So, what HAS Michael Cheika actually done as a coach?

KiwiMurph

Spiro Zavos take
 
<a data-ipb='nomediaparse' href='http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-union/australia-rugby/wallabies-coach-michael-cheika-must-stop-complaining-and-start-coaching-20160901-gr70nw.html'>http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-union/australia-rugby/wallabies-coach-michael-cheika-must-stop-complaining-and-start-coaching-20160901-gr70nw.html</a>
 
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote">
 
After a loss in a Bledisloe Cup Test which coach said this and when?
 
Coach 1: "They played particularly well and thoroughly deserved the win â€¦ They out-muscled us, I thought, at scrum time. They won the battle over the ball and under the body at the breakdown."
Coach 2: "I was bitterly disappointed, to be honest (about the performance of the referee) â€¦ He's got the whistle, I understand, but there's a place where that guy, the captain, has an opportunity to speak with the refereeâ€¦ I don't know if it's subconscious or not, but it's there. It's got to be dealt with, because it can't be that the opponent can have every player discussing with the referee. It's pretty blatant to anyone listening to the referees."
 
Coach 1 was Steve Hansen last year after the Wallabies defeated the All Blacks 27-19 at Sydney. In the return Test at Auckland, a week later, the All Blacks out-muscled, out-scrummed and out-mauled the Wallabies at the breakdown to force a 34-17 victory. Hansen had honestly identified the problems with the play of the All Blacks and then rectified them.Coach 2 was Michael Cheika on Saturday night <a data-ipb='nomediaparse' href='http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-union/union-match-report/bledisloe-cup-all-blacks-beat-wallabies-in-wellington-to-nab-14th-consecutive-series-win-20160827-gr2om6.html'>after the All Blacks thumped his Wallabies 29-9, four tries to none, in Wellington</a>. Cheika clearly did not identify why the Wallabies lost the way Hansen did with his All Blacks. Blaming the referee is an excuse, not an analysis.
</blockquote>

jegga

Good old Aussie Spiro right on the money as usual*

by as usual I mean when I agree with him.

antipodean

I think Spiro's feeling vindicated after pointing out the Wallabies were not going to be well served by those returning under the Giteau Rule.

Baron Silas Greenback

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="NTA" data-cid="611447" data-time="1472774853">
<div>
What the fuck else is he supposed to talk about in press conferences? "Yeah look, the players were shit out there and I did my best. Useless fluffybunnies, the lot of them!"
 
What would an All Black Coach do in this situation? Try to think back to 2007 when you lost to France but everyone just decided it was a forward fucking pass not called by the officials that was the problem. Not the fact that the ABs, despite their might and pomp, couldn't break down a fanatical French defence, or even have the brains or skill to pop over a field goal despite numerous opportunities.
</div>
</blockquote>
 
 
Fuck really??? Can you show some actual evidence of Henry losing it like Chieka did?

NTA

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Baron Silas Greenback" data-cid="611549" data-time="1472805427">
<div>
Fuck really??? Can you show some actual evidence of Henry losing it like Chieka did?
</div>
</blockquote>
 
Where did I say Henry lost it?

MN5

Well every single expert in the country decided to hang Wayne Barnes out to dry for his performance but pretty certain Henry himself kept things pretty civil.

Baron Silas Greenback

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="NTA" data-cid="611555" data-time="1472806292">
<div>
Where did I say Henry lost it?
</div>
</blockquote>
 
 
 
"What would an All Black Coach do in this situation? Try to think back to 2007 when you lost to France but everyone just decided it was a forward fucking pass not called by the officials that was the problem. Not the fact that the ABs, despite their might and pomp, couldn't break down a fanatical French defence, or even have the brains or skill to pop over a field goal despite numerous opportunities."

NTA

So now you're putting words in my mouth by implication. 
Given how often you accuse people of making things up, you should probably take notes on yourself.

nostrildamus

Actually I like Cheika's antics. 
I think the problem is the captain.

barbarian

It's a classic example of 'live by the sword, die by the sword'.
 
I'll preface these comments by saying that I love Michael Cheika, and this love will never die. He single-handedly took the Waratahs to a Super title, and for that he has my eternal gratitude.
 
When he rose to prominence (first with Leinster and then with the Tahs), his plain-speaking passion was his biggest strength. A post-game presser with Cheik was mesmerising, he had a way of talking that seemed so genuine, so free of the cliched rubbish you'd hear from most coaches.
 
The way he'd motivate players was also incredible. He turned around the careers of Kurtley Beale, Kane Douglas, Cliff Palu, Nick Phipps. I don't know what he said to them, but it all worked.
 
And then he took us to the World Cup Final, and it wasn't a fluke. We were genuinely the second best team in the world last year (though that may say more about the other sides than it does about us).
 
But then the results turned, and all of a sudden this plain-speaking honesty is putting him offiside with many. The same passion and honesty that saw him lauded at the Waratahs and in his first year as Wallaby coach is now 'too much swearing', 'too much complaining', 'too much talk about the ref'.
 
I'm not trying to defend anything he has said (and agree you can never win talking about the ref post-game), but you can't have it both ways.
 
The bloke flies by the seat of his pants, and always has. I think he is a very good coach (his track record is incredible), but for whatever reason things have gone awry. It could get pretty ugly if it keeps getting worse, as Cheika isn't going to turn into Captain Cliche all of a sudden - 'it's disappointing, but we will just work harder' 'full credit to the opposition' 'we tried really hard out there' etc etc etc
 
I think we are seeing a man trying to make sense of his crumbling empire in real time, and it's equal parts excrutiating and fascinating. We don't have the answers, and neither does he. And predictably he's not taking it well.

