'As a prop, that's a dream': Daunting Wallaby pack awaits Scotland
The addition of European-based stars Will Skelton and Rory Arnold has bolstered the Wallaby pack ahead of this week’s test match against Scotland at Murrayfield.
Taniela Tupou is excited about the prospect of linking up with the pair, saying that it is a ‘dream’ scenario to have the power of Will Skelton behind him at scrum time in the second row.
“We were just talking about it yesterday. Because I’ve never really played with Will, just imagine having him behind me or Allan or any of the tightheads,” Tupou told the media.
“As a prop, that’s a dream. You don’t have to do much, you just be in good shape and Will will do the rest, so looking forward to it.”
The Queensland Reds’ tighthead prop has emerged over the last 12 months as one of the most devastating front rowers in the game, and at 25-years-old has matured a lot with his game since he last played at Murrayfield as a debutant in 2017.
Tupou came off the bench in the midst of a catastrophic performance by the Wallabies, as Scotland piled on the points to rout Australia by a score of 53-24.
“It’s funny because, back in 2017, I came yesterday, got my key, went into the room, they put me in the same room on the same level as I was a few years ago, and we’re playing on Sunday, When I made my debut, I remember my debut was on Sunday too, so it’s just funny how everything can work,” he said.
“It’s good to be back here and looking forward to hopefully playing this week.”
Tupou admitted that he hasn’t watched the tape of that outing, but is keen on reversing the result on Sunday.
“I haven’t watched the game since I played, but not the best game, so hopefully we change that around this weekend.”
With 35 tests under his belt now, Tupou returns to Murrayfield with a different mindset this time with experience having become a central figure within Dave Rennie’s squad either as a starter or as a damaging impact player late in games.
As a result, Tupou says he is enjoying this tour as an older member of the touring squad who is able to just be himself around his teammates.
“To be honest, I think I’ve enjoyed this one a lot better,” Tupou explained.
“I’m a lot older and I’m not the 18-year-old kid who’s just joined the team. I can be myself with the boys and I can offer something, too, not just being around here not knowing if you’re going to play or not and it’s just a lot different coming this time, but, again, looking forward to it, man.”
Although Will Skelton hasn’t yet played with Taniela Tupou, the pair were together in the squad on Skelton’s last European tour on 2016 when the younger prop was an apprentice.
He said easing back into the squad with Tupou and his other new teammates has been rather easy and was positive about the Wallabies environment.
“I met Nela in 2016 on my last Spring tour. There’s a few guys I hadn’t met, but they’re very welcoming. You can see the camaraderie in the group, everyone cares about each other.
“There was a bit of banter on the first day, too, which was nice. The Aussie accent, I don’t know if I’ve missed that – Nela’s Aussie accent.”
Skelton said the newcomers are getting up to speed quickly on the style of play that they will play against Scotland, with a ‘simple’ shape that they plan on running. With the power now at Rennie’s disposal, you would expect to see a lot of big men carrying the ball.
“We went through a bit of detail last night. The shape’s quite simple. It’s something that, as a rugby player, you’ve got to get used to quickly,” he said.
“We’ll see what Rens is thinking, but we’ll definitely be putting our hand up, all of the boys who have come in, because we’re not here to just sit back and train for the three weeks.
“We want to try and be involved and put our hand up for selection. We’ll be trying to get our head around it for Sunday with a seven-day turnaround.”
Comments on RugbyPass
first no arms shoulder or helmet tackle into his rib cage is going to be so very painful even to watch. go back to RU mate.
1 Go to commentsBulls by 5. Plus another 50.
3 Go to commentsJohan Goosen avatar. Cute. Surely someone at RP knows how to do a google image search?
3 Go to commentsCan’t these games play a little earlier? Asking for a friend.
3 Go to commentsIt’s impressive that we can see huge stadiums with attendance in the 40 000 to 50 000 region. It shows how popular this competition is becoming. What is even more impressive is the massive growth in broadcast viewership. The URC is one of the two best leagues in the World, the other being the Top14.
