2022 Rugby Championship Round 2: Argentina v Australia

Round 2’s repeat of last week’s matches continued in San Juan with Argentina hosting Australia. An ill-disciplined second half from the Pumas had cost them last week, but they started quickest this week, getting the ball wide, and when Tom Wright fumbled Juan Imhoff’s grubber under pressure, the Pumas wing collected the ball and ran in for the opening try after just 61 seconds, Emiliano Boffelli adding the extras. The great start continued as heavy pressure in defence forced a scrum, from which Santiago Carreras kicked a 50/22 up to the Wallabies 5m line, and after a series of phases, Thomas Gallo fought his way over for a try under the posts, leaving a simple conversion for Boffelli to make it 14-0 in 7 minutes before the Wallabies—who had been forced into a number of changes from last week due to injuries—could even fire a shot. A timely jackal from Fraser McReight brought the next Pumas attack to an end and allowed the Wallabies to kick to the corner, and after Rob Valentini was sent charging into the defence off the top of the lineout, James Slipper was following up and carried over for a crucial try, converted by James O’Connor. Slipper and Valentini were combining again to put the Wallabies on the front foot again just minutes later, and after a series of phases in the 22, the Wallabies earned a penalty for offsides that allowed O’Connor to cut the lead to 4 points. The Aussies had all he momentum and were finding gaps too often, and when Jordan Petaia was put through a gap in the 22 by O’Connor he drew the last man and fed the ball back to O’Connor for what appeared to be a try, until Karl Dickson found an offence from James Slipper at the breakdown just before. That decision proved crucial, as Carreras kicked for touch, and when Taniela Tupou offended at that lineout, they kicked into the Wallabies 22 and worked a gap for Jerónimo de la Fuente to scythe through and score, though it came at the expense of a leg injury for the Pumas centre. The Wallabies were straight back on the attack through Len Ikitau and Lalakai Foketi and made it right up to the try-line, only for Nic White to be adjudged as having not come through the game to clean out. The next try came out of nowhere on the half hour, as the Wallabies failed to deal with a simple kick forward under minimal pressure—White choosing to play a blocking role when Petaia held off expecting him to take the catch—which led to the ball bouncing and O’Connor, who was ruching across to cover, juggling the ball straight into the hands of Juan Martín González, who gratefully took the ball 40m unchallenged to score for the 2ⁿᵈ consecutive week. And with 5 minutes left of the half, Boffelli was the next to take advantage of Australian struggles under the high ball, as he broke away and just managed to ride Marika Koroibete’s tackle to ground the ball, though officials were clearly not watching the replays as they were unable to see the compelling evidence that the ball had been grounded. As an inept performance from karl Dickson and his officials continued, Marcos Kremer was wrongly adjudged to have not used his arms in a low tackle a minute before the break, and the Wallabies kicked down into the corner, only to be turned over at the lineout, ending the half with the score at 26-10.

It was the Wallabies who created the first chance after the break, with Valetini again being released off the back of a lineout, and though he was stopped just short of the line, he offloaded to Petaia, whose momentum carried him through a tackle by Gonzalo Bertranou, who managed to strip the ball before it could be grounded. The second half began settling into a rhythm of the Pumas defence holding out (sometimes under heavy pressure close to their line) and eventually clearing their lines, but one good kick chase caught Tom Wright in 2 minds and he was snagged and caught holding on to the ball by Imhoff, allowing Boffelli to kick the first points of the half. As the clock ticked past the hour, a monster maul by the Pumas brought them into the 22, and as they went through the phases, Gallo eventually forced himself over for his second try, though he appeared to be stopped short and then go again. The Wallabies were 26 points down with 15 minutes left, but quickly hit back through a try from Len Ikitau. to give them a little hope, however this hope was all-but ended just moments later as Tate McDermott’s 50/22 took them deep into the Pumas redzone, only for them to give away a penalty at the breakdown. And when Argentina turned the ball over with just minutes left, Boffelli chased down Carreras’ grubber to go over, and with the clock in the red, replacement halves Tomás Cubelli and Tomás Albornoz combined off a scrum for one last try, which Boffelli converted for a 48-17 victory that leaves the Pumas top of the table after 2 rounds.

Kicking on

Last week I suggested that the Pumas had got their tactics wrong by not getting their back 3 involved in attack. While it seems that Michael Cheika agreed as it was the complete opposite this week.

In attack, the big carriers in the pack and centres were still involved, but there was a lot more quick spreading of the ball to the wings, who were certainly enjoying their chance to run at the opposition.

But more important was the kicking. This week, they were frequently kicking to compete, with Bertranou and Carreras putting up high balls that were just the right length for their back 3 to attack. Boffelli especially was having success outjumping his man. But even the slightly longer kicks were causing the Wallabies problems, as they started having issues getting organised in time to make the catch.

This is clearly a team building and improving as Michael Cheika gets more time with them. If they can continue building like this, they will be a real threat come the World Cup once again.

Problem position?

While it must be noted that Australia are currently playing with a number of players out injured, they are notably struggling at fullback. While there had been talk of Jordan Petaia learning the position, Test rugby came around before he had time to sufficiently do so, so with him being used on the wing, it is Tom Wright who has been pulling on the 15 shirt of late. And it is costing the Wallabies.

Though he may have played the position previously in rugby league, the 13-man code uses its fullbacks differently, and it is notable how often he looked like a winger covering the position, being much more willing to try running kicks back than to get into a territory game, while also not looking fully comfortable covering Argentina’s much more varied kicking game in this match.

The odd thing is that Reece Hodge, who has plenty of experience at 15, was available on the bench. While I imagine that Hodge is being held back due to his versatility covering so many positions off the bench, and Petaia, Koroibete and Wright all above Hodge in the pecking order should everyone be played in their ideal positions, rugby is not about simply getting your best 15 players on the pitch, but getting the players who fit the position, and I think that if they want success against South Africa and New Zealand in their remaining matches, they need to play someone used to the position.

2022 Rugby Championship Round 1: Argentina v Australia

Australia kicked off their 2022 Rugby Championship campaign with a trip to Mendoza to face off against Argentina. Now coached by former Wallabies head coach Michael Cheika, the Pumas came into the tournament off the back of a last gasp 2-1 series victory over Scotland, and they were soon ahead here as Santiago Carreras’ inside pass sent Pablo Matera over from close range. Australia were missing 2 of their stars in Michael Hooper—who had returned to Australia after not feeling in the right mindset to play—and the injured Samu Kerevi, but they welcomed back Quade Cooper, who soon got them on the scoresheet with a penalty. Emiliano Boffelli kicked 2 penalties of his own, but Australia chose to go to the corner with their next penalty, and after drawing in the defense with the initial maul, they spread the ball to create a gap for the looping Jordan Petaia to arc through, Cooper kicking the conversion. Boffelli soon added another 3 points, but Australia were growing into the game and looking dangerous, with their next attack taking them right to the Pumas’ try line, only for Cooper’s offload to hit the unsuspecting James Slipper in the face and fall into Argentina hands, allowing them to clear their lines. Though both teams tried, neither could create another chance of note before the break, though Boffelli ended the half by kicking a 4ᵗʰ penalty for a 19-10 lead.

