Autumn Nations Series 2022: Wales v Australia

With World Rugby’s Test window officially over, Wales faced off against Australia in Cardiff for the final round of the series with both teams missing their English- and French-based talent, while injuries were leaving the Australian ranks especially depleted, but a strong first scrum allowed Ben Donaldson to open the scoring with an early penalty after Wales failed to secure the kickoff. It was the Welsh who scored the first try though; Tomow Williams crabbing off the back of a ruck to draw 2 tacklers and offloading to put Alun Wyn Jones through and into the 22, and the experienced lock fed Jac Morgan to power his way over for another try, having scored a brace last week against Georgia. Donaldson and Anscombe traded penalties as both teams tried to take control of the game, and as the game entered the second quarter, Wales managed to play the ball through the hands to put Taulupe Faletau over in the corner, Anscombe’s touchline conversion and another penalty soon after making it a 14-point lead. Australia finally made a chance of note, but Jed Holloway’s charge for the line was stopped by a fine tackle from Josh Adams, who had been promoted to the starting XV following a late injury to Leigh Halfpenny. Australia were finally managing to spend some time in the Welsh half though, and with the pressure, chances were starting to be created, only for loose handling skills to bring the attacks to a disappointing end, but they finally made their way over the line after a Welsh penalty allowed them to set up a driving maul from a 5m lineout to send Folau Fainga’a over for the try, Donaldson adding the extras. There was time for a Welsh response before the break though, and when Rio Dyer’s break was stopped just short of the line, Jake Gordon was sent to the bin for cynically impeding replacement scrum half Kieran Hardy as he tried to play the ball away. Wales looked to take advantage of the extra man by going for the scrum, but the Wallabies defence just managed to hold Hardy up over the line to end the half with the score at 20-13.

The second half started with Reece Hodge hitting the upright with a penalty from inside his own half, and they were unable to take advantage of the possession as a collapsed scrum saw replacement prop Tom Robertson—on at the break for captain James Slipper—sent to the bin as the Wallabies were already on a warning for scrum offences from the first half. With Gordon still in the bin for a couple of minutes, the Welsh took advantage of the extra 2 men to kick to the corner and drive Morgan over for his 2ⁿᵈ try of the game. And they were just inches away from scoring again as Anscombe’s cross-kick was just a little too long for Alex Cuthbert as they took advantage of playing 15v14. However with a penalty advantage, it was just a momentary delay, and a kick to the corner saw the Welsh keep the pressure on and eventually create the overlap to put Dyer over in the corner. Wales were dealt a blow as Gareth Anscombe suffered an injury as he attempted to tackle Ned Hanigan, with Rhys Priestland coming on in his place, and his first duty was to take the ball over his own line under pressure as his team failed to deal with a high ball from Tom Wright. Back to 15 men, the Wallabies, who had brought on a number of replacements, suddenly looked confident, and Mark Nawaqanitawase forced himself over in the corner, though replacement fly half Noah Lolesio was unable to land the conversion from the left touchline. As the game entered the final 15 minutes, replacement Pete Samu read the pass of Rhys Priestland to intercept it, and though he had 70m ahead of him, the way was clear, but for the outstretched leg of Justin Tipuric, who was sent to the bin for his trip. And the visitors immediately took advantage, kicking to the corner and running a clever move off the lineout to send Nawaqanitawase powering over for his second try of the game, Lolesio cutting the deficit to single figures with the conversion. The momentum was firmly shifted the way of the visitors, and with 7 minutes remaining, Ryan Elias collapsed a maul on its way to the line to give Australia a penalty try and 2-man advantage. And with just 2 minutes remaining, Nawaqanitawase carried the ball up to the Welsh 22, and as the ball was spread wide, Kieran Hardy failed to keep hold of his attempted intercept of Len Ikitau’s pass, and replacement hooker Ryan Lonergan picked up the loose ball to go over and give Australia the lead. With 1 minute left, Tipuric was back on for Wales, and when Australian latchers went off their feet at what would have been the last ruck, Wales had 1 more chance. Priestland didn’t help his pack with a kick that should have gone to the corner only just making the 22, and as the 14 men went through the phases, Lonergan managed to turn the ball over and kick it out for a 34-39 victory.

Hard yards

It’s been a poor Autumn for Wales, but one bright spark has been the form of Jac Morgan. 22-year-old Ospreys back row was one of the few bright sparks with his 2 tries against Georgia (having had a third disallowed), and if anything, he looked even better this week.

One thing that the Welsh pack has consistently lacked in recent years is carrying options in the pack. Players who can consistently take hold of the ball and make the hard metres to put the attack on the front foot. Well Morgan—previously left out of Welsh squads as he lacked the carrying ability Wayne Pivac wanted—was providing exactly that, consistently making metres not just in space, but in and through contact, so it’s no surprise that, with an attacking fly half controlling the game, the Welsh attack was able to get going in a way we have not really seen recently.

Going forwards Morgan needs to be makingthat 6 shirt his own, but Pivac’s made a habit of being consistently inconsistent in his back row selections. Morgan needs to make sure that his form stays at least at this level to ensure Pivac has no excuse to drop him.

Running on fumes

Despite the win, this was another bad performance for Australia, but can anyone really be surprised. The Wallabies were playing for their 5ᵗʰ consecutive week, in a month where World Rugby’s Test window lasted 3 weeks. 5 Tests in 5 weeks is hard enough at the best of times, but to come so soon after the Rugby Championship just makes it even more of a burden on the players.

So is it any surprise to see that the team just ran out of gas as these tests went on? They were playing too much rugby in too short a time, with things being made even worse as the team suffered injury after injury. And these 2 things combined to leave the Wallabies playing with a XV made up of players who are on the ultimate fringe of the squad and players who have played too much rugby and are running on fumes.

And if there are 2 things that will kill a team’s chances in the game, its exhaustion and a lack of familiarity with your teammates, as both will create and accentuate gaps in the defensive line, while also leading to unforced errors in attack.

Whose idea was it to play so much rugby, and why? Because it certainly doesn’t feel like the players’ wellbeing was of foremost thought, and it has left the team in the ultimate slump less that a year out from the World Cup.

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Autumn Nations Series 2022: Italy v Australia

The second weekend jam-packed with Autumn Nations Series action kicked off in Florence as Italy hosted Australia. The Azurri were coming into the match off the back of a big win against Samoa, but were forced into a late change as Paolo Garbisi was ruled out with a hip injury, with Tommaso Allan taking over at fly half, and it took just 86 seconds for hi to open the scoring with a penalty after the Wallabies failed to secure the kickoff. Australia were fielding a highly-changed side from their last-gasp loss in France, and after a clever lineout move saw Will Skelton carry hard up to the line, Italy held out over a series of phases at the expense of an easy penalty for Noah Lolesio to even the scores. Allan missed his next kick at goal, but Italy just looked to keep coming each time they got the ball, and when Monty Ioane released Allan down the wing, the fly half was illegally impeded by Jake Gordon as he chipped on, resulting in a yellow card for the scrum half and a kick to the corner for the Azzurri, and as they looked to go wide, Tom Wright just managed to cover Ange Capuozzo’s grubber to the corner before the arrival of Pierre Bruno, though it came at the expense of another 5m lineout, which came infield to create a blind side for Italy to attack, with Luca Morisi’s looped pass sending Bruno over in the corner. And when Will Skelton was turned over just as the sin bin period was about to expire, Italy burst en masse down their right wing, creating an overlap that sent Capuozzo over for the try, Allan adding both conversions to make it a 14-point powerplay. A high tackle from Federico Ruzza gave Australia possession in the hosts’ 22, and after going through the hard phases, Lolesio’s wide pass allowed Tom Wright to dive over in the corner. As the clock ticked down on the half, both teams continued trying to go at each other, but both defences held firm and the teams went in at the break with Italy leading 17-8.

