Wallabies Squad 2020 - Dave Rennie makes his mark

Dave Rennie begins his tenure as Wallabies Head Coach with 16 uncapped players after several months to mull over his squad. It is a hugely encouraging moment for Australian rugby that Rennie has put his faith in youth. He clearly intends to make his own mark.

Rennie has stated that omissions of Isi Naisarani, Tevita Kuridani and Jack Dempsey are related to a drop in form.

Having replaced Michael Chieka as Head Coach, Dave Rennie will bring a new dimension to the Wallabies. His tenures at Chiefs and Glasgow Warriors highlighted the quality of his coaching, in particularly, the fast, well planned, structured attacking play. He is also a family man who believes in a strong team culture.

A major criticism of the Wallabies in recent years has been the poor defence and inconsistent performances. Chieka was very much the marmite (vegemite) of coaches with very divided opinions from Wallabies supporters. I was an avid opponent to his style of coaching and feel that Rennie will help elevate the Wallabies all round game and results. Rennie's inclusion of sixteen uncapped players shows he is very much keeping an eye to the future and possibly RWC 2023 glory.

Bledisloe Cup RD 2 - Eden Park Sunday 18th KO 4pm (NZDT) 4am (GMT)

Australia: 15-Tom Banks, 14-Filipo Daugunu, 13-Hunter Paisami, 12-Matt Toomua, 11-Marika Koroibete, 10-James O’Connor, 9-Nic White, 8-Harry Wilson, 7-Michael Hooper (captain), 6-Ned Hanigan, 5-Matt Philip, 4-Lukhan Salakaia-Loto, 3-Taniela Tupou, 2-Brandon Paenga-Amosa, 1-James Slipper. Replacements: 16-Jordan Uelese, 17-Scott Sio, 18-Allan Alaalatoa, 19-Rob Simmons, 20-Liam Wright, 21-Jake Gordon, 22-Jordan Petaia, 23-Reece Hodge

New Zealand: 15-Beauden Barrett, 14-Jordie Barrett, 13-Anton Lienert-Brown, 12-Jack Goodhue, 11-Caleb Clarke, 10-Richie Mo’unga, 9-Aaron Smith, 8-Ardie Savea, 7-Sam Cane (captain), 6-Shannon Frizell, 5-Tupou Vaa’i, 4-Patrick Tuipulotu, 3-Ofa Tuungafasi, 2-Dane Coles, 1-Joe Moody. Replacements: 16-Codie Taylor, 17-Alex Hodgman, 18-Nepo Laulala, 19-Scott Barrett, 20-Hoskins Sotutu, 21-TJ Perenara, 22-Rieko Ioane, 23-Damian McKenzie

Dave Rennie will bring a new dimension to the Wallabies. His tenures at Chiefs and Glasgow Warriors highlighted the quality of his coaching, in particularly, the fast, well planned, structured attacking play.

i thought the Wallabies always thrived in an open unstructured attack...so will be interesting to see how they go with that.

They could be a force again!

I think they got a bit too loose under Chieka. Rennie should bring a bit more structure without sacrificing on counter attacking opportunities. Glasgow used Niko Matawalu as a 9 when Townsend was coach but Rennie mentioned he didn't like his unpredictability as a 9 which was why he stuck him on the wing most of the time.

It's interesting because Rennie was very much a marmite coach at Glasgow as well. Clearly a capable guy, but his man management was called into question, particularly the creation of cliques within the squad (those in his favour and those not), but in terms of rugby style I think he's what the Wallabies need. He isn't a boring or defensive coach, but the risks he'll permit are within a structure. He prefers calculated risks. I actually think he's a great fit for the Wallabies, but then again I think Gatland is a world class coach and a no brainer for the Lions, so perhaps I'm a marmite poster.

GeordieFalcon wrote:

Dave Rennie will bring a new dimension to the Wallabies. His tenures at Chiefs and Glasgow Warriors highlighted the quality of his coaching, in particularly, the fast, well planned, structured attacking play.

i thought the Wallabies always thrived in an open unstructured attack...so will be interesting to  see how they go with that.

