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MICHAEL Cheika spoke earlier this week about retention before recruitment, with 80 per cent of his best players off contract, but he has already made a key acquisition for 2014 by luring Wallabies halfback Nick Phipps across the border.
Melbourne Rebels star Phipps agreed to join the Waratahs last Thursday night.
There is intriguing background angst to this, with former Wallaby Luke Burgess to join the Rebels next year, returning to Australia after leaving the Tahs at the end of the 2011 season.
Phipps is unhappy that the Rebels' interest and negotiations with Burgess weren't fully disclosed.
He wanted to stay in Melbourne, telling friends he became a Wallaby with the help of the franchise and felt loyalty to them.
But upon discovering that Burgess was on a done deal, Phipps felt burned by some officials at the Rebels.
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WARATAHS crowds are back in the spotlight after their first home game only drew 11,206 - the lowest ever. Officials were re-assuring themselves it was the wet weather at fault and fans were watching at home instead. Were they? The answer is - sort of. FoxSports ratings hovered around the 180,000 mark for Tahs-Rebels, which is similar to the only-average figures of last year. Not quite the Izzy-mania fan boost the Tahs - and the ARU - paid big bucks for.
thatll only make the Rebels stronger!
If those crowds keep rocking up to watch the Waratahs Michael Cheika will have to paid with a pie and coke everyweek
Phipps is p1ssed because he knew he'd be warming the pine. The guy is farking luggage
Tah crowds........start winning and playing rugby worth watching and the crowds will come. It aint rocket science
Credit where it's due. Much as I dislike the Tahs, they have shown some fight and a bit of mongrel in two second half fight backs. The testing material starts this weekend in Canberra. Then they have three @ home ending with us. I'd love to be able to write them off, but it's not quite there yet.Originally Posted by GIGS
"The main difference between playing League and Union is that now I get my hangovers on Monday instead of Sunday - Tom David
Phipps not feeling the love? Rebels bringing in Burgess? Phipps feeling threatened?
Strewth! Gawd 'elp me!! What a gutless tosspot. The bloke is completely frakking useless, so useless he feels threatened by slightly less useless Burgess. What a joke.
Rebels stronger with Burgess, Tahs would be worse (if possible) except Phipps wont even make the bench. Next stop Nippon
The long sobs of autumn's violins wound my heart with a monotonous languor
Spit the dummy and move to a franchise where he will be lucky to make the bench. Who is advising this guy???
Last edited by Invictus; 08-03-13 at 14:04.
Agree with above, surely Mckibben, Matt Lucas and Grayson Hart a bigger threat than Burgess, or call me synical but Beale may already be gone to the Warratahs and he knows without a classy player like that that he will be shown up for what he is like in the Wallabies, slow with passes all over the shop.
Simon Cron: “People talk about winning and losing all the time and they are critical, but there’s a process to get into and it’s the ability to stay present, do your job and execute skills under pressure.”