Rugby

Super Rugby AU: Round 6 Talking Points

by
Darry Worthington
August 10, 2020

Darry Worthington takes a look at the five biggest talking points to come out of Round 6 of Super Rugby AU.

Photo Copyright – Steve Haag Sports
Two women looking excitedly at cellphone

There’s plenty of news to go over after a weekend of big upsets in Super Rugby AU including star showings from a number of Rebels players.

Upsets Across the Board
Well, that was a rather unexpected turn of events last weekend wasn’t? Both the unfancied Rebels and Waratahs managed to thrash the Brumbies and Reds with the latter beating the Queenslanders 45-12 and the former hammering the table-topping Brumbies 30-12.

The two upset victories have made things very interesting on the Super Rugby AU ladder with the now only seven points clear of the Waratahs (third) and Reds (fourth). There are also only four points separating the second-placed Rebels and the Brumbies

With just four weeks left until the semi-finals, we could see a lot more movement on the ladder.

Hodge Shows He’s Still Got It

Reece Hodge has never really been able to nail a Wallaby starting role down with the utility back being used as an impact player throughout his career.

The Melbourne Rebel was actually looking like he may fall out of the national side stakes up until his fine display for his franchise this past weekend which saw him bag two tries and excel with the boot.

Hodge has one of the biggest boots in Australia and he could well play a key role for the Wallabies should the Rugby Championship go ahead.

Jockeys Ride Horses
Matt Philip Set to Strengthen Aussie Lock Stocks
Another Rebels player who had an outstanding game this past weekend was Matt Philip. The lock was in great touch as he dominated the lineout and made carry after carry.

At 26-years-old, the three-cap Australian international is just starting to hit his prime and could be a big player as Australia look to build towards the 2023 Rugby World Cup.

Matt Toomua Shines At 12

Wallaby Matt Toomua had already been enjoying a solid season in the Rebels number 10 jersey but the 30-year-old had his best game this year against the Brumbies in the number 12 jersey.

Toomua was still able to pull the strings despite not being at pivot. He actually relished the extra time on the ball he was given playing in the midfield and was the orchestrator in chief during his side’s upset victory over the Brumbies.

This could well be where Toomua lands up with the Wallabies as he could be a great foil for Brumbies young gun Noah Lolesio or veteran Reds playmaker James O’Connor, who seem to be the two front runners for the Wallaby 10 jumper.

Is Australia AU Better Than Super Rugby Aotearoa?
Away from the onfield stuff now, and it seems a certain Telegraph rugby scribe decided to declare that Super Rugby AU was far better than the product being produced across the Tasman. The writer’s reason for this is that he feels the tightness of the Australian games has made it a far better product.

Now, while he does bring up some valid points – one stat he quoted was rather interesting with 80 percent of the Super Rugby AU games being won by less than 10 points headed into Round 6 – it’s rather fanciful to say that simply because the games have been tighter Super Rugby AU is a better product that Super Rugby Aotearoa.

For my money, at least, New Zealand’s Super Rugby product has been of a much higher standard. My only complaint is that there will be no showpiece final with the Crusaders having taken an unassailable lead into the final week.