They could be a force again!

Looking at this squad selection I doubt it.

Geoff Parling joined them as a coach.

Only 7 players 30 or over, with the oldest (4) being 31.

Parling was a good player, be intersting to see how he goes over there.

Since moving to Australia 6 months ago I've obviously watched a lot of Australian rugby. I've also seen first hand just how little the average Australian cares about rugby union just now. If Foxtel stopped broadcasting it (which could happen) professional rugby in Australia could disappear. Hopefully that won't happen.

As for the rugby, it's fair to say the Super Rugby Australia competition was pretty guff to start with. It didn't help that they were up against the NZ comp as the only rugby in the world at the time, but it was a huge drop in quality and intensity. It took time but the standard did increase, and we actually ended up with some high quality games near the end. The final was a great game I thought.

It is however a very green Aussie squad now - probably the most inexperienced tier 1 squad there's ever been in the professional era. That bodes well for the future, but I fear it could be a tough couple of years for Australia. It's also difficult to develop players when you're getting pumped, and Australia certainly doesn't get a easy ride playing NZ more than anyone else in the world, and playing SA more than any other european team.

I'm excited to see how they do though - there is a lot of young talent in there, particularly in the back row and the backs. Taniela Tupou is a freak of nature at tighthead, with skills of a centre but built like a prop. He stands out in the backline a bit too much for my liking but with time he'll find the balance I'm sure. He is only 24 after all which is baby year for a prop. He's pretty much played 80 minutes of every game - a hell of an engine on him. I suspect the team will be heavily Brumbies and Reds focused, with a smattering of Waratahs and Rebels players in there. Hooper probably isn't the best 7 just now but I don't think it's the right time to lose his experience from the team

It's been interesting following the back and forwards between the Aussie and NZ unions just now, with Australia really standing up for themselves. They got a big victory in being chosen as hosts for the Rugby Championsip, mainly due to the strict quarantine arrangements the NZ government required. On the face of it Australia have little bargaining chips just now given the state of rugby in the country and the lack of commercial appeal, but for NZ to be strong commercially they really need Australia to be strong. It's not in NZ's best interest for Australian rugby to disappear as a top tier 1 nation.

Nice summary RDW, I too am excited about the new crop of players coming through. I like that Rennie is looking to get them involved in the Wallabies camp and get a few of them capped. Although Australian rugby has had some lows over the past decade I can't help but feel optimistic about their direction.

Covid has allowed the Western Force to get a run of games in super rugby and they just signed Kurindrani and resigned their best backline player Kyle Godwin which is a positive step forwards post Super Rugby AU. I'm hopeful they can make improvements as a team and hopefully supply a few Wallabies in seasons to come.

Cheika had the Wallabies for 5 years and in that time the Wallabies beat every rugby nation they came up against at least once. That is something other top 10 nations couldn't say they've done in the past five years. The big issue was consistency, off field incidents and  by the end it was Cheika himself with his "us against them" mentality and press conference rants. He had to go. The 2010's will not be a decade the Wallabies look back on with a lot of fondness, marred by some controversial incidents and loss of talent. However, I find it hard to see how Australia can get any worse than they have been. TV rights and politics aside I'm certain they'll perform well during the Rugby Championship this Autumn.

Well Australia has a home Rugby Championship series, advantage to them. Argentina is on a hiding to nothing of they go, SA has yet to kick a ball in anger.

Their only threat is NZ, and I am sure Dave Rennie has a plan for NZ.

I think they will go fairly well considering all those factors.

Old Man wrote:Well Australia has a home Rugby Championship series, advantage to them. Argentina is on a hiding to nothing of they go, SA has yet to kick a ball in anger.

Their only threat is NZ, and I am sure Dave Rennie has a plan for NZ.

I think they will go fairly well considering all those factors.

I agree that SA and especially Argentina will be there for the taking, but NZ are on another planet just now and completely battle hardened. If Australia can keep within 20 I think it would be a respectable result. They struggled to do that even at full strength!

