Metal detectors have been around a few games this year.
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Metal detectors have been around a few games this year.
Am sure it would have been the ARU PerthGirl. At a recent Rebels home game they made one fan take down a sign that was gently denigrating Clyne and Puller. I guess the truth hurts!
We were also scanned while we were just standing waiting outside before we even approached the gates! That's a first!
After being at the force game last night and just happen to be in Sydney the next was able to watch the tahs get cut up by the jags
Totally agree valzc - when the Force upped the intensity at the breakdown and the speed of support this quickly turned into points for us and disrupting the Rebels' ball forced a lot of handling errors.
The standing off of Defence rucks is a strategy that has sometimes been used in the past in order to maintain a strong line of defence.
Since the changes to the rules at the breakdown (some thought to negate the work of David Pocock) there has been more penalties such that there has increasingly standing off D rucks. Although there are still penalties being forced (due to the ball carrier not releasing the ball) there has been a significant reduction in the number of Turn Overs Won.
Fortunately there is still reward for players who get to the ruck early - as we saw with Riche Hardwick's Test opening.
During the recent June Test series there was a higher than normal tendency for the Wallabies to stand-off D rucks.
Cheika was evidently so concerned about penalties in this area that he'd instructed players to not get involved unless they were good at winning the ball from the opposition.
I enjoy the 'battle at the breakdown' and dread that Rugby Union rucks could become the same lame involvement as for Rugby League.
Some rugby pundits have claimed that the time of the "pilferer" is over.
I am so glad that I was at the Force/Rebels game as there was a real battle over the ball (albeit poorly refed).
In this game there were 14 Scrums, 20 Lineouts but 192 Rucks.
Game strategy around the rucks is a critical part of winning rugby games.
However that wasn't the case in the other games in this round.
We appear to be encouraging our OSFs to actively avoid contact at the breakdown.
If you doubt this watch the games again and just focus on the OSF and their approach to rucks.
Then think back to the approach of Richie McCaw, David Pocock, Matt Hodgson and Liam Gill.
Formerly very active OSF are becoming clones of Michael Hooper.
Still making tackles, increasing their availability for ball carries but significantly decreasing their ruck involvements.
The ruck involvements (normalised to numbers for 80 minutes played) from Round 16 as follows:
Richie Hardwick - 35 Total - 30 Attack/5 Defence
Colby Fainga'a - 33T - 22A/11D
Chris Alcock - 20T - 16A/4D
Michael Hooper - 16T - 13A/3D
George Smith - 10T - 8A/2D
I'm about to update the table of stats for Aussie OSF and will get them posted ASAP
It's worth revisiting the 2016 Super Rugby season results:
Attachment 4917
These show just how much Australian rugby is missing Pocock, what a tragedy it was to lose Liam Gill to Europe and how much we'll miss Matt Hodgson.
Look at the gap between their Ruck Stats and the rest.
Look at the average TOW.
Last year Hodgo was considered a "penalty magnet". This year he has ZERO penalties conceded.
I'm so please that Richie Hardwick has now earned more game time.
Richie's best is yet to come!
Updated OSF stats for Super Rugby 2017 - after Round 17
Attachment 4919
Really, really disappointed in the crowd turnout, I know it was a cold night in the middle of school holidays etc, but just when we are desperate to show we deserve a Super Rugby team in WA we give those against us ammunition by such a low turnout. Looked like there were only 6-7 thousand there on Friday. A few Irish fans we bumped into after the match asked if such small crowds were normal for us - they were really surprised.
We do deserve a team here in the West, I just wish the casual supporters would realise they have a role to play in keeping the Force here!
Their crowd was very poor
Looks like Chance Peni may miss the Warratahs match - he has been cited for foul play with the Citing Commissioner deciding his hit met the threshold for a red card offence. Bummer!
http://www.rugby.com.au/news/2017/07...nce-peni-cited
I forgot my sports ears but it looked like the ref was actioning that because initial contact was made with the chest and the shoulder came up into the chin was why he was given yellow over red. Plus from my memory (many beers that night and since) Peni had wrapoed his other arm where SBW was all shoulder
I was one of the shameful people that stayed at home( boy with manflu) to watch the game. The ref initially was going with just the penalty but I think on watching the replay mentioned the shoulder hitting chest first then head hence yellow only. The usual shit commentators wanted him hung,dried and quartered.
The ref initially wanted penalty only...the TMO kept telling him...do you want to see that again..