Wallabies mull taking No.10 off unhappy Giteau

[Stone Cold]

I'd love to see Barnes at 10 and return of Gits to 12 where he used to kick esra...is it just me or has Gits lost some of his spark in the last few years?

[The InnFORCEr]

I'd love to see Barnes at 10 and return of Gits to 12 where he used to kick esra...is it just me or has Gits lost some of his spark in the last few years?

No it's only you that has lost some spark

[Happy]

ask Elly

[eleypinkbit]

ask Elly

He's sparky enough! Don't know about a few years ago - didn't know him then!

[James]

I'd love to see Barnes at 10 and return of Gits to 12 where he used to kick esra...is it just me or has Gits lost some of his spark in the last few years?

Yeah I reckon he has a bit. Particularly this year with a lot of kicking. He just doesn't have the time or space to do what he is best at which is exploiting gaps in the opposition defense. He doesn't seem to be as tough as Barnes and I think Barnes' kicking and passing is a little bit better. He took over the 10 role because he was the most experienced and best all rounder at the time but I reckon its time for him to move back and if Giteau is not willing to accept Robbie giving Barnes at least one shot at 10 he isn't much of a team player.

[chook]

What province has Gits been at the last few years?

[James]

What province has Gits been at the last few years?

That Blue and Gold one. Highlanders I think.

[Burgs]

What province has Gits been at the last few years?

His own

[Evie]

[B] least two French clubs are desperate to get his services - sooner rather than later. One of the clubs is believed to be Toulon.[/URL]

We all know who is already there right? Somehow I don't think a certain Mr Wilkinson would be too happy...

[travelling_gerry]

Wayne Smith, Rugby union editor | October 08, 2009
Article from: The Australian

"SHOVE off, Matt Giteau". Who would have thought those words would ever appear on an Australian sporting website?

Yet within hours yesterday of an unsourced story in a Sydney newspaper claiming Giteau was less than happy at the prospect of being shunted out of the Wallabies five-eighth playmaking role and dumped back into his old position of inside centre, there they were, as predictable as they were pungent.

Any suggestion these days that any sportsman is less than ecstatic in the service of his country invariably triggers a Pavlovian response that makes "kneejerk" seem almost premeditated.

"Shove off" pretty much encapsulates that response, although it's not unusual for the phrase "and we'll get someone who is proud to play for Australia to take your place" to get tagged on at the end. Now, Giteau wasn't confirming any of it yesterday, refusing to speak to the media. So the possibility must be considered that the story is a furphy. The trouble is, it's not. It's all true and sadly it has been for quite a while.

As I wrote of Giteau on the Monday following the devastating 33-6 loss to the All Blacks in Wellington: "Throughout the Tri-Nations he has been the flattest by far of the Australian players. If body English is any indicator, then Giteau is a player miserably unhappy in his work at present. Gone are the days when television close-ups of him captured a boyish smile. Now the image on the screen is more likely to be one of him scowling or barking orders or a combination thereof."

According to Giteau's Western Force coach, John Mitchell, it could just be he is merely frustrated by the global laws now in force which no longer give him as many opportunities to attack a fractured defensive line. But somehow I think it's much more than that.

While Giteau's "work" happens to involve playing rugby for Australia, that doesn't exempt him from all the emotions normal workers experience from time to time - a feeling of being underappreciated, of being annoyed at being dragged down by the underperformance of others, of being scapegoated for failure.

True, normal workers would gladly take on Giteau's burden of angst, and then some, in exchange for his paypacket. But after two World Cups, 73 Tests and eight seasons in the gold Wallabies jersey, one suspects it's no longer about the money. It's about respect. And all indications are that Giteau doesn't feel he's getting any.

Now for those of the gung-ho persuasion that's the cue for "boo-hoo" and "No player is greater than the team" and "Who needs him?" But just this once could we not reflexively salivate at the sound of the bell and instead try to look at the problem constructively.

Who needs Giteau? The Wallabies, that's who. He is, after all, the most dangerous attacking player in the side, as evidenced by the fact that with his second try against the Springboks in Perth he overtook Steve Larkham - rated by many as the greatest Australian five-eighth - to move into eighth place on the list of leading Wallabies tryscorers. And with his final kick that same night at Subiaco Oval, he joined Michael Lynagh and Matt Burke as the only Australians to have scored 500 points in Tests.

So the Wallabies need Giteau. But they need him playing with his old spark and verve, not fretting over real or imagined slights. And some slights are real. John Connolly revealed yesterday it was only on the toss of a coin that Stirling Mortlock beat Giteau for the Wallabies captaincy in 2006, yet here we are now contemplating who will replace Mortlock as skipper and Giteau is barely rating a mention. One of the benefits of bringing in a New Zealander to coach the Wallabies was that because he had no background with any of the players, he wouldn't play favourites. But treating everyone fairly does not necessarily mean treating them all the same.

Different players require different handling, senior players especially. That doesn't mean pandering to Giteau who would recoil from such treatment anyhow.

Robbie Deans doesn't need advice on man-management but seemingly in all the frenzy of his first two seasons in the Test arena, he has either missed or ignored the telltale signs that Giteau feels he's no longer in the loop.

The problem is now too big to be ignored.

Thankfully, Deans isn't a man given to kneejerk responses.

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au...-32102,00.html

[Darren]

boo-hoo, no player is greater than the team - who needs him?

[Burgs]

"He is, after all, the most dangerous attacking player in the side, as evidenced by the fact that with his second try against the Springboks in Perth he overtook Steve Larkham - rated by many as the greatest Australian five-eighth - to move into eighth place on the list of leading Wallabies tryscorers." And how many of those have come from Flyhalf?

As for respect, you earn it and lose it by your actions.

And we actually said "fuck off", only pansies and reporters would use "shove off"

[GIGS20]

According to Giteau's Western Force coach, John Mitchell, it could just be he is merely frustrated by the global laws now in force which no longer give him as many opportunities to attack a fractured defensive line. But somehow I think it's much more than that.

Much much more Wayne, it has a lot to do with the fact that he thinks he's the best flyhalf in the world but has had it conclusively proven this year that he'd struggle to make the top 10 and if he keeps this shit up he'll not make the team at all......to be replaced by the likes of Quade Cooper!

He's a prissy Prima Donna with limited skills in the position who has happened to score a shitload of tries before he got there. the couple he's scrored while he's there passes a milestone sure, but I don't rate a flyhalf by the tries he's scored, I go by the tries he's created.......in that department Barnes beats Giteau this season (OK that's just from hazy memory, I haven't checked footage, but it's gotta be close)

[Stone Cold]

He's sparky enough! Don't know about a few years ago - didn't know him then!

sparky is as sparky does...

...as for Gits - I think he is a briliant player who just needs to get his head right...

[James]

Some people just aren't supposed to do some things on the rugby field. Luke Burgess shouldn't pass. Sharpie shouldn't pretend to be a centre. Matt Dunning shouldn't try to kick drop goals. George Smith shouldn't do grubber kicks. Drew Mitchell shouldn't kick full stop. And Matt Giteau shouldn't play fly-half. He's incredibly talented but leading the team from 10 just isn't one of them.