NTA

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="barbarian" data-cid="611615" data-time="1472859159">
<div>
A post-game presser with Cheik was mesmerising, he had a way of talking that seemed so genuine, so free of the cliched rubbish you'd hear from most coaches.
</div>
</blockquote>
 
I know you've done some of those pressers. What is the atmosphere like among the journos when Cheika is in there? Does it depend on the result? 
 
Have you done any non-Cheik pressers?

NTA

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="barbarian" data-cid="611615" data-time="1472859159">
<div>
The bloke flies by the seat of his pants, and always has. I think he is a very good coach (his track record is incredible), but for whatever reason things have gone awry. It could get pretty ugly if it keeps getting worse, as Cheika isn't going to turn into Captain Cliche all of a sudden - 'it's disappointing, but we will just work harder' 'full credit to the opposition' 'we tried really hard out there' etc etc etc
 
I think we are seeing a man trying to make sense of his crumbling empire in real time, and it's equal parts excrutiating and fascinating. We don't have the answers, and neither does he. And predictably he's not taking it well.
</div>
</blockquote>
 
 
I think we can draw a line under "Super Rugby Coaches" as one of the issues in terms of player preparedness. Sure, Cheika had a month to clean the slate and start again, but I saw a tweet not long ago, I think from Paul Cully, saying basically "Is anyone surprised by these results, after the way each Super franchise went about their business?"
 
In other Aussie rugby news, I see Holloway got Tahs forward of the year (obviously behind Hooper who was Player of the Year), despite playing about half a season due to some niggles and then the big shoulder injury in training.
 
So the question remains: how much longer can Cheika ignore him?

barbarian

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="NTA" data-cid="611618" data-time="1472859615">
So the question remains: how much longer can Cheika ignore him?
</blockquote>
 
He's out for another 10 weeks or so with a shoulder injury.

barbarian

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="NTA" data-cid="611617" data-time="1472859407">
<div>
I know you've done some of those pressers. What is the atmosphere like among the journos when Cheika is in there? Does it depend on the result? 
 
Have you done any non-Cheik pressers?
</div>
</blockquote>
 
It's hard to describe. The atmosphere is more or less the same, but he just has a different way of speaking. I think he's a bit more in tune with the fans, and whenever the team loses he always speaks about 'letting the fans down' or 'disappointing the fans'. There is an awareness that they are in the entertainment business, and have to provide something people want to watch.
 
I've covered the Tahs since the Chris Hickey days, so have seen four different coaches now. It's not that the others are boring per se, just that Cheika pressers were always a bit more unpredictable. He'd talk a lot more about attitude and intent. And he had an authority about him that the others didn't. A presence. It's hard to describe, but you could understand why players would run through walls for him.

kiwiinmelb

When we judge coaches , 
Is your success against the current Allblacks an unfair measuring tool ? 
if you were a basketball coach for example , no matter how good you are , your team would more than likely look second rate against the dream team . 
Gatland and Cheika have both been victims of the abs so far this year , do we hold that against them or accept they are on a hiding to nothing ?

barbarian

Maybe. It's an issue faced by all Wallabies coaches - no matter how good you are, the ABs will always be your measuring stick. And 80-90% of the time you are likely to fall short.
 
It's funny, because Steve Hanson's coaching record with Wales was pretty poor. Shows how fickle the coaching game can be.

NTA

The judgement is more about attitude than results. Some of the stuff against England and the ABs have made the Wallabies look disinterested, or just plain unfit and unwilling to take on the hard work.
 
Its hard to measure your team when you look at the opposition, and see players just suddenly hitting their straps, while ours seemed to all find their shit gear at the same time.
 
How does that happen? How do we get that same translation from state to national level in Australia? Why isn't it there already? Is incumbency an issue; do the lack of options make players too comfortable as has happened in years past?
 
 
We'll know in about 8 days' time where we sit when the Boks come to visit. I don't think Cheika suddenly becomes a bad coach, but something is missing this year so far, and maybe a Bok squad hampered by a few injuries and their special brand of politics could be ground zero for a rebuild.
 
 
 
 
 
<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="barbarian" data-cid="611623" data-time="1472860804">
<div>
He's out for another 10 weeks or so with a shoulder injury.
</div>
</blockquote>
 
I meant once he was fit again. We lack a form #8 in Australia. In any case, 10 weeks? I heard late October...

barbarian

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="NTA" data-cid="611637" data-time="1472864705">
<div>
I meant once he was fit again. We lack a form #8 in Australia. In any case, 10 weeks? I heard late October...
</div>
</blockquote>
 
He was at a media event I was doing for work the other day. Had a chat and he said he was still a long time away, 10 weeks was what he said.
 
A shame, a good NRC and he could have pushed for a spot on the EOYT.

NTA

Not even sure that would help - he was probably the form 8 in Australia but Cheika didn't take him to any camps.

taniwharugby

well, on the subject of coaches, Ian Foster has confirmed he is keen on the top job once Hansen leaves the building! 
 
Not sure how I feel about that, but then, there was a time when alot of people werent keen on the thought of Hansen taking over either...
 
<a data-ipb='nomediaparse' href='http://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/on-air/veitch-on-sport/audio/ian-foster-head-coach-of-the-all-blacks/'>http://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/on-air/veitch-on-sport/audio/ian-foster-head-coach-of-the-all-blacks/</a>

The Silver Fern

So, what HAS Michael Cheika actually done as a coach?