Hurricanes v Force - Round 4

[Ecky]

How did Grant play at 10?
(I mean overall; not isolated incidents)

[wholetruth]

He made team of the week.

[GIGS20]

I haven't seen the others, but they must have been pretty ordinary, I would say he was OK without being Jono Lance.

Tried to run at the line a bit, Kicking was a bit of a mixed bag, but he didn't make any massive clangers and he certainly tried to play to the game plan (Unlike other 10s we've had in the past)

You could tell why Jono was getting the nod over him!

[palitu]

yeah, field kicking was lower standard than jono's

[MI5_Dog]

He made team of the week.

whose team of the week where?

[Kalahard]

While giving up so many late tries is disappointing, there are still some persistent problems that we have yet to identify to enable us to play a more expansive brand of rugby. These are:
1. We still do not do enough in and around the collision area to test the defense.
2. We still do not have centres who can break the line.
3. Our set piece still misfires at crucial stages.
4. We are still way too predictable in attack.

We need more variety and consistency around what we do at the collision and identifying where to attack the defense with our forward runners. We need to develop our offloading options within our forward runner options to attract more defenders in the middle of the park to open the wide defense up. One out hit ups are not enough anymore. They use up 3 to 4 attacking players while only using up 1 defender. More often than not the 1 defender manages to slow our ball compounding the problem.

Our centres need to start breaking the line more. We need these guys getting behind the initial defensive line to attract the faster defenders in cover defence leaving us the chance to attack mismatches in the defensive line. There will a couple of slow tight forwards defending quick players somewhere if we can get this right.

We need to not only win our own ball but be able to win the crucial set pieces in deep attacking territory. Twice against the Brumbies we blew lineouts in their 22 with crooked throws when hot on attack and stiil in the game. When down 10-6 against the Hurricanes we had a deep attacking lineout which we won then knocked on during the attempted maul. The Hurricanes regathered possession and took it 95 metres the other way and scored the first of their late flurry of tries. Our scrum is still shaky at best at crucial moments too. Both have been a problem for the last season and a bit and continue to haunt us.

We need to shake up our core attacking structure. We have had the same predictable attack for 3 years now. At line out time we will maul the ball up field. This is all we do especially in attacking areas. Off scrums we look to strike the midfield, work 2 hit ups to the wing than have no options coming back. This results in more one out forward runners having to work the middle of the field again until we have enough backs ready to shovel pass it to the other wing and then start again. More often then not we lose 5-20 metres doing this. Opposition teams know we are going to do these things and are prepared to counter them. As the game vs Hurricanes went on you could see the defense loading up the channels we consistently attack and completely snuff out our attack.

We need to give our forwards the green light to push the offloads around the pods to ask questions of the defense. We need to be able to nullify 4 or 5 defenders with our pod structures not just 1 or 2. We are always disadvantaged in this crucial area and it kills our attack time after time. We have to earn the right to go wide. Currently we are not. Our forwards need to be upskilled immediately to allow the attacking structures to work. We need forwards who can catch, pass and offload.
We need penetration from our centres to attract the quicker defenders in cover attack. Lose a centre, winger and fullback from the defensive line and they will be forced to mark our quicker players with what they have left, the slower guys. We need more plays off our lineouts. Mauling is fine, but we are not very good at it. We could use a play off the back of the lineout and a front of lineout play too. The Hurricanes had them and managed to score off their front lineout move.

Normally a strength that is associated with the Force is our forward pack but this is no more. Our forwards are being coached to play an outdated gameplan with too much predictability. Hopefuly our Coach can quickly recognise all of our short comings in our forward play. Over to you Mr Foley, we need a great deal of improvements around our forward play or we will need to find someone who can give the forwards the skills and structures to succeed.

[Beauregard]

Kalahard: - Insightful and frankly an excellent summary of issues facing the team. In regard to the forwards given the green light, Foley has managed to bash so much "structure" into the players that 9 out of 10 times they are standing in a near channel, static, with a neon sign saying "I am about to get the ball, please bash me 5 meters behind the gain line". You are absolutely correct that they need freer reign to have a go and pop passes, run around the corner to take the offloads, be a bit more dynamic and challenge the defense to set wider ready for the princesses to either shuffle rubbish to the touch line, knock on in contact to inevitably ... kick to ball down field.

Bravo to you for your summary... pity it will fall on deaf ears, blind eyes and evaporate into the ether ..... nothing as yet has shown me that the Force will do anything this season barring stay above the Kings in the race for last place.

[wholetruth]

whose team of the week where?

The SuperXV site. I'll see if I can find the link again

[BeeJay]

Yes good comments, Kalahard. But then you are from the land of Reality...

I would just add that up to the 60th minute mark, the Hurricanes were playing the same game, and we were not sending many into the breakdown. Then they worked it out, and started more picking and driving, and taking it up through the forwards, forcing us to defend in close. THEN they threw it wide, with pace, power and offloads. But we did not respond.

My point is that we need to adapt our game plan dynamically, in the moment. We don't seem to have the smarts to do that.

Perhaps we just don't have the cattle. I know, others (Shasta et al) have pointed out WHY given the inequities of recruitment, salary arrangements etc.

I know we have produced players who can stand tall in the comp. And we have produced Wallabies. But in the end, its not enough.

We rejoice when we get some young up and coming unknown, or some old washed up player looking for a seachange.

We won't be able to compete until we can get better players 1-15.

Just look at the size, speed and strength of the Canes - some of our backs would have found it hard to compete with their second string side.

A coach who was a back might help too...

[andrewg]

Round 4 Ruck Analysis for the Aussie teams.

http://www.greenandgoldrugby.com/sr-...lysis-round-4/

[MI5_Dog]

Round 4 Ruck Analysis for the Aussie teams.

http://www.greenandgoldrugby.com/sr-...lysis-round-4/

Total Tuck Involvements?

[andrewg]

Total Tuck Involvements?

Thanks MI5 - lucky it wasn't an "F"

[andrewg]

One of these players is the preferred Wallabies OSF.



Promise to update as the season progresses.

Watch the players in action......

Hodgo, Pocock and McMahon make the tackle or impact the ruck and quickly back on their feet and back in the line to handle the next onslaught.

Hooper on the other hand slowly gets back on his feet and sometimes takes up to 3 phases to get back in the action.
It's always been obvious to those who watch closely, but this year he's become even worse with his recovery.
Slow and lazy come to mind. Or maybe just too assured re his position in both the Waratahs and Wallabies.
Hooper's stats at the RWC were NOT that good.

[The InnFORCEr]

One of these players is the preferred Wallabies OSF.

Yeah I know, and it's a damn shame he doesn't get the gig

[Alison]

One of these players is the preferred Wallabies OSF.

Makes me so bloody mad!!!