It was the Australians who made the first attack of note after the break, Tom Wright and Jordan Petaia breaking down the right wing following an Argentine clearance, Wright ran out of space but his offload inside found debutant Jed Holloway, who was stopped just short and turned over. The Wallabies were soon back up to the line, but after failing to score in the initial phases, Quade Cooper tried to make something of a penalty advantage and ended up injuring his ankle, with Reece Hodge replacing him. Hodge’s first act was to kick to the corner with their penalty and the pack successfully mauled Fraser McReight—a late call-up to the 7 shirt following Hooper’s withdrawal—over for a try, which Hodge converted to cut the deficit to 2 points. The Pumas should have stretched the lead with a try of their own just minutes later, as Marcos Kremer was released by a inside pass, but his pass in the 22 was knocked on by the onrushing Carreras. Their next attack was much more successful though; countering a kick and spreading the ball to Matera, who carried with determination before feeding his fellow back row Juan Martín González to score in the corner, Boffelli nailing the kick from the touchline. That kick proved crucial, as a scrum penalty allowed the Wallabies to kick to the corner again, and while they couldn’t get over the line, it was adjudged that Matías Alemanno had illegally collapsed the maul, resulting in a yellow card for the lock and a penalty try for the visitors, who took the lead through a Hodge penalty just minutes later. The Argentine discipline of the first half was all-but gone and it was allowing the Wallabies to dominate, with their next kick to the corner seeing Folau Fainga’a peel off the maul and fight his way over. Back to 15 men, Argentina earned a much-needed penalty on halfway with 5 minutes left, only for Boffelli to push it too far to the right, and a last-gasp attack to earn a bonus point saw the ball go to floor and get turned over, Jake Gordon collected and his forward pass (clear to all on the replay but allowed to stand) allowed Hunter Paisami to draw the last defender and send Len Ikitau over for a final try, which Hodge converted for a 26-41 victory that will leave them top of the table after Round 1.

Too tight

Back in the days when Argentina were establishing themselves as worthy of a spot in the Rugby Championship, they were known for their dominant pack. These days, they are probably more noticeable from the incredible talent they are producing in the back 3, so much so that Santiago Carreras can be moved to fly half and there are still more legitimate options for those positions than can fit in the squad.

However, far too often when watching the Pumas so far under Michael Cheika, the back 3 has been seriously underused in attack. This is a unit that contains genuine game-changers like Santiago Cordero and Bautista Delguy, and yet they are not being given the chance to get the ball in any space to attack the defence like we know they can, being limited to just kick counters. Even Boffelli on the wing was wasted in this game, with no attempts to put the ball high in the air for Boffelli (one of the best in the world at competing for the high ball) to go up for.

Granted the Pumas have some fantastic carriers in the back row, who they managed to release quite a few times with some clever inside passes, however when things looked to go wide, players continually got in each other’s way. Is this a matter of Carreras not being able to control his back line effectively? Or are the coaches struggling to impose a more expansive attacking plan in these early days?

Blunted attack

Obviously any team is going to be hurt by the loss of Samu Kerevi, but I think this match shows just how important he is for the team.

With their star centre missing, Hunter Paisami shifted inside to 12 with Len Ikitau coming in at 13. Now Paisami is a quality centre, but is still at the earlier stage of his career where he is seen as a solid defender and a crash ball in attack, he has not yet developed that passing and kicking game that we see the best crash ball 12s (think Kerevi and Ma’a Nonu) develop, while Ikitau is still finding himself at international level as he finds himself in and out of the 23 depending on who is available.

And so without Kerevi, the midfield looked rather blunt, just carrying into a Pumas defence that was happy to tackle and jackal all day long. It’s notable that of Australia’s 5 tries, 3 were from driving mauls, 1 was a counterattack after a turnover and the only one that involved the back line running any real shape was first phase off a lineout in the Pumas 22, a situation where any team should be able to do something creative.

Kerevi and Paisami appear to have secured the top 2 centre spots. But when Kerevi is unavailable, is Ikitau the answer, or do they need to look at a more creative option?

Australia v England: The 2022 Decider

With a win apiece over the last 2 weeks, Sydney was the venue for the deciding third Test between England and Australia. With all of the Home Nations losing their series opener but winning in week 2, Ireland’s win over New Zealand just an hour earlier will have left the Wallabies hoping that the pattern was not going o continue for a third week, and they had the first chance as the ball came right off a scrum on the England 22, only for Reece Hodge’s pass to go behind Tom Wright with just Freddie Steward trying to get across and cover. Instead it was Owen Farrell who opened the scoring with a penalty after 17 minutes as both teams fought for dominance. A period of England pressure saw Nic White and Michael Hooper force Jack Nowell to enter the breakdown from the side for a Wallabies penalty, and after clearing their lines to touch, the Wallabies worked a clever overlap on first phase to release Tom Wright on the wing, who then fed Nic White inside and remained up with play to take the return ball and go over in the corner for the opening try, Lolesio adding the extras from the touchline. Lolesio added a penalty, with Farrell kicking one of his own before hitting the post with another, but England had one more chance at the end of the half as they kicked a penalty to the corner, and after Tommy Freeman was stopped on the line by Wright, Jack van Poortvliet put his Tigers teammate Steward over in the corner for a 10-11 lead at the break.

It was England with the momentum after the restart, and with Ellis Genge carrying as if his life depended on it, Farrell was soon able to stretch the lead with another penalty, and when Noah Lolesio fumbled an overthrown lineout, Marcus Smith beat Samu Kerevi to the loose ball and accelerated through the gap to score under the posts. The Wallabies fought back though and started to gain some dominance as the replacements began to enter the fray, and after Pete Samu was denied in the corner by a last ditch tackle from Steward, Folau Fainga’a forced his way over from close range following a lineout in the corner, Lolesio’s conversion making it a 4-point game with 14 minutes left. Australia had the momentum, but the English defence held firm and the visitors ran out 17-21 victors to earn a 2-1 series victory.

Building to success

While australia will be disappointed to have lost the series, there are plenty of positives to take as they look ahead to next year’s World Cup.

The loss of Quade Cooper brought Lolesio back to the fore and he put in good displays to show that he has grown and fought back from being devastated at the hands of the All Blacks. Valentini has continued to grow as an 8 at Test level, Hunter Paisami continues to develop alongside Samu Kerevi, Angus Bell got plenty of minutes under his belt, while injuries and suspensions saw Nick Frost look impressive in his first Tests.

And it’s not just the youngsters, as David Porecki looked to bring some reliability to the set piece, which has been an area where the Wallabies have struggled, while James Slipper reminded us all of his versatility by returning to his preferred loosehead position this week after covering the tighthead side for 2 weeks, and Pete Samu looked super dangerous off the bench.

With players like Neville, Swain, Cooper, Perese and Petaia all to come back from injury and suspension—not to mention Tupou, who will only get better over the coming weeks as he returns to full fitness—the Wallabies are developing a strength in depth and are growing. If they continue to grow, they will be putting themselves in a great spot going into World Cup.

The end?

I hate to say it, but we may have just seen the end of Danny Care’s England career. The Quins scrum half has been in fantastic for with his club for the last couple of years and finally made his return to the national team after years out in the wilderness.

After last week’s wonderful performance from Jack van Poortvliet, many would have expected the Leicester 9 get another start, but Care was given the 9 shirt for the game… and honestly struggled. His first box kick was charged down, he got his arm scragged at a ruck by Michael Hooper as he tried to play the ball away, and there were other moments where he looked to be struggling. But to be pulled off before halftime was one of those brutal moves that we have seen a few times from Eddie Jones, an it has usually heralded the end of the player’s Test career, with Luther Burrell and Teimana Harrison disappearing and Nick Isiekwe having to fight hard for years to get back to the fringes of the squad.

