Who Should Run The Wallabies Attack in 2013?

[Brumbieman]

I would have JOC (James O'Connor) at 13 instead with a bigger body at 12 (McCabe, AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper)).

Exactly. Beiber's strength is his speed and elusiveness. At test level, there is no space at 12, you need someone who will force the defence to hold, and someone to be the defensive rock in the backline. If you cant get through 12, then you go wider, and then it is suddenly much easier to cramp the opposition backline against the sideline.


I want either Fainga'a or McCabe at 12.

Cooper or Lealiifano at 10 (fuck off the the Beiber suggestions, likewise Barnes. He is simply not good enough for international rugby at 10, and chokes our backline FAR more than either of McCabe/Fainga'a).

Beiber/AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper)/Tapuai at 13.

Beale is a 15, not an international 10. We scored more tries with BARNES playing there ffs!

 

[Torn Hammy]

I can't understand why people always talk about playing JOC (James O'Connor) anywhere but on the wing. He is one of the worlds best wingers and yet people want to play him in positions where he performs as an average S15 player. The back three weapon of Beale, JOC (James O'Connor) and Ioane is a proven exciting combination and should not be tinkered with.

I'm very happy with Cooper and McCabe as 10 and 12, but have no clue as to who should be our 13. You would think in this country of 25 million there is an outside centre who can draw and pass.

 

[Brumby Runner]

I am a McCabe fan for the way he gives his all, but not at 12. To me, he is a 15. That's where he first came to prominence with the Brumbies.

Cooper is the best option to run the Wallabies' attack from 10. To stay with the attacking mode, I believe any one of O'Connor, Lealiifano or Tapuai should play 12. JO'C plays very much like Horan imo and would make an exciting partnership with Cooper.

I'm afraid waiting to see S15 form for any of these players is a waste of time. Deans pays no heed to form, nor to the positions played at S15 level.

 

[Hawko]

I would have JOC (James O'Connor) at 13 instead with a bigger body at 12 (McCabe, AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper)).

I know this is all the rage now but once upon a time you had the big fast guy at 13 and the smaller guy at 12. I am not sure the game has changed that much since Horan and Herbert/Morty were our first choice pair.

I do not understand why McCabe is promoted as a 12 when his skill set is far more suited to 13. Mind you, Deans is a baffling selector at the best of times.

The idea of AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) at 12 only works if Cooper is at 10 and the cutout pass can be thrown to 13/15. Otherwise the ball will never reach the wingers hands. AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) at 12 is the staffer selection - where 11, 13 & 14 are just there to chase kicks.

 

[Bruce Ross]

I don't think 2012 solved any selection dilemmas....

I don't entirely agree, Slim. What 2012 made very clear was that our principal selection dilemma lies in the selection of the personnel doing the selecting. Even the addition of the towering intellect of Totality Tony had no discernible positive impact on the rationality of decision making.

From this it might be inferred that the Delphic Deans utterances are a true reflection of the clarity of his thought processes.
.

 

[Sully]

McCabe, Horne, Fainga'a and AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) are all road blocks to expansive rugby. If you want to play that style I wouldn't play any of them in the centres. I think Tapuai and O'Connor are our best options

Sent from my ASUS Transformer Pad TF700T using Tapatalk HD

 

[Ruggo]

Would prefer to see how player form works during Super Rugby but I am not opposed to selecting on the basis of combination.

 

[Dave Beat]

McCabe, Horne, Fainga'a and AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) are all road blocks to expansive rugby. If you want to play that style I wouldn't play any of them in the centres. I think Tapuai and O'Connor are our best options

Sent from my ASUS Transformer Pad TF700T using Tapatalk HD

Agree with your suggestion - best options - maybe AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper).
"expansive rugby. If you want to play that style" CHANGE THE COACH, may also open up the game. Fainga'a played in an expansive Reds back line, and AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) has also showed expansive rugy over the years.

 

[Sully]

I disagree. AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) does not play expansive. He is a great runner but he does not straighten the attack, does not fix the outside defenders to free up his outside men and his passing,from the little I have seen, appears poor. His first option is to run himself. That's not expansive rugby.

 

[Brumbieman]

I disagree. AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper) does not play expansive. He is a great runner but he does not straighten the attack, does not fix the outside defenders to free up his outside men and his passing,from the little I have seen, appears poor. His first option is to run himself. That's not expansive rugby.

