Brumbies 2018

[Brumby Runner]

There must be a bit of a question, at least, about the makeup of the coaching panel this year. Three out and out forwards/scrum coaches in McKellar, Fisher and Palmer. Must lead to some differences of opinion in how to approach games, and if so, would quite clearly have an affect on the players. If not, of course, it begs the question of why so many?

And I would also start to question the credentials of Hewitt as a backs coach. My memory of him playing is that he abhorred tackling and consistently went for the intercept when defending. He had a high strike rate on intercepts and scoring tries from them, but that hardly adds up to a knowledge of backline play in total. Has he had any worthwhile experience elsewhere as backline/attack coach?

 

[neilc]

And I would also start to question the credentials of Hewitt as a backs coach. My memory of him playing is that he abhorred tackling and consistently went for the intercept when defending. He had a high strike rate on intercepts and scoring tries from them, but that hardly adds up to a knowledge of backline play in total. Has he had any worthwhile experience elsewhere as backline/attack coach?

At Suntory in Japan apparently - played there then became the backs coach for several years.

 

[mst]

Apparently he coached the backs for 3yrs after he finished playing. How that compares to Super Rugby standard could be worlds apart. But giving him the benefit of the doubt we don't know what directions he has been given by McKellar.

I have been wondering from the start of the season if he had Hawera and Co all pre-season to work with why would you go to other combinations / selections? I think he is being overruled?

I get the Lord and Palmer combo. They have worked well before and Palmer by his own admission is a scrum coach not a forwards coach, I also believe he is still only part-time.

The Lord / Palmer combo and McKeller mix could be the real issue as you have two very good coaches and the other has limited credentials, very limited and average performance record as HC (his key achievement is won the JiD with a team that was almost guaranteed to win) and all the power.

I also know that Lord was the one that gave McKellar his chance at the Brumbies when he could not find any coaching gigs outside of Japan.

http://www.canberratimes.com.au/rug...ies-coach-in-super-rugby-20180222-h0wj7j.html

Hewat: https://www.suntory.com/culture-sports/sungoliath/news/details/20150924.html

 

[mst]

Hi and welcome to the twilight zone!?

We are there people -arrival has been confirmed.

The ACT Brumbies have conceded it might be time to bring back 'Jake-ball' in a bid to get their Super Rugby season back on track.

"We're looking to continue to play up-tempo and attacking rugby ......hilarious!

"We'll definitely be playing attacking rugby.....er, when?

"That has been a big thing, we're going through a bit of change in the way want to play and we're just not taking full advantage of the opportunities we're creating at the moment." What opportunities? Must be watching a different game.

Um, WOW!

http://www.canberratimes.com.au/rug...gby-season-back-on-track-20180313-h0xeo4.html

 

[Tomikin]

Hi and welcome to the twilight zone!?

We are there people -arrival has been confirmed.

The ACT Brumbies have conceded it might be time to bring back 'Jake-ball' in a bid to get their Super Rugby season back on track.

"We're looking to continue to play up-tempo and attacking rugby ..hilarious!

"We'll definitely be playing attacking rugby...er, when?

"That has been a big thing, we're going through a bit of change in the way want to play and we're just not taking full advantage of the opportunities we're creating at the moment." What opportunities? Must be watching a different game.

Um, WOW!

http://www.canberratimes.com.au/rug...gby-season-back-on-track-20180313-h0xeo4.html

It's funny as Jake-Ball in 2013 - 14 was really entertaining. We had great kickers in Mogg and White with massive boots.. We attacked with flair in the right part of the ground and scored a bunch of tires not just from mauls.. We haven't played that entertaining ever since and now we don't have the kickers to pin teams down with the boot.

We need some creativity off lineouts our maul now sucks so come off the top hit TK or Speight on the angle or go to the front and back to the hooked or off the top and back for leolifanio for a background.