Is Test rugby beyond Care? I don’t think so. I think that, much like Marcus Smith, he is struggling at properly adapt to this attacking gameplan, as the team doesn’t look to build on their breaks and instead appears to reset at every breakdown, which leads to the ball being kicked away after a couple of phases. That’s not the way the Quins boys play and it’s not the way that England should be either, while Care would have probably also benefited more from coming on later in the game to take advantage of the gaps as the Wallabies tire.

With van Poortvliet surely in line to be an ever-present in the 23 and young 9s like Alex Mitchell having impressed for Saints and Harry Randall for Bristol and England, it feels like this early replacement may have ended Care’s return to the Test scene before he got a chance to truly prove himself.

Australia v England

After their first win over England since RWC2015, Australia were looking to make it 2 from 2 so far this summer as they faced England in Brisbane. The Wallabies were disrupted last week by injuries just before and during the first half, and this match started in similar fashion with Jordan Petaia—on his first Test start at 15—got his head on the wrong side of a tackle and was replaced by Izaia Perese, and the Wallabies barely had time to reorganise before England were ahead, with Billy Vunipola being driven over from a 5m lineout. Farrell kicked the conversion and 2 penalties, and when Marcus Smith threw a wide pass towards Tommy Freeman in the Australian 22, Izaia Perese just failed to catch it one-handed and was duly sent to the bin for what was considered a deliberate knock-on, with referee Andrew Brace and TMO Joy Neville apparently seeing the same phantom covering defender that popped up in Dunedin just hours earlier and adjudging just a penalty (which Farrell kicked) rather than a penalty try. Farrell added another penalty as Perese’s card was coming to an end, but then the Wallabies celebrated a return to 15 men with their first foray into the English 22, and Taniela Tupou topped it off by crashing over for the try, Noah Lolesio adding the extras for a 7-19 scoreline. England were dealt a further blow just before the break as Maro Itoje failed to get low enough when trying to tackle Hunter Paisami and instead found his head making heavy contact with the centre’s shoulder to bring his tour to an early end.

The second half started much like the first for Australia: with an injury. Samu Kerevi ried a soft chip out to the wing for Perese, but as the young Waratahs back came back to ground he appeared to injure his knee, requiring him to leave the pitch on a stretcher. Farrell opened the scoring in the half with another penalty, but Australia were soon on the attack and after Taniela Tupou was stopped just short of the line, Samu Kerevi was sent over out wide, Lolesio adding the extras to narrow the deficit to 8. Australia continued to be beset by injuries as Scott Sio’s game came to an end just seconds after coming on, but they were fighting on and soo found themselves with the numerical advantage as Marcus Smith was pinged for a deliberate knock-on, Lolesio kicking the resulting penalty. Cadeyrn Neville was the next Wallabies player to leave the pitch injured to hand Nick Frost his Test debut. As the game entered the final hour, Farrell found Jack Nowell in space with a kick-pass to bring England into the 22, and though they were eventually held up over the line, they had won another penalty which the Saracens fly half duly kicked for 3 more points. As the final substitutions were made while the clock ticked down, the game fell into a degree of disarray, and while Farrell lost his perfect kicking percentage with a late attempt, Australia could not create any final chances and fell to a 17-25 defeat.

The best laid plans…

Are Australia going to have anyone left for the 3rd Test? Their players have been dropping like flies in these matches #AUSvENG
—
Tim Etheridge (@PStetheridge) July 09, 2022

You can’t help but feel for Australia in this series. Test rugby at the top level is hard enough at the best of times, but it becomes so much harder when players are going down injured left, right and centre.

Last week, Taniela Tupou was unavailable ahead of selection, and was joined by intended starting fly half Quade Cooper in the pre-match warm-up, while Tom Banks and Allan Ala’alatoa were also lost to injury in that match. This week, Tupou was back to take Ala’alatoa’s place, but the game saw Petaia, Sio, Neville and Perese all lost to injury.

As Robert Burns said in his poem To a Mouse: “The best laid schemes o’ Mice an’ Men, / Gang aft agley,” To suffer so many injuries in a match is always going to make it hard to get momentum and consistency, especially when you are forced into reshuffles as Australia were by the loss of Jordan Petaia with no recognised fullback on the bench, while Angus Bell clearly struggled as the game wound down due to playing 89 minutes with just a 1-minute break for the moment Sio was on the pitch.

I hate to see injuries play such a key part in a match, so I will continue to argue that though teams should still have a limited number of substitutions per match, they should be able to have the rest of the 30-man squad available on the bench rather than just 8 replacements, as this will reduce the disruption to teams from circumstances outside of their control, while also reducing the chances of running out of trained front rowers like we saw when Hame Faiva was red carded against Ireland.

New kid on the block

I’ve been arguing for some time now that Ben Youngs is no longer playing at the level required to be in the England Test team. Well he may be watching his spot in the Test squad disappear right now courtesy of his Leicester teammate Jack van Poortvliet.

The 21-year-old Tiger, played an absolute blinder on his first Test start. He provided quick ball for the backs, marshalled his pack to take advantage of their dominance and kept the Australian defence on their toes when he looked to take the ball on himself.

But what really stood out was his box kicking. This is often why Youngs is talked about as still being in the team, but van Poortvliet just did the job miles better, with every kick either able to be contested in the air or setting up the chaser to make the hit as soon as the Australian player landed.

It’s clear that van Poortvliet has paid attention learning alongside Youngs and Richard Wigglesworth. And much like his fellow Tiger Freddie Steward, he ha come into Test rugby and immediately looked like a veteran—and a damn good quality one at that! If he can continue to put in performances like this, it will be impossible to drop him.

Australia v England

With their embarrassment at the hands of the Barbarians a couple of weeks behind them, England looked to kick off their Summer Test series against Australia with a win in Perth. The Wallabies suffered a late injury to starting fly half Quade Cooper, which saw Noah Lolesio elevated to the starting team during the warm-up, and it was the young fly half whose holding on penalty allowed Owen Farrell to kick England into a 0-3 lead after 6 minutes. As the half went on, both teams failed to really get any rhythm through a number of handling errors and penalties—bar one chance for England that was stopped by a wonderful cover tackle on Joe Marchant—but Farrell doubled England’s lead after 20 minutes with another penalty when David Porecki failed to support his own weight a the ruck. There was soon even more disruption for the Wallabies as Tom Banks suffered a serious injury to his arm following an awkward landing when competing for a high ball, which led to Jordan Petaia coming on at wing and Andrew Kellaway moving to 15, however the pack took it on themselves and won a penalty from the scrum restart, which Lolesio kicked over. Farrell just failed to restore the 6-point lead after the injured Allan Ala’alatoa failed to roll away at the breakdown, with James Slipper coming on to replace the Brumbies tighthead. Things soon got even worse for the Wallabies as they finally got some possession in the English 22; Jonny Hill was sent to the bin for deliberately pulling on Darcy Swain’s hair—not the first time he had gone too far in his battle with Swain during the match, but the first time he was penalised—but replays showed that Swain then reacted and attempted a headbutt, which resulted in him receiving a red card. Despite everything though, the Wallabies ended the half positively and Noah Lolesio managed to level the scores at 6-6 with the final kick of the half after a strong carry from Rob Leota.

