Oz versus Wales

Oz leading ten nil. So far so good.

Wales are a deeply overrated rugby nation. That said, Australia have definite flaws, particularly under the Deans gameplan which is stifling the Wallabies and compounding their vulnerabilities.

Wales looking very clueless right now. Make your first time tackles and be accurate in all else that you do and Wales have no idea what to do. Just like the WC game against us, where it took a 2m forward pass to break our defence.

Skt commentator a complete oaf.
 

None of the teams have really done particularly well.  The score is 10-3 in a game that cannot be described as a showpiece.    Not prepared to make a call on the winner yet.

Oz are in the top three year after year. Also have two world cups and won super 15 last year.

what do you mean overated?

My worry in this test is that Oz have played too much rugby in last few days. 3 days after super rubgy a test then 4 days later another test. They could fade in the second half as this is a rediculous schedule.

Deans has a 52% win record. Enough said. Eddie Jones only bettered that with 55%. Added to that, it took a conference system where the Reds could avoid big clashes to make it to the final.

The IRB, SANZAR... no better than a bunch of monkeys picking their noses, or a  monkey with it's hand in a jar. Destroy the game, so long as you get a quick buck.
 

Excluding Oz  tests against Boks and abs what are the figures then?

Not that good either. Particularly if you factor in that Peter's disintegration of the Bok defence significantly improves those numbers over the last two years or so. Australia's record just isn't good enough. 52%? Nowhere to hide with numbers like that.

Have you got the stats excluding Boks and abs. I also recall Deans started with a very young side.

Barnes is a smart flyhalf. Has great vision

Deans must use his bench as Oz are looking tired?

Deans started with very good resources. In many respects the players selected themselves anyway. I've got the stats, I'll maybe have a look for them later.

This was Australia's first TNs team of 2008:
 

A very strong side.
 

Oz really fading and looks like they could well lose.

It just goes to show, this bumbling Welsh side only needs an opponent that has only had 2-3 days rest to be a great side. The poor Fijians, Samoans and Namibians were severely handicapped. The Boks never had such luxury.

Well done Oz SH rules!!!!! Oz half backs were very good.

Halfpenny was just that. The only guy under 90kg - per sapster - was a non entity apart fom kicking to the post. It was interesting also that another rugby icon pocock was not particulalry effective in stealing ball yet again.

I thought the Welsh looke dmuch better in WC. is this jet lag affecting them?

Bench made a diff to tiring OZ side.

Congrats to OZ.

Lady MO(NH) what happened?

Took a while for this game to get going and both sides looked a bit lethargic - maybe it was because I had just watched the All Blacks destroy Ireland?

Nonetheless, I beg to differ about Wales being an overarrated nation and as with most teams were not at full strength. However, they will get better and will test the very best in the coming Northern tours and with their youthfullness will become a team primed for 2015.

Yes they at times played some real "dumb" rugby but they showed enough to challenge the Wallabies....Even though I rate this Wallaby squad well below the Bokkies in terms of ability and I will put my name on the line and state that it will  be a two horse race for the new Rugby Championship between the AB's and the Bokkies.

They are missing Horwill, Cooper, Beale big time in this Wallaby squad and once back I think they will compete better but their pop gun forward pack will not match SA or the AB's.

Wales will not get better. Their newfound reputation was built on a woefully onesided reffing display against the Boks and games against Fiji, Namibia and Samoa were the three had less than four days to recuperate from testing Bok games to play the Welsh. They were then dumbfounded when the French put up adequate resistance.

All Australia did for much of the game was commit nobody to the rucks and stand in a line knocking the Welsh down; there was much dancing behind the gainline - a Welsh tradition - but too little innovation and incision from a side that clearly had superior fitness and playing an opponent that was clearly struggling to keep up their intensity. The ease with which the Welsh were cut on defence was shameful. They are very much overrated. Beale adds more incision, at times, but hides away in big games. Of their forwards, only Sharpe is genuine test class material in the pack. Not much else. Flayed Blooper definitely is not much help.
 

this Wales Team has a mental toughness not previously seen (by me anyway) and their decision making across the board is good.

@Der,

Cant agree with you on a few things as they have definately improved and for all the bad rugby they played against the Wallabies they came close. We need to move on from blaming refs or we will start sounding like moaning kiwis?????.........The reason France dominated was because they played most of the game without there captain.....did you fail to pick that up?????

Come on der some of your assessments really do lack some logic, but you take Wales lightly at your own peril as long as you man up when they perform and dont go missing like Beale when it matters?

GO THE BOKKIES!!!

Ragtag, the Welsh are overrated, end of discussion. So much bleating and so little to show for it. I rest my case.

As for France? They were the better side from start to finish.
 

@der aristokratt,

u are the biggest hypocrite on this site, u say,,,

"It just goes to show, this bumbling Welsh side only needs an opponent that has only had 2-3 days rest to be a great side. The poor Fijians, Samoans and Namibians were severely handicapped. The Boks never had such luxury."

but for scotlands win against wallabies, u say it wasnt due to some wallaby players having 3 days rest and missing stars, it was cos of deans and his backline plays???

and wales reputation was cos of events in the RWC??? what about the more recent 6nats grandslam, OMG, wallabies and wales overrated, yet both have a NZ coach, it dosent take much to connect the dots with ur one eyed logic,  aye der aristokrat aka pieter van zyl.