Throwing down the Gauntlet.

First topic message reminder :

Every year the Six Nations is the birth place for rising stars and the platform to showcase young talent. This six nations may have had some dire games but when looking a little closer there has have been some individuals with hard work rates, big runs, electric offloads and good vision who have brightened the most dreary of matches.

A lack-luster England survived with less possession and territory against a game Scottish side who if they had but for a little luck or a little more patience could have pulled through. On the other side of the coin we have seen an on form Welsh side with electric back line play run most defences into oblivion, their six tries in 2 matches is proof of exactly how dangerous their back line combination is.

So who has impressed? Who are the players staking a claim, the young inexperienced players who should become regular fixtures in the starting line-up for their respective countries?

David Denton age 22, 6ft 5inches 249lb
As a back rower Denton has impressed me in both games so far with his ball carrying ability. Setting up the ball in the tackle and his offloading capability, looking at his match stats of 9 passes, 35 runs, 117 meters, 2 clean breaks, 4 defenders beaten, 2 offloads, 3 turn overs, 5 tackles and 1 missed, he may be more of an attacking force than a Schalk Burger type defensive demon, but it is early stages yet and he is certain to work on his defensive work rate.

Alex Cuthbert, age 21, 6ft 6inches, 229lb
While Cuthbert may have had a quiet game against Ireland his performance against Scotland was a revelation, outshining his teammate George North in nearly every department. His match stats of 1 try, 1 try assist, 3 passes, 8 runs, 84 meters ran, 2 clean breaks, 3 defenders beaten, 1 offload, 1 turn over and 6 tackles with none missed, shows he is a playmaker with the ability to beat defenders and the necessary vision.

George North age 19, 6ft 4 inches, 229lb
Now a regular fixture in the Welsh team, his match stats of 1 try, 1 try assist, 4 passes, 11 runs, 85 meters, 1 clean break, 8 defenders beaten, 1 offload, 2 turn overs, 2 tackles and 1 missed tackle would suggest that George North is a very effective runner with ball in hand, and who can forget his incredible offload to Jonathan Davies against Ireland.

If there is one criticism of him, where there is room for improvement then it is his work rate. Granted he got injured in the Scotland match, but in 119 minutes of play, 11 runs and only 2 tackles completed would suggest that Warren Gatland needs to have a quiet word with this rising star.

Jonathan Davies, age 23, 6ft 1 inch, 227lb
The first time Davies impressed me was during the world cup. He showed an eye for a gap, an ability to wriggle out of tackles and a good turn of pace, complimenting the raw running power of Jamie Roberts well. His first two matches of the six nations have cemented that impression on me and with match stats of 2 tries, 1 try assist, 4 kicks, 10 passes, 22 runs, 156 meters, 2 clean breaks, 2 defenders beaten, 1 offload, 17 tackles and only 1 missed has shown consistency, a high work rate and sublime skills with ball in hand.


Richard Gray, age 22, 6ft 10inches, 285lb
With 8 passes, 23 runs, 89 meters, 2 clean break, 3 defenders beaten, 2 offloads, 15 tackles, 0 missed tackles and 11 line outs won Richard Gray is the quintessential modern day lock, he is tall enough to be a world class line out jumper, he is big enough to break tackles and beat defenders and his work rate makes him a very good defender. It is still early days, but what I have seen from this young man would put a smile on any Scottish coach's face.

Stuart Hogg age 19, 5ft 11 inches 194lb
Perhaps too soon to tell, but Stuart Hogg on debut came off the bench in the 15th minute of the Wales vs Scotland game and has shown very good promise for such a young lad. During the second half in particular he ran the Welsh defence ragged with match stats of 2 kicks, 2 passes, 10 runs, 82 meters, 2 clean breaks, 2 defenders beaten, 3 turn overs, 5 tackles and none missed. It would be to Scotland’s advantage to develop this young man as they need someone with his skills in a back line who all too often have shown they do not possess the necessary patience and execution to finish moves.

Ross Rennie age 25, 6ft 1 inch 213lb
Almost unnoticed Rennie has been the star of the show, his match stats of 22 passes, 31 runs, 107 meters, 4 clean breaks, 5 defenders beaten, 6 offloads, 2 turn overs, 28 tackles and only 3 missed shows that in combination with Gray and Denton, they will be the catalyst for a revival of Scottish rugby. He has an astonishing work rate, he must be close to the top of the list as far as ball carriers are concerned and yet as an additional line out option his ability is evident for all to see.