As Hill’s sin bin period came to an end in the opening moments of the second half, Lolesio put the Wallabies ahead with a third penalty. Looking to utilise their man advantage, England put their next penalty to the corner and mauled Ellis Genge over for the opening try of the game, though Farrell’s kick from the right-hand 5m channel just pulled across the face of the goal. England found themselves with another chance in the same corner with the hour approaching, but the Australian maul defence—bolstered by the arrival of Matt Philip for Rob Leota—held firm and after a couple of phases, Matthew Hooper timed his arrival at the breakdown to win a huge penalty that allowed the Wallabies to clear their lines. Farrell kicked a penalty on the hour to extend the lead to 5, but Jack Nowell’s failure to claim the restart put them under immediate pressure, which resulted in Petaia crashing over on the wing to level the scores and Lolesio kicking the conversion to put the home team ahead, while things got even worse for England just minutes later as Billy Vunipola was binned for a high tackle on Michael Hooper, with the Wallabies taking advantage of the parity in numbers as Folau Fainga’a peeled off the back of a 5m maul to get over the line, Lolesio adding the extras. As the clock ticked into the final five minutes, an unlikely Wallabies win was looking more certain, and when Pete Samu stepped around Lewis Ludlam and carried through the tackle of Will Stuart, he managed to reach the line and secure the victory, and though Henry Arundell scored with his first touch of the ball and Jack van Poortvliet scored at the death with Lolesio in the bin, it just put an undeserved gloss on the match for them as they lost 30-28.

Simple but effective

Rugby is a simple game: you pass backwards, run forwards and try to outscore your opponents. Australia must have felt the gods were against them with Quade Cooper’s injury in warm-up being exacerbated by injuries to Banks and Ala’alatoa (made worse by Taniela Tupou already being out injured) and Swain’s red card.

And yet they often looked the more dangerous team, despite Lolesio often looking out of his depth for much of the match. And this was because they kept things simple.

In players like Leota, Bell, Samu and Valentini they had willing carriers in the forwards, who would work alongside inside centre Samu Kerevi and wing Marika Koroibete—who is frequently used coming in off his wing—to get the Wallabies on the front foot with repeated carries over the gain line. With consistent quick ball that is breaching the gain line, the game becomes easy for an attacking team, as the defense is constantly in retreat and has no chance to get settled and organised, so it is then just a matter of being patient and exploiting the mismatch (the classic prop stuck in the centre channel) or the overlap, which Australia’s backs have the quality to finish.

Time for change

I’ve given England a bit of slack with their failed attempts to play “formationless” attacking rugby as they have been playing with just 1 playmaker in their back line. However, today they played both Marcus Smith and Owen Farrell and still struggled to make any impact on the game, despite playing against 14 men for over half the game, which would have automatically created more space for them to exploit.

Something is drastically wrong with this England attack, and it needs changing immediately. Lawes cannot be taking up the space of a potential ball carrier at 6 and should be moved back into the second row, and England need to start looking at players and a shape that will allow them to get 3 to 4 consecutive phases of quick ball over the gain line in midfield, as this will then create the space for the wings to exploit. Just look at Australia’s success today!

In Smith and Farrell, England have 2 world class talents, but they look overwhelmed trying to run this attack and need something more conventional to get this back line going. Yes it may be missing Manu Tuilagi, but that is the case more often than not with England in this cycle, so it can no longer be used as an excuse. And if the head coach can’t—or won’t—fix this, then it’s time to move on.

2021 Autumn Tests: Week 3

Hello and welcome to my look at the third week of the Autumn Tests. With us now in World Rugby’s Test window, this weekend was jam packed with action. Jonathan Sexton celebrated his 100ᵗʰ Ireland cap by scoring one of Ireland’s 9 tries in their 60-5 demolition of Japan, New Zealand’s trip to Rome saw them win 9-47 against a passionate Italian team, England ran riot in a 69-3 win over a Tongan team who spent over 30 minutes of the game with just 13 men on the pitch, a late Malcolm Marx try earned South Africa an 18-23 victory over an injury-hit Welsh team, France held on to defeat a resurgent Argentina 29-20, while Ewan Ashman’s Scotland debut began with an earlier-than-expected arrival off the bench and ended with him scoring a crucial try in a 15-13 win over Australia.

Ireland

This performance was a huge statement from Ireland. Every single player on the pitch from 1-23 showed that they were comfortable with the ball in hand. The grunts in the pack expected to make the hard yards were also comfortable with space in front of them, and the rest of the team excel in space, with many also happy to take on a bit of contact. But more than just being happy to take the ball and run, every single one of them was comfortable enough to play the ball around with exceptional handling skills.

Granted they will face tougher tests than this Japan team, but it is clear that the skills are there from the players. And that means that they will be super dangerous in broken play, as if anyone makes a break, they have the skills to exploit it and not just keep the attack going, but get it to the players who can best take advantage. Not only this, but just the threat of every player being able to carry or pass if they get the ball means that the defence must stay alert to any possibility, as if a defender leaves his man to make a dominant double tackle, the ball carrier can ship it off to the now-undefended teammate, while a defender who tries to drift onto the next man too quickly will leave a gap for the ball carrier to run through.

The key now for Ireland is to make this a part of their regular gameplan, and not just a party trick they bring out when facing weaker opposition.

Japan

Japan are a very good team, but they looked very poor at the weekend. While part of this was likely due to a lack of time playing Test rugby since the World Cup, they also really struggled for a lack of physicality.

They are a very accurate and technical team, but they lack the physicality to stand up to the elite teams. While they try to play expansive rugby, too much of their intricate play is done behind the gain line, which puts them in trouble if the defence works as an organised unit. But even more worrying is their inability to cope with the driving maul, getting routinely pushed back 20+ metres during this match, which was also their undoing in the World Cup against the Springboks. Until they find a way to front up to the opposition and compete legally at the maul, they will always struggle to consistently compete against the top teams, who will just take ever penalty opportunity and kick to touch in the knowledge that they will then gain another 20 metres with the driving maul.

Italy

Forget the score, as it does not do this performance from the Azzurri any justice. They caused the All Blacks some serious problems, with New Zealand taking 28 minutes to even get on the scoreboard. The defence was aggressive, shutting down space and putting pressure on an inexperienced midfield who were not used to playing together, while players were causing the Kiwis an absolute nightmare at the breakdown and winning a number of turnovers and penalties. Granted they have some areas they need to improve—notably around the way they deal with the driving maul while effectively covering the fringes for a player peeling off—but if they can defend with this organisation regularly then their days of being on the wrong end of massive scorelines may be ending.

But it wasn’t just the defence that looked improved, as the attack looked far more capable too. Steven Varney has added an impressive kicking game to his dangerous running, Monty Ioane excelled and Matteo Minozzi continued to prove himself as one of the stars of the team. But not just that, they adapted their game to the opposition, by frequently testing the New Zealand back 3 under the high ball, with chasers either getting up to compete—which should have left to an opening try for the Azzurri if Karl Dickson had paid attention to the game and played advantage rather than immediately blowing for a penalty— or positioning themselves exactly where the Kiwi catcher would need to jump, putting them under real pressure.

It may still be early days under Kieran Crowley, but it feels like the team has built on the infrastructure that Conor O’Shea introduced and the youth that Franco Smith capped to take things to a new level—and this is all being done with Jake Polledri still out injured! I hope that things may finally be on the up for Italy.

New Zealand

This was a very scrappy performance from the All Blacks. Starting centres Braydon Ennor and Quinn Tupaea had a grand total of 10 caps between them (including the 2 being earned in this match) and with the pack being given a hard time at the breakdown and the Italian defence coming up hard in midfield, it significantly added to the pressure that the pair were under.

Of course, they improved as the game went on and the Italians tired, but this really highlighted an issue that the All Blacks currently have at centre. A team who once had Ma’a Nonu, Conrad Smith and Sonny Bill Williams fighting for 2 spots in the XV is now seriously lacking. Ngani Laumape has left the country and now wants to play for Tonga after being continually overlooked, Anton Lienert-Brown brings experience but never seems to have the same impact when starting as he does off the bench and Jack Goodhue has been out since April with an ACL injury, so you can never guarantee how quickly he will get back to his best.

