Rugby Union. The final chapter.
A view from down under.
Scotland 29 v 20 Japan
Italy 17 v 10 Uruguay
England 27 v 26 South Africa
Wales 29 v 28 Australia
France 40 v 25 New Zealand
Ireland 53 v 7 Argentina
At the start of the Spring tour, I suggested the Southern Hemisphere, (OZ/NZ) might be happy with 4 wins from 7 games. If that was the case, then 2 from 7 should be unacceptable!
New Zealand will have much to contemplate. Successive losses to Ireland and France have raised serious questions about their toughness upfront. France dismantled them upfront and made repeated progress close to the breakdown.
Australia showed pockets of individual and unit quality against Wales, but ill-discipline and poor technique re-surfaced and the final penalty was as certain as winter arrives.
That said, do not write Australia off. The blend is not there yet, but the new young players are playing with increased confidence and demonstrating their skills. Beale remains an enigma, capable of brilliance, a spark that changes a game, and a multi-positional player. Banks at full-back gives you at least 30 meters extra on every touch finder!
In the modern game, you must keep the referee and TMO out of the contest. Television producers can fuel the crowd by re-showing clips on the giant screen, the crowd howl in derision and that invites the officials in.
Some recurring themes……
Blocking a kick chaser is dumb!!
Poor tackle technique is unacceptable!
Flying into a ruck like a scud missile is stupid!
Pretending to wrap your arms in the tackle when you are trying to stop the ball in flight is silly!
Thinking you can talk the referee into changing his decision is arrogant!
“Smart rugby players use their skills effectively.”
Ireland and France both gave New Zealand a lesson in intense continuous play and always going forward. In the 34 minute in Paris the French loosehead, Baille, was the second player to arrive at a kick chase deep into the New Zealand 22. He wanted to be there!
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No need to wait for the young French players to emerge…. they have surfaced!
(France v New Zealand is the opening game of the World cup in 2023)
England conceded over 20 penalties against South Africa and must consider putting Curry back to 7, where he is most effective at the tackle contest. The commentators waxed lyrical about Underhill at one breakdown. Sadly, for them when the producers showed the clip on the big screen, he wasn’t even there!!!
The second-half South African juggernaut almost got home. Missed penalties cost them, but they remain a huge obstacle in knockout rugby.
If you are a betting man, put some money on Freddie Steward being player of the tournament at the next World Cup. He is a threat with or without the ball. His timing into the line is such that he can be used as an effective foil as well as a penetrative runner.
Wales looked very much like a team without leadership. At times they play too deep. Stephen Jones the backs coach had them playing at and through the line, but recently they have slipped back a few meters. Is a key player carrying an injury?
At Murrayfield Scotland failed to put Japan to the sword. More was expected of this performance. Hogg remains the star attraction, but he needs Finn Russell to show more appetite than he did against Japan.
Japan is very well organized and structured under Kiwi coaches Joseph and Brown. Unfortunately, the penetrative pass is not made to a player accelerating onto the ball wideout. Close quarter support showed understanding and the off-load was expected and made.
Japan remains a team desperately in need of a couple of superstars.
Ireland recorded a 53-7 win over Argentina and the saying used to be, “the forwards will win you the game, the backs will decide by how many.”
Not so with Ireland. All 7 tries coming from the forwards!
This is an Ireland squad of some depth. Farrell was forced into late changes with no change to the technical and physical competency of the forwards. Argentina battled hard and met the physicality with their brand of commitment but losing a man to a red card, plus a yellow limited their effectiveness.
Irish supporters can look forward to the 6 Nations with plenty of optimism.
Italy ended a 16-game losing streak with a win over second-tier side Uruguay, who have qualified for the World cup in 2023.
Italy is a newly constructed team, with many young forwards. There is good structure in their forward drive and a willingness to re-align with urgency, not forgetting that you must have enough players at the tackle contest to retain possession!
Uruguay played with enthusiasm and with a rugged set of forwards will contest most games. Over-exuberance may cost them points and limit their attacking potential but it is great to see them performing at the international level.
Mike Penistone
Coaching thought. “Players who look for shortcuts, often start to go downhill.”
Retired
3 年Good wrap Mike. Much is being said here (in Oz) of the Ref’s control of the game (some fair & some ridiculous!) - you can make all sorts of excuses however in the end it’s all about the execution of the game plan. I think the Coach has something now to work with - let’s hope they continue to build from here. Stay safe Mike ! Cheers.