Muds Brumbies 2012 Thread - Warning -

[mudskipper]

brumbies still on top by 5 points... with and good coaching squad... enough said... player power now at Force sacking their coach mid season because he was moving on next season... WTF... next e=season is next season...

[Rex Messup]

Good win over the Tahs

Impressive defence

[shasta]

Clean out at the Ponies and a proven coach. Good stuff. Some things have not changed though. Their #1 armchair supporter is still a gibbering heap.
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[mudskipper]

Brumbies on song to keep Lealiifano's dream alive

Read more: http://www.canberratimes.com.au/rugb...#ixzz1u6EYqtHu

The ACT Brumbies are determined to follow the wishes of injured flyhalf Christian Lealiifano and ensure their impressive Super Rugby campaign doesn't go to waste.

Lealiifano will have surgery today on a suspected broken ankle sustained in the final minute of the Brumbies' 23-6 win against the NSW Waratahs at Canberra Stadium on Saturday night.

The 24-year-old is expected to be out of action for the next six months, ruling him out of the rest of the Brumbies' season and ending any chance of a possible Wallabies debut.

Several Brumbies players, including Matt Toomua, Pat McCabe, Ben Alexander and Fotu Auelua, visited Lealiifano in hospital yesterday as the talented playmaker comes to grips with the severity of his injury.
Lealiifano tweeted yesterday: ''To everyone. Thank you sooo much for the well wishes. Ill be ok and back for brums as soon as i can. Much love to all. Thanks again xo.''

Alexander said Lealiifano was as good as could be expected after his ankle got caught underneath a Waratahs player.

Play was held up for several minutes while a medicab was brought on to the ground, with the Brumbies huddling around Lealiifano to sing their victory song after the game.

''He's in as high spirits as you could hope for but he's obviously pretty down,'' Alexander said.
''He wanted to sing the song, it was the least we could do for him.

''He's trying to remain positive and he knows he'll come back bigger and better next year.''
The Brumbies have charged to the top of the Australian conference, winning six of their first 10 games to hold a nine-point gap on the Waratahs and the Queensland Reds ahead of this weekend's bye.

And with three of their final six matches coming against teams in the bottom four of the overall standings - the Melbourne Rebels, the Western Force and the Auckland Blues - the Brumbies are in the box seat to qualify for the playoffs for the first time since 2004.

It's a dramatic change of fortunes for a club which won just four games a year ago.

''He [Lealiifano] wouldn't want us to drop our bundle after all the good work we've done over the past 10 weeks,'' Alexander said. ''He'll be even more disappointed if we throw in the towel.''

With Lealiifano and Toomua - who ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament in his knee in round six - sidelined for the rest of the season, the Brumbies will need to call on either Robbie Coleman or Zach Holmes at flyhalf.

Coleman's versatility has been a major asset off the bench in the past weeks.
The Queanbeyan product is equally at home in the centres or at fullback, but is also more than capable with the No.10 on his back.

Holmes has had limited opportunities in his first season at the Brumbies, the former Australian sevens representative making two appearances off the bench.

''We're confident whoever they pick will do a good job,'' Alexander said.

''The way Christian had been playing, it was unbelievable, he was setting the back line alight.
''It's up to the whole squad to lift their game, not just the 10 who comes in there.''


Read more: http://www.canberratimes.com.au/rugb...#ixzz1u6EQizYy

[mudskipper]

Brumbies outstanding... Lealiifano was fantastic... Unlucky injury but a champ nonetheless... And nearly everyone had them pegged for the spoon preseason... goes to show it can be done... The Tahs had nothing... Brumbies now have a bye week to work with a new halves pairing, and Coleman is a fine player he'll do well, watch this space... Jake White, Bernie and Laurie have got these boys working magic together....

[bandit]

I think they will play Zack Holmes as Coleman is a left foot kicker and White likes the left foot right foot combo.Holmes played all the trial games and would not let the team down

[Rex Messup]

Brumbies outstanding... Lealiifano was fantastic... Unlucky injury but a champ nonetheless... And nearly everyone had them pegged for the spoon preseason... goes to show it can be done... The Tahs had nothing... Brumbies now have a bye week to work with a new halves pairing, and Coleman is a fine player he'll do well, watch this space... Jake White, Bernie and Laurie have got these boys working magic together....

I would like to remind you I tipped them to do well

[palitu]

Well muds, you have been remarkably bearable! it is good to see the brumbies up there, better than the tahs/rebels...

[Rex Messup]

It's good to see an Aussie team doing well. It's been a bleak season for the Aussies

The Reds and Tahs have no real reason to gloat about superiority over the Force and Rebels. The Tahs especially have been rubbish. The Reds were hit hard by injuries but haven't recaptured the form of 2011.