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[TOCC]

And I would also start to question the credentials of Hewitt as a backs coach. My memory of him playing is that he abhorred tackling and consistently went for the intercept when defending. He had a high strike rate on intercepts and scoring tries from them, but that hardly adds up to a knowledge of backline play in total. Has he had any worthwhile experience elsewhere as backline/attack coach?

BR his coaching credentials should have been questioned when he signed, I mentioned it at the time but coaching experience limited to 4 seasons as the backs coach in Japan is hardly the coaching resume that should land you straight into the Super Rugby assistant coaching role:

intersting signing. would have thought they might try and test him in the NRC before promoting him to the Brumbies Assistant Coach

 

[fatprop]

There must be a bit of a question, at least, about the makeup of the coaching panel this year. Three out and out forwards/scrum coaches in McKellar, Fisher and Palmer. Must lead to some differences of opinion in how to approach games, and if so, would quite clearly have an affect on the players. If not, of course, it begs the question of why so many?

And I would also start to question the credentials of Hewitt as a backs coach. My memory of him playing is that he abhorred tackling and consistently went for the intercept when defending. He had a high strike rate on intercepts and scoring tries from them, but that hardly adds up to a knowledge of backline play in total. Has he had any worthwhile experience elsewhere as backline/attack coach?

Slow backs generally had to have a brain to survive, I would put Berne, Tirinui & Kafer all in that group as well.

Hewitt fits that genre as well

 

[TOCC]

Slow backs generally had to have a brain to survive, I would put Berne, Tirinui & Kafer all in that group as well.

Hewitt fits that genre as well

I thought Lleyton was reasonably quick across the court

 

[mst]

intersting signing. would have thought they might try and test him in the NRC before promoting him to the Brumbies Assistant Coach

BR his coaching credentials should have been questioned when he signed, I mentioned it at the time but coaching experience limited to 4 seasons as the backs coach in Japan is hardly the coaching resume that should land you straight into the Super Rugby assistant coaching role:

If you apply the same principals: McKellar spent 1 year in the Top League as an assistant before moving to the Brumbies. McKellar is the least successful coach of the Canberra Vikings NRC team (all the others Coaches were the JiD Cup level coaches [Vikings Club] taking the team to 2 wins and finishing 6th.

 

[TOCC]

If you apply the same principals: McKellar spent 1 year in the Top League as an assistant before moving to the Brumbies. McKellar is the least successful coach of the Canberra Vikings NRC team (all the others Coaches were the JiD Cup level coaches [Vikings Club] taking the team to 2 wins and finishing 6th.

I still think using the NRC as a means of not just assessing but developing the next generation of coaching talent is an under-utilised aspect of Australian Rugby. The NRC and the JWC should be a means of passage to higher honours for coaches like it is for players, a gradual progression in the level of professionalism and the output required.

However, like players the JWC and NRC aren't the be all and end all, they are just another tool to develop them.

 

[Braveheart81]

A familiar face back at training.

 

[Slim 293]

Gazing across at his political adversary.........

 

[Braveheart81]

Gazing across at his political adversary...

I'd be staring in disbelief too if the two guys standing in front of me were that blurry.

 

[RoffsChoice]

I wrote this at the end of last season:

Though our attacking prowess has fallen severely since its peak in 2015, this run of Brumbies success has been based on our ability to dominate in defence and dictate where the game is played; think of that Brumbies-Waratahs game in Canberra in 2014, and how the Brumbies backline defensively dominated one of the best Super teams in a decade. The much derided "Jakeball" is not a bad thing; however, there is a problem when teams don't find their way to attack in that system. Unfortunately, that problem has happened since the loss of on-field tacticians like Mowen, White, and Lealiifano. But Larkham has managed the transition away from those players quite well, with Carter clearly showing promise as a captain, and the developing Powell-Hawera partnership coming along nicely in terms of game management.