While they clearly still have options beyond that, they are severely lacking experience. Rieko Ioane my be closing on 50 caps but the majority have been earned on the wing, where he is still being used far too often by Ian Foster. 22-year-old Tupaea has 6 caps and just a few years of Super Rugby under his belt. David Havili may have experience, but has only recently transitioned to centre from the back 3, while 4-cap Ennor also originally came on the Super Rugby scene as a winger a few seasons back.

With the World Cup less than 2 weeks away, Ian Foster has a lot of questions in his midfield, and a limited number of games to find an answer.

England

England will certainly face much sterner tests, but on the performances in this match, a number of the youngsters should be starting the next match against Australia to gain some experience against Tier 1 international opposition. While George Furbank looked good at 10 against Tonga, the Australia game should be time for Marcus Smith to take over the reins of this team, while Freddie Steward looked much more secure at 15 than Elliot Daly ever did, with his height, ability in the air and all-round skillset reminding me of Jordie Barrett. Meanwhile on the wing, Adam Radwan has the kind of pace that will scare anyone, but needs to play against a team that will Test him defensively before he can truly be judged at this level, while Alex Mitchell deserves a chance to show what he can do as the starting 9 or England will have no experience at the position if Ben Youngs suddenly isn’t available right before the World Cup. Meanwhile in the pack, it’s time for Eddie Jones to stop pretending that Courtney Lawes is the best 6 in English rugby and move him back to lock, before moving Tom Curry to the flank where he belongs and playing an actual 8 in Alex Dombrandt, who put in a solid (and perhaps too unselfish) performance off the bench.

I understand the need to win every match in the Six Nations, but these Autumn Tests are a chance to experiment with the squad and give some youth/fringe players a chance. The ball is in Eddie Jones’ court, how many of these kids will get the chance they deserve?

Tonga

With how little time Tonga get to spend together as a team, they are already going to be struggling enough to defend, as it takes time to develop a trust and understanding with the players around them, allowing them to defend as a unit rather than a bunch of individuals. But they then go and make their job impossible when they spend so much of the match a man down. Between the yellow cards for Walter Fifita and Solomone Kata and the red card for Viliami Fine, Tonga spent 32 of the 80 minutes with a numerical disadvantage. When you’re playing that much of the game a man down, you’re never going to be able to defend properly. The discipline needs to be better!

While Fifita’s yellow may have been unfortunate, as he clearly tipped the ball up to try and recollect, going for a one-handed intercept these days will end badly nine times out of ten, while Kata can have no arguments as he struggled to get off the ground and took Jonny May out in the air. But Fine’s actions were moronic. The high tackle was bad enough but excusable as mistakes happen, but to then go in on Marcus Smith on the floor—even if he clearly made contact rather than with his elbow, as described by the ever-unreliable Ben Whitehouse—is disgusting and has no place in the sport.

It often feels like the Pacific Island teams get a bad rep for indiscipline, but its sadly incidents like this from Fine that cause this perception to remain, and it just does the team more harm as officials are then leaning towards expecting them to be doing something illegal if there is a chance. Tonga need to clean up their game fast to give themselves a better chance of competing in games.

Wales

3 years ago, the promising career of Ellis Jenkins looked like it could be reaching a premature end as he suffered an horrific knee injury in the final seconds of Wales match against the Springboks. At the weekend, he finally made his return to Test rugby against none other than South Africa, and in my mind was unfortunate not to come away with the Player of the Match award.

The Cardiff Rugby flanker has always been an impressively talented jackal, but looked at his best against the Boks once again. Jenkins was a key part of the Welsh defensive effort in a desperate rearguard that reminded me of their RWC2015 match against Australia. In his own 22 alone, he managed a turnover at a breakdown, an interception and a strip. Alongside these crucial interventions, he completed all 7 of his tackles, completed 10 passes and carried 4 times for 19 metres.

But even more than that, he even took over the captaincy of the team in the latter stages and dealt with referee Paul Williams so impressively. At 28 years old, he is in his prime and is at the point where he can and should be a key part of this squad.

If I was Wayne Pivac going forward and everyone was available for selection, I would be looking at this match’s back row (Jenkins, Wainwright and Basham) along with Josh Navidi and Justin Tipuric as my core back row options. Taulupe Faletau’s impending return to Wales could see him get back to his best, which would also bring him into the unit, while Ross Moriarty would also provide another more experienced option in case of injuries, as could James Davies or Cardiff-bound Thomas Young or younger future stars like Leicester’s Tommy Reffell.

South Africa

South Africa may not have been able to slow things down as much as they would have liked at the weekend, but they still showed that they are a real threat regardless. This pack dominated the Welsh, destroying them in what few scrums there were, while the lineout drives also had great success, leading to a number of penalties and Malcolm Marx’s late try.

But the most incredible thing is the strength they have in depth. If the Springboks were to take all their players (for this hypothetical, let’s say that everyone is fit at the same time) and create 3 packs purely just starting players, no replacements) using their depth chart, I firmly believe that the “B” pack would be able to give most Tier 1 nations—and the “A” pack—and while the “C” pack may have only limited Test experience, it would likely still have the quality to compete with and beat many Tier 2 nations.

France

France tried something different and truly exciting to imagine at the weekend, by moving Romain Ntamack from 10 to 12 with Matthieu Jalibert at fly half. Sadly, such an exciting idea did not work as well in execution. The reason? Having a midfield of Jalibert, Ntamack and defensive lynchpin Gaël Fickou left the back line with very little in the way of physicality. Meanwhile outside them, Damian Penaud runs hard but is not a true crash ball runner, while Gabin Villière and Melvyn Jaminet are definitely not being picked for their physicality.

Without a more physical centre (Danty, Vincent or Vakatawa) or a wing who will also come into midfield, Les Bleus lack the strike runner to draw in defenders and create the space for the other players to exploit. Granted magicians like Dupont and Jalibert will still manage to find and create chances, but a more physical presence will make this easier.

Argentina

I love Santiago Cordero, but this experiment of using him at 10 for the Pumas needs to end. Unlike George Furbank, who was given the 10 shirt against Tonga late in the week, Cordero has never started a top flight domestic match at 10 but now finds himself playing there against Tier 1 opposition. I don’t doubt his talent, but he does not have the experience of playing the position at such a high level, and it is no surprise that his best moments generally seem to come in moments of broken play when he is acting more like an outside back.

It was no surprise to me that when Nicolás Sánchez entered the match Argentina suddenly looked much more structured in attack, while even his kicking game was more dangerous and pulled the team up the field, as well as directly leading to Mateo Carreras’ late try.

Carreras will get very few minutes at 10 at Gloucester. Adam Hastings has been brought in to lead the back line at that position and while Lloyd Evans is questionable as a second choice, there is a bright young English fly half just behind him in local lad George Barton, who has just turned 21, while Billy Twelvetrees is also an option covering the position in emergencies. If Carreras wants to play fly half, then he will need to leave Kingsholm, but it is unlikely that he will find many clubs where he would be able to step in as the starting 10 that Argentina needs. Rather, he should be moved back to the back 3 where he shines for the Pumas and a specialist fly half brought in to gain international experience.

