

[Gagger]

Everything I've heard is that it's genuinely about his family and perhaps a little about realising that at 29 (and a history of injuries) the career won't last forever.

 

[mudskipper]

To pull a Mowen
Phrase - to leave before the big event
E.g. "If only he'd pulled a Mowen they wouldn't have a third kid under 4"

its a bit harsh the RWC is 2 full seasons away, hardly an up and coming event...

I say a Mowen is to "Leadership by example and never give in"

 

[Tomikin]

Bit Left Field .. But I wonder how much his neck injury effected this decision.. maybe it's worse then he lets on and needs to make Hay while he can.

But I guess the top up (which he complained about) family commitment which is good and injury made him move on.

Ben you are a champion, go out with the title 2014 and then love life.. thanks for the hard work for the Brumbies and wobbs

 

[ChargerWA]

The way Ben Mowen has handled this just illustrates what a class act the guy is. No phaffing about keeping everyone in the dark. Made his mind up and did the honourable thing announcing it to give his current teams the best opportunity to manage his departure.

I'm now interested to see who will Captain the Brums next year. I would expect it will still be Mowen, but surely Pocock must be under consideration too with this latest announcement.

 

[RoffsChoice]

Mowen to remain Brumbies captain, McKenzie to leave him out of the Wallabies so he can get a consistent forward pack going for the World Cup.
Kimlin to return in 2015 and be named captain.

 

[Tomikin]

I hope Kimlin comes back.. may not make the wobbs but a 4 -5-6 -8 with his fire will push them all

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[Hawko]

'Family reasons' is PR speak for 'to make more money'. Would have been nice to see him hang around and push to retain his spot and hold onto the captaincy. Who knows what injuries or form will come up in 2014. The sceptic in me doesn't like the fact that he is taking the cash after his first breakout Wallaby season.

Given the fact that a lot of the Australian team was making a much smaller contribution than him and yet getting massively more money, you can hardly blame him for looking after his family first. His departure is a direct result of the "pay stars big bucks but cry poor when the team captain puts his hand out" policy. It just is beyond comprehension that no exception could be made for Mowen when a whole raft of others, including Folau and Cooper, were treated as exceptions, sometimes just for political expediency.

A system of "special" top-ups for "special" players was always going to produce this sort of situation, where one of our best players, and team captain no less, move overseas so they can make the sort of living gifted to other players. He would not have made this move if pay scales across the team had been more equitable but he knew that no matter how well he played and how many sacrifices he and his family made he was going to be on well below half what many other lesser contributors were getting.

 

[Brumby Jack]

In some non Ben Mowen 2014 Brumbies news, at training today and from looking at how players were lining up it looks like Robbie Coleman will be given first crack at fullback with Jesse Mogg rehabbing his shoulder surgery.

 

[Tomikin]

In some non Ben Mowen 2014 Brumbies news, at training today and from looking at how players were lining up it looks like Robbie Coleman will be given first crack at fullback with Jesse Mogg rehabbing his shoulder surgery.

And should be remember he was in front of Mogg before he got hurt.. his an amazing player

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[The_Brown_Hornet]

Given the fact that a lot of the Australian team was making a much smaller contribution than him and yet getting massively more money, you can hardly blame him for looking after his family first. His departure is a direct result of the "pay stars big bucks but cry poor when the team captain puts his hand out" policy. It just is beyond comprehension that no exception could be made for Mowen when a whole raft of others, including Folau and Cooper, were treated as exceptions, sometimes just for political expediency.

A system of "special" top-ups for "special" players was always going to produce this sort of situation, where one of our best players, and team captain no less, move overseas so they can make the sort of living gifted to other players. He would not have made this move if pay scales across the team had been more equitable but he knew that no matter how well he played and how many sacrifices he and his family made he was going to be on well below half what many other lesser contributors were getting.

Your point is well made and it is an interesting paradox in rugby, where the excitement machines in the backs rake in the most money, but the guys who decide (in general) which team wins are comparatively undervalued. I guess it comes down to market power: guys like Izzy and QC (Quade Cooper) bring people through the gates and quality forwards who make significant contributions to the success of the team don't quite as much. I mean, there are few more important blokes on the paddock than a tight prop, but they'll never get paid as much as a star five-eighth or full back.