The Wallabies started the second half carrying more directly, and when Fraser McReight went over for the try, Lolesio was able to cut the deficit to 2 points with his conversion, while Allan soon struck back with a penalty of his own, while missing his next attempt. But just after the hour, a clever backs move after a lineout deep in Australian territory saw Capuozzo sent over for his second try of the game and a 10-point lead. A handling error at an Italian lineout saw Taniela Tupou turn the ball over, and he and Ned Hanigan sent replacement prop Tom Robertson over in the corner just moments after he inexplicably escaped a yellow card for a late hit on Tommaso Allan—which ended the Italian’s game—and Lolesio’s conversion brought the visitors back within 3 points with 10 minutes remaining. A high tackle from Darcy Swain allowed Allan’s replacement Edoardo Padovani a chance to extend the lead off the tee, but his kick from the 10m line fell well short, however his next kick from closer in with 5 minutes left was struck much better to stretch the lead to 6. The Azzurri were minutes away from making history, but there was time for one more Australian attack, and when Cadeyrn Neville forced his way over out wide on the final play, it all came down to the conversion. Ben Donaldson had only just come on for his debut 5 minutes earlier and now had the chance to save his nations’ blushes, but with all eyes on him, the young Waratahs fly half pushed a tricky kick wide of the far post, leaving the Azzurri to celebrate their first ever victory over the Wallabies, by a score of 28-27.

Onwards and upwards

This is another huge result for Italy and a statement to the rugby community. After ending a long run of losses to Tier 1 nations with victory in Wales at the end of the Six Nations, to now back that up with another Tier 1 scalp inthe summer shows just how far this team has come.

But it is so much more than that. This team performance was miles on from even the start of the 2022 Six Nations. This is a team that was not just dogged in defence, but also dangerous in attack, with big carriers in the pack like Lorenzo Cannone, who was a standout today, a balanced midfield in Morisi and Brex and a back 3 that had a great blend of pace, power and elusiveness. And then you must remember that this team was even missing its first choice fly half in Paolo Garbisi and also Jake Polledri, who continues his return from long-term injury. Even in the very recent past, the team lacked depth, but now it is truly starting to become apparent, and that is a testament to the rebuild Conor O’Shea started during his time in charge.

And now they have the personnel, they can go further. Their attack is not just passing down the line and hoping they can find space ot wide, or hitting one-up runners. This is a team that is creating shape and misdirection with their attacking in line with any Test team.

Granted both this and the Wales win were against weakened suads, but in both cases, it has still been a group of players who are in and around the wider squad on a regular basis, while even these teams would have been putting 50+ points on the Azzurri a few years ago. Now teams have to look at fielding their first string teams, and I don’t think it will be long until we see the Azurri beating one of those.

Consistently inconsistent

This is a dark day for Australia. Yes they may have put out a highly-changed squad, but the majority of these players will be pushing for a spot in the World Cup squad. And yet for much of the game they struggled to create anything of note and were generally outplayed by the hosts. This team should have been strong enough to beat Italy, instead it is just another example of an embarrassing defeat, which completely wipes out last week’s great performance against France.

But what was even worse was the stupid penalties. Jake Gordon’s yellow card was costly and unnecessary, and the final 10 minutes would not have been so close had Robertson been rightly sin binned for his cheap shot on Tommaso Allan, while a number of other players were also penalised for tackle offences.

To me, this suggests that the main issue is with the coaching. With Wales, Fiji and an improving Georgia in their pool, can they afford to continue with these inconsistent performances under Dave Rennie, or do they need to look to move on at head coach and hope that a late change has the same inspired affect that it did when Michael Cheika was brought in as head coach in October 2014, going on to reach the Rugby World Cup final a year later.

Autumn Nations Series 2022: France v Australia

A day full of rugby came to an end with Australia continued their Autumn Nations Series campaign with a trip to France. The Wallabies could consider themselves lucky to have won last weekend against Scotland, but were fully deserving of their early lead after Taniela Tupou won a penalty at the scrum, which Bernard Foley kicked. However, the hosts were soon level after the Wallabies failed to release Antoine Dupont in the tackle, allowing Thomas Ramos an early kick from distance, while a Grégory Alldritt jackal allowed Ramos to kick them into the lead from halfway just minutes later. Foley soon levelled the scores offt he tee after Uini Atonio tackled Michael Hooper off the ball, while the fly hal successfully covered a Ramos kick to the corner moments later at the expense of a 5m lineout. And though the French pack were unable to maul it over, the team went through the phases before Charles Ollivon forced his way over on 15 minutes, only for it to be judged a double movement. Foley’s clearing penalty failed to find touch and the French were back on the attack, but when the bounce of Dupont’s chip just evaded the chasing Ramos, Australia recovered it and countered down their left wing for Len Lalakai Foketi to score. As the visitors began to take control, Foley missed a penalty, while Foketi was forced to leave the field with an injury, Hunter Paisami taking his place. As Les Bleus grew back into the game, Ramos added another 6 points off the tee, and they took the lead on the stroke of half time. The ball went to ground as Australia tried playing it though their backs, and when Fickou kicked the ball on, Andrew Kellaway managed to cover it, only for Dupont to drive him back to his own try line in the tackle, before the next men in cleared over him to turn the ball over, allowing Julien Marchand to cross from close range, with Ramos’ conversion giving them a 19-13 lead at the break.

Foley was able to quickly cut the deficit to 3 after the break as the French defence advanced too soon at a lineout, but an error off the restart gifted Les Bleus possession on the edge of their 22, and as the front row’s carries began to make ground, Rob Valentini’s high tackle allowed Ramos to kick 3 points of his own, though his next kick from halfway drifted wide. As the substitutes began to make an entrance, a wide move directly following a driving maul saw Jock Campbell go over for his first Test try just before the hour, with Foley’s conversion giving his side a 1-point lead. A penalty for Dany Priso going off his feet allowed Foley to stretch the lead to 4. However the French were straight back on the attack and when Jonathan Danty was taken out off the ball, the hosts chose to go to the corner, but as Alldritt tried to offload close to the line, the ball went loose and the visitors earned a penalty to clear their lines with 10 minutes left. Ramos soon cut the lead back to 1 with a penalty, while Australia replaced Bernard Foley with the big boot of Reece Hodge, and one of his first actions was to kick the lead back out to 4 points with 5 minutes remaining. France were straight back on the attack, and after making a break down the left, replacement fly half Matthieu Jalibert floated a wide pass to Damian Penaud just phases later, and the French wing somehow manager to beat Tow Wright to go over in the corner and give Les Bleus the narrowest of leads as Ramos’ conversion drifted wide. With just seconds left, Australia turned the ball over just inside their own half, but the French defence held firm and a jackal from Danty earned the hosts a penalty, securing a 30-29 victory, a record 11ᵗʰ in a row for them.

