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Thread: Tahs' shame file

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    Tahs' shame file

    Rebecca Wilson From: The Daily Telegraph July 09, 2011 12:00AM



    WHEN the Queensland Reds run out in front of more than 50,000 fans at Suncorp Stadium tonight, every single administrator, coach and player involved with the Waratahs should hang their heads in shame.

    The cringing and lip biting cannot stop there. The blazer wearers, in particular, must spend the best part of the next six months writing out a very long list of crimes they have committed against their sport in a state that should have a pulsating elite rugby culture.

    The Queensland Reds were in much worse shape than their NSW counterparts three seasons ago. They were stony broke, their team lost just about every week and the administration had squandered so many opportunities that pulling down the shutters became a distinct possibility.

    In two seasons they have rebuilt their sport to the point that Queensland is now the shining light of the code - and its only genuine hope of remaining a top-tier sport in a nation that shows no mercy to weakness or failure in its four football codes.


    The Reds did it all the right way. The formula was simple but brutally effective.

    They let the team speak for itself and gave a new coach the licence to stamp his winning ways on some superb homegrown talent.

    Unlike so many sporting franchises, who draw up a marketing plan before they find a winning team, Queensland rugby bosses saw a chance to get themselves out of a financial quagmire by going back to basics.

    A winning team puts bums on seats. By employing discarded NSW coach Ewen McKenzie, the Reds rebuilt the culture with a bloke from enemy territory who should never have been handed his marching orders.

    This is the point where every NSW fan reading this should scream out loud. McKenzie was handed his pink slip as he was on the verge of fixing the Waratahs.

    Australia's most infuriating team (in any code) had finally started to learn how to win big matches. McKenzie refused to yield to the desires of his "star" players or the bosses who believed the player was always right.

    The former Wallaby spoke passionately about his task to supporters who had spent too many seasons turning up to watch a team that had no spunk, no fight and no winning culture.

    Those who met McKenzie were amazed at the level of the man's commitment and determination. The former Wallaby might have been a big, ugly prop during his playing days but he understood very clearly the beauty that is rugby when it is executed in style by all fifteen men in the team.

    McKenzie is no longer a fan of the "10-man" game.

    That is the kind of rugby Waratahs fans have been forced to endure for too long, the style of play that sees million-dollar backs left freezing on the wing as the forwards decide not to pass them the ball.

    Contrary to his looks and prop's pedigree, McKenzie was a deep thinker who recognised that the truly great rugby sides use every single player in the team to win matches. He has done for the Reds what he was denied at the Waratahs.

    With the total confidence of his bosses, McKenzie introduced running rugby to a Queensland side that had not seen such stuff for decades.

    It has not harmed his cause that he has arguably the best player in world rugby in Quade Cooper.

    To watch this young man with the ball is a joy in itself. The chemistry he has with Wil Genia makes the diehard rugby fan's heart sing.

    And hearts are singing at rugby headquarters in Brisbane. The coffers are filling up again and crowds regularly tip over 30,000. If the ground is filled to capacity tonight (and we are told it will be), all previous records will be smashed. Waratahs fans (the few who are left) have every right to feel miffed as they watch this unfold. NSW rugby administrators run for cover whenever they are placed under scrutiny.

    The bottom line, however, is that decades of blazer wearers protecting their patch is to blame for the mess.

    Rugby in NSW has a burgeoning club competition, a rich talent pool of schoolboys and a bunch of bosses with absolutely no clue about converting that into success at the elite level.

    Yet another season of promising much and delivering little should have led to a serious cull of coach and senior players.

    One day this lot will realise that winning is actually important. You can wheel out Tah-man and put yourself on the back of buses, but if you can't find a coach or 15 players who know how to win big matches, you have nothing.

    http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/spo...-1226090995373

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    Champion zed's Avatar
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    It's funny how QC is being touted as the best player in the world with his defence being so sub-standard. When he starts putting his body on the line and putting in some decent tackles a la Wilkinson and Carter then he can be considered for the job.

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    Immortal Contributor shasta's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by zed View Post
    It's funny how QC is being touted as the best player in the world with his defence being so sub-standard. When he starts putting his body on the line and putting in some decent tackles a la Wilkinson and Carter then he can be considered for the job.
    His defense is questionable, yes. But even if he'd suddenly turned out to be a brilliant defender a few weeks back, no coach would change the way he has been positioning himself in matches. His reading of play and from that his ability to launch counter attacks have been something to see.

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    Champion Rex Messup's Avatar
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    Tahs need to broom the management before anything will change in that joint

    The old school tie and GPS thrashwanking will keep them in the bottom tier for another decade

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    Quote Originally Posted by Rex Messup View Post
    Tahs need to broom the management before anything will change in that joint

    The old school tie and GPS thrashwanking will keep them in the bottom tier for another decade
    Fair enough. But Rebecca Wilson is a twit.

