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International Test Matches
Wales v Australia
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<blockquote data-quote="Darwin" data-source="post: 351675" data-attributes="member: 24910"><p>While I have not doubt that Shanklin and Bishop are really good defenders, I wouldn't be surprised to see Australia make a few breaks through the midfield. If the Aussies ran straight at the opposition midfield (like 90% of teams seem to) Bishop and Shanklin would tackle them 10/10, but these Aussies have an annoying habit of running at gaps. I wonder whether the Shanklin and Bishop have the speed to put themselves into the right positions to tackle Aussies elusive midfield players, or the likes of O'Conner, Mitchell or Beale hitting gaps in the midfield. The AB's really struggled defensively at times during the tri-nations in the midfield - I remember Conrad Smith (who I regard as a world class defensive player) being done more than once on the outside by Kurtley Beale who was running in the midfield.</p><p></p><p>Looking at the teams, I'd expect Wales may have a slight edge up front, but not by much. The loose-forward battle will be interesting - I haven't seem much of Warburton or Lydiate so I will be watching them carefully. I'm expecting Pocock to again dominate at the tackle/ruck - I wonder whether we will see Martyn Williams come on early in the second half to replace Lydiate so Wales have two opensides on the field (to be fair I have no idea how good Lydiate is at the tackle/ruck, so I might be completely wrong about this <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" /> ).</p><p></p><p>As I've already mentioned I'd expect Wales may have trouble containing Australia in the backs, though likewise I'd expect Wales could cause some damage with their backline. Wales will want to try to target Quade Cooper defensively - either with one of their loose-forwards, or with one of their big centres. If Wales do kick the ball they will have to make sure they kick it out, as the Wallabies have proved they are very dangerous on the counter-attack.</p><p></p><p>Overall I'm expecting a pretty open game (assuming the conditions are good), with Australia winning by 10-15, as they will have benefited from playing a game together as a team last week, while Wales are coming in cold.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Darwin, post: 351675, member: 24910"] While I have not doubt that Shanklin and Bishop are really good defenders, I wouldn't be surprised to see Australia make a few breaks through the midfield. If the Aussies ran straight at the opposition midfield (like 90% of teams seem to) Bishop and Shanklin would tackle them 10/10, but these Aussies have an annoying habit of running at gaps. I wonder whether the Shanklin and Bishop have the speed to put themselves into the right positions to tackle Aussies elusive midfield players, or the likes of O'Conner, Mitchell or Beale hitting gaps in the midfield. The AB's really struggled defensively at times during the tri-nations in the midfield - I remember Conrad Smith (who I regard as a world class defensive player) being done more than once on the outside by Kurtley Beale who was running in the midfield. Looking at the teams, I'd expect Wales may have a slight edge up front, but not by much. The loose-forward battle will be interesting - I haven't seem much of Warburton or Lydiate so I will be watching them carefully. I'm expecting Pocock to again dominate at the tackle/ruck - I wonder whether we will see Martyn Williams come on early in the second half to replace Lydiate so Wales have two opensides on the field (to be fair I have no idea how good Lydiate is at the tackle/ruck, so I might be completely wrong about this :) ). As I've already mentioned I'd expect Wales may have trouble containing Australia in the backs, though likewise I'd expect Wales could cause some damage with their backline. Wales will want to try to target Quade Cooper defensively - either with one of their loose-forwards, or with one of their big centres. If Wales do kick the ball they will have to make sure they kick it out, as the Wallabies have proved they are very dangerous on the counter-attack. Overall I'm expecting a pretty open game (assuming the conditions are good), with Australia winning by 10-15, as they will have benefited from playing a game together as a team last week, while Wales are coming in cold. [/QUOTE]
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