Restarting

How often do we see it in rugby: a team scores and then immediately maks some error either securing the restart or with their exit play, often resulting in them quickly conceding themselves.

Well for the French, the restarts will likely be a huge focus during the week as they repeatedly struggled to secure the ball, continually putting themselves under pressure. It doesn’t matter how good your defence is, if you are continually gifting the opposition possession in and around your 22, then you’re putting yourself under pressure and will likely concede points.

This is a fairly settled team, with just a few changes to the usual starting XV, so it is a little shocking to see them struggling so much. But with someone as meticulous and disciplined as Shaun Edwards, you can guarantee that they will be looking to sort this out ahead of next weekend. Because you can guarantee that next weekend’s opponents South Africa will have picked up on this and will likely be putting extra pressure on at the restarts to try and win them back.

Kicks covered

Whether intended or not, Australia’s back 3 selection for this game may have helped them nullify the French kicking game for the most part. With usual starter Marika Koroibete unavailable for this series, the Australian coaches chose to go for a back 3 of Tom Wright and Andrew Kellaway on the wings, with impressive youngster Jock Campbell at 15. Notably, this means that all 3 of them had experience playing at fullback.

Now while France may be better known for their exciting rugby, that is usually reserved these days for possession inside the final third of the pitch. The rest of the time, they will usually go through a couple of phases to create a platform, before kicking downfield, allowing their now-reliable defence to put the opposition under pressure. All well and good, until they find themselves playing against a back 3 who are all comfortable cover the kicks for territory and then replying with a territorial kick of their own.

Suddenly, that territory advantage is disappearing and, if anything, with Foley and White also there to control the territory game, the Wallabies are doing this better than the hosts. Suddenly without that control of territory, France were having to play from deeper with ball in hand, and though they still had some success with this, it was also playing at much greater risk.

Autumn Nations Series 2022: Scotland v Australia

The Test window may not start until next weekend, but Scotland chose to kick off their Autumn Nations Series a week early with the visit of Australia. The Wallabies were welcoming back their talismanic openside Michael Hooper to the squad—though James Slipper retained the captaincy—and though the visitors appeared to have the upper hand early on, Scottish jackalling provided some crucial turnovers. However when a scrum penalty allowed the Scots to kick themselves up to just outside the Australian 22, they took advantage of their first real attacking opportunity, with some well-timed passes from Sione Tuipulotu and Blair Kinghorn unleashing fullback Ollie Smith to step 2 defenders to go over for the opening try. A Bernard Foley penalty quickly cut the deficit as he continued his return to Test rugby, but the Scottish defence and some poor control at the breakdown kept the attack in check, and when the Scots found themselves down the other end the should have made it 2tries from 2 attacks, only for Tuipulotu to fumble the wide pass with the corner at his mercy. However, a penalty gave the hosts another bite at the apple and they laid siege on the try line, only for early replacement Glen Young to find himself held up over the line. A trio of penalties in quick succession saw Scotland go from attacking the Australian 22 to defending a lineout 5m from their line, but the defence held strong and another great jackal allowed them to win back the ball and clear their lines. As the clock ticked down at the end of the first half, a failure to roll away from Dave Cherry allowed Foley to en the half with a kick at goal, which he successfully hit to put the Wallabies ahead 5-6 at the break.

The second half could not have started much better for Scotland: Foley saw the ball slip out of his hands as he tried to pass wide in a strike move, and Blair Kinghorn was able to hack it on and win the footrace to score his team’s second try, while also kicking the conversion to make it 12-6. As the visitors struggled with their discipline early in the half, the Scots were going to the corner with their penalties but failing to get the results they wanted as the Wallabies dealt with the driving maul, with Taniela Tupou winning 2 penalties in his first 10 minutes in the pitch to end 2 attacks. after a third 5m lineout maul was immediately stopped in the second half, Scotland chose to call for the tee with the next penalty and Blair Kinghorn added the 3 points to start pulling away on the scoreboard. The home team were taking over the game, and when Duhan van der Merwe beat Andrew Kellaway to Ali Price’s box kick, he broke down the wing and was stopped just short by Bernard Foley and Tate McDermott, who was then the victim of a dangerous clear-out by Glen Young, who was sent to the sin bin, with referee Luke Pearce judging that the contact being made by his bicep reduced the danger compared to contact with the shoulder. With the extra man for 10 minutes, Australia started looking for gaps and found a dangerous grubber into the in-goal well covered by van der Merwe, but the extra man and increased speed of ball with the arrival of Nic White soon made a difference as they forced an overlap to send skipper Slipper over just after the hour. An error from Tom Banks trying to take a Blair Kinghorn kick above his head in the swirling winds of Murrayfield gifted the hosts a lineout in the 22, however after setting a platform, the wide ball to captain Jamie Ritchie was just a little too high for the flanker, who was probably left wishing that he had hugged the touchline rather than coming some distance infield. Meanwhile just minutes later, an awful penalty kick to the corner from Foley was let off as van der Merwe and Smith failed to communicate and allowed the ball to bounce in between them and into touch, while a penalty off the resulting phase allowed Foley to kick the Wallabies into a 15-16 lead with 9 minutes remaining. With just 2 minutes left in the game, Tupou was penalised for not supporting his weight at the breakdown and Blair Kinghorn stepped up to kick the Scots into what should have been a late lead, only for him to pull the ball left of the posts, and with the clock in the red, the Wallabies made sure that their restart bounced into touch to secure a 15-16 victory.

Making it worse

Except for the try when down a man, Scotland’s defence looked like it had answers for the questions that Australia were posing, while the jackals were a constant menace for the Wallabies. However, Scotland were never able to truly pull away on the scoreboard, and eventually paid the price.

While part of this was down to costly handling errors and an insistence on continuing to kick to the corner (when the opposition was dealing with the 5m lineouts) rather than slowly build up a lead 3 points at a time, the manner of Scottish indiscipline is what really killed them.

Not only did Scotland concede more penalties, but the would also give them away in burst of 2 or 3. What this meant is that almost every time they gave away a penalty, they were then compounding the issue with more penalties, allowing the visitors to first clear their lines, then find an attacking position, then either kick for goal or go for the corner to put heavy pressure on the defence. As good as their defence is, if they keep allowing the opposition to get possession and territory, it is just gifting the opposition the game.

What will be even more disappointing is how many penalties were soft or stupid. Multiple times they were penalised for putting too much pressure on the Wallabies lineout, there was a lazy tackle off the ball by Pierre Schoeman, who had earlier been penalised for jumping into a tackle, and while Grant Gilchrist’s knock on meant that Glen Young’s illegal cleanout did not cost a try, it still allowed the Wallabies to clear their lines with no pressure, rather than having to win the scrum and set up a clearing kick, which would have likely given Scotland the ball around the edge of the 22.

Scotland’s defence should just theoretically get better with the return of Chris Harris next week. But until the team sorts out its discipline, much of this defending will be in vain.

