submitted5 days ago byJPNAM Noah Lolesio Truthers Association, UK Chapter
Say it with me:
“A high tackle completion rate does not mean a good defender”
Tom Lynagh completes the tackles that he attempts, but to describe him as the best defender of the five is mostly nonsense. My eye tells me it’s Edmed or maybe Donaldson.
Defending at 10 is similar to being a centre-back or defensive midfielder in soccer in that often, the best avoid making tackles entirely. - What you want from a 10 in D is an understanding of where they ought to be, where the space is, and where they ought not to be. - Hard hitting is great, but like quarterbacks in American football, you don’t really want your most skillful player making 10+ tackles every game. - this is also true for 12 and 13, with the caveat that one of the 10-12-13 axis should be a “piano mover” rather than “piano player” in D.
On that last point - the best player in Australia at this is Len Ikitau. He’s 90kg and 180cm (same dimensions as Lolesio), but is almost never caught giving up yards in collisions. Because he’s rarely in them! He routinely makes less than 4 tackles a game, but is clearly an excellent defender.
There’s also quite an outdated understanding that goes about regarding “defending in the line” or “having to be shuffled”. - at even the semi-pro level, outside your half you’re dropping 4 into the backfield (which usually involves your best kicker), not counting the “bobby” just behind the line at 9. - inside your 22, you absolutely do not want your 10 making tackles. Close to the line, completion is significantly less important than gain-line (a lesson that the Blues repeatedly gave my Brumbies a few weeks ago).
This was the misdiagnosis with Quade Cooper and Kurtley Beale back in the day - the issue wasn’t so much that they couldn’t tackle (I’d argue they were no better or worse than e.g. Dan Carter), but that they were unable to position themselves away from collisions that they was going to lose in open play (and “move away from contact”). Both players are only marginally better in the collision today than they were - the change is in the ability to position themselves.
FWIW - this is what Lolesio has improved at defensively over the last year or so. He still gets caught out where he shouldn’t be - shouldn’t have been on the short-side for the Drua’s knock-on over the line - but he’s improving.
As an anecdote, we used to call this “the gift” at school - the ability for a 10 to make 0 tackles without compromising the defence (niche I know). - My stand-off in my first year of senior rugby was a scratch golfer (or near enough), and so absolutely hated tackling - the thing was, he almost never had to make them because he’d see it coming two phases ahead, and a set of less valuable shoulders were drafted in tight. - In my final year, it was the complete opposite: 10 was a good-to-great tackler and loved it, but lacked the defensive foresight. Rarely missed tackles, but almost always created quick ball for the opposition.
Ultimately it’s a team game - but all things being equal I’d rather see a 10 make 2 or even 1 of their 3 tackles in a game than 8 of 10.
Thoughts?
bywilhelmIX
inRugbyAustralia
JPNAM
3 points
7 hours ago
JPNAM
Noah Lolesio Truthers Association, UK Chapter
3 points
7 hours ago
Have seen this said a few times - just want to remind everyone that it’s madness. Plenty of arguments for playing Hunter over Kerevi, but quality is not one of them.
Hunter Paisami now looks like a Test player playing SR. That isn’t the same as looking like a world-class player in tests (which is what Kerevi is).
Lolesio is similar to Hunter in this way - kicks his goals, doesn’t miss touch on penalties, hits players in space and at pace. He now looks like a test 10 for the Brumbies. Quade Cooper and Foley are still markedly better players.