RDW wrote:

Old Man wrote:Well Australia has a home Rugby Championship series, advantage to them. Argentina is on a hiding to nothing of they go, SA has yet to kick a ball in anger.

Their only threat is NZ, and I am sure Dave Rennie has a plan for NZ.

I think they will go fairly well considering all those factors.

I agree that SA and especially Argentina will be there for the taking, but NZ are on another planet just now and completely battle hardened. If Australia can keep within 20 I think it would be a respectable result. They struggled to do that even at full strength!

Though the NZ teams were very good during the Aotaroa (spelling) I think there was also a lot of hype around the tournament, a bit over the top if you ask me.

Old Man wrote:

RDW wrote:

Old Man wrote:Well Australia has a home Rugby Championship series, advantage to them. Argentina is on a hiding to nothing of they go, SA has yet to kick a ball in anger.

Their only threat is NZ, and I am sure Dave Rennie has a plan for NZ.

I think they will go fairly well considering all those factors.

I agree that SA and especially Argentina will be there for the taking, but NZ are on another planet just now and completely battle hardened. If Australia can keep within 20 I think it would be a respectable result. They struggled to do that even at full strength!

Though the NZ teams were very good during the Aotaroa (spelling) I think there was also a lot of hype around the tournament, a bit over the top if you ask me.

I watched it every weekend and got blown away. After NZ set the standard I couldn't watch Aussie Super Rugby, it just looked awful in comparison.

The early rounds of Super Rugby Australia wasn’t very good, it did get better as the tournament went on. The biggest problem with their tournament was that The Force was rushed into the tournament, they had very few great name players and played every one of their matches away from home.

Waratahs had by memory two good matches. Brumbies played very conservative Jake Ball in the first round, scored mainly off line out mauls, they got better by the end.

Reds for me was the most adventurous during the pool stage.

Rebels had good first halves but somehow not great second halves, their attack was inconsistent.

Strange that Kuridrani has moved to the Force - there's no guarantee at all that they'll be involved in Super Rugby going forwards so he may be playing 2nd tier club rugby. I know he's not the player he used to be but he's only 29 and that may come back - he looked pretty handy in the final.

I'm also surprised he didn't make the move to Japan for the money - a well trodden path for Aussie/Kiwi players who fall out of favour with the national team.

He had a habit of scoring against Scotland so I'm not so fussed we won't be facing him again!

https://www.news.com.au/sport/rugby/wallabies/rugby-after-20-years-as-the-major-sponsor-of-the-wallabies-qantas-is-ending-its-deal/news-story/fd7d60743a40a7980c01c1bfef679364

Not good news!

Yeah not good at all. Time for Andrew Forrest to buy the Wallabies now haha.

I'm guessing Kurindrani will be on a good salary at the Force regardless of their rugby future, their marquee signing. Perth is also a very nice city to live in so perhaps that was a draw for him rather than Japan.

And now Rob Kearney is joining the Force! What a great signing

Excellent player, that will benefit the force greatly, his experience will be invaluable

Absolutely! He is a class player and he'll do very well at the Force. He's just the sort of player they need to help keep them in games and the right area of the pitch.

Hope they're not expecting him any time soon given the international travel ban. Even Aussies are struggling to get into the country just now!

https://www.rugby.com.au/news/2020/09/29/wallabies-scrum-coach-petrus-du-plessie-yet-to-arrive-with-team-ahead-of-bledisloe-cup

Case in point!

https://www.smh.com.au/sport/rugby-union/something-old-and-something-new-my-wallabies-side-for-bledisloe-i-20201004-p561v5.html

Potential wallabies squad - not far off I reckon.

Looking forward to the game this weekend! Still reckon it'll be a pumping, but looking forward to seeing what Australia can do.

I'm also very excited to see what the Wallabies can pull off. Going by their social media feeds they've been working hard this week. I'm hoping it'll be a competitive match.