The race for number 10

With a World Cup just a year away, the lack of a clear starter at 10 must be a real worry for the Wallabies. Quade Cooper looked in position to take that role, but injury has left him unavailable at a crucial time. In his absence, Noah Lolesio looked to be the obvious choice, but has struggled to keep hold of the shirt in recent years and has recently found himself playing backup to Bernard Foley.

And that in itself is a worry to me. Foley can be a great talent who can win games—just look at the victory over England at RWC2015—but he also has a long list of questionable performances in the gold shirt. Even tonight, he struggled to create anything of note, while a couple of kicks were horribly mis-hit (though he got away with one thanks to a Scottish mistake) and a handling error during a strike play led to Kinghorn’s try.

At 33, it’s likely that the World Cup will see the end of Foley’s career, and it feels like a match against Scotland would have been the right chance to increase Lolesio’sexperience as a Test starter, especially as he has generally performed well in recent outings for the Wallabies. With 4 games still to come on the tour, Dave Rennie has a big call to make. Does he stick with Foley as the starter, which will likely see Lolesio on the bubble for the World Cup squad (if Cooper is fit) and delay his development? Or does he try to give them both roughly equal playing time, which in turn reduces the time that players can gel as a combination. The selection against France next week will be telling…

2022 Rugby Championship: Team of the Tournament

It’s been a thrilling (and sometimes controversial) couple of months, but the 2022 Rugby Championship is now in the rearview mirror. In one of the closest tournaments to date, arguably the worst performing All Blacks team in years managed to come away with a win that will now surely keep Ian Foster in his job through to the end of the Rugby World Cup (sorry kiwis).

And now all that remains is for me to pick my Team of the Tournament. While I may use some stats to help me decide and sometimes back up my argument, this is largely done of feel from how the games went. I’d love to hear your own selections to, so let me know in the comments! And so without further ado, my Team of the Tournament is…

1) Ethan de Groot: Honestly, I’m shocked at how long Ian Foster stuck with George Bower’s awful defensive performances when de Groot was looking by far the more reliable player, but he was given the start in Round 2 and quickly solidified his place in the team with a series of reliable performances, while also helping to make the New Zealand scrum a formidable weapon.

2) Samisoni Taukei’aho: The decline of Codie Taylor and Dane Coles has been all too clear in 2022, but luckily for the All Blacks, it has coincided with the rise of Taukei’aho. The Chiefs hooker does not have the same pace as those who came before him, but makes up for that with great power and maximum effort around the park, and ended as the tournament’s top try scorer with 5, which helps him just beat out Malcolm Marx for a spot in this team.

3) Tyrel Lomax: Completing and all-New Zealand front row is Tyrel Lomax. Like de Groot on the other side of the scrum, he was given the chance to start in Round 2 and looks to have secured the number 3 shirt with a series of solid performances, making the scruma weapon while also providing a dynamic carrying option in the loose

4 & 5) Eben Etzebeth & Matías Alemanno: One of the most experienced and consistent locks in the world, Etzebeth consistently just goes about his business in both attack and defence and rarely gets the plaudits he deserves. Likewise Alemanno, who is so reliable both in defence and the set piece and does so much good without ever really standing out in highlight reels.

6) Juan Martín González: One of the breakout stars of 2022. The 21-year-old London Irish flanker has secured himself in the Pumas’ first choice back row in place of more recognisable names, and it’s understandable why, as he always seems to be in the right pace at the right time, ending the tournament with 4 tries (beaten only by Taukei’aho) and video footage of a sidestep on Willie le Roux that will be appearing in YouTube compilations for years to come.

7) Fraser McReight: Marcos Kremer is unlucky to miss out on a spot here, but McReight had the unenviable task of coming in at the eleventh hour to take the spot of talismanic captain Michael Hooper, and despite his lack of international experience, he performed with aplomb until being inexplicably dropped for the matches against New Zealand, ending with 3 tries.

8) Ardie Savea: Jasper Wiese is unlucky to miss out on a spot here, but he was playing for a team generally on the front foot, whereas Ardie Savea was often one of the best players on the pitch even when the rest of the New Zealand performance would be described as (to put it nicely) dire. Despite missing Round 5, he still finished joint-1ˢᵗ for carries, 1ˢᵗ for offloads and 2ⁿᵈ among forwards for metres carried.

9) Jaden Hendrikse: Who had Faf de Klerk losing the Springboks 9 jersey to a 22-year-old who started the season with just a handful of caps in their predictions for 2022. Such has been the form of Hendrikse though. Provides quick ball as the Boks try to play a more open game, but also puts in the inch-perfect kicks when South Africa went to their territory game.

10) Richie Mo’unga: Almost wins the spot by default as Santiago Carreras gets used to the position while Australia and South Africa chopped and changed at the position. But that’s not to say Mo’unga played poorly. Controlled games well and his goal kicking kept the scoreboard turning over, while he looked better as the team around him began to improve following Joe Schmidt’s arrival.

11) Marika Koroibete: A consistent performer while the Wallabies’ team performances fluctuate wildly, but still had some performances where he was near-unplayable. His workrate in some games was incredible, but arguably lucky not to be penalised for that try-saver on Makazole Mapimpi.

12) Damian de Allende: Maybe struggled at times with his decision making as the ball went wide on attack, but so reliable with his direct carries and his defence, while also had to take on more responsibility with the loss of midfield partner Lukhanyo Am midway through the tournament and the chopping and changing of players at flyhalf.

13) Len Ikitau: Lukhanyo Am almost earned the spot despite missing half of the tournament, while Matías Moroni’s chances were harmed by Argentina’s inconsistency. However in a Wallabies backline that was constantly changing through injuries, Len Ikitau did a solid job of providing some consistency at a key position.

14) Emiliano Boffelli: Always a danger in the air and arguably not targeted enough in some games, what was most noticeable was how Boffelli’s kicking percentages off the tee were much better as he became the main kicker, leading to him equalling Richie Mo’unga’s points haul a the top of the stats sheet.

15) Jordie Barrett: An argument could certainly be made that his best game came at 12, but was also highly reliable at fullback. Finished the tournament in the top 10 for points scored, offloads, carries, metres carried and defenders beaten.

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2022 Rugby Championship Round 6: New Zealand v Australia

Probably the closest Rugby Championship in a long time reached it’s final week, and it all started aut Eden park, with New Zealand facing Australia. Last week’s controversial victory saw New Zealand enter the weekend at the top of the table courtesy of a 13-point advantage over South Africa in overall points differential, while Australia knew that a bonus point that denied the All Blacks any bonus points would see them go top of the table and hoping Argentina pulled off a shock in South Africa.

