Can the Wallabies win the Rugby World Cup in 2011? Part 1, Selections

What a big question to ask any devout Wallaby Fan eh!

Can they do it? On current form I would seriously doubt it, but remember we have six good players out of action and a coach who insists in continually picking one player in particular that is a show pony.

Missing Players:

At the moment we have four lynch pin forwards missing with season ending injuries – Ben Alexander (Tight head prop), Wycliff Palu (N0. 8),  Tatafu Polota-Nau (Hooker) & James Horwill (Lock), it is through these four players that the mongrel in the pack comes from, without these player we are missing some serious grunt in the pack. Also, Dan Vickerman is back for the 2011 Wallaby season, so he is a automatic pick for his aggression and line out smarts.

Add in Digby Ioane for the backs and you have five quality Wallabies missing + Peter Hynes is on the comeback from injury, but I dont think he is any better than either Drew Mitchell or James O’Connor, I’d maybe stick Hynes in for O’Connor and play the later in the second half when the opposition forwards are getting tired.

Selections:

I think Matt Giteau needs to cool his heals on the sidelines for a week or two and allow Berrick Barnes to resume his partnership with Quade Cooper, these two seemed to work really well together in the fist test against the Poms yet a week later with Giteau back at Inside Centre we bomb out.

Lets not forget who missed the sitter in front of the goals at full time allowing the Poms to go home with a victory over us on home soil – Matt Giteau.

Who missed the sitter in 2009 against Scotland in the final seconds of the game to give the Scots their first victory over the Wallabies since 1982 and cost us a crack at the Grand Slam? – Matt Giteau.

Who needs to be sitting on the bench in two weeks time in South Africa? - Matt Giteau.

Bring back Berrick, swap O’Connor with Hynes and we will have a nicely balanced back-line for the rest of the year, add Ioane back into the mix as a replacement for Hynes with Hynes dropping out of the match day 22 to keep Giteau & O’Connor on the bench, sadly there is no room for Luke Burgess unless he improves his pass and has a stellar Super 15 in 2011.

2010 & 2011 RWC Match Day 22

Remainder of 2010 (Changes in bold)

1. Moore, 2. Robinson, 3. Mafu, 4. Higgenbotham, 5. Sharpe, 6. Mumm, 7. Pocock, 8. Elsom (C), 9. Genia, 10. Cooper, 12. Barnes, 13. Ashley-Cooper, 11. Hynes, 14 – Mitchell, 15. Beale.

2011 (Changes in bold)

1. Polota-Nau, 2. Robinson, 3. Alexander, 4. Vickeman, 5. Sharpe, 6. Elsom (C), 7. Pocock, 8. Palu, 9. Genia, 10. Cooper, 12. Barnes, 13. Ashley-Cooper, 11. Ioane, 14 – Mitchell, 15. Beale.

Enough said!