Right men, wrong targets for Oz
Thu, 07 Aug 2008 15:24
Australia had the right personnel, but they simply couldn't aim at them. This is the view of assistant coach Michael Foley, as the Wallabies continue to search for reasons why their line-outs imploded in the 10-39 Tri-Nations/Bledisloe Cup blow-out against New Zealand in Auckland last week.
While their rivals have moved on - the All Blacks are planning for their trip to South Africa and the Springboks are gearing up for a one-off Test against Argentina - the Wallabies are still stuck on the loss at Eden Park last week.
Foley told the media that inaccuracy, and not selection errors, was the reason for the Wallabies' line-out woes against the All Blacks.
The line-out, so long a strength of the Wallabies in recent years, disintegrated in the face of intense New Zealand pressure as Australia lost eight on their own throws.
The Wallabies went into the game with a shorter line-out than usual, following the foot injury that ruled out 197 centimetre blindside flank Rocky Elsom. He was replaced by the 175 centimetre specialist openside flank Phil Waugh.
Foley, the Wallabies hooker during the 1999 World Cup triumph, defended his pack saying that a lack of accuracy and execution was the reason the Men in Gold's line-out faltered in New Zealand, rather than the absence of Elsom.
Waugh was teamed with another openside flank George Smith in the starting XV, a combination that has been used infrequently over the years, but Foley believed it could still work under the right circumstances.
"The selections on the night gave us the right options to be able to attack the New Zealanders where we wanted to," Foley explained. "Unfortunately we weren't accurate in the line-out play and that compromised us.
"It's one of those things, you can pick a taller line-out but irrespective of who you pick, you have to be accurate in your skill."
Young Wallaby hooker Tatafu Polota-Nau had problems hitting his jumpers when he came on as a replacement for Stephen Moore in the 43rd minute on Saturday night, losing his first five throws. The enormously talented 23-year-old will look to turn that around if he's given another chance against South Africa.
The Wallabies were also well beaten at the breakdown in Auckland, a facet of the game they dominated the week previously in Sydney, and Foley attributed that to a lack of momentum from set pieces.
On Elsom's possible return Foley said he probably stood a better chance of playing in the next Tri-Nations Test against South Africa (in Durban on August 23) than fullback Adam Ashley-Cooper, who broke his hand late in the first half last Saturday.
The Assistant Coach said the decision on whether or not Elsom returned would be down to the medical staff and no decision was likely until next week when the squad reassembles in Sydney.
As the Wallabies move in to the second half of their Tri-Nations campaign, Foley said the Men in Gold needed to address the physical challenges they would face from the All Blacks and Springboks.
"I thought the first two matches we met those physical challenges, last week against New Zealand we probably didn't," he said. "There's no denying it was a performance that wasn't good, but I think the signs generally have been there."
The mood in the Wallabies camp however remained positive and Foley said the players retained a lot of belief despite Australia suffering their first loss in six games under new Head Coach Robbie Deans.
"There's a lot of excitement about what's happening at the moment and they will be busting to get back into it, to put that performance behind them," Foley said. "It was a little out of character and we will be doing our best to rectify that."
The Wallabies next two Tri-Nations assignments are away to the world champion Springboks in South Africa in Durban on August 23 and in Johannesburg.
Foley predicted the Springboks would use slightly different tactics to their recent trip to Australia and New Zealand, supplementing their traditional physical style with the more expansive approach adopted by their new, and often controversial, coach Peter de Villiers.
"You certainly saw in some of their early season games against Wales and then the Tri-Nations in New Zealand they were moving the ball a lot, I think you'd expect to see a lot more of that," Foley said
