RWC Squad Announcement

[Ralto]

How would you be if you were James Horwill? He's not the greatest second rower of all time, but to have 2 Tah blow-ins picked before him smacks of "picking your mates first" to me

Horwill had a so-so super 15 and didn't seem to be the free runner he had been before, that gave Cheika the reason/excuse he wanted to include Douglas. Interesting to see if he plays any of the "big" matches. Horwill looked pretty good off the bench against the 'boks, but I think his Super15 season gave Cheika the chance to ignore sentiment.

[shasta]

Horwill had a so-so super 15 and didn't seem to be the free runner he had been before, that gave Cheika the reason/excuse he wanted to include Douglas. Inte
.

....and that has to be the sort of reasoning on a few of the selections which people are questioning. The coach can't make RWC squad selections based on 3 Tests where the combinations were pretty experimental. But by the same argument, the selections of Cooper and Genia are interesting.

[SNOB]

I'd be pretty frustrated if they named a lock to play prop

F@rking brain fart! I now know how QC feels!

[Rex Messup]

Cheika's grand plan is to have no hookers for the test against England so we can have McMahon in the front row and uncontested scrums....hail the mesiah. Find the loophole and exploit it. Dead set genius.
Palu? Not sure. I haven't seen many damaging runs or ferocious hits in a long time.
Rob Simmons - not sure. Lineout man but brings nothing anywhere else. I don't rate him.
Toby Smith? Didn't see that coming. WTF? Can scrum? Trust in the mesiah. He did win 2 super rugby finals with the Chiefs. Brings some NZ mongrel.
Otherwise happy.
Best we have by and large.

[Rex Messup]

Coleman and Arnold are not test standard at this time. This isn't a development tour. This is the world cup. I think Skelton has been developed with the pool games in mind. We have to out muscle the poms and welsh packs. He can smash people and is good at stopping driving mauls. Horses for courses. We know what they are going to bring. He wont be playing if we meet the allblacks. We have to get out of our pool first

[GIGS20]

. I think Skelton has been developed with the pool games in mind. We have to out muscle the poms and welsh packs. He can smash people and is good at stopping driving mauls.

Sorry if I seem slow on the uptake, but could you please link to some video of him doing any one of those things ever in a wallaby jersey.

[jono]

Sorry if I seem slow on the uptake, but could you please link to some video of him doing any one of those things ever in a wallaby jersey.

Surely leading with his fist in every tackle counts!?!?

:/

[Rex Messup]

Skelton had a good game against the Argies. Some of his hits were pretty impressive. I think his scrummaging has improved. I agree the jury is out. Our track record up front against the poms is pretty ordinary. They are going to hold the ball at the back of the scrum then shunt us forward and get a penalty then kick for an attacking lineout. This is how they will exit their red zone. Its also how they will use their rolling maul from scrum penalties that they kick out for attacking lineouts. No point turning up with a pop gun pack. If we take dildos to the knife fight we arent going to make it out of our pool. We worry about the other countries when we win our pool. I wouldnt pick Skelton if we are playing the bokke or allblacks

[GIGS20]

Skelton had a good game against the Argies. One of his hits were pretty impressive.

Fixed it for you

If we take dildos to the knife fight we arent going to make it out of our pool. We worry about the other countries when we win our pool. I wouldnt pick Skelton if we are playing the bokke or allblacks

Or the English, welsh, argentine ants or Fiji. Perhaps if we were playing Somalia, or Ulsan-Bataar he might be worthy of selection, but any country that has enough players to field a 23 without running around the local pubs and signing up a couple of boys who look fit and up for a fight he's a risk.

And the dildos comment is surely directed at Skelton specifically isn't it?

[Rex Messup]

Gigs, you really have no clue. Continue campaigning for Force players

[GIGS20]

Gigs, you really have no clue. Continue campaigning for Force players

I'll let his results in International matches be my response if you don't mind

[jargan83]

AUSTRALIA has suffered a major blow to their World Cup plans with their two biggest ballcarriers Will Skelton and Wycliff Palu ruled out of the entire tournament with injuries.

Hooker James Hanson will replace backrower Palu, while Sam Carter takes the place of lock Skelton.

Just five days before Australia plays England in a defining Pool A match, the Wallabies are reeling from the news they’ll be without two of their key gain-line runners.

The injury to Palu has effectively ended his 57-Test international career. The 33-year-old will play in Japan’s club competition from next year and will not qualify for the Wallabies under the ARU’s 60-Test minimum rule.

Palu had indicated that the World Cup would be his last foray on the international scene anyway.

Instead of bringing in another backrower, Wallabies coach Michael Cheika has opted to select Hanson, after being criticised for not selecting a third hooker in his original 31-man squad.

Hanson’s addition means there will be cover if skipper Stephen Moore or back-up hooker Tatafu Polota-Nau are injured in coming games, which are all effectively knockout clashes given the ramifications of their pool matches against England and Wales.

It’s understood Hanson will fly out to London from Australia today.

Carter has been playing as a medical joker in France, which allowed him to be close should there be an injury to one of the second-rowers.

The injury will effectively end Wycliff Palu’s career with the Wallabies.

Skelton left the field against Uruguay clutching his arm, and fears were realised after medical tests revealed he would be unfit for the remainder of the World Cup.

Carter will make the quick dash from France to England and be ready in time for Sunday morning’s enormous match against the hosts at Twickenham.

Australia can virtually end England’s World Cup hopes by defeating them this weekend, after Wales beat the Poms in a thriller last Sunday.

Palu had lost his starting No. 8 place to David Pocock and would have been fighting for a place on the bench, while Skelton has been rotated from starting position to the bench but has been a constant in the Wallabies’ match-day 23-man squads this year.

http://www.news.com.au/sport/rugby/r...-1227548775811

[jono]

Hardly call this a "major blow"

[MI5_Dog]

like an septuagenarian with emphysema trying to blow out candles really

[GIGS20]

Article written in Sydney obviously.

If they are such a gain-line threat, why didn't we play them against Fiji?