Wallaby v All Blacks: Live Match Thread

[Pal Joey]

First topic message reminder :

1st Match: 2012 Bledisloe Cup - The Rugby Championship
Saturday 18th August, 2012.
Sydney Olympic Stadium, 8:00pm

Wallabies:

15 Kurtley Beale
14 Adam Ashley-Cooper
13 Rob Horne
12 Anthony Fainga'a
11 Digby Ioane
10 Berrick Barnes
9 Will Genia
8 Scott Higginbotham
7 David Pocock (capt)
6 Dave Dennis
5 Nathan Sharpe
4 Sitaleki Timani
3 Sekope Kepu
2 Tatafu Polota Nau
1 Benn Robinson

Reserves:
16 Stephen Moore, 17 James Slipper, 18 Rob Simmons, 19 Radike Samo, 20 Michael Hooper, 21 Nick Phipps, 22 Drew Mitchell


All Blacks:

15 Israel Dagg
14 Cory Jane
13 Ma'a Nonu
12 Sonny Bill Williams
11 Hosea Gear
10 Dan Carter
9 Aaron Smith
8 Kieran Read
7 Richie McCaw
6 Liam Messam
5 Sam Whitelock
4 Luke Romano
3 Owen Franks
2 Keven Mealamu
1 Tony Woodcock

Reserves:
16 Andrew Hore, 17 Ben Franks, 18 Victor Vito, 19 Brodie Retalick, 20 Piri Weepu, 21 Aaron Cruden, 22 Ben Smith

[Biltong]

Bad luck for Read there, he has been having a good game

[Guest]

Well done Messam, think he's cementing his place.

[Biltong]

In my opinion Cooper, Genia and Beale have lost their mojo.

[Taylorman]

They're right about cooper. He's not got the swagger he used to have and is going through the motions. Genia and beale are trying to lift the urgency but they just keep getting knocked back.

[Taylorman]

Yep...just seems a bridge too far.

[valjester]

High tackle missed there. God this game has been so disappointing.

[pete (buachaill on eirne)]

I don't say this often in fact on these boards this is the first time I've written it but I think the Ab's are definitely getting the rub of the refereeing green.

Like just there Owens said Black hands off 3 times! Do something about it!

[EnglishReign]

4N rugby

[valjester]

FFS if you're going to kick the ball, at least make sure its a smart kick.
Weepu looks like a prop forward.

[Guest]

That was the problem last week Pete, Rolland just blew the whistle non stop. Owens is a bit more lenient. Did you see that head high just then on the AB player, didn't blow whistle, so what, play on.

[Knackeredknees]

Good to see Nigel Owens up to his usual standard ignore a high tackle, one of the most crooked throws on a line out but ping a player for not releasing. Then after pinging nz earlier for going off their feet in a ruck stands and watches the entire nz pack go over the ball off their feet right in front of him? Has made a pretty dull game even more unbearable by being poor

[valjester]

That was the problem last week Pete, Rolland just blew the whistle non stop. Owens is a bit more lenient. Did you see that head high just then on the AB player, didn't blow whistle, so what, play on.

He also missed a high tackle by New Zealand. You can't blame Rolland for blowing for penalties, he can't ignore them just because it suits the game flowing.

[pete (buachaill on eirne)]

Yeah I agree knackered knees,

There is a inconsistency there that is annoying me during this game.
The amount of crooked throws is silly

[Guest]

Well he's missed about two othe high tackles on ABs, but again, he played advantage. I personally prefer this style of reffing than the pedantic Rolland whistle fest. Well done Owens, I eat my words (another thread).

[valjester]

Yeah I agree knackered knees,

There is a inconsistency there that is annoying me during this game.
The amount of crooked throws is silly

That happens week in, week out. It should be one of the simplest things in the world to stamp out, the touch judge is standing right behind the hooker, he should be given the responsibility. The ref already has enough to deal with, the touch judges/assistant refs have to get more involved.

[ChequeredJersey]

Ah damn I overslept. Who's been playing well, aside from Dagg?

[Taylorman]

Only been one team in this all night. Well done ABs. Bledisloe cup stays bolted down.
Deans may as well stay here.

Oz hussled all match and not once looked like scoring a point.

Dagg, Read, A Smith and SBW take a bow. Best around in your positions.