If those are your requirements for a 13, then Fainga'a is your man. He does it game in, game out for the Reds, and gives all the qualities you mentioned, plus the defence.


If Fainga'a/McCabe really are that bad for a backline, then how the hell have the Reds managed to be arguably the most expansive team in Super rugby for 4 years, with Ant one of the first picked the whole time?

How were the Brumbies able to run the ball from anywhere this year and score a hell of a lot of fantastic tries many of which were scored by the wingers. If McCabe is such an attack vaccum, how could they get the ball?

And yet with Horne and Barnes at 13/10 respectively, the Tahs couldn't have scored a backline try against Afghanistan.

 

[Sully]

It's called a cut out pass.
Fainga'a would be my man but then I would be accused of having a Reds bias. He may not be the best at certain elements but to me he has a little of everything.

 

[ACT Crusader]

On the Bieber talk, the best attack Oz have had for the past 3-4 years IMO was with a back three of Beale/Bieber/Digby. I thought thy were working up a good combination that had the potential to be around for years.

Bieber is good under the high ball and is pretty effective with little room to work with, that's why he's a good winger (or FB). He does love the ball in hands and fancies himself as a "playmaker" though.

 

[Dave Beat]

If Fainga'a/McCabe really are that bad for a backline, then how the hell have the Reds managed to be arguably the most expansive team in Super rugby for 4 years, with Ant one of the first picked the whole time?

How were the Brumbies able to run the ball from anywhere this year and score a hell of a lot of fantastic tries many of which were scored by the wingers. If McCabe is such an attack vaccum, how could they get the ball?

And yet with Horne and Barnes at 13/10 respectively, the Tahs couldn't have scored a backline try against Afghanistan.

Coach = Game plan

 

[Brumbieman]

Exactly. Which is why its kinda pointless arguing which player should be the next picked to be sacrificed to the shit heap because the team as a whole is not sure what is going on.

 

[Brumbieman]

It's called a cut out pass.
Fainga'a would be my man but then I would be accused of having a Reds bias. He may not be the best at certain elements but to me he has a little of everything.

For the doubters, have a look who actually put Davies through here.

And for Morahan's try, check out the very subtle little dummy to commit Cummins, so that Digby got a free run to just shy of the tryline:

The tackle at 3:50 to shut down a dangerous situation and earn us a penalty, put us back in the lead and change the momentum of the game (the boks were all over us at that point).

Saves 7 points at a crucial point of the match, which we went on to win:

2:00 on the video

So he didn't set up/score a try, but he stopped one. That is JUST a valuable as scoring one. We won the 1999 WC on the back of conceding only one try in the whole competition. No one mentions how many tries we scored, they mention the fact we let only one in.


Here there is a perfect example of him just being a link in the chain. Not choking the attack, just a simple receive the ball, draw a man, pass to an outside man very calmly to set up a try.

 

[Brumbieman]

Same again in the Aussie Super Rugby try of the year1min)

 

[Slim 293]

But you're also ignoring his most recent test form.......

Not too good.......

 

[Brumbieman]

But you're also ignoring his most recent test form...

Not too good...

A few random appearances with no chance to settle in, AND outside Barnes, and with Rob the Butcher as his partner?

Come on mate, even you know that Tim Horan would've looked about as useful as a limp dick with those two on his shoulders. Don't take the piss just because he's not in a Brumbies jersey.

Its a crucial point I always make re Ant and McCabe: you have to look at their value as part of the whole. You pair them with players like Lealiifano and Cooper, and then you pick one of the more agile players everyone is banging on about. Its about balance: too many of their mould, and we score no tries. To few, and we let in just as many as we score.

eg

Genia
Cooper
Ioane
Fainga'a
Beiber
Speight/Tomane
Beale

White
Lealiifano
AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper)

...is my backline for the Lions.

*Fainga'a, because he knows Cooper's game inside out, McCabe doesn't, and there is only room for one of them.

 

[Brumby Runner]

Coach = Game plan

And in the Brumbies'case, Lealiifano set the backline alight while he was there, and Smith's contribution at 13 was instrumental in the wingers scoring many of their tries, with his straight running, drawing and passing game.

 

[Paradox]

And in the Brumbies'case, Lealiifano set the backline alight while he was there, and Smith's contribution at 13 was instrumental in the wingers scoring many of their tries, with his straight running, drawing and passing game.

I think Mogg deserves credit here for being able to pick his runs and chime in. Anyway, getting off topic.