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    Senior Player Hoolly Doolly's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by shasta View Post
    His defense is questionable, yes. But even if he'd suddenly turned out to be a brilliant defender a few weeks back, no coach would change the way he has been positioning himself in matches. His reading of play and from that his ability to launch counter attacks have been something to see.
    His counter attacking from deep this GF was a shambles. He was lucky the Crusaders didnt make him pay the way he isolated himself numerous times. Pretty ordinary game by QC compared to last week.

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    Senior Player tic's Avatar
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    Wilson is wrong to suggest thet Link introduced attacking rugby to the Reds. Phil Mooney developed this culture. Link inherited it and developed it and gave the defence some starch.

    As for QC - it seems that hating on him is a national pastime. His success and flair speak for themselves. I presume all his critics would not accept him at their team if he was willing to move???

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    Tic, he has come in leaps and bounds, both on and off. He does some amazing things. What was great last night was that he wasn't on song and they still won, no one trick team there.

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    Senior Player tic's Avatar
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    Agree Palitu - interestingly, did you notice that it was his tackle early in the second half that forced a Crusaders turnover when they were scooting away for a try? I think that tackle was a defining turning point.

    He actually can tackle quite well - he sometimes lets himself down and that is what people seem to score him on. His defence consistency is actually improving each year.

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    Immortal Contributor shasta's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Haji View Post
    His counter attacking from deep this GF was a shambles. He was lucky the Crusaders didnt make him pay the way he isolated himself numerous times. Pretty ordinary game by QC compared to last week.
    Wouldn't argue that. Genia was almost as bad. I wrote last week that I was worried about his box kicking. He took it to a new level of aimlessness last night due to the constant pressure. They both did. Keep the fuggin ball in hand in that situation.

    The Reds dogged defense, the Saders poor lineout, missed tackles and handling errors kept them in the game. Let's hope they are over the jitters. They are both way better than that - and they still won. The Wallaby scrum will go better. How much better is the question.

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    Quote Originally Posted by tic View Post
    As for QC - it seems that hating on him is a national pastime. His success and flair speak for themselves. I presume all his critics would not accept him at their team if he was willing to move???
    Anyone would be bloody mad not to want QC in their team. To be fair though Tic, I think Giteau cops it a hell of a lot worse than Cooper. Everyone gets a bit of hating.

    Sharpie gets criticized for a perceived inability to scrummage (although the Force scrum this year says otherwise), Phil Waugh gets it for being a wanker, Burgess gets it for his sometimes woeful passing, Giteau for the crabbing, Phil Waugh for being allergic to the ball moving 10 metres from the last breakdown, Wycliff Palu for being lazy, Mark Chisholm for being unable to take Super Rugby form into Test form, Phil Waugh for being a sore loser, etc.

    It probably isn't going to change any time soon or at least until he starts defending at 10- which is probably a waste of his counter attacking talent anyway.

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    Senior Player tic's Avatar
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    ^^^ Agree with that. But in the case of Waugh copping it for being a wanker....well, he is a wanker. 'nuff said.

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    Champion Rex Messup's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by tic View Post
    Wilson is wrong to suggest thet Link introduced attacking rugby to the Reds. Phil Mooney developed this culture. Link inherited it and developed it and gave the defence some starch.

    As for QC - it seems that hating on him is a national pastime. His success and flair speak for themselves. I presume all his critics would not accept him at their team if he was willing to move???
    Agreed re Phil Mooney

    Under Mooney they scored enough points to win games easily but let more in

    Link brought a little more structure and built up the D

    I see The Rugby Club was on the Rex bandwagon last week...........QC is the best they have seen

    Rex doesn't praise backs often but QC has a skill set rarely seen in the game......and speed....and kicking skills.......and kicks goals..........Dead set

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    Immortal Contributor The InnFORCEr's Avatar
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    The funniest thing I heard about Quade over the weekend is that over in NZ he is known as a "mozzie" aka a "Maori Aussie"

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    Quote Originally Posted by tic View Post
    Agree Palitu - interestingly, did you notice that it was his tackle early in the second half that forced a Crusaders turnover when they were scooting away for a try? I think that tackle was a defining turning point.

    He actually can tackle quite well - he sometimes lets himself down and that is what people seem to score him on. His defence consistency is actually improving each year.
    He was dreadful on the Wallabies European tour and it's hard to shake a bad rep once you have it, but I agree he hasn't been too bad this year. And I don't think people that are 'hating on QC' think he's a bad player more of a case of he's not quite the complete rugby player the media are making him out to be. He's not far of though.

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