But Australia’s job became so much harder just 2 minutes in as Jed Holloway’s cleanout of Dalton Papali’i saw him take the flanker beyond the horizontal, leading to an early yellow card. And the All Blacks were immediately taking advantage of the extra man, with Beauden Barrett—starting at fullback—breaking down the left wing and chipping on, with the pressure forcing Marika Koroibete to carry the ball out over his own dead ball line for an All Blacks 5m scrum, but the Wallabies defended manfully so close to their line and eventually won the turnover penalty after 5 minutes of pressure, allowing them to clear their lines and get back to 15 men. As the game remained a tight, error-strewn affair, the All Blacks finally opened the scoring with a Richie Mo’unga penalty, while the Wallabies were dealt a blow, losing Lalakai Foketi to injury, with Jordan Petaia coming on. And things soon got worse for the men in gold as Will Jordan used his pace to find some space with an arcing run to get outside Petaia and go over for the opening try. The All Blacks were suddenly taking over the game, and a break from Rieko Ioane just a minute later led to an 8ᵗʰ penalty in 25 minutes, though despite the Wallabies being on a team warning, skipper James Slipper somehow avoided a yellow card. However the All Blacks got the drive on from the resulting lineout, and when it went to ground, Andrew Brace awarded a penalty try and sent hooker Dave Porecki to the bin. 1 points down and with a man in the bin, the Wallabies needed something, and a clever move at the front of the lineout released Pete Samu (throwing in due to Porecki’s absence) up to the All Blacks try line, and when the ball came back to the blind side, Koroibete dropped over in the corner, only to find that his foot was in touch. But the Wallabies had a penalty advantage and went for the line again, which saw Harry Wilson stopped just short and the ball held up a phase later. The australian pressure continued, but in their quest for tries not penalties they found themselves turning down kicks at goal but unable to get across the whitewash, and the kicking of Mo’unga and the Barrett brothers continued to find space deep in the backfield to push the visitors back and put the under pressure, so the teams reached the break with the All Blacks leading 17-0.

The Wallabies ay have been back to 15 as the second half kicked off, but they were under immediate pressure, and Sam Whitelock forced his way over the line after just 2 and a half minutes, and despite Angus Bell’s best efforts to dislodge the ball on the way to ground, TMO Ben Whitehouse adjudged that Whitelock had managed to keep control and the try was given. Mo’unga kicked the conversion and a penalty just minutes later to open up a 27-0 lead after just 47 minutes, and this lead was stretched further on 53 minutes as a scrum penalty allowed the All Blacks a lineout 5m from the line, and Codie Taylor was given the easy job of dropping over the line after a strong driving maul. The Walabies finally got on the scoresheet as the hour approached, Mo’unga’s kick partially charged down to Pete Samu, who advanced down the wing, and as he tried to find Folau Fainga’a on his inside, his pass was knocked towards the try line by the despairing hand of Will Jordan, allowing the Wallabies hooker to dive on the loose ball and let his momentum take him over the line. However a series of unforced handling errors from the Wallabies put them under pressure deep in their own 22, and when New Zealand won a penalty, they went to the corner and pushed over replacement hooker Samisoni Taukei’aho for their 5ᵗʰ try of the night, while only the efforts of Koroibete covering back denied the All Blacks a 6ᵗʰ just moments later as Akira Ioane chased his own grubber kick down the wing. The result may have been beyond doubt with 10 minutes remaining, but that was no excuse for TMO Ben Whitehouse choosing to ignore what should have been a red card for Sevu Reece for a tackle on Reece Hodge that led to a head clash, and it was said All Blacks wing who forced a turnover on his own line from Australia’s next attack, with the All Blacks then countering and adding a further 3 points from the boot of Mo’unga. Australia had one last chance to grab a consolation try at the death as they kicked a penalty to the corner, and after 6 phases of pressure, Nic White’s flat miss-pass sent Petaia over beneath the posts as the defence jammed in on Pone Fa’amausili, and Reece Hodge added the conversion for a final score of 40-14.

All that was left for the All Blacks was to wait for South Africa’s match later, with the Springboks now needing a bonus point victory by a margin of at least 40 points in order to deny New Zealand the title.

Inside man

While last week was costly for the All Blacks with the loss of both Quinn Tupaea—who will be out long-term—and David Havili, it may have been a blessing in disguise. While some may have thought this would be the chance for Roger Tuivasa-Sheck to get a start, Ian Foster instead chose to move fullback Jordie Barrett into the 12 shirt, with brother Beauden coming into the team at fullback.

Beauden Barrett is a fantastic player, but not as good a fly half as Mo’unga, and with Jordie Barrett the incumbent at 15 and covering long-range goal-kicking duties, Beauden’s talents were being left to just late cameos.

However as I have covered multiple times before, Jordie is (in the kindest of ways) a freak of nature, as he has the handling, passing and kicking skills to cover playmaking positions, he also has the size and power to carry hard. Havili has frequently been used in the 12 position outside Mou’unga, where he can use his own playmaking and kicking abilities, so Jordie Barrett provides a similar option at this position, but then also added an extra dynamic in the way that he could just run hard into contact himself, while we know that Beauden is more than capable of excelling at 15, allowing him to work his magic while Mo’unga and Jordie Barrett run the game.

With the Autumn Nations Cup coming up, don’t be shocked to see more of Jordie Barrett in this position as New Zealand look to climb back up the rankings.

Their own worst enemy

Australia are their own worst enemy at the moment. They will defend like dogs and hold out when conventional wisdom would suggest they should break, while in attack they can be so incredibly dangerous—especially with this week’s dynamic back row of Rob Valentini, Pete Samu and Harry Wilson—and yet they then ruin everything by giving away a million penalties a game!

OK, so a million may be a slight exaggeration, but it’s not far off. They gave away 8 penalties before they even reached the half hour mark; a top team should be hoping to only just hit double figures in an entire game. And once again they have spent 20 minutes of the match with players off the pitch in the bin, their 7ᵗʰ and 8ᵗʰ yellow cards of the tournament. When you are playing that much rugby a man down, you’re making it all-but impossible to win, while it also can’t help but be in an official’s mind going into a game that this is a team that frequently offends, meaning they will be looking for those offences.

But its so much more than that. Just take it back to a base level. Penalties stop your attacks (Holloway’s overzealous cleanout of Papali’i ended a promising early attack). It gifts your opponent possession, and leaves you having to work harder defending than you would in attack. And it gifts your opponent territory, allowing them to clear their own lines if in trouble, or kick deep into your half if you are in attack.

When you consider how many players Australia are missing at the moment through injury, the fact that they can be so competitive is impressive. However until the Wallabies can improve their discipline, they will struggle to get results consistently going their way.

