RugbyShout

Unbeaten Currie Cup log-leaders Western Province ran in seven tries as they fashioned an emphatic 54-13 win over the Pumas at Newlands on Friday evening.

Former All Blacks is settling in with the Melbourne Rebels ahead of next year’s Super 15 but says that a part of him would still love to be playing for the All Blacks.

Where are the opportunities for the Wallabies v All Blacks in Melbourne this weekend? 

Let’s take a look back at some of the things the Wallabies did well against the Springboks in Brisbane last weekend and what opportunities arose in the first two Tri Nations games between the Springboks and All Blacks.

Platinum Leopards fullback Jean Tiedt and loose forward RW Kember, have been suspended for one week after being found guilty of foul play during last Friday’s Currie Cup match against Western Province in Potchefstroom.

Whilst the Wallabies played by far their best game of 2010 against the Springboks on Saturday, there are a couple of areas that need urgent attention if they are to be competitive against the All Blacks this Saturday.

Some of the positives were the performance at the breakdown where the Wallabies retained 98% of their own ball but inflicted damage on the Springboks whose retention was only 92%, the pressure exerted in defence, the ball in hand strategy and a return to top form by Will Genia.

Apart from the return of his running game, Genia’s performance at the base of the ruck laid the platform for the Wallabies to get on the front foot.  Not only was his delivery much faster than his last game against England but the accuracy and width of his passes was world class again.

Whilst the Wallabies applied pressure with their swarming defence, there were 22 missed tackles (an 87% success rate) with Rocky Elsom missing 6 and Rob Horne & James Horne each missing 4.  It’s great to put pressure on in defence but that doesn’t offset the need for completing the tackles.  This defensive performance needs to step up again against the All Blacks.

The main area that needs attention is the amount of possession lost – 54% of the times the Wallabies started a possession sequence.  It was extremely frustrating watching the Wallabies blow good attacking chances over and over again but fortunately the Springboks weren’t playing well enough to take advantage.  That won’t be the case against the All Blacks and the Wallabies really need to tighten up in this area so they don’t just give cheap ball back to the All Blacks.

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Scottish star Ally Hogg insists he is determined to succeed south of the border, having signed up for Aviva Premiership Rugby with Newcastle Falcons.

Blue Bulls coach Frans Ludeke made five changes to his starting line up for his side’s Currie Cup clash against the Lions in Johannesburg on Saturday.