No replacement for Tuqiri

[travelling_gerry]

No replacement for Tuqiri

By Wayne Smith
November 03, 2008 LOTE Tuqiri won't be ready for Australia's next Test against Italy and possibly not even for the England Test the following week, but otherwise Australia coach Robbie Deans has almost a full squad from which to pick a team to play the Azzurri in Padova.

Deans said he would not be sending for a replacement for Tuqiri even if his senior winger is not able to complete his recovery from knee surgery before the final two Tests of the tour, against France and Wales. The coach insisted there is adequate cover already in the 34-man touring party.

Certainly Tuqiri's wing replacement against the All Blacks in Hong Kong, Drew Mitchell, did well, scoring two first-half tries, even if his game - like the Wallabies in general - did go off the boil after the halftime break.

Once again the Wallabies were left to bemoan a result that easily could have gone the other way but as at least as one Wallabies official put it after the 19-14 defeat, there was some good news in the fact no one got broken in the historic match.

Playmaker Matt Giteau came closest, finishing with a sore neck and shoulder after simultaneously receiving a hospital pass from Nathan Sharpe and a shuddering hit from Jerome Kaino but, as he playfully admitted, Sharpe probably owed him.

"I've given him a few over the years," Giteau quipped.

One thing the Wallabies haven't lost is their self-belief, particularly now that they are coming back to full strength with the recovery from injury of back-rowers Hugh McMeniman and Wycliff Palu and centre Timana Tahu.

McMeniman and Palu long ago would have been pencilled in for key starting roles on this tour but so well did Dean Mumm and Richard Brown perform at blindside flanker and No.8 respectively against New Zealand that Deans will not feel compelled to rush into changes.

"They were outstanding," said Deans, who also heaped praise on halfback Luke Burgess. "When you look at Mummy, second outing, Browny, second outing, remarkable."

Still, as courageously as the two understudies performed, the temptation will be to throw McMeniman and Palu straight into the Italy Test, if for no other reason than to give all serious contenders a hit-out before the crunch match at Twickenham against the England team that ended Australia's World Cup campaign last year. The Italians, particularly, would have bad memories of Palu after he almost single-handedly turned around the Rome Test two years ago, bursting straight through their defence on a 40m run that ultimately produced a match-changing try for Stirling Mortlock.

The Wallabies looked sensational for long periods at the Hong Kong Stadium but they have yet to learn how to convert passages of domination into victories. That's something right at the core of All Blacks rugby.





http://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,...-23217,00.html

[Burgs]

There's more than enough cover for Tuqiri, send him home and let him do rehab and a pre-season like mear mortals.

[robyn <3]

Why should he stay? To play two games, clog up the 'development' process, cost ARU good money on hotels and food (which he doesn't deserve) and loose the two games for us with his butter fingers, because we all know he will play.

I don't get it Robbie

[Swee_82]

There's more than enough cover for Tuqiri, send him home and let him do rehab and a pre-season like mear mortals.

Too bloody right. And when he is recovered, he can work his way back in to the team like everyone else too.