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Tough call but maybe Latham should go?
Mark Ella | April 27, 2008
SOME may think it unthinkable but Wallabies coach Robbie Deans should consider dumping fullback Chris Latham.
Latham is still one of the game's most exciting players but his future now lies abroad and perhaps it is time to give either the Brumbies Mark Gerrard or the Force's Cameron Shepherd enough time to fully develop into the position before the next World Cup in New Zealand in three years' time.
Both these players like to chance their arm and I wouldn't complain if either was picked in the No.15 jersey. Under Deans they will learn to counter-attack more and that must be a good thing.
Deans is obviously having a sneaky look at the performances of all four Australian Super 14 teams and overall he'll be pretty happy.
With only three rounds of this year's Super series competition left to go before the finals Deans will particularly happy with the young exciting Australian players.
Deans must decide whether to go for youth across the board or stick with Wallabies who have been around for a while and take a slowly as she goes approach.
Obviously it will be impossible to leave out senior players like captain Stirling Mortlock who is edging on in years or the likes of Lote Tuqiri, George Smith or Phil Waugh but by a large Australian rugby needs complete reform and the only way I can see that happening by change.
On the wings Tuqiri has certainly done enough for the Waratahs over the past five weeks to show the selectors that he still has the passion to play for the Wallabies and he will be one of the first picked.
The other wing position will be interesting with Drew Mitchell the senior ahead of Waratahs flyer Lachlan Turner, who has had a mixed year trying to prove to most of us that he is a fullback when he doesn't haven't the foresight to play at the back.
I would give him the first opportunity on the wing ahead of Mitchell although Turner is far from being the finished product. He needs to cut his error rate as well limiting his tendency to kick.
When he runs with the football he is a dangerous player but I don't feel he has given his best for the Waratahs this season.
The centre combination is easily the most contentious selection of all.
Do we play Mortlock at inside or outside centre, is Matt Giteau going to play five-eighth or inside centre, do we need two ball players bringing Berrick Barnes into the equation and what do we do with one of the form centres Ryan Cross?
Is young Waratahs centre Rob Horne the way to go, use Tyrone Smith or has veteran Scott Staniforth still got something to offer at this level?
I do believe Adam Ashley-Cooper is a player who deserves more game time at Test level. Decisions, decisions.
Much will depend on what type of game Deans wants to play but with the large number of backline candidates he has plenty of options although with Giteau expected to the No.10, a dedicated No.12 doesn't jump out at you.
If Mortlock is at outside centre this will open an opportunity for Berrick Barnes because Deans has always coached teams with two playmakers in the 10 and 12 jerseys.
He could also experiment with Cross at inside centre or even a combination of Barnes and Cross or even Smith and Horne against the Irish or French.
My former Test team-mate Michael O'Conner mentioned that he would prefer a Giteau-Barnes combination in mid-field and that makes sense but at the end of the day we will see some experimentation in 2008.
Giteau is tipped to walk into the Wallabies No.10 jersey and I am not about to argue otherwise.
Waratahs five-eighth Kurtley Beale is getting better with every game and will figure in selection discussions but there are still many parts of his game that need fine tuning.
With Deans on board, Beale will improve rapidly although he will be under pressure from Reds five-eighth Quade Cooper who has played well in a team not winning and sometimes this can be an asset in tough times.
The halfback position is also a bit of a lottery although you would have to expect that the Waratahs No.9 Luke Burgess has the front running, particularly after being a positive influence in turning the stodgy Waratahs around.
He has a good pass, is prepared to back himself and has speed on his side which is a good start.
The other contenders Josh Holmes, Patrick Phibbs both from the Brumbies and Sam Cordingley are good players but Cordingley struggles to play two games in a row and Phibbs, while enjoying a good season at the Brumbies, is probably past his best.
The Wallabies number eight has to be Wycliff Palu and after watching him destroy the Sharks in Sydney On Saturday makes me glad that I never had to play against him. He would have scared me, running through the mid-field channel all day.
Richard Brown from the Force also deserves some mention after a fine season but the up and down nature of the Force this year hasn't helped his chances.
The two flanker positions is a complete toss up with the old guys like George Smith, Waugh, Rocky Elsom, under pressure from rising stars Julian Salvi, David Pocock, Mark Chisholm and Dean Mumm to mention only a few.
The second-row positions, once the domain of Nathan Sharpe and Dan Vickerman, may be tested this year, particularly with the noise coming from the Reds James Horwill who is an aggressive youngster who wants to represent his country.
I won't even go into the props because there are many young players coming through who will need time to establish their careers and learn the intricacies of the scrum.
These positions remain a worry.
The hooker position should be given to Waratahs Tatafu Polota-Nau. He is a dynamic player and adds greater dimension to the game in broken play and he will get better playing at the elite level. Clearly he should have been in last year's RWC squad to France.
I hope the selectors keep the future in mind when they choose teams for this year's Tests which start against Ireland in Melbourne on June 14.
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Originally Posted by KenyaQuin