Going by that Journo's predicted starting XV only 3 players who lost to Scotland in 2017 would be starting. Sio, Hooper and Koroibete

Certainly will be all change!

Rumours of the ABs putting out some youngsters too. Won't affect the result much (still likely an All Blacks rampage) but will add to the intrigue.

Yeah exactly, hopefully it'll be like that Dunedin Bledisloe cup match back in 2017!

Teams are out - pretty frightening All Blacks squad! They're going to win, but I hope Australia at least keep it competitive for the most part. It's going to be a huge ask. That ABs backline is insanely talented. If Australia play fast and loose they'll be run ragged.

Wallabies’ starting XV: James Slipper, Folau Fainga’a, Taniela Tupou, Lukhan Salakaia-Loto, Matt Philip, Harry Wilson, Michael Hooper, Pete Samu, Nic White, James O’Connor, Marika Koroibete, Matt To’omua, Hunter Paisami, Filipo Daugunu, Tom Banks.

Replacements: Jordan Uelese, Scott Sio, Allan Alaalatoa, Rob Simmons, Rob Valetini, Jake Gordon, Noah Lolesio, Reece Hodge

All Blacks starting XV: Joe Moody, Codie Taylor, Ofa Tuungafasi, Patrick Tuipulotu, Sam Whitelock, Shannon Frizell, Sam Cane (c), Ardie Savea, Aaron Smith, Richie Mo‘unga, George Bridge, Jack Goodhue, Rieko Ioane, Jordie Barrett, Beauden Barrett

Replacements: Dane Coles, Karl Tu‘inukuafe, Nepo Laulala, Tupou Vaa’i, Hoskins Sotutu, TJ Perenara, Anton Lienert-Brown, Caleb Clarke

ABs are very strong up front too, with strong replacements. I can see them wiping the floor with Aus, sort of business as usual.

Yeah huge amount of power in the forwards!

Beauden Barrett has pulled out....to be replaced by some bloke called Damien McKenzie.

Michael Hooper with his 100th test.

RDW wrote:Yeah huge amount of power in the forwards!

Very mobile too, and if they aren’t mobile enough they have mobility on the bench.

I think Dave Rennie will make a big impact on the Wallabies, might take time though

Anyone else watching this? Early rise for UK folk??

One of the most animated haka I've seen for a while - they look well up for it!

ABs committing no one to rucks. Wallabies need some pick and goes and snipes around the rucks to draw them in.

Nice try NZ - Banks learning the hard way his kicks need to go into touch!

8-3 NZ HT in a pretty low key game so far. ABs should have had a smash and grab try after the whistle after wallabies make a right mess of a lineout, but Ioane has a try knock on for the bloopers reel.

Wallabies have had loads of possession but ABs defence and breakdowns work has been excellent. It's almost like they treated that half as a defensive exercise.

Wallabies have had some good individual efforts but aren't playing as a cohesive unit at all, and need to find a way to break through the ABs defence.

Try ABs - an identical move to the one the wallabies stuffed up but of course they actually execute it properly.

Great game so far, good standard of rugby. NZ persisting with their counter attack gameplan. Australia are a bit more power at the breakdown away from beating them here.

Lovely backs move try from Australia - game on!

rugby racing and beer wrote:Great game so far, good standard of rugby. NZ persisting with their counter attack gameplan. Australia are a bit more power at the breakdown away from beating them here.

Absolutely - ABs have been really clever in when to attack the breakdown and when to not commit. Wallabies lack of cohesion has led to a few players being isolated.

Wallabies penalty count is killing them - must be at least 3-4 times as many penalties as the ABs

10-5 in terms of penalties. Not quite triple but certainly a lot more!

Really clever play from White (who has been excellent) and wallabies in the corner.

Really is game on!

13-13

Very sympathetic refereeing of the advantage law there by Kiwi Paul Williams. It'll probably decide the game.

Justice as the penalty in front of the posts is missed. Advantage was over.

Kiwi scrum penalty too when Australia didn't get one in the same scenario.

Australia lead by 3 with 6 minutes to go!