2022 Rugby Championship Round 5: Australia v New Zealand

Round 5 of the 2022 Rugby Championship kicked off in slightly unusual circumstances on a Thursday in Melbourne with Australia facing off against New Zealand for the first Bledisloe Cup match of the year. The All Blacks came in topping the table after a big victory over Argentina, and took advantage of the Wallabies’ failure to win the kickoff to establish early dominance in the 22, resulting in a driving maul pushing Samisoni Taukei’aho over for the opening try after 3 minutes. Richie Mo’unga, getting a run of games in the starting lineup, kicked the touchline conversion and added a penalty for a breakdown infringement after 10 minutes as ill discipline and handling errors from Australia gifted the All Blacks possession. Australia finally earned some possession and soon kicked a penalty of their own through Bernard Foley, who was appearing for the first time in 3 years, while their next possession in the All Blacks 22 saw them create an overlap to send Andrew Kellaway over in the corner, only for the efforts of Rieko Ioane and Mo’unga to hold the ball up. It was just a temporary delay, though, as Rob Valentini crashed over from short range just minutes later while Dalton Papali’i—on as a replacement for Sam Cane who had suffered a head injury—was sent to the bin for an offence in the build-up. The try and man advantage appeared to spur on the Wallabies, however a series of 15 phases deep in New Zealand territory was ended by a timely jackal from Quinn Tupaea—on early after David Havili suffered a head clash in a friendly fire incident—while the Wallabies also had to bring on Darcy Swain for Rob Leota, who had been attempting to run off an early knock. And the All Blacks immediately made Australia pay for the missed opportunity, with Caleb Clarke breaking from his own 22 into the Australian red one and forcing a cynical penalty from Tom Wright, who was sent to the bin, while Swain joined him just seconds after his introduction for a dangerous cleanout on Tupaea (who left the field with a knee injury), while Papali’i returned to the field to change a 15v14 into a 13v15 situation with 5 minutes left of the first half, which the All Blacks took immediate advantage of to drive Taukei’aho over, only for Jake Gordon to force the ball loose as the hooker tried to ground it, and the home team held on to half time with the scores level at 10-10.

The Wallabies replaced injured captain James Slipper at half time with Scott Sio coming on, but the All Blacks were ahead before the prop had a chance to get involved in the game, with a clever kick downfield and determined chase taking advantage of the extra space in the Australian backfield, while Taukei’aho was not to be denied this time when he got the ball close to the line, while a poor decision to kick from Hoskins Sotutu with plenty of men in support was the only thing that denied the All Blacks scoring on a break from their own 22 with their very next possession. A breakdown penalty won by Lalakai Foketi allowed Foley to cut the lead to 4 as the Wallabies got back to 15 men, but that didn’t last long as Jake Gordon was soon given a yellow card for collapsing a maul. WIth a man advantage and a back line featuring Mo’unga and 2 Barretts, maul was stopped immediately, Mo’unga found a gap outside Foley and held onto the ball through a double tackle as he went to ground to score next to the posts. Just minutes later, Will Jordan beat everyone to a Beauden Barrett chip over the defensive line and swerved around the despairing tackles of the remaining defenders to score under the posts, Mo’unga’s conversion stretching the lead to 13-31. The All Blacks were looking comfortable, until Foley got his arms through a tackle and offloaded to send Kellaway over for a try as they prepared to return to 15 men, which flipped the momentum in favour of the hosts, who struck again with 13 minutes remaining as Foley’ wide pass beat the New Zealand defence and send Kellaway over again, the conversion from Foley bringing the deficit down to just 4 points. Mo’unga kicked a penalty to fight back against the flood of points, but the Wallabies had their tails up, and Pete Samu combined with Marika Koroibete to put the back row over in the corner, while Foley’s conversion drew the scores level with 6 minutes remaining. Rob Valentini won a penalty that Nic White kicked from just inside the All Black half for the unlikeliest of late leads, and when their defence stopped the All Blacks maul 5m from the line and won a penalty with just over a minute remaining, it looked like a momentous comeback victory was on the cards. However referee Mathieu Raynal decided that he had not played a big enough part in the match to this point, and having allowed time wasting from both teams throughout, chose this moment to decide that enough was enough and gave a New Zealand 5m scrum after adjudging that Foley took too long to take his kick to touch, and having been gifted one last chance, Will Jordan sent Jordie Barrett over in the corner for a controversial 37-39 victory.

Dropping like flies

Just one year out from the World Cup, Dave Rennie must be getting very nervous at the number of injuries his squad is picking up. Through both this tournament and the preceding Test series against England, they have found themselves losing a couple of players each game, and rarely just with a knock that would see them back for the next match.

While it does have some benefits by allowing Dave Rennie a chance to test some of his fringe players against strong opposition—just look at Foley’s first cap since the 2019 Rugby World Cup and Pone Fa’aumausili making his debut—the constant chopping and changing of personnel is stopping the team from getting any consistency in selection and creation of units. And as good as all these players are, they need to be playing together regularly to build up the chemistry and trust between each other—you just have to look at the former New Zealand back row of Kaino, McCaw and Read or centre pair of Nonu and Smith to see just how chemistry can take players from very good to great.

But what is causing so many injuries? Are they working to hard in training, leaving muscles at risk? Or are they just going through a string of really bad luck, as you sa with injuries to players like Banks and Perese? Whatever the case, with limited matches remaining between now and the Rugby World Cup, Dave Rennie needs to hope the injuries end soon so that his ideal 23 can get used to working together. In a pool that contains Fiji, Wales and a Georgian team that should never be written off, that chemistry and familiarity could be the difference between topping the pool and an early exit.

Scraping through

While it may be a win for the All Blacks, it’s a very odd one to look back on. While they had moments of genuine quality, many of these came when they were playing with a numerical advantage, while the playmaking trio of Mo’unga and the Barretts was enforced through injury rather than a brilliant tactical decision from Foster. But more telling was just how many breaks or half-breaks came to disappointing ends due to either handling errors or wrong decisions, most notably when Hoskins Sotutu chose to kick with teammates supporting on either side.

But equally worrying is just how easy Australia found it to hit back after periods of All Black dominance. We’re not used to seeing New Zealand take their boot off their opponent’s neck once they get on top, and you would usually expect that a couple of quick tries to build up a 13-31 lead just after the hour would be a spot from which New Zealand would go on to win comfortably rather that the prompt for a fightback from an Australian lineup who are not used to playing together. If recent matches are anything to go by, New Zealand will be better in round 6 after a match of sizing up their opponents. But if they do win he final fixture, then a 3-game winning streak will be hiding plenty of deficiencies still very present within this team.

2022 Rugby Championship Round 4: Australia v South Africa

Week 4 of the Rugby Championship continued with the first ever match at the new Allianz Stadium in Sydney as Australia hosted South Africa. The World Champions, coming in on a shock 2-game losing streak, made a number of changes to their squad for this match and were immediately on the front foot, putting heavy pressure on in defence and looking dangerous in attack. And so it was no surprise to see the Springboks open the scoring, after phases of pressure in the 22 from the forwards drew the defence in tight, leaving space for Eben Etzebeth to spin in contact and offload to Damian de Allende to go over beneath the posts, while Matt Philip was also sent to the bin for not retreating 10m at a penalty in the build-up. The South African dominance continued as the half went on, but wet conditions led to a series of handling errors that brought their chances to an end, while Australia were forced into a reshuffle of their back line as Hunter Paisami went off just before the half hour with a head injury, Andrew Kellaway coming on at 13 while Len Ikitau moved to 12. The Wallabies grew into the game though and Noah Lolesio put them on the scoreboard with 8 minutes left of the half with his first kick at goal. However the Springboks got the last laugh before the break as Canan Moodie outjumped Marika Koroibete to beat him to Jaden Hendrikse’s box kick before running in uncontested to score on his Test debut and give the Springboks a 3-12 lead at the break.