 

[TOCC]

Given the fact that a lot of the Australian team was making a much smaller contribution than him and yet getting massively more money, you can hardly blame him for looking after his family first. His departure is a direct result of the "pay stars big bucks but cry poor when the team captain puts his hand out" policy. It just is beyond comprehension that no exception could be made for Mowen when a whole raft of others, including Folau and Cooper, were treated as exceptions, sometimes just for political expediency.

A system of "special" top-ups for "special" players was always going to produce this sort of situation, where one of our best players, and team captain no less, move overseas so they can make the sort of living gifted to other players. He would not have made this move if pay scales across the team had been more equitable but he knew that no matter how well he played and how many sacrifices he and his family made he was going to be on well below half what many other lesser contributors were getting.

Is it 100% legitimate that he wasn't offered a top-up, the remarks from Link about Mowen still been in negotiations with the ARU when he informed them of his decision suggest that he was still negotiating a potential top-up.

Regardless lets not beat around the bush, Mowen isn't an idiot and he knows some players have greater marketing power then he does, he would also know that he was the starting number 8 because others were injured and that his position as Captain regardless of his good performance wasn't a role which was locked in for the future.

In my mind he has made a smart decision, he was going to face a lot of competition to earn his Wallaby jersey back, he achieved a lifelong goal of representing the Wallabies and undoubtedly also exceeded it by captaining the national team, he could very well have slotted straight back into the same position and role or he may have missed out.

 

[Brumby Jack]

Not the greatest photo but something to look forward to.

Scott Fardy's beard having a good pre-season.
Oh, and Pocock is there too.

 

[Sully]

To pull a Mowen
Phrase - to leave before the big event
E.g. "If only he'd pulled a Mowen they wouldn't have a third kid under 4"

Should I add it to the dictionary @Gagger?

 

[Bardon]

Best captain the Wobs have had in a long while and Mowen has once again made the right decision in moving to France. He's moving while his star is it's brightest so should get the best deal possible and as he says he'll have a lot more time to spend with his family. Can't fault a guy for that.

I hope there is a pan-European competition for him to compete in again next year. It will be interesting to see which French club he signs for.

 

[RugbyReg]

Best captain the Wobs have had in a long while

Who? Mowen? Based on what ? He is our most 'winningest' from his 5 tests. But our best ? Massive call.

 

[RoffsChoice]

In some non Ben Mowen 2014 Brumbies news, at training today and from looking at how players were lining up it looks like Robbie Coleman will be given first crack at fullback with Jesse Mogg rehabbing his shoulder surgery.

I was expecting Cronje at 15 with Coleman at 12.
Think we'll be seeing a 10-12 with Cronje and Tatekawa (Either one in either position)?

 

[Brumby Jack]

Tatekawa isn't due in til the end of the month so he'll be a fair bit behind the others

 

[Bardon]

Who? Mowen? Based on what ? He is our most 'winningest' from his 5 tests. But our best ? Massive call.

My opinion is based on the fact that the Wobs were enhanced purely by having Mowen as the captain. Something I don't think Pocock, Horwill or Genia did.

Genia is an inspirational player but his temperament meant he came across as petulant at times when dealing with the ref. Also he plays better when there's less pressure on him.

Pocock has a ways to go in his decision making. He's a fantastic player and I'd have him in my team any day but I'd be reluctant to hand him the captaincy.

Horwill is probably the best of the three in terms of his ability as a captain. But his lack of form and the pressure that brought affected his performance as a captain.

Mowen dealt well with Refs, made the right call at the right time and overall he was a better fit as captain. How that would have panned out over time is a different story though. Players like Higgers coming back and pressuring him for his place or the huge expectation that will exist among Aus fans going into this year's TRC might have affected his performance.

But he made a solid start as Wobs captain and looked like someone the team could rally behind building up to and through the RWC.