Rugby Union 2011 Here We Go Again

While I've increasingly stuck more to core topics here at Pumphouse it's still my main blog [besides Church Noticeboreds] and so occasionally sport, life and stories break in...

This is a huge year in rugby union:

- World Cup in NZ [where I am going to the Final!!!!!!!]

- New Super 15 comp with more local derby's

- Thinking about getting back into helping with coaching at my club 'Wanderers Newcastle'

And so we again read the foolhardy hopefulness of 'The Waratahs' [NSW Rugby] as they identify being 'outmuscled' by the South Africans in last years Finals and embarked on a pre season bulk up of their forwards [good grief] and then celebrate the return of the tackle busting, ball carrying Wycliff Palu...

First we've seen the stupidity of the muscle debate with Stephen Hoiles under national coach John Conolly and Kurtley Beale under the various Waratahs coaches in previous years. Please note the recent rule changes suited the formerly speedy and creative Hoiles who slimmed down again and was a revelation for the ACT 'Brumbies'. Kurtley Beale lay off the McD's and has been a World XV class player. Hopefully the new improved Ben Mowen isn't just stucck to the ground and needing to be replaced by a taller player to begin with.

As for Palu, he is all the things people claim, but he's also lazy and goes missing. Totai Kefu from QLD had similar talents but rarely shirked his defensive or decoy duties. I left Palu out of my last pick of the World Cup Wallaby XV so I'll be the first to acknowledge he had a heart transplant along with his knee surgery if he proves me wrong.

This is one of those rare occasions where I'd refer to a previous post here re Hoiles/Beale and hope the selectors/coaches don't go backwards in this World Cup year... as I said in June 2010, these 'Wallabies' CAN win the World Cup [perhaps prizing it from Kiwi hands in a boilover Final] but will only if everything goes right!!

Why such a Beale fan... some of it is six degrees of separation or getting word early that he could 'be' one of our greats and then watching him through Schoolboys, as a developing player and now seeing the early 'fruits' of that... A mate from Wanderers came back from Sydney's GPS rugby [wanting to support one of his junior centres who's gone off to school] raving about this other Year 10 kid [Kurtley] playing 5/8th and that he'd be a 'Wallaby' one day... seeing he and Quade Cooper in the crowd of an ACT Brumbies trial in Canberra when they were at the AIS for a development squad in Year 12.... he's the closest to the famous Ella brothers that I've seen and caps it off by moving last year not just to fullback but from Northern Suburbs to Randwick and keeping them in a Grand Final run against the likes of Sydney Uni right up to the GF!!

Anyhow.... back to ministry, mission, pop culture and media.... for now!!

Here's what all the fuss is about: