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Showing posts from April, 2021

Coach’s Corner Issue 10: How loose can you be?

Thanks once again to all who either contributed a question, or debated one in this week’s callout. Watching a query as it is refined through discussion can be especially helpful to my responses on Friday. Is it just me or does it appear that our most consistent forwards in terms of total contribution are weighted to Force, Rebels and Brumbies? Waratahs and Reds both seem a bit short of impact? – Noodles Statistically, who are the most effective loose forwards in Super Rugby AU and Super Rugby Aotearoa? – KiwiHaydn What do you think of the role of playing flankers or number eight in the second row? Last week Rob Leota, Angus Scott-Young and Hugh Sinclair were all in the second row. These players are generally around 190cms. Do you see this working in international rugby? – Take the Points These questions are all related to one another, directly or indirectly. As the game gets faster and the ball-in-play time increases, one of the spots coaches tend to look at for an increase in o
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Super Rugby tipping panel week 11: Finals time and more blues for the Blues

Yes, finals time has arrived in Australia, but there’s one more chance to see the Blues fall short in New Zealand, which will entertain Brett and anyone else who’s had it in for them for years. The form teams either side of the Tasman might just be the Chiefs and Force, which seems like a crazy thing to be saying after the positions both teams found themselves in just a month ago. But no-one else can match their current three-game winning streaks. The Force have, well… *forced* their way into the AU finals, while the Chiefs are already locked in for the NZ decider. And this is the best part for you anti-Blues types: the Chiefs are five points clear of the Blues, and the two sides meet on Saturday. A bonus point win would draw the Blues level on competition points, and a win would certainly give them a better for-and-against record. BUT! The Chiefs would still have one more win – and with NZR employing the same tie-breaking method SANZAAR employed for Super Rugby (number of wins, th
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Wise old heads prevail as the Force awakens

I hate to say I told you so, but this is how I summarised the Western Force’s Super Rugby 2021 prospects last December: “The Force should certainly be strong enough to win at least 50 per cent of their games in 2021, and that may be enough to slingshot them into local play-off contention.” That comment formed part of an article which suggested the addition of ex-Reds second row Izack Rodda as part of the Force’s ongoing trawl for new talent. “From this point of view, the best Christmas gift Sampson could receive would be the news that Izack Rodda wants to return to Australia – more precisely, to Western Australia.” Rodda duly signed with the Force in March. There is no doubt whatsoever that the quality of the recruitment drive in Western Australia has surpassed all of its peers in the country, despite the loss of ace Argentine hooker Julián Montoya to the Leicester Tigers on the eve of the tournament. The Force badly needed to find some speed and finishing ability in the back th
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Get your questions in for Issue 10 of Coach’s Corner

The weekend of rugby is over, so you know what that means: it’s time to get in some questions for this week’s instalment of Coach’s Corner. If you haven’t come across the column yet, it’s the weekly article where, each Friday, our resident rugby analyst Nick Bishop answers your queries about what’s happening on the field. Miss the latest issue of Coach’s Corner? Don’t worry, you can catch up right here! The last round before the Super Rugby AU finals served up plenty of drama, with the Force snatching a famous win against the previously undefeated Reds to book their place in the post-season and the Rebels finishing their season on a high by beating the winless Tahs. Over in New Zealand, Damian McKenzie came to the fore with yet another clutch, game-winning kick, before the Crusaders booked a home final by comfortably dealing with the Blues. That leaves a qualifying final in Canberra between the Brumbies and Force this weekend, while the Saders will put their feet up during Round 1
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The Wrap: How to fix Super Rugby? Leave it alone

The Anzac Day round is always one filled with poignancy, and despite a young bugle boy struggling to hit the right notes in Christchurch, there were moving ceremonies held at all four matches across the weekend. The only shame was that we weren’t blessed with a trans-Tasman match up; a situation that, depending on how events play out, will be rectified for next year’s round. Not that anyone in Perth cared a jot, with the Force upsetting the previously unbeaten Reds, 30-27 to storm into the preliminary final next week, against the Brumbies. Reds’ captain Liam Wright said straight after his side’s loss that “the Force deserve a lot of respect”, and he was clearly telling the truth. Any side, under the pressure of playing for its first ever finals spot, seemingly down and out midway through the first half, having to battle through thirty minutes with 14 men, that is able to come back and score the winning try in the final minutes, is made of special stuff. But the question that shoul
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Matt Toomua urges the Rebels not to sack Dave Wessels

Melbourne captain Matt To’omua says sacking coach Dave Wessels after the Rebels failed to make the Super Rugby AU finals isn’t the solution to the club’s woes. Wessels has mounted a passionate defence for Melbourne’s failure to reach the Super Rugby AU finals and boldly declared the Rebels can win the trans-Tasman version of the competition. The Rebels ultimately missed the three-team playoff series by one competition point after beating the winless NSW Waratahs 36-25 in Saturday night’s ‘dead rubber’ in Sydney. Wessels rued four last-minute losses and pointed out that the Rebels played almost the entire eight-round competition without up to a dozen leading players, including Wallabies stars Reece Hodge, skipper Dane Haylett-Petty and Isi Naisarani. “We lost four games on the last kick of the game after the hooter,” Wessels said. “We could be sitting here with a totally different story. “We’ve also gone through the season without nine or ten of our most experienced players. “So
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Women's Six Nations: England show winning character but need plan B for World Cup

