0
Rupert Guinness | June 16, 2009
WALLABIES winger Drew Mitchell is desperate to make the best of the guaranteed dry conditions expected in Melbourne for the second Test against Italy on Saturday night and prove he is the electric finisher for whom coach Robbie Deans is looking.
After earning a tick against his name for his kicking game against Italy in Canberra at the weekend, the 25-year-old with 30 Test caps knows that with so much competition among the outside-backs he can't afford to have a weakness in his game.
Against Italy, in the frost and cold, Mitchell was just one back who impressed, putting boot to ball to control where the game would be played - which for the most part was in Italy's half. Yet because of the conditions and the way the game panned out, Mitchell found himself short of opportunity to show off his finishing finesse and flare.
But he hopes to make up for it when the Wallabies play Italy at Etihad Stadium in Melbourne.
Thanks to the stadium having a roof that closes, the conditions are guaranteed to be dry and far more conducive to the Wallabies playing a running game.
First, Mitchell must be picked in the 22-man Wallabies squad to be named today. If that is the case, he realises that he will have to make the best of every opportunity that arises.
Breathing down his neck in the selection battle are Lote Tuqiri, who is desperate to fight back into the side after playing his last two games of rugby in the Shute Shield, and Peter Hynes, who is almost certain to come into the selection frame when he returns from injury. Fullback James O'Connor scored three tries on Saturday while five-eighth Matt Giteau and outside-centre Stirling Mortlock scored Australia's other two tries.
Yet Mitchell feels the Wallabies backs have much more to offer with the ball.
"The conditions [in Canberra] weren't too inviting to throw the ball around a great deal. I don't think any of the outside-backs saw too much ball attacking-wise," Mitchell said. "They were just the conditions, and we played to them. The boys in the midfield kicked really well which meant we played the ball right down the field most of the time.
"If anything, if we can manage to hold on to the ball and retain the ball, then I will be trying to have a bit more impact around the ground a bit more and get more involved."
Mitchell, who made his Test debut in 2005 against South Africa in Sydney, said that Deans wanted strong finishers, but "not just someone who waits for the ball. The big thing for the back three is for everyone to be seeking involvement and chasing the ball around".
Mitchell knows that Deans rates kicking as imperative in the big picture of the Wallabies' 2011 World Cup campaign.
"I hit a couple pretty well … one down there in the corner, and my high ball came off pretty well as well," he said. "It's something you put a lot of attention into during the week.
"It's good that come game time when the pressure is on, you know you can rely on the work you have done through the week. Everyone who put foot to ball kicked quite well."
Mitchell said the rewards come from making countless kicks at training to make the discipline second nature under pressure.
"It's about trying to get hip to the target, squaring up and kicking through the ball," he said. "There are little cues we have been told by our kicking coaches. It makes sure that come game time you are aware of those little things."
http://www.rugbyheaven.com.au/news/n...917986367.html
Reply With Quote
CHEERLEADERS ROCK!!! 
Originally Posted by JediKnight