[Knackeredknees]

Normally I rate Owens as one of the best refs around but today the AB got away with murder at the breakdown and the offside line, Owens didn't look like he want to look at the AB unless it was so blatant that to ignore would have raised questions at his review. Fair play to OZ for plugging away but you can't have quick ball or compete when theirs nothing but AB bodies led over the ball

[Full Credit]

Frankly Aus are just rubbish at the moment. It's been 50 years since we've failed to score a point against NZ. I'd love to know Deans' training schedule.

9:00 - 11:00 - Practice aimless kicking
11:00 - 12:00 - Practice dropping high balls
12:00 - 1:00 - Lunch
1:00 - 2:00 - Practice being held up in the tackle
2:00 - 3:00 - Practice more aimless kicking
3:00 - 5:00 - Practice looking impotent in attack

The Waratahs spend all year kicking the ball away aimlessly (and get loss after loss as a result), Deans selects majority Waratahs to make up the side... what did he expect would happen? I'm flabbergasted.

Not that it made much difference to the result but another overly pedantic reffing effort.

Well done NZ. You are just so far above us at the moment it's not funny.

[Knackeredknees]

Taylorman
You have to say that it was one of the worst games NZ have played, the handling errors alone is worrying as they never had to chase the game, as well as not gaining a fair scrum advantage against OZ should be a worry, not to mention the line out going a bit south

[wales606]

Pretty dull game in the end.

NZ won comfortably in the end, but should be disappointed with that performance.

Aus showed absolutely nothing in attack and a decent defence and a load of All Black handling errors are not enough when your team can't put a point on the board.

[Portnoy]

Oz lucky to get nil. ABs misfiring and

Think Nigel Owens is having a very good game

I beg to differ. I thought he made some very key mistakes - not that that mattered.

Why does he sanction not even close crooked feeds for packs that are in clear retreat?

Genia should not have been carded and that time Reid nicked the ball off him was imo not coming through the gate. But that point was not clear to be fair.

But Owens is a known homer.

Tick tock tick tock - bye bye Dingo.

[disneychilly]

So disappointed in Australia's attack. I've never seen a game from them in which they have looked as toothless.

Owen Franks is offside all the time. It's worrying and he should a be pinged for it and b have it coached out of it in training.

Frustrating NZ blew so many gilt-edged chances. Need to work on finishing. It's why I'm still worried about Foster-soon one of these missed chances will cost NZ a test.

Scrum wise it looked like Crockett learned from that early penalty to not go as hard and concentrated on a solid platform. Smith got some good ball to work with. Can't say the same for the lineout though.

There seemed to always be more NZ numbers at the breakdown too. Probably why Owens gave NZ the rub of the green. To be honest you could probably give a penalty from every ruck so what do you do? Ignore them and let the game flow or kill it with a penalty every 30 seconds? Both sides were guilty of it.

Carter should have dived over the line instead of passing. SBW proved how big a loss he'll be. Fantastic direct running. Doesn't get any better having the best 13 going around as his replacement. Bet Panasonic are happy he didn't get stretchered off the field. Good luck to you man.

[Taylorman]

Taylorman
You have to say that it was one of the worst games NZ have played, the handling errors alone is worrying as they never had to chase the game, as well as not gaining a fair scrum advantage against OZ should be a worry, not to mention the line out going a bit south

Why do I have to say that knackered?

Genia himself said they were taught a lesson tonight.
Oz didn't look like scoring and in the end a blackout.

How can anyone say that was 'worst' anything is beyond me.
Take your blinkers off, watch the game again, and pretend the ABs are wearing the colours of your favourite side.

No wonder other sides are incapable of learning. The blinkers are just a little bit too tight.

Yes the handling was poor at times. At others sublime. No other side can handle like that so how would you really know how to compare.

[Knackeredknees]

Taylorman
You have to say that it was one of the worst games NZ have played, the handling errors alone is worrying as they never had to chase the game, as well as not gaining a fair scrum advantage against OZ should be a worry, not to mention the line out going a bit south

Why do I have to say that knackered?

Genia himself said they were taught a lesson tonight.
Oz didn't look like scoring and in the end a blackout.