I stand by most of that. I still believe that Jakeball is not a bad thing. But we aren't playing Jakeball, because our defence is shit and we don't play territory. The problem is how we attack. Only the Chiefs have a worse attack than us, and they would have the excuse of playing the Crusaders and the Blues (and one fewer game).

So I'm glad to see the return of the Powell-Hawera axis, the same partnership that was able to break through every defence bar the Lions last year. I hope that Lilo has had time to work on his goalkicking, because I expect we will need it this weekend. I want us to be a team that scores more tries than the opponent, but I'd prefer to win without scoring more tries than lose despite it. Under Jake White, we won 22 of our 35 games, and 7 of those 22 wins (about 32%) were with the same number of tries as our opponent or fewer. Under Larkham, we won 37 of our 70 games, and 2 of those 37 (about 5%) were with the same number of tries or fewer. Both of those games were in 2014. Meaning that since 2014, we have never won without scoring more tries.

In the short term, that means we need to start scoring more tries. In the long term, we need to remember that scoring more tries is not the the only way to win. Hell, under Larkham, we lost 30% of our games despite scoring more tries. Under Jake White, it only happened once; that was the Bulls away in 2012, and that was because of this nonsense (reminder to always play to the whistle).

 

[Tomikin]

I wrote this at the end of last season:


I stand by most of that. I still believe that Jakeball is not a bad thing. But we aren't playing Jakeball, because our defence is shit and we don't play territory. The problem is how we attack. Only the Chiefs have a worse attack than us, and they would have the excuse of playing the Crusaders and the Blues (and one fewer game).

So I'm glad to see the return of the Powell-Hawera axis, the same partnership that was able to break through every defence bar the Lions last year. I hope that Lilo has had time to work on his goalkicking, because I expect we will need it this weekend. I want us to be a team that scores more tries than the opponent, but I'd prefer to win without scoring more tries than lose despite it. Under Jake White, we won 22 of our 35 games, and 7 of those 22 wins (about 32%) were with the same number of tries as our opponent or fewer. Under Larkham, we won 37 of our 70 games, and 2 of those 37 (about 5%) were with the same number of tries or fewer. Both of those games were in 2014. Meaning that since 2014, we have never won without scoring more tries.

In the short term, that means we need to start scoring more tries. In the long term, we need to remember that scoring more tries is not the the only way to win. Hell, under Larkham, we lost 30% of our games despite scoring more tries. Under Jake White, it only happened once; that was the Bulls away in 2012, and that was because of this nonsense (reminder to always play to the whistle).

Although looking across the teams that was a better team then we have now.. Tomane White Mogg..

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[mst]

I actually didn't mind the Jake-ball when that was the clear plan and getting the results. I thinks its also good platform to evolve and develop from. But, there are some critical elements to it including right players and plan and we don't have either atm.

 

[RoffsChoice]

Although looking across the teams that was a better team then we have now...... Tomane White Mogg......

I actually didn't mind the Jake-ball when that was the clear plan and getting the results. I thinks its also good platform to evolve and develop from. But, there are some critical elements to it including right players and plan and we don't have either atm.

I won't deny that Tomane and White ended up being better players than Peni/Taliauli/Dargaville and Powell are now, but they definitely didn't start out at that level! Tomane was behind Coleman and Rathbone for the first two years, and White was competing with Prior for the starting spot until about halfway through 2013. I'll also say that Banks began at a higher level than Mogg, and, apart from his pace (barely) and kicking distance, is better than him in every way. I think Taliauli could end up being a second Tomane, they're incredibly similar, and Banks is a better Mogg and should end up better. Plus, the 12-13-14 of our backline is the exact same as it was at that 2013 peak: Lilo-Kuridrani-Speight.

Let's not ignore the forwards either! Mann-Rea is like the second coming of Moore; Sio is twice as good as he was five years ago, and Ala'alatoa is quickly reaching, if not surpassing, Dan Palmer; Naisarani is showing some early signs of being better than any 8 we've had since Jim Williams; Pocock is Pocock; and the Carter-Arnold lock pairing is just as good, if not better, than it was back in 2014-15.

