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Ten Things We Learned From The Rugby Championship

By Jamie Wall
Quade Cooper

Rugby coaches love to talk about ‘key learnings’ and here are ten we can take away from the 2016 Rugby Championship.

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1. The All Blacks are… very good
Richie McCaw, Dan Carter, Keven Mealamu, Tony Woodcock, Conrad Smith, Ma’a Nonu – all gone after the World Cup final. This was supposed to a rebuilding year, instead it’s simply unleashed a younger, hungrier beast to devour what’s left of the rugby world.

2. Argentina are still no good in Australasia
Although they showed signs of life a few years ago on the Gold Coast, Los Pumas still clearly have a real mental hurdle coming to Australia and New Zealand. They were blown away in Hamilton and Perth, despite a great start against the All Blacks and facing an out of form Wallabies.

3. The Boks need a new coach, and fast
Allister Coetzee isn’t the first guy to coach the Boks and fail miserably. It’s not like he that much of a hard act to follow either – Heyneke Meyer managed to lose to Japan – but at least Meyer can still claim a victory over the All Blacks in his tenure. Good news for the Boks and bad news for anyone who likes exciting rugby: Jake White might be looking for a job.

4. Israel Folau is flat
The guy who, on his day, is the brightest star in the game, has dimmed significantly in 2016. He hasn’t been helped by being in a poor Wallabies team, but his kick returns and entries into the line haven’t been anywhere near as dynamic as they have in the past.

5. The All Black midfield is far from an area of weakness
No Conrad, no Ma’a, no SBW, no worries. At the start of the year it was thought that George Moala would fill the void at 13, but after his untimely injury it was left to rookie Anton Lienert-Brown to step up. He made it look like he’d been there for years, helped by some career-best form from Ryan Crotty inside him.

 
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6. Refereeing can ruin a game
The most frustrating 40 minutes of the season so far was definitely the second half in Buenos Aires between Los Pumas and the All Blacks. Reset scrums, needless yellow cards and needless interference from the linesman all contributed to the game turning from a beautiful spectacle on one side of halftime to a migraine-inducing borefest in the second.

7. What works against the Wallabies won’t work against the All Blacks
Bring in Morne Steyn and his prolific boot, tackle hard on your line for many phases and you’ll grind out a tough win in Pretoria. Bring in Morne Steyn and his prolific boot, tackle hard on your line for many phases and you’ll get thrashed in Durban.

8. Playing with your socks down makes you a better player
Three of the All Blacks’ standout performers of The Rugby Championship – TJ Perenara, Dane Coles and Anton Lienert-Brown – are all strong proponents of keeping their calves unhindered and free. The effect it’s had on their form and contribution to the All Blacks success is basically irrefutable.

9. Jersey swaps are cool and should be brought back
Quade Cooper is a good man for paying tribute to the days of nabbing a souvenir from the other team, even though on his salary he could easily just order a Bok or Pumas jersey online. Interesting that he didn’t want to swap for an All Black jersey, though.

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10. The selectors will call back, eventually
Leroy Houston had the distinction of waiting a mere 11 seasons between Wallaby appearances, with the Reds loose forward finally getting a test cap against Los Pumas. He had originally played way back in 2005 in a tour match against the French Barbarians, when tours were still a thing not just the British & Irish Lions did.

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A
Adrian 1 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

Thanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause

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T
Trevor 4 hours ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

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B
Bull Shark 8 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

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