Scotland

This win was a huge statement for the Scottish front row. While Scotland defended well across the pitch, the front row had a key job to do at scrum time by trying to stop the Wallabies gaining a platform at the scrum to launch their attacks off. Against the front row options Australia had in this match, that is no mean feat, even if Taniela Tupou’s impact on anything other that Scott Johnson’s head was minimal. But the Scots did it, causing nightmares at the scrum, while debutant Ewan Ashman, on much earlier than expected following an early injury to George Turner looked completely at home on the international stage, including a finish in the corner that wings would be proud of!

The scrum is vital in international rugby, both as a chance to win penalties and also as a platform to launch attacks from. If the Scottish front row can continue to play like this, it will put them in a great position to challenge for their first Six Nations tournament victory.

Australia

The Wallabies are missing some vital names in their back line for this Test series. Quade Cooper and Samu Kerevi’s decisions to not come on tour and instead return to preseason with their club teams in Japan have robbed Australia of the men who appeared to turn the team’s fortunes around during the Rugby Championship.

While I feel that the return of James O’Connor will cover for Cooper’s absence, Kerevi is an entirely different matter. The centre was playing at a level that was surely bringing him into contention for World Rugby Player of the Year, but more than that, I don’t think that they have a direct replacement. While I have previously talked about Hunter Paisami as the clear replacement for Kerevi at 12, he is not a like-for-like replacement, with his physicality much more focused towards defence, while Kerevi was more offensively focused with defence coming as he gained experience. What makes this loss of Kerevi even more pronounced is the absence of Marika Koroibete from the touring party, as he chose to remain in Australia following the birth of his child, which leaves the back line with limited physical options.

Can Paisami adapt his game to bring a more offensive side? Or will the Wallabies need to adapt their selections in the pack to include a couple more dynamic carriers in the starting XV, such as Tupou (once he recovers from concussion) and Pete Samu?

2021 Rugby Championship: Argentina v Australia

80 days on from the beginning of the tournament, the 2021 Rugby Championship reached its final day, which would see a fourth and final double header. First up on the final day was Australia’s chance to secure 2ⁿᵈ place in the standings with an “away” match against winless Argentina.

After both Quade Cooper and Emiliano Boffelli missed early penalty attempts in the opening minutes, it was Cooper who opened the scoring off the tee following a scrum offence, while Santiago Carreras’ attempted drop goal from halfway following an Australian goal-line drop-out sailed just wide. In a tight first half, the Wallabies finally found a breakthrough as the half hour approached, after a series of infringements at the lineout saw Tomás Lavanini sent to the sin bin, making him the most-carded player in the history of Test rugby. Though the Pumas sacked the resulting Australian lineout, the Wallabies successfully set up a new maul, which successfully escorted Folau Fainga’a to the line for the opening try. With Lavanini still in the bin, the Wallabies struck again at a lineout, setting the maul, but with Hooper peeling off at the back and feeding a looping Fainga’a. After drawing the defence, the hooker sent Rob Valentini through on a crash ball, and the back row duly released Andrew Kellaway to extend the lead. As the half came to an end and Lavanini returned to the pitch, Emilia Boffelli finally got the South Americans on the scoreboard with a penalty following a series of offences by the Australians 5 metres out from their line, cutting the hosts’ lead at the break to 3-15.

If it felt like a mistake to settle for 3 points at the end of the first half, it looked even worse just minutes into the second period, as Samu Kerevi and Andrew Kellaway came around the corner at the last minte to create a numbers advantage, and a double pump from Cooper created the gap for Kerevi to go over. 10 minutes later, another series of phases in the Pumas 22 ended in a try as Kellaway successfully dummied Matías Moroni and broke through the tackle of Santiago Chocobares to go over for his second try. Just minutes later, Australia used the same lineout move that proved so successful earlier in the match, but as the Pumas defence tightened up to protect against the crash ball, Fainga’a instead spread the ball to the backs, and when Len Ikitau attacked a massive gap out wide, he drew the defence and flicked the ball onto Kellaway to complete his hat-trick. With the game out of sight, the game opened up more going into the final quarter as the replacements came on, and when the Pumas finally made it back into the Australian 22 for the first time of note since the first half, replacement loosehead Thomas Gallo forced himself over for a try on his debut. Argentina were finishing on a high, and when they found themselves 5m out from the Wallabies line, Chocobares sniped off the back of a ruck but was stopped just short, only to transfer the ball to Gallo, who forced his way over to dot down for a second try, which gave the score a much more respectable look. As the match came to an end, Australian captain Michael Hooper was sent to the bin for killing the ball following a break from Julián Montoya, but after the Pumas went to the corner, the Wallabies successfully held out the maul to complete a 17-32 victory.

Wrong choice

Julián Montoya is a fantastic hooker and a great all-round player. However, as captain of the Pumas, I think that he made a costly mistake today. This came in the final moments of the first half. At 0-15 down and with Lavanini having just returned to the pitch following his yellow card, the Pumas were camped on the Wallabies’ 5m line. The wallabies had given away 4 penalties in succession for a range of offences and arguably should have had a man in the bin as a no-arms tackle from Taniela Tupou on Gonzalo Bertranou went unpunished, but were just being put on a warning.

At this point, Montoya chose to take the easy 3 points to guarantee they were off the mark, but for me there was only one real option here: continue pushing for the line, either with another lineout or a tap-and-go penalty. This was the first time that they had been in any position to threaten the try line in the entire game, and (barring any unforced errors) should have resulted in either a try for the Pumas or a yellow card for one of the Australians at the next penalty (or possibly both).

However by going for the posts, Argentina let the Wallabies off the hook. They didn’t get back into the Australian 22 for 20 minutes, by which point the warning was long gone and Australia had scored 3 more tries to run away with the game. While I still feel like the Wallabies would have gone on to win the game, I think that a different decision here by Montoya could have led to a closer game.

On the up

Australia are in a historic spot. Having started the tournament with 2 bad defeats to the All Blacks, the Wallabies won 4 consecutive matches in the tournament for the first time ever on their way to finishing 2ⁿᵈ in the tournament standings and climbing to 3ʳᵈ in the World rankings.

While they are certainly on the up and have developed so much more depth by bringing through the kids over the last couple of seasons and now bringing back a number of veterans from abroad, fans should not get carried away just yet. While they have largely dominated the games against Argentina, they have never fully killed the game off, and that let the Pumas back in to some degree in both matches. Against a better team, these lapses in control could have proved critical.

Australia are on the up, but they are not the 3ʳᵈ best team in the world, they are instead there through the weakness of weekly updates to the World rankings, which will see winning teams leapfrog teams that are not playing due to the way the global calendar is set out (expect to see a couple of the Six Nations teams rise up the rankings in the spring).

The key for the Wallabies now is to build on this in their Autumn Tests against Japan, Scotland, England and Wales, continuing the strong performances, getting as many wins as they can (I think 3 is realistic, potentially 4 depending which England turns up) and hopefully changing the team up a little to avoid a reliance on one or two stars. If the Wallabies can do this, that is when it is time to start getting excited.

2021 Rugby Championship: Australia v Argentina

With the 100ᵗʰ Test match between South Africa and New Zealand out of the way, it was time for the hosts Australia to take on an Argentina team that had been left out of a midweek photo session for the tournament. After such a close match in the opener of this double-header, it was always going to be a tough affair to live up to, and sadly for all but the home fans, this was not going to be anywhere near as close a match.

