Waratahs v Reds clash a key platform for Wallabies stars
It’s crunch time for the Waratahs against the Reds on Saturday night, not just for the team as a whole but also for their Wallabies stars aiming for World Cup spots.
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THE time for excuses is over. Now the Waratahs have to deliver.
It might be just the third match of the season for NSW but the stakes could hardly be any higher than for Saturday night’s grudge match against the Reds at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
Not only do the Waratahs need to win to appease their suffering fans and prove they are serious contenders for this year’s Super Rugby title but their big stars need to stand up and remind everyone why they should be on the plane to this year’s World Cup in Japan.
“The backline is just full of Wallabies and if they want selection in the World Cup team then they’ve got to start playing like Wallabies,” former Test and NSW state skipper Phil Kearns told The Saturday Telegraph.
“The Waratahs are at the point where you can’t use the beginning of the season as an excuse anymore.
“It is still early in the season and we’re still trying to work things out but now you’ve got to start working things out.”
The Waratahs haven’t done themselves any real harm in the first two matches, balancing out a one-point loss to the Hurricanes with a one-point win over the Sunwolves, but they haven’t exactly set the world alight either.
If ever there was a perfect chance to stand and make a statement, then facing the old enemy on the most hallowed turf in NSW is it, so everyone knows tonight is Showtime.
“We haven’t been hitting our straps so far this year but it’s our own backyard,” Waratahs captain Michael Hooper said.
“We’ve done some nice things and we’ve got a win on the board but we want to take it up.
“To be contenders, we’ve got to raise the bar this weekend.”
Most Waratahs followers have been prepared to cut the team a bit of slack after the loss to the streetwise Hurricanes then the lucky win over the Sunwolves but there won’t be any if they don’t beat Queensland, who are the only Australian team not to have won a match this season.
The Waratahs are on a nine-game winning streak over their fiercest rivals and have assembled a hot side that is the envy of every other team in the competition.
“We’re going to go out there and have some fun but it is a super looking backline,” Hooper said.
“There’s talent oozing out there. For us, we’re a mobile forward pack that want to get the ball to them.”
The backline is so good that even Israel Folau — who is on the verge of becoming the greatest tryscorer in Super Rugby history — isn’t playing in his preferred position, forcing head coach Daryl Gibson to perform a juggling act to squeeze them all in.
Folau’s been moved to the wing with Kurtley Beale shifting to fullback so Karmichael Hunt and Adam Ashley-Cooper can team up in the centres. Curtis Rona is on the other wing while Bernard Foley and Jake Gordon are in the halves.
Everything points to a NSW win but the combination of history and the team’s shaky start this season means nothing can ever be taken for granted whenever state pride is on the line.
“The thing about the Reds the last couple of weeks, they’ll be disappointed with their season but I’m sure they’ll be hungry coming out to play against us,” Folau told The Saturday Telegraph.
“Defence for us is the