But we certainly have lost things. White was a scrumhalf in that French le petit general style, and we won't get another one of those anytime soon, but Powell has his own strengths. Similarly, although Hawera has a bit of a To'omua vibe to him, he's no To'omua, and losing that at 10 hurts. And as much as I like McCaffrey and Valetini, neither of them are a Mowen or a Fardy.

I think MST hit it on the head when he says right plan, there doesn't seem to be any plan at the moment and I put that down to the coaching. Give this side to Leon MacDonald, Colin Cooper, John Mitchell, Chris Boyd, Dave Wessels, Jamie Joseph, Johan Ackermann, Vern Cotter, Dave Rennie, Wayne Pivac, Heyneke Meyer, Kieran Crowley, or Chris Gibbes, and I'm sure we'd see some sort of plan, even in losses.

 

[Slim 293]

I won't deny that Tomane and White ended up being better players than Peni/Taliauli/Dargaville and Powell are now, but they definitely didn't start out at that level! Tomane was behind Coleman and Rathbone for the first two years, and White was competing with Prior for the starting spot until about halfway through 2013.

Tomane didn't start in the first two games for the Brumbies in his first year but was then the regular starter afterwards, and was capped by the Wallabies before the end of that season.

The main reason he didn't start as often in the following couple of years were due to injuries which gave Rathbone and Coleman their opportunities.

White was the first choice starting halfback for the first few games of the season before rotating with Prior for a couple of games, and then locked in the starting spot for the rest of his time there.

 

[lex]

I really liked what Jake White did with the Brumbies but I'm not sure that Jakeball would be a viable strategy under the new laws.
It is so easy to retain possession for extended phases that kicking the ball is almost criminal.

 

[Tomikin]

I won't deny that Tomane and White ended up being better players than Peni/Taliauli/Dargaville and Powell are now, but they definitely didn't start out at that level! Tomane was behind Coleman and Rathbone for the first two years, and White was competing with Prior for the starting spot until about halfway through 2013. I'll also say that Banks began at a higher level than Mogg, and, apart from his pace (barely) and kicking distance, is better than him in every way. I think Taliauli could end up being a second Tomane, they're incredibly similar, and Banks is a better Mogg and should end up better. Plus, the 12-13-14 of our backline is the exact same as it was at that 2013 peak: Lilo-Kuridrani-Speight.

Let's not ignore the forwards either! Mann-Rea is like the second coming of Moore; Sio is twice as good as he was five years ago, and Ala'alatoa is quickly reaching, if not surpassing, Dan Palmer; Naisarani is showing some early signs of being better than any 8 we've had since Jim Williams; Pocock is Pocock; and the Carter-Arnold lock pairing is just as good, if not better, than it was back in 2014-15.

But we certainly have lost things. White was a scrumhalf in that French le petit general style, and we won't get another one of those anytime soon, but Powell has his own strengths. Similarly, although Hawera has a bit of a To'omua vibe to him, he's no To'omua, and losing that at 10 hurts. And as much as I like McCaffrey and Valetini, neither of them are a Mowen or a Fardy.

I think MST hit it on the head when he says right plan, there doesn't seem to be any plan at the moment and I put that down to the coaching. Give this side to Leon MacDonald, Colin Cooper, John Mitchell, Chris Boyd, Dave Wessels, Jamie Joseph, Johan Ackermann, Vern Cotter, Dave Rennie, Wayne Pivac, Heyneke Meyer, Kieran Crowley, or Chris Gibbes, and I'm sure we'd see some sort of plan, even in losses.

To play Jake Ball you need big boots White and Mogg had excellent boots.

And yes the right plan we would be better. At the moment we have none.

This weekend we should see something different I'm looking forward too it actually the side looks like it could be the kick in the arse needed

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