The second half began much like the first, with incredible pressure from the Springboks leading to an early try as Willie le Roux sent Franco Mostert over in the corner, while the Wallabies were dealt a blow as replacement Taniela Tupou suffered an injury when warming up and Noah Lolesio left the pitch, forcing another reshuffle that saw replacement scrum half Jake Gordon come on to play on the wing. The Wallabies put together a patch of dominance which ended as Allan Ala’alatoa was penalised for a clean-out direct to the head of Damian de Allende, and the South Africans put the pressure straight back on, winning a series of penalties that saw de Allende held up over the line, but with 10 minutes remaining, the ball was spread wide for Willie le Roux to send Makazole Mapimpi in the corner for a try, with the wing also being sent to the bin after his reaction sparked a coming together between both teams. With a man advantage, Australia went over for a consolation try with just minutes left, while le Roux was sent to the bin for a deliberate knock-on in the build-up, but there was no further time for the Wallabies to fight back and the game ended in an 8-24 victory for the World Champions.

The right trio?

Have Australia got the right trio in the back row? They look like they had found a reliable trio in Rob Leota, Michael Hooper and Rob Valentini, but with Hooper pulling out, and the decision to bring in Jed Holloway in place of Leota, that balance is having to be found all over again.

McReight is certainly doing his best to replace Hooper, but those are big boots to fill for a player so inexperienced at this level, and while Holloway is surely doing plenty of work that goes unseen, he des not appear to be getting as involved as Leota used to.

For me, McReight needs to stay in as a specialist 7, but I would argue that Holloway be replaced, either by Leota or my preferred choice Pete Samu: Capable of playing across the back row, he brings power, dynamism and is also good for a couple of turnovers per game. Adding him gives the Wallabies another genuine weapon in attack, while the Wallabies could also draw up a couple of plays off scrums that see Samu and Valentini swap positions.

Dominant

After 2 losses in a row, South Africa needed a reaction. Well the certainly got one in this match. Right from the kickoff, this looked like a team that were looking to ensure that they not only won, but dominated their opposition.

Siya Kolisi played like a man possessed, absolutely dominating the breakdown, while usual replacements Malcolm Marx and Steven Kitshoff were running hard with ball in hand and doing everything they could to disrupt the Australian breakdown. Jasper Wiese carried hard and in my view should now be the first choice number 8 , likewise Hendrikse at 9 who remains a handful and kicks so effectively. De Allende varied his play at 12—though I would argue he still put in too many questionable kicks—while Willie le Roux did his usual job of calming things down and keeping things in order in the back line. And lets also take a moment to mention Canan Moodie, who made his debut and arguably outplayed one of Australia’s most consistently dangerous players in Marika Koroibete!

They put the pressure on the Wallabies and never really let off, never giving them a chance to properly get their own attacking play going , while still also using the kicking game to keep them in their own half. Was it a perfect performance? No, but it’s a timely reminder that playing with desire, aggression and intensity—as long as it’s correctly channeled—is important if you want to win in Test rugby.

2022 Rugby Championship Round 3: New Zealand v Argentina

With the first match in Adelaide out of the way, eyes turned to Canterbury, where the All Blacks were hosting Argentina. New Zealand chose to stick with the same starting XV (and all-but one of the bench) as their last match for the first time in forever, but after an early missed penalty from Richie Mo’unga, Emiliano Boffelli had more success with his own first attempt. Despite good field position, Mo’unga kicked the next penalty to the corner, but it proved to be the right decision as the All Blacks maul ushered Samisoni Taukei’aho over for the opening try and a 5-3 lead. The Pumas struck back though with a series of phases of quick ball drawing the New Zealand defence offside, allowing Boffelli to kick them back into the lead. As the half hour mark approached, the Kiwis went through a series of phases to eventually win a penalty in the Argentina 22, which Mo’unga kicked, and when Julián Montoya overthrew a lineout on halfway, the All Blacks recovered the loose ball and spread it wide to send Caleb Clarke over in the corner, Mo’unga’s conversion stretching the lead to 9 points. Montoya was looking to make immediate amends with a jackal on Will Jordan, which allowed Boffelli to kick a penalty from the halfway line, while an early tackle from Tyrel Lomax allowed Boffelli to land a 4ᵗʰ penalty with the final kick of the half, bringing the score to 15-12.

The All Blacks had the first chance of points after the break as Jordie Barrett’s penalty attempts from inside his own half drifted wide, but the hosts attacked well off the resulting 22 drop-out and eventually earned a much more kickable penalty, which Mo’unga duly slotted. But the Pumas hit back immediately, with Boffelli pressuring Scott Barrett at the restart and forcing a fumble straight into the hands of Juan Martín González, who reacted quicker than everyone to go over in the corner, with Boffelli’s conversion from the touchline putting the Pumas ahead. A huge scrum from the All Blacks allowed them to kick a penalty to the corner, but the chance was wasted as they were pinged for obstruction as they tried to set the maul. Another breakdown penalty from Montoya allowed Boffelli to extend the lead, while another penalty to touch for New Zealand came to nothing on the hour mark as Codie Taylor overthrew everyone and allowed the Pumas to recover and clear their lines. Sam Cane was probably lucky to just concede a penalty a few minutes later for a tackle off the ball on Pablo Matera, but Boffelli’s kick stretched the lead to 7 points. The All Blacks started looking dangerous as they made ground through a series of phases, but Matías Orlando brought that to an end with a critical turnover with just 11 minutes remaining. As the game entered the final 10 minutes, a dominant maul from Argentina was collapsed on halfway to earn Shannon Frizell a yellow card, but their decision to kick for territory rather than give Boffelli the shot at goal backfired as the support men failed to keep their feet at the breakdown when the ball went to the backs. With just a minute remaining, The All Blacks had one final chance with a penalty in the Pumas 22 and ent to the corner, but Codie Taylor’s throw to Sam Whitelock was angled too far towards his own team, and the Pumas secured the ball at their scrum and kicked the ball out for a deserved 18-25 victory, their first win over the All Blacks in New Zealand.

The end?

“Did I ever tell you what the definition of insanity is? Insanity is doing the exact… same f*cking thing… over and over again expecting… shit to change… That. Is. Crazy.”

—Vaas, Far Cry 3

Ian Foster was given the backing of New Zealand Rugby following the win over South Africa, which always felt premature to me giving his recent record. Do you think they are regretting it now as Foster has led them to another unwanted first?

The cliché is that you have to earn the right to go wide, and while that is somewhat true, it doesn’t mean that you have to do so by sending everyone through the tight channels for phase after phase, you can also do so by clever running lines committing defenders and holding them so that they can’t drift, creating the natural space out wide. The All Blacks used to be the best at this.

Today? There were maybe a couple of times they did this, most notably Clarke’s try when they countered the overthrown lineout and used Rieko Ioane’s arcing run to create the space to put Jordie Barrett through the line. The rest of the time, they just pounded the Argentine defence in the narrow positions. And the Pumas welcomed it, completing all but a handful of their tackles (96% tackle completion from 205 tackles). That Pumas pack will happily tackle you all day long, and they have such incredible player in there like Kremer, Montoya and Matera who just need the smallest fraction of a second to get over the ball and win the turnover. So by continually going down these channels without any real manipulation of the defensive line’s shape and expecting a different result, you are just playing into their hands.

