RWC squads 2023
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@MN5 said in RWC squads 2023:
SBW isn’t happy
Well now I'm convinced leaving out Hoops and Coops was an excellent call.
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@Bones said in RWC squads 2023:
@MN5 said in RWC squads 2023:
SBW isn’t happy
Well now I'm convinced leaving out Hoops and Coops was an excellent call.
I set you up pretty nicely for that
I’m convinced Eddie wanted to set a record for heaviest ever captain at a WC so we’ll give him that.
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@MN5 said in RWC squads 2023:
SBW isn’t happy
SBW analysis is:
- I'm mates with Quade
- Quade was dropped
- Therefore, Eddy has lost the plot
Seriously, if he's got Rugby reasons that are more than that I'd be astonished
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@nzzp said in RWC squads 2023:
@MN5 said in RWC squads 2023:
SBW isn’t happy
SBW analysis is:
- I'm mates with Quade
- Quade was dropped
- Therefore, Eddy has lost the plot
Seriously, if he's got Rugby reasons that are more than that I'd be astonished
Williams, a former All Black who was part of New Zealand’s 2011 and 2015 Rugby World Cup victories, claims Jones has made a huge mistake by leaving the experience and world-class abilities of Hooper and Cooper behind.
experience tick
world-class on current form question mark -
@nostrildamus said in RWC squads 2023:
@nzzp said in RWC squads 2023:
@MN5 said in RWC squads 2023:
SBW isn’t happy
SBW analysis is:
- I'm mates with Quade
- Quade was dropped
- Therefore, Eddy has lost the plot
Seriously, if he's got Rugby reasons that are more than that I'd be astonished
Williams, a former All Black who was part of New Zealand’s 2011 and 2015 Rugby World Cup victories, claims Jones has made a huge mistake by leaving the experience and world-class abilities of Hooper and Cooper behind.
experience tick
world-class on current form question markpersonally I'd have taken Quade.
Hooper's a tougher one - injury and his head's not where it was. Warrior, but way less effective now
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@nzzp said in RWC squads 2023:
@nostrildamus said in RWC squads 2023:
@nzzp said in RWC squads 2023:
@MN5 said in RWC squads 2023:
SBW isn’t happy
SBW analysis is:
- I'm mates with Quade
- Quade was dropped
- Therefore, Eddy has lost the plot
Seriously, if he's got Rugby reasons that are more than that I'd be astonished
Williams, a former All Black who was part of New Zealand’s 2011 and 2015 Rugby World Cup victories, claims Jones has made a huge mistake by leaving the experience and world-class abilities of Hooper and Cooper behind.
experience tick
world-class on current form question markpersonally I'd have taken Quade.
Hooper's a tougher one - injury and his head's not where it was. Warrior, but way less effective now
oh I'd agree. Not sure he is in peak Quade form and at world-class level, but he'd make a useful backup 10. Hooper doesn't seem in the right head space/nursing an injury, or both.
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@nostrildamus said in RWC squads 2023:
@nzzp said in RWC squads 2023:
@nostrildamus said in RWC squads 2023:
@nzzp said in RWC squads 2023:
@MN5 said in RWC squads 2023:
SBW isn’t happy
SBW analysis is:
- I'm mates with Quade
- Quade was dropped
- Therefore, Eddy has lost the plot
Seriously, if he's got Rugby reasons that are more than that I'd be astonished
Williams, a former All Black who was part of New Zealand’s 2011 and 2015 Rugby World Cup victories, claims Jones has made a huge mistake by leaving the experience and world-class abilities of Hooper and Cooper behind.
experience tick
world-class on current form question markpersonally I'd have taken Quade.
Hooper's a tougher one - injury and his head's not where it was. Warrior, but way less effective now
oh I'd agree. Not sure he is in peak Quade form and at world-class level, but he'd make a useful backup 10. Hooper doesn't seem in the right head space/nursing an injury, or both.
2011 they left Giteau at home as well - squaddies with experience are gold in world cups. Not sure why.
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@KiwiMurph Not sure I'm convinced eh. Doesn't exactly explain any thinking and also goes on about how the wallaby jersey needs to be earned whilst in the same breath explaining how Eddie has thrown out those that earned the jersey and has embraced youth.
He's going to struggle to get out of the pool with these selections, reckon he had a chance if he'd have gone with a few more familiar faces.
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maybe it isn't relevant here, but perhaps older players are more likely to resist the instructions of a new (old?) coach...
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@nostrildamus said in RWC squads 2023:
@nzzp said in RWC squads 2023:
@MN5 said in RWC squads 2023:
SBW isn’t happy
SBW analysis is:
- I'm mates with Quade
- Quade was dropped
- Therefore, Eddy has lost the plot
Seriously, if he's got Rugby reasons that are more than that I'd be astonished
Williams, a former All Black who was part of New Zealand’s 2011 and 2015 Rugby World Cup victories, claims Jones has made a huge mistake by leaving the experience and world-class abilities of Hooper and Cooper behind.
experience tick
world-class on current form question markI saw Hooper on GBRA pod and I think the years of putting it all on the line and having to give interviews when his teammates didn’t show up finally got to him in Argentina last year, and I doubt he’s got anything left in the tank.
Listened to Quade at pressers and watching him speak to team after Bled1 loss I’d say he’s got a huge amount of value to the squad, even if his form isn’t 100%.
McDermott is excellent skipper, but Skelton has always struck me as a meathead.
Wondering if something’s gone down and Eddie has reacted with the axe? -
@KiwiMurph said in RWC squads 2023:
This is a really good read explaining Eddie's thinking
It's not like Jones has just dumped a whole lot of older, out of form players and replaced them with in-form ones though.
Yes, guys like Hooper (and potentially QC) probably don't deserve to be heading to France on form, but does Suliasi Vunivalu? What about Ben Donaldson? There are still plenty of players in the team with question marks over their form, and they don't have the pedigree to fall back on.
Max Jorgenson is the only player in there who I think is actually a semi-inspired selection - but then Australia also have a history of anointing talented youngsters as the 'next big thing' and then shattering their confidence by drafting them into the team too early. So it's not actually unprecedented what Jones has done - heck, Jordan Petaia wasn't in a hugely dissimilar boat ahead of the last World Cup to Jorgenson now, and look how long it's taken for him to turn into even a consistently decent Super Rugby player (I think even there the jury is still out...).
So I don't think Jones' squad is a master stroke. I think he's mostly replaced average, experienced players with average, inexperienced ones. Now he has an excuse for not performing at the World Cup - what's going to be his excuse when the Lions arrive in a few years?
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@Bones said in RWC squads 2023:
He's going to struggle to get out of the pool with these selections, reckon he had a chance if he'd have gone with a few more familiar faces.
Given what Wales just dished up Aus will get out of their pool just fine.