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Young slams Wallabies bold front-row plans
The Wallabies have been warned their scrum is in danger of again becoming a worrying Achilles heel due to plans to convert aggressive Brumbies prop Ben Alexander into a tight-head.
Former long-serving Test prop and current Brumbies scrum coach Bill Young took aim at the Wallabies selectors over Alexander’s positional switch plus the “bizarre” inclusion of Western Force bolter Pek Cowan in their 29-man squad.
Young was baffled by the selection of three loose-heads - Alexander, Cowan and Test incumbent Benn Robinson - among the squad’s four props, and stressed plans to move Alexander from one side of the front-row to the other were doomed to failure.
A standout around the ground in the Super 14, Alexander is being groomed to challenge veteran Al Baxter at tight-head, a bold move confirmed by forwards coach and selector Jim Williams on Friday.
Converting him to tight-head would allow coach Robbie Deans the luxury of having both Robinson and Alexander, his two most penetrative and hard-working props, on the field at the same time.
But an annoyed Young, who phoned Williams for a please explain, warned the move would reap the same embarrassing results of 2003-2005 when the Australian scrum crumbled against powerful rival packs.
Young played the last of his 46 Tests in that period and attributed the problem, highlighted by their 2005 Twickenham disintegration, to a preference for athletic front-rowers over strong scrummagers.
“They’ve tried that many, a many a time, and mate, it doesn’t work,” he told AAP.
“They made that mistake for years and they’ll make it again. They continue to do it for some reason.
“You can’t turn a bloke into a tight-head in an international season.
“You don’t learn your trade there. It’s impossible. It won’t work and it’s been tried before.
“I don’t understand why selectors do it.”
Young said Alexander, himself excited by the chance to emerge from Robinson’s shadow, would need two seasons of club rugby and another two of Super 14 at tight-head before being ready to wear the Wallabies No.3 jersey.
But he felt the switch could endanger his natural footballing skills and would merely make him “mediocre” at both positions.
Young pilloried the surprise selection of Cowan ahead of Brumbies tight-heads Guy Shepherdson and Salesi Ma’afu and Waratah Sekope Kepu, with Australia’s most-versatile front-rower Matt Dunning currently making his return from injury.
“They’ve picked just one tight-head, and I don’t know where they’ve picked Pek Cowan from,” said Australia’s third most-capped prop.
“It’s just a bizarre selection. I watch the Force scrummage and some of their scrummaging in the Super 14 was very shaky.
“Guy Shepherdson and Salesi Ma’afu are much more advanced than he is as a front-rower and as a scrummager and as an all-round athlete.”
Williams admitted it was a close call for the squad’s fourth prop but defended Cowan’s selection, who could also provide back-up at tight-head.
He believed Alexander, who played tight-head for the Australian U21s and club side Norths, would adapt quickly to his new role to possibly pressure Baxter.
“He worked hard at it last season and got an opportunity in the French Test (in November) and we were very happy with the attitude he had towards it and the effort he put in,” Williams said.
“Benn Robinson and Ben Alexander’s play around the park is second to none and we have a goal to get them on the field at the same time and we’ve taken steps towards it now.”
BRISBANE
AAP
http://www.thewest.com.au/default.as...ntentID=143472
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Originally Posted by shasta
a bit slow but predictable as always. 