The Pumas have struggled throughout the tournament but had the chance to take an early lead, only for Emiliano Boffelli to curl an eminently kickable penalty wide. The Pumas were quickly made to rue this missed chance, as a break from Samu Kerevi brought the hosts up into the Argentina 22, and as the ball was spread wide, Reece Hodge slipped out of Lucio Cinti’s tackle to go over for the opening try. Australia were quickly taking control of this game, and when Len Ikitau was stopped just short of the try line after winning the race to a Quade Cooper grubber, Kerevi was able to pick and go off the base of the ruck and force his way over beneath the posts. The Pumas finally got on the board with a Boffelli penalty as Rob Valentini was caught obstructing the chase at the restart, but the Wallabies were still clearly in control and thought they had a third try on the half hour as Nic White sniped off the back of a ruck and dive for the line, only to ground the ball against the base of the post short of the line (something that was previously a try but no longer) and lose control forwards, however the Wallabies had a penalty advantage and Cooper kicked the 3 points for a 17-3 halftime lead.

The Pumas came out firing after the break, and after a penalty allowed them to kick to the corner, the pack drove captain Julián Montoya over for a crucial try, however Boffelli missed the conversion from out wide and a penalty that followed son after. The strong start to the half was soon hurt by indiscipline though, and what should have been a penalty for the Pumas was reversed as Marcos Kremer tripped Reece Hodge during advantage, resulting in the flanker being sent to the bin. With the man advantage, Australia made their way downfield to the Argentina line, but were forced to settle for a James O’Connor penalty after Pablo Matera killed the ball. However, Australia secured the win with just over ten minutes left as James O’Connor received the ball 5m out, took a step to his right before popping the ball back inside to his left for Andrew Kellaway to go over, and though the final pass looked forwards, none of the officials felt that there was any need to check, allowing the replacement fly half to kick the Wallabies into a 27-8 lead that they would hold until the final whistle.

Bad Boy

At 24 years old and comfortable at both lock or flanker, Marcos Kremer is a fantastic player on his day; a great enforcer who will carry, tackle and cause problems at the breakdown all day long. However, on a bad day, he is more than a little reminiscent of his fellow lock Tomás Lavanini, with a lack of discipline that too often proved costly.

In the second half of this match, the Pumas were beginning to get stronger. They had a try and were within 9 points of the Wallabies, despite Boffelli having left 8 points on the field with missed kicks, and were putting pressure on the hosts to win penalties. Unfortunately, twice in the space of 5 minutes, a penalty in the Australian half was reversed due to an offence by Kremer, the first as he shoulder charged Marika Koroibete after the whistle, the second his trip on Reece Hodge that saw him sent to the bin. Now with the second incident, I think there are certainly questions about why Matthew Carley took so long to blow the whistle when it was clear that no advantage was coming, but the point is that Kremer so frequently lacks the discipline to avoid these unnecessary incidents, which ends up costing his team.

The Pumas are in a bad place right now. They’re defensively weak, and struggling to create many chances in attack, with their superstar wingers barely getting a chance to show their quality. When they get penalties, they need to make the most of them, not have them overturned, which then allows their opponents to not only clear their lines but also set up their own attacks. If Kremer can continue to play the enforcer but cut out these stupid penalties, it will go a long way to helping the Pumas be more competitive.

The battle for number 10

Go back a couple of months and it looked like Noah Lolesio was at a point where he would be taking over the Australian number 10 jersey on a long-term basis. Suddenly, it looks like he has dropped out of the 22, with Quade Cooper coming out of the cold and James O’Connor returning from injury.

Both Cooper and O’Connor are incredibly talented players who have had rollercoaster careers. Yet now that they are in their 30s, they have both matured as players and also developed into true leaders at the fly half position, and I would argue that they give the Wallabies the best chance of winning right now—just as long as Lolesio is kept in the squad to learn off them.

But what we also saw on Saturday was a great way for the pair to be used. As the specialist 10, Cooper makes sense as the starter, especially while Nic White is being entrusted with the starting spot at 9. But then you have the chance to replace the pair with O’Connor and Tate McDermott with 20-30 minutes left, and the pair can use their chemistry from playing together for the Reds and McDermott’s threat around the fringes of the breakdown to terrorise a tiring defence.

Not only that, but O’Connor’s versatility is perfect for the Australian bench, as he is also able to come on to cover fullback should the starter get hurt or provide injury cover or a different tactical option at centre alongside Cooper.

With the World Cup just a couple of years away, could these two be the ones to lead Australia to victory, before finally passing over the torch to the next generation.

2021 Rugby Championship: Australia v South Africa

With the 2021 Rugby Championship entering its fourth round, last week’s shock victory for the Wallabies over World Champions South Africa had really opened up the table. With this round being a reverse of last week’s fixtures, the Springboks had an immediate chance to get revenge, but they almost went behind after just 4 minutes after a break by Samu Kerevi off first phase ball was ended only by Andrew Kellaway failing to keep hold of Folau Fainga’a’s offload. The Springboks soon had a chance of their own with a 5m lineout, but after Eben Etzebeth broke off early and was brought to ground, he was adjudged to have crawled along the floor. The Wallabies were soon back on the attack, and after Faf de Klerk was sent to the bin for cynically killing the ball, it took them just a few phases from the resulting 5m lineout before Len Ikitau stepped out of Handré Pollard’s tackle and crossed for his first Test try. Pollard cut the lead with a penalty, but Ikitau was soon over for a second try, after a clever inside pass from Tom Banks to the late-arriving Marika Koribete helped create an overlap on the right, with the wing then sending the young centre over in the corner. With South Africa back to 15 men, the game tightened up, and Pollard kicked 3 penalties to one from Cooper, while Lachlan Swinton also spent 10 minutes on the naughty step for a no-arms tackle on Duane Vermeulen.

Having cut Australia’s lead to just 3 points by half time, the World Champions took the lead soon after the break, with Faf de Klerk putting in a clever grubber down a narrow blindside and Lukhanyo Am beating the turning Reece Hodge before dotting the ball down—a small atonement for last week. However they could not match up to the Wallabies for long, and the introduction of Pete Samu from the bench just opened the game up even more, with Marika Koroibete starting the final quarter with his first 2 tries of the campaign. With the game entering the final 10 minutes, the Wallabies held a 13 point lead and the South Africans were pushing for a try, but some solid Australian defence saw Michael Hooper and Samu Kerevi each winning crucial turnover penalties, while Cobus Wiese was given a yellow card for going off his feet to hit Kerevi in the head at the second turnover, allowing the Wallabies to clear their lines and hold on for a 30-17 victory that will see them climb into the top 3 of the World rankings and go just 1 point behind South Africa in the table.

rugby south africa springboks crest no background

Finely balanced

It’s amazing how just a couple of personnel changes can completely change a team, but that seems to be what has happened here with the Wallabies. With Quade Cooper coming in at 10 and not needing a second playmaker at centre, it has given the Wallabies the opportunity to play a more physical 12 in Samu Kerevi and a 13 in Ikitau who can exploit the space provided.

With that midfield, coupled with a strong and dynamic carrier in Marika Koroibete, and you have a back line capable of running riot and creating space for Banks and Kellaway. However a great back line still needs a pack to help them, and they are developing that too. Taniela Tupou must be close to having his membership to the front row union revoked with the way he plays in the open—just look at his input for Koroibete’s try! Meanwhile in the back row, Michael Hooper is always a danger in space, while Rob Valentini just looks more comfortable throwing his weight around with every match. and then when Pete Samu comes off the bench, he brings another dynamic carrier who also has the strength to beak tackles.

By having these carriers, Australia now have not just the necessary physicality to break the gainline, but the players to follow that up and keep the team on the front foot with 3 or 4 phases of hard carrying. Then add in the handling skills of some of these players like Tupou and Kerevi, and there is the distinct threat that one line break could be all it takes for the team to get over for a try.

