I want to play Sir! (picture http://bit.ly/OSsras)
Looking forward to the weekend, the All Blacks have lost Tony Woodcock for this match, while the Aussies will be more affected by the loss of captain David Pocock. The All Blacks have all the right ingredients for a good team, it just needs to gel together now. Their only slight weakness is at lock where they are relying on journeyman players. Australia have an awesome backline when they are not dropping the ball, but could do with a fit in form Cooper as soon as possible. They’ve also lost prop Kepu, and out of a pack of eight they only have 2, maybe 3 world class players. My prediction is for the All Black pack to be all over the Aussies like a rash, then their backs will finish the job. The Wallabies always pick their game up for New Zealand – but in this instance I’m expecting pain for them, and lots of it.
Argentina will be hoping that home ground advantage will turn things around for them this week. Over a 1000 fans attended a Springbok open training session, so the interest and passion is there from the fans. Although I’m a Bok supporter, I’d be the first to admit that while fronting up to the Springbok physicality is a major challenge, outsmarting them is not quite as demanding. Argentina’s problem is that they have exactly the same gameplan as the Boks but not the same class of players to execute it. Added passion at home may help, but it’s hard to look past the Boks again. The Springboks have lost Bismarck Duplesiss, but Strauss stepped into the breach really well. I would love to see a bit more ambition from them, getting Lambie and Pienaar into the mix. They’ll probably only try that when they’re desperate for a win at the end of the competition though.
Overall, I’m expecting a lift in intensity from all four teams this weekend, can’t wait!
Rugby Championship
Saturday , August 25
New Zealand vs Australia 19:35
Argentina vs South Africa 16:10
Really looking forward to the game. I agree that the intensity should lift from last week.
ReplyDeleteMy concern for the Wallabies is that without Pocock, and at Eden Park, they could potentially be on the end of a whipping if NZ get it right.
As for your comment about the NZ locks...i'm not so sure. In the Southern Hemisphere, Whitelock and Retallick are very highly rated, while Romano is someone who has developed late. I think the stocks are pretty good in that area. Time will tell though.
I agree with Phil on this. Whitelock was one of the best locks on display at the Rugby World Cup 2011 and Luke Romano and Brodie Retallick are both young bucks who are anything but journeymen. Romano especially is dynamic with the ball in hand.
ReplyDeleteWell, maybe I'm being a bit harsh, but I have high expectations from the AB's. The rest of the pack would be in contention for a world 15 but players like Richie grey, Bekker and Sharpe would keep out any of those players. That's my opinion anyway.
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