How can anyone say that was 'worst' anything is beyond me.
Take your blinkers off, watch the game again, and pretend the ABs are wearing the colours of your favourite side.

No wonder other sides are incapable of learning. The blinkers are just a little bit too tight.

Yes the handling was poor at times. At others sublime. No other side can handle like that so how would you really know how to compare.

No blinkers from me, if England had won like that I would have been over the moon, but still to win like that with a creaking line out and scrum and so many unforced errors when your know for being the most tight and clinical team. That performance was the worst I've seen from the AB for a while. What do you think the score would have been with the line out working, a solid scrum and those errors dropped to the normal 4 or 5?

[disneychilly]

But Owens is a known homer.

Keep that bigoted prejudiced crap out of this forum Portnoy.

[Taylorman]

Where oz competed knackered was at the breakdowns and in scrambling defensively, hence the pressure on our handling.
But the words 'worst ever' as a description are just a poor summary of the match and aren't worth the bother.

[yappysnap]

Too many of Oz's players are so far below test standard it's unreal! The front row, Dennis, the centres, and an out of form back three shouldn't be anywhere near that side.

Feel sorry for Cooper in his come back. He was solid but had a dithering Genia in front of him and a 12 that only wants to launch shocking kicks out side him.

On a plus side for Oz their new 7 looks very good, Higginbotham is getting better and that massive lock is impressive.


NZ were scarily tough, their defense was frankly terrifying at times and when they did wake up in the second half their attack looked dangerous. Not sure how it'll go with out SBW though he is instrumental in all their go forward, far more so now then either Nonu or Carter. I don't think any of the replacements will match him.

I'll be interested too see how SA challenge NZ I hope the Boks have no more injuries as I want to see this NZ team properly tested.

[yappysnap]

I would add that I don't think Barnes or Dennis should get any more game time in this tournament, both were instrumental in the total lack of precision from Oz today and Barnes especially has been five knuckle shuffle for a while now.

[ChequeredJersey]

Yappy, NZ will just change the plan to be Nonu-focussed again.

[pete (buachaill on eirne)]

Oh god new zealand were good, I think Owens helped but I still think NZ were very good, maybe not in the way they are normally but their kicking game, defence and at times their offloading.

One thing I'd say about Oz is, that Genia was shut down. I think Genia is at his best when he picks and goes laterally sucking in defenders, that didn't happen at all today.

Lineout was a shambles.

Kicking was even worse.

Some players should take a hard look at themselves

[Taylorman]

Hooper went real well yappy. Mccaw mentioned he'd played well against the canes earlier and interesting they chose to kick off first to wherever he was to shatter his confidence.

Didnt work as he was one of ozs best.

What does that mean for deans?

Fiiiiiiiinaaaaaaalllllllllyyyyyyyyyyyy they might see the light. Get him out and get an ozzie in there who's familiar with the oz rugby scene nationally. Deans had no idea how to pull together a side impacted by the more popular league, rules codes coming from an area full of talented players with nothing like the same resourcing issues

[yappysnap]

I'm sure they will Chequered but I just don't think Nonu is as good for the players around him as SBW is. Saying that it'll probably still be more then enough.

Cruden will be the one to watch, should have come on when the AB's got to 22. He jsut creates so much and has a deadly turn of pace.

[yappysnap]

Yea i can't see Deans staying on much longer. The Oz team is crashing and burning around him.

Does any one think he would do a good job for England? Maybe as a technical adviser for Lancaster or something like that?

[aucklandlaurie]

Taylorman
You have to say that it was one of the worst games NZ have played, the handling errors alone is worrying as they never had to chase the game, as well as not gaining a fair scrum advantage against OZ should be a worry, not to mention the line out going a bit south

Why do I have to say that knackered?

Genia himself said they were taught a lesson tonight.
Oz didn't look like scoring and in the end a blackout.

How can anyone say that was 'worst' anything is beyond me.
Take your blinkers off, watch the game again, and pretend the ABs are wearing the colours of your favourite side.

No wonder other sides are incapable of learning. The blinkers are just a little bit too tight.

Yes the handling was poor at times. At others sublime. No other side can handle like that so how would you really know how to compare.