Wrong man

While I think that Australia got their selections almost spot on this week, I think that South Africa made a big mistake. With Pieter-Steph du Toit missing trough injury, Franco Mostert was moved into the back row and Malvin Orie given the start at lock. While this selection would fit how the team has played of late, they finally chose to play attacking rugby in this match, and I think the selection of Mostert at flanker hurt them.

This is nothing against Mostert, he is a great player with an incredible engine, but the open game is then asking so much more of him. A better selection would have been one of the three back rowers on the bench: Kwagga Smith. The former 7s star is an incredible talent, but his speed and ability to get around the park is much more effective in an open game like this than the tight territorial battles we have seen the Springboks play of late.

Wanting Mostert at flanker to provide a third lineout option was understandable during the Lions series, but with Duane Vermeulen back in the line-up, this isn’t necessary. South Africa have great strength in depth, Jacques Nienaber now needs to start considering which players are better for the type of game they are looking to play.

Captain Fantastic

While doing the double over the World Champions is already cause for celebration, it was even more so for Michael Hooper, who was becoming the Wallabies’ most capped captain. With 113 caps to his name (placing him 28ᵗʰ all time for most-capped rugby players) and at only 29 years old, her certainly has the chance to add plenty more caps to his tally before his career comes to an end.

And those caps are all well-earned. The openside is a fantastic talent, one of the very best fetchers in the Southern Hemisphere, but also with the leadership and an all-round game that sets him apart from many other 7s. Hooper’s work rate is unmatched, and even in the worst Australian performances, he will often still stand out as one of the best players on the park. He has great handling skills and the speed to be like another centre when the team is on the attack, but also the strength and grit to match any back rower in the more physical side of the game. And as this tournament has proved, he’s not afraid to spill some claret for his country.

Perhaps it has been due to playing so much of his career in the shadow of David Pocock, perhaps it is the way Australia have been so up and down through his career; whatever the reason, I don’t believe that Hooper gets the wider acclaim that he deserves. Considering how frequently he has had to adapt to new laws at the breakdown during his career, when he hangs up his boots in the (hopefully still far away) future, I wouldn’t be shocked to see him remembered as one of the best opensides to play the game.

2021 Rugby Championship: South Africa v Australia

With New Zealand having earned their victory over Argentina, it was time for part 2 of the double header as World Champions South Africa faced off against hosts Australia. After the return of Izack Rodda and Samu Kerevi to the Wallabies 23 last week, this time it was the return of Quade Cooper that was grabbing people’s attention, and he got off to a solid start, trading 2 penalties apiece with Handré Pollard. The game was a tight affair, but could have taken a drastic turn on 15 minutes as Siya Kolisi tip tackled Tom Banks and was lucky that the fullback braced his fall with an arm, leading to just a yellow card for the Springbok captain. With the Boks a man down, Australia immediately took advantage of the extra space, and when Kerevi stepped inside Faf de Klerk, he created the space to send Andrew Kellaway over in the corner. The Springboks fought back, but failed to take their chances, with Pollard missing a penalty, then Lukhanyo Am fumbling the ball as he collected a grubber in the Australian in-goal under pressure from Tate McDermott. However a series of strong mauls forced the Wallabies pack to infringe, and as Kolisi returned to the pitch, Matt Philip was sent to the bin, and the change in numbers saw the Boks maul over for Bongi Mbonambi to score. Pollard missed the conversion, though, while Cooper maintained his 100% record with two more penalties to open up an 11-19 lead at the break.

Pollard had a chance to cut the lead early in the second half, only for his attempt to come back off the post, but his next attempt successfully cut the lead to 5. Australia’s next attack showed promise but came to an early end as Willie Le Roux was adjudged to have knocked on deliberately, leading to another penalty from Cooper and a 10-minute spell on the sidelines for the fullback, where he was soon joined by Australia’s Folau Fainga’a following a no-arms tackle to the lower leg. With the Boks again having a man advantage in the pack, they one again drove a 5m lineout over for a try, with replacement hooker Malcolm Marx the beneficiary this time. As the game entered the final quarter, Cooper kicked another penalty, but a second try for Marx from a third 5m lineout gave the Boks a late lead, though replacement fly half Damian Willemse pushed his kick wide to the right. It looked like a valiant effort from the Wallabies would fall just short, but a powerful drive at a later South African scrum saw Kwagga Smith drop on the loose ball and, with the rest of his pack being pushed backwards, Nic White was able to win the holding on penalty and Cooper, playing his first Test since 2017, stepped up to complete his perfect day off the tee and give the Wallabies a 26-28 victory.

He’s back!

With a couple of below-par performances, it wasn’t too much of a surprise to see a change to Australia’s playmaking set-up this week. And while it was a shame to see Noah Lolesio drop out of the 23, there was the excitement of seeing what Quade Cooper could do in his first Test appearance since facing Italy 4 years ago. Looking back at the match, it’s safe to say that it worked out well.

I suggested after the last match that being the sole playmaker in the backline and dealing with the goal kicking was too much pressure on Lolesio’s young shoulders. But Cooper has the experience to shoulder this responsibility and finished the game with a 100% (8/8) record off the tee for a total of 23 points, which ended up being the difference as South Africa’s misses off the tee proved costly.

But more than that, Cooper got the back line firing in a way Lolesio hadn’t against the All Blacks. Kerevi’s inclusion last week started to improve things, but with Cooper now pulling the strings the centre was truly unleashed, as Cooper would take the ball on to interest the defence, then play his man through a gap. Similarly, Cooper also did a great job of varying the attack to keep the vaunted South African defence guessing, much like when Finn Russell was introduced in the final Lions Test this summer.

At 33 years old, Cooper clearly isn’t the future of Australian rugby, but he is a talent that the team will truly benefit from having among them as the youngsters gain experience at this level. And with the World Cup just 2 years away, could he bring his career to an end at the showpiece event in France.

Broken down

We’re so used to seeing the Springboks dominate at the breakdown, but in this match, they really seemed to struggle. While I think part of this is down to missing a player with the nous of Pieter-Steph du Toit, I think that they were genuinely shocked by the ferocity with which the Australians attacked the breakdown. And not just the initial battle over the ball, but the continued fighting and nuisance-making from the Wallabies players once the Boks had secured the ball.

Sometimes the Wallabies went a little too far and gave away a penalty, but on the whole they toed the line just right, and that left Faf de Klerk under too much pressure to be able to control the game in the way that we expect him to, putting more pressure on Handré Pollard and the rest of the team. Don’t be shocked to see the Boks trying to better secure the ball at the back of the rucks this week.

Tipping the balance

Watching Australia in recent weeks, their back row has looked so much better once Pete Samu has come off the bench. Michael Hooper remains one of the best—and potentially most underrated—7s in world rugby, while Rob Valentini is successfully growing into his role as the muscle of the trio. However, I feel that Lachlan Swinton is finding it difficult to be an enforcer at 6 following such a quick step up to international level. Similarly, I also feel that, as someone who usually plays flanker, Valentini is a little limited at number 8, as he does not have that same experience especially at the back of the scrum.

Personally, I think that moving Valentini to 6 would allow him to become that big carrier similar to how Akira Ioane is currently being utilised by the All Blacks, then bringing in a more specialised number 8. Bringing in either Samu or Harry Wilson would then provide the Wallabies with another carrying option as both run incredibly smart supporting lines.

At Test level, you need to be getting the most out of all 23 players in the squad. I’m not sure that the starting back row has quite done this in recent weeks, but the change I’ve done above could be the next step on making the Wallabies a constant threat again, while also increasing the likelihood that they are attacking with quick ball on the front foot.