Head coach Simon Middleton hails his England side after they win a bruising encounter against France to claim a third successive Women's Six Nations. Original source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/56871396 https://therugbystore.com.au/womens-six-nations-england-show-winning-character-but-need-plan-b-for-world-cup/
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Women's Six Nations final, England v France: Poppy Cleall to start in place of Sarah Hunter

Poppy Cleall will start at number eight for England's Women's Six Nations final against France on Saturday, pushing captain Sarah Hunter to the bench. Original source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/56842952 https://therugbystore.com.au/womens-six-nations-final-england-v-france-poppy-cleall-to-start-in-place-of-sarah-hunter/
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British and Irish Lions: Maro Itoje backed by Sam Warburton to captain 2021 side

England's Maro Itoje is backed to lead the British and Irish Lions against South Africa this summer by the man who captained the last two tours. Original source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/56832630 https://therugbystore.com.au/british-and-irish-lions-maro-itoje-backed-by-sam-warburton-to-captain-2021-side/
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What South America can learn from Super Rugby

In 2015 Los Jaguares were the first professional Argentinian club team to join Super Rugby. In their four short years they experienced a meteoric rise from 13th in their inaugural season to runners-up in their last. They were popular among fans and were welcomed by all. In 2020 the fans could only watch as COVID-19 hammered the final nail into the Super Rugby coffin. Los Jaguares, lost and without an invite from the other SANZAAR nations, found themselves playing in the Super Liga Americana de Rugby (SLAR), replacing the Ceibos from Cordoba. The South American competition ensures Los Jaguares are no longer the sole professional team on the continent. Los Jaguares now find themselves competing with the Cafeteros Pros from Colombia, the Cobras from Brazil, Olimpia Lions from Paraguay, Penarol in Uruguay and Selknam from Chile. The competition is the child of Sudamerica Rugby, which is hoping to expand and grow the game while giving the athletes a chance to become professionals in thei
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Ten out of tens: What will Super Rugby Trans-Tasman deliver?

It is an exciting time for rugby in New Zealand and Australia. A brand spanking new Trans-Tasman competition kicks off on May 14, with a quarantine-free air bridge underwriting it. That marks the beginning of a new era of co-operation between the two countries. All the politicking and backbiting shed by the collapse of the old Super Rugby now seems to be just a dim memory, if the idyllic pictures of New Zealand Rugby CEO Mark Robinson and then-RA interim boss Rob Clarke walking together on Manly beach last November are to be believed. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images) Super Rugby Trans-Tasman not only fills a yawning gap in the rugby calendars of both nations, it looks to offer a solid foundation for the future of the Antipodean game in the tier between provincial and Test rugby. The recent announcement of the inclusion of two Pasifika teams in 2022 reinforces the sense that, at long last, something real and sustainable is happening in the administration of the game in the s
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Why have SANZAAR remained silent on 2022 Super Rugby plans?

Though the two-way travel bubble is now officially open between Australia and New Zealand, we’re still a few weeks away from Super Rugby Trans-Tasman beginning in earnest, and to some extent this competition remains firmly in the ‘I’ll believe it when I see them running out” category. Even just four weeks out from the first round of the competition, it feels like the prefix ‘proposed’ is still required. There are far fewer reasons for it not to go ahead now, yet it still feels like it wouldn’t take much for it to be quickly to swept into the too-hard basket. As we know, the proposed Super Round, originally pencilled in for Round 3 of the cross-over competition, already resides in said basket, after the game simply ran out of time to get such a mammoth event up. But despite the fluidity that still sits around what professional rugby on either side of the Tasman looks like in just a month’s time, plans for next year are surging ahead regardless. New Zealand Rugby took great delight
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TJ Perenara: Why he will make it in the NRL – and why he won’t

TJ Perenara has hit the news recently with his potential move from rugby union to the Sydney Roosters in the NRL. While a fantastic halfback in union, he has somewhat become surplus to requirements for the All Blacks with incumbent Aaron Smith getting the regular start over him and newcomer Folau Fakatava making his way through the ranks. This has left TJ at a crossroads in his career. Currently in Japan, playing for the Red Hurricanes on sabbatical. He had intended to return to New Zealand to take up a new contract with the Hurricanes and All Blacks and continue to push Aaron Smith for starting halfback honours. However, his plans seem to have come awry with the form of Smith and Fakatava, leading many to believe he may be on the outside looking in and publicly stating whether New Zealand Rugby should invest the money in a player who while not over the hill, is coming into the twilight of his career. Jumping all over this turmoil, the Sydney Roosters have reportedly made an offer
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