Ian Foster and company may develop a plan to win next week, but where was that planning inthe 2 weeks that they just had to prepare for this match? And as the World Cup looms closer, new assistant Joe Schmidt must start looking like a much more attractive option than the man currently running the All Blacks legacy into the ground.

Kick-off kings

It’s a hallmark of Michael Cheika sides: the whole team starting 10m back at kickoffs and beginning their run-up during the kicking motion. It’s an incredibly smart tactic that I’ve always wondered why more teams don’t adapt, but with the Pumas, it now makes the restart a weapon.

So what makes this such a good tactic? Well for starters, it reduces the chances of players being in front of the kicker at the restart as they are coming from deeper, but at the same time it also allows the kicking team to arrive with more momentum, which makes it harder for the receiving team to create a dominant first contact.

But with this Pumas team, it is taken to another level. Santiago Carreras can get so much hang on his kicks that it allows the chasers to actually reach the catchers at the same time as the ball even on deeper kicks, while they then have Boffelli—one of the best in the world at getting in the air for the high ball—chasing the kick, not with the intention of making the first tackle, but instead looking to challenge for the ball. And that extra few metres of a run-up gives him the momentum to get up high enough to challenge against a player who is being lifted. If he can get up and swat the ball back, then the Pumas win possession well inside the opposition half, and if he can only put some pressure on, that may be enough to force a fumble, and then the loose ball is anyone’s game, leading to the possibility of the Pumas still winning the ball back (as happened for Juan Martín González’s try), the receiving team winning the ball but being under heavy pressure and potentially being able to be turned over if players don’t react fast enough, or the ball being knocked on by the catcher as they fumble, giving the Pumas a scrum in a dangerous area.

Many teams already seem to struggle consistently securing the ball and exiting correctly off a restart after they score. Against Michael Cheika’s Argentina, this will just be an even greater challenge.

2022 Rugby Championship Round 3: Australia v South Africa

After a week off, the Rugby Championship was back, beginning with South Africa’s trip to Adelaide to face Australia. 2 weeks ago, the Springboks had a poor start that let the All Blacks go 15 points up, and it was another poor stat here as the Wallabies recovered their own kickoff and kept the visitors on the back foot with a series of phases of quick ball before sending Fraser McReight over from close range, with Noah Lolesio—returning to the 10 shirt with Quade Cooper injured—adding the conversion and an early penalty for a 10-0 lead after just 7 minutes. The Springboks were struggling to get a grip on the game early on and their first chance of points after 14 minutes saw Handré Pollard’s penalty pull to the left. Just minutes later though they looked in for a try as Ox Nché was first to Lukhanyo Am’s chip and offloaded back to the centre, who fed Eben Etzebeth, but the lock was stopped just short of the line by Reece Hodge and McReight was in to steal the ball before a green shirt arrived. The Springboks were growing into the game; Pollard missed his second kick at goal but it was third time lucky to put them on the board after 23 minutes. The next South African penalty was kicked to the corner, and through Joseph Dweba’s lineout was stolen, Etzebeth was alert to the slap back and only just beaten to the loose ball in-goal by Nic White, but after the resulting scrum resulted in a South African penalty, Nché was held up over the line, but Tom Wright was sent to the bn for not retreating at the penalty. With the man advantage in the back line, the Boks chose to wrap up the forwards in another scrum, which backfired as Frans Malherbe was pinged for angling in. The Boks were soon back deep in the Wallabies 22 with another lineout in the corner, but after the Australian pack held strong, the ball was spread to Makazole Mapimpi on the left wing, only for Marika Koribete—who had been playing all game as if the Springboks had insulted him and his family—to cover across from the far side and dislodge the ball as the Sharks wing dived for the line, though many will question if there were any arms used in the challenge. This led to one of the craziest moments I’ve seen on a rugby pitch in a long time. As Nic White brought the ball out from the scrum, Faf de Klerk attempted to slap his arm to dislodge the ball, but instead caught his opposite number across the jaw. White of course did everything he could to draw attention to it, and after reviewing with the TMO, referee Paul Williams sent de Klerk to the bin, and the Wallabies saw out the finally seconds of the half to go in at the break with a 10-3 lead.

The second half heralded the arrival of Malcolm Marx and Steven Kitshoff from the bench, but with the man advantage it was Australia who struck first, with Tom Wright making ground down the right wing and the ball then coming out to Koroibete, who sidestepped Pollard to reach the line and stretch the lead to 15-3. De Klerk soon returned to the pitch, but it made little difference, and the Wallabies increased their lead with a lovely move off a ruck that released Noah Lolesio, who drew the covering Pollard and played in McReight for his second try of the game, with the conversion taking the lead to 19, which soon became 22 as Elton Jantjies was pinged for not rolling. With the game already lost, Vincent Koch was put through a gap and fed Kwagga Smith for a try that took away Australia’s bonus point, while an attack in the final minute saw Rob Valentini sent to the bin for a cynical hand in the ruck, with Kwagga Smith scoring again from the resulting penalty for a final score of 25-17.

The replacement

Michael Hooper is a fantastic player. It’s very rare that his performance would rank outside the top 3 for his team, while even in the worst Wallabies performances, he often comes away with his reputation unharmed, if not advanced. So to lose such a player, let alone a leader, on the eve of the tournament was always going to hurt.

Luckily for the Wallabies, they have a couple of other wonderful 7s to follow in the footsteps of Hooper, Pocock and Smith; and the loss of Hooper granted an opportunity to Fraser McReight. And while he showed flashes of quality in the opening matches against the Pumas, it was clear that this was a player adjusting to the level of Test rugby. Today however was truly his breakout performance.

His 2 tries highlighted how, much like Hooper, he is an energetic and dynamic player in the loose, while he frequently found himself in the right place at the right time to cause trouble, and played a critical role in stopping one of South Africa’s best chances with a turnover just short of his own try line after the Boks got in behind the defensive line.

If Hooper is going to be out long-term, McReight’s performances and growth will be a good by-product of this, and will give the Wallabies even greater depth if their captain returns.

Plan B?

We all know what South Africa’s Plan A is: dominate the set piece, dominate in the air to win territory, and defend hard. That’s all well and good, but if a tam can gain parity in the set piece and nullify the kicking game, then suddenly the South African gameplan has an issue as it is not designed to overcome a considerable deficit.

In this match, as with the loss to New Zealand 2 weeks ago, Dweba’s inconsistencies at the lineout took away their set piece dominance in crucial moments—to have your lineout stolen 5m from the opposition line is criminal—while Australia set the blockers so much better than in their loss to Argentina, which allowed them to be much more secure in the kicking game.

It’s time for South Africa to start looking at other options. While being able to hold back Marx for the second half is a great option when Bongi Mbonambi is there to start, Dweba is not as reliable and it is stopping the Springboks from getting that dominance they are used to in the opening half hour. Meanwhile, you have the best 13 in the world in Lukhanyo Am, and a dangerous crash ball runner in Damian de Allende unable to consistently get into the game in attack as the halves kick most of the ball away.

When these teams meet again in a week’s time, South Africa need to show that they have more than just a Plan A, and I would argue that they start the game with a focus on keeping the ball in hand and challenging the Australian defence over a number of phases.

Eyes on the Ball

Thoughts from the world of sport and the Schmoedown

Tag: Wallabies