No blinkers from me, if England had won like that I would have been over the moon, but still to win like that with a creaking line out and scrum and so many unforced errors when your know for being the most tight and clinical team. That performance was the worst I've seen from the AB for a while. What do you think the score would have been with the line out working, a solid scrum and those errors dropped to the normal 4 or 5?

And there in lies the different ways we appreciate this game,Knackered, the score was 22 nil, to us New Zealanders (and Australians) the important part of that score is the nil, Or perhaps imagine if your team beat Australia and in the process held them pointsless, then you might appreciate that their performance cant be bad.

[Taylorman]

Yeah he'd go ok where resourcing isn't an issue so he can get on doing what he does best...coaching and getting the best from players.

Oz need a coach that is familiar with the local issues of retaining youth within the game. Deans must go. Now.
He's bereft of ideas, will have his match talks going in the one ear and out the other.

Still he refers to being smarter and more accurate.

Geez...he looked resigned the minute he got off the bus.

[aucklandlaurie]

Jeremy Paul was speaking in a way that it just wasnt negotiable, he said Deans had to go at the end of this tournament.

[yappysnap]

Well we'd happily take him in England, if only this had happend after the WC!

Not sure who can do any better for Oz though, it's not really coaching that they need, it's a better club structure and more talent in certain positions.

They need to go back to 4 clubs and protect their best players a bit more, and build up some better centers.

[Portnoy]

But Owens is a known homer.

Keep that bigoted prejudiced crap out of this forum Portnoy.

Hang on a bit... what bigoted, prejudiced stuff?

[disneychilly]

What, you call someone's perceived errors out and then mention his sexuality as a possible reason? I'm not a mod but there's no need for that crap. Keep anything regarding sexuality to yourself and stick to the rugby.

[Guest]

You mean like Homer Simpson?

[Taylorman]

Id say biltong might have been quietly happy with the way the game went tonight.

Although we kept oz out we wouldn't have been as effective with that effort in SA- our most likeliest loss for the year. SA would have competed much more in the set pieces.

But I think its horses for courses and with the oz leg taken care of we now face four matches where set pieces and defence are king. If Hansens smart he'll refocus in those areas and perhaps tighten up in the 50/50 areas.

Oz offered more chances because of their lesser set piece work and Argie and certainly SA won't afford the same.

In saying that the Reads and nonus have got more game time and Conrad Smith is to return.

[Portnoy]

What, you call someone's perceived errors out and then mention his sexuality as a possible reason? I'm not a mod but there's no need for that crap. Keep anything regarding sexuality to yourself and stick to the rugby.

Ah in that case I might have written 'homo'.

I meant a ref who is prone to blow in favour of home sides.

And by 'blow' I mean his whistle.

And by 'whistle' I mean (cont'd p94)...

[rainbow-warrior]

Is it over yet? Yawn

[Taylorman]

Is it over yet? Yawn

Yep. Back to sleep sonny.

[Guest]

Jeremy Paul was speaking in a way that it just wasnt negotiable, he said Deans had to go at the end of this tournament.

Quite liked Jeremy Paul in there, straight shooter. In last week's game I thought he'd had a few rum n cokes beforehand because he was very frank. But it's just his style, I liked it.

About the game, some fumbles occurred due to hot potato short passes out of contact. Kind of popping it along the backline in continuous little passes, quite unique and an obvious ploy.

Just out of curiosity, any teams kept oz scoreless lately? Maybe it was the homer ref, not heard of that one, bit dodge mate.

[disneychilly]

In that case I apologise. But you see where I'm coming from no doubt. I've seen the word homer used as another variation.

[John Cregan]

What, you call someone's perceived errors out and then mention his sexuality as a possible reason? I'm not a mod but there's no need for that crap. Keep anything regarding sexuality to yourself and stick to the rugby.

Ah in that case I might have written 'homo'.

I meant a ref who is prone to blow in favour of home sides.

And by 'blow' I mean his whistle.

And by 'whistle' I mean (cont'd p94)...

Comeback of the year so far........................

[Portnoy]

In that case I apologise. But you see where I'm coming from no doubt. I've seen the word homer used as another variation.

It's OK disney. I can understand your outrage at your perceived impression. I could have have been clearer.
Incidentally, as it happens, the missus is out this morning to discuss early preparations of our son's nuptials with his boyfriend.

[nganboy]

is that legal in the UK?

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