There are of course other players who have continued to impress, such as Leigh Halfpenny and Rhys Priestland, but they are old hands now, established in their squads, and this is of course not about them, but rather a celebration of the new stock, those guys that in future will be able to stake their claims on the international stage.

Agreed Rodders, Dave Kearney looks very good in attack, runs some great lines, is quick and is actually very strong.

Still think it needs more than heroic leaps and catches (they are great...and it's a great skill to have - if you properly utilise it!)

The problem is, Kearney does his thing in perfect isolation from anything cohesive happening to take advantage of his work. The object shouldn't be that he rushes forward alone, does his thing and a big cheer from the crowd of job done. Possession isn't the job done. Using the ball he gets quickly to offload and create threats behind defensive lines that haven't been able to reform should be. Support is always iffy when it appears and it's usually the ruck forming support which is some advantage (possession retained) but hardly enough to break through rigid defences.

That's the problem with Ireland. Many individual players with their individual skills, lacking an effective overall gameplan to mesh it all together.

Rob, that is! Things will be very confusing if they eventually strart playing regularly together.

SecretFly wrote:The highest any Irish player got on that day was 'ok'...the lowest some of them got was 'awful'.. the worst thing on display was the alleged 'gameplan'

Therefore, it shows how good we could be if we get our act together

I'll comment on the Irish part of your post. You weren't as bad as you profess. you lacked pace on the outside and that is where it hurt, spaces were created in your defence due to that lack of pace. Your own attacking ability was also compromised because of that lack of pace.

When you decided to attack through the middle and staying close to the ruck you did manage to build momentum and gained valuable meters. your backrow was more effective in gaining meters than your back three apart from Kearney who had a blinder.

Your biggest problem on the day was the amount of missed tackles by your backline, by memory there were almost a dozen missed tackles.

biltong, we used an oft seen 'gameplan' that Kidney seems to like and that is to win games based on defence, with irregular incursions into enemy territory when the enemy loses concentration on their own defence.

It's a gameplan, it's a negative one. Sexton kicked away ball to the Welsh when still very deep in his own half...and we allowed them to run at us with some very passive defensive patterns. Suicide plan against a powerful attacking side that uses height, weight + momentum to crash through barriers and quickly offload before being brought to ground.

If you are constantly missing tackles then that is the wrong gameplan, not merely bad tackling. You don't keep trying to buy yourself out of jail by offering bribes to the officer who never takes any.

The lack of pace in attack is simply because it is not the design of our game to risk too much to attack when defence is the primary theory of Declan Kidney's game. Players are under orders to be forwever conscious of the need to return to defensive patterns. Because I'm more familiar with the players asked to play this Irish game, I can see the tensions written all over their faces. Players burdened by lots of instructions.

Kidney is beginning to find that defence is no longer working as effectively as he'd like it to and will eventually have to realise he needs to utilise players who are much more familiar with a high tempo attacking game, as played by Leinster. Our game is much too passive, much too much orientated around letting the opposition play their game as we thieve and take opportunities when we can.

Sounds like us during the last 4 years.

SecretFly wrote:The highest any Irish player got on that day was 'ok'...the lowest some of them got was 'awful'.. the worst thing on display was the alleged 'gameplan'

Therefore, it shows how good we could be if we get our act together, because we were still only 3 points short of a win against a team playing out of their socks and stuffed with talent, stamina, pace and invention...oh and them very big supergiant, superfit, supertalented backs......

Go figure...now where's that thumbs up symbol? oh there it is.

I thought Kearney had a better than ok game, his pass for Bowe's try was gorgeous if in a different way to the Welsh offloads and he was excellent in the air

ChequeredJersey wrote:
I thought Kearney had a better than ok game, his pass for Bowe's try was gorgeous if in a different way to the Welsh offloads and he was excellent in the air

I think he'd be even better in a better side, as would virtually every one of his 14 team mates, if you get my drift.

I'm a firm believer in team dynamics. These players individual qualities are not being used efficiently to establish an effective team. Their individual talents are being squandered to a stodgy gameplan that cuts about 30% off each player's team potential. So I say they are all performing below their capability. Kidney must change tact or the coach must change.

Fly - a major +1 to all of that. Be prepared to get called out for blaming all of Ireland's troubles on the coach though. Some people still think Kidney isn't the problem.