Long way to go

The June break effectively turns the torunament into two competitions

There will be a huge loss of momentum for the teams travelling well, a chance for the innury ravaged to revitalise; a chance for the underachievers to reassess,retrain and improve........and a risk that international players will be injured.

I think the break in the tournament is a bad idea

I think the conference system is flawed.

[Sheikh]

But the conference system does guarantee a finals place (and even a home match) for each country. The top Australian team might struggle to make the top 6 otherwise!

[Happy]

But the conference system does guarantee a finals place (and even a home match) for each country. The top Australian team might struggle to make the top 6 otherwise!

that is purely for TV revenue, it's the same as the year 2 "participation award" so not as to let any country feel left out - it rewards mediocrity.

[shasta]

that is purely for TV revenue, it's the same as the year 2 "participation award" so not as to let any country feel left out - it rewards mediocrity.

Yep; and hopefully it'll be the Saffers that get shafted first by this stupid idea. They wanted the guarantee in the first place
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[mudskipper]

Desperate White woos Larkham

Jake White believes Stephen Larkham can make a comeback to be the ACT Brumbies' flyhalf saviour and the coach says he ''would be crazy'' if he didn't try to lure the Wallabies great out of retirement.
While some have laughed at a potential Larkham return, White told The Canberra Times last night it was a ''real option'' to help fill the gap in the Brumbies' playmaker ranks.



Christian Lealiifano suffered a season-ending broken ankle last weekend and Matt Toomua has already had a knee reconstruction.

It leaves the Brumbies without two of their most experienced players and first and second choice flyhalves.

White is keen to recruit a senior player for the remainder of the season to help his young back line.
Larkham is one option, but the Brumbies are also searching for Australian players abroad and they could include Matt Giteau, Peter Hewat, Craig Wing or Craig Gower.

All have been playing in Europe or Asia and would be handy recruits.
But White was adamant 37-year-old Larkham could be the perfect man to lead his raw squad into the finals.

The Brumbies are at the top of the Australian conference and are on the verge of ending a seven-year finals drought since Larkham guided the club to a title in 2004.

''He runs all of our plays, he knows our plays - we would be crazy not to ask him and it is a real option I could have Stephen Larkham running around for three games,'' White said.

''I would never force him to play, but when two flyhalves go down you have to think outside the box.
''If we think he can add value to us then we will pursue it … he's 37 but there aren't many guys out there and the ones who are, they aren't much younger.

''If he says to me he would play, then of course we will go with that.''

Larkham - who is in Japan - said he had faith in the Brumbies' young back-up flyhalves in Zack Holmes and Robbie Coleman and hadn't contemplated playing again.

He hasn't played Super Rugby since he left Australia in 2007 and he finished his playing career in Japan at the start of last year.

The veteran of more than 100 Tests and Super Rugby matches has been the Brumbies' back-line coach for the past two seasons.

The Brumbies have a bye this weekend and White will wait until early next week before deciding if he will add an experienced player to his squad.

Coleman and Holmes are the candidates to take over from Lealiifano.

However, Holmes has seen limited game time from the Brumbies bench in his debut season and Coleman has played just 15 games in his career.

With rookie fullback Jesse Mogg, NRL convert Joseph Tomane, first-year scrumhalf Nic White and second-year winger Henry Speight, White knows he needs a senior player.

But he could recruit an outside back despite injuries to his two No.10s.

Giteau has been in France since leaving the Brumbies at the end of last season while Hewat and Wing have been playing in Japan.

Former Wallabies and Brumbies coach Eddie Jones said the Brumbies would need to be ''creative'' with their recruitment. ''I think they have to look outside to bolster the ranks,'' Jones said.
''When you lose two standout guys … they've got guys who can probably do the job.
''But I think they probably need someone to come in and help them in the short term.

''They're going to have to be creative and I think they will be … I think they're going to be very creative.

''Bernie could definitely be a possibility, I wouldn't discount that but maybe they have to keep looking outside as well.''

The Brumbies will return to training on Sunday to begin preparations for their clash with the Wellington Hurricanes in New Zealand next Friday night.


Read more: http://www.canberratimes.com.au/rugb...#ixzz1uPZl69OA

[GIGS20]

Craig gower would be interesting, he told the force no because it would upset his contractural arrangements in Japan, I assume wing is in the same boat......if they sign for the Brums it'll be significant

[shasta]

The Force approached Gower?

In any event he's 34 & contracted to the London Bronx for the remainder of the 2012 Mungo Superleague.
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