7 Go to commentsChristie is not Sottish, like the majority of the Scotland team.
2 Go to commentsHold the phone, decline over-rated. Is it a one game, dead cat bounce or the real thing? Has the Penney dropped? Stay tuned.
45 Go to commentsTotally deserved win for the Crusaders Far smarter than the Chiefs who seem to be avoiding the basics when it matters Hotham showed them what was missing and Hannah seems a real find - a tad light but that can be fixed over time
8 Go to commentsGreat insight into the performance culture with Sarries and I predict Christie will be a fixture in the Scotland team now for some time to come. However, he is slightly missing his own point around Scotland “being soft” when he cites physicality examples in defence of that slight. The issue is much closer to the example he referenced around feeling off before a game but being told “it doesn’t matter, you can still play well” by Farrell. Until Scotland can get their psyche in that square, they will carry on folding under extreme pressure…
2 Go to comments> We are having to adapt, evolve and innovate more than when we were in Super Rugby where there was only really one style that everybody had to play to gain the most success. Have = able to? Interesting what that one style might be? I thought SA sides still had bad tours now, or at least bad schedule, months away? Those extra few hours flights have to be a killer though, no surprise to see their sides doing so badly at the start of the season each year. I wouldn’t enjoy that unfairness as a supporter.
7 Go to commentsThe problem for NZ, and Aus, is they ripped up the SR model and lost a massive chunk of revenue that hasn’t been replaced. Don’t forget SA clubs went North because they were left with no choice, Argy unceremoniously binned and Japan cast adrift. Now SR wasn’t perfect, far from it, but they’ve jumped into something without an effective plan, so far, to replace what they’ve lost. The biggest revenue potential now lies in Japan but it won’t be easy or quick to unlock, they are incredibly insular in culture as a nation. In the meantime, there is a serious time bomb sitting under SH rugby and if it happens then the current financial challenges will look like a picnic. IF the Boks follow their provincial teams and head north then it’s revenue meltdown. Not guaranteed to happen but the status quo is a very odd hybrid, with the Boks pointing one way and the clubs pointing the other way. And for as long as that remains then the threat is real.
45 Go to commentsI think Etene has had some good tuition, likely while at the Warriors to be a professional that helped his rugby jump, but he was certainly thrown in the deep end way too early. Should have arguably 20 less SR caps, and therefor a way better record that he does at his age, but his development would have been fast tracked by the need to satiate his signing away from league. Again, credit to him and others that he has done it so well. Easy to fall over under that pressure in the big leagues like that but he kept at it when I myself wasn’t sure he was good enough.
1 Go to commentsAwesome story. I wonder what a bigger American (SA) scene might have mean for Brex.
1 Go to comments“Johnny McNicholl and the Crusaders” save a Penney. Who has been in camp this week and showed them how to play?
8 Go to commentsSo, reports of the Crusaders’ demise / terminal decline are perhaps just - slightly - premature/exaggerated…? 🤔 Will we see a deep-dive into that by the estimable Rugbypass scribes, and maybe one or two mea culpas? Thought not.
8 Go to comments1. The Chiefs are rudderless without DMac, which enhances his AB chances 2. Chiefs pack are powderpuffs. The hard men arent there anymore 3. They had their golden title chance last yr and wont threaten this yr. Gone in second round of playoffs.
8 Go to commentsHonestly, why did you have to publish such a foolish article the day they play us? 😂
45 Go to comments> They are not standalone entities. They are linked to an amateur association which holds the FFR licence that allows the professional side to compete in the league. That’s a great rule. This looks like the chicken or egg professional scenario. How long is it going to be before the club can break even (if that is even a thing in French rugby)? If the locals aren’t into well it would be good to se them drop to amateur level (is it that far?). Hope they can reset from this level and be more practical, there will be a time when they can rebuild (if France has there setup right).
1 Go to commentsWhat about changing the ball? To something heavier and more pointed that bounces unpredictably. Not this almost round football used these days.
35 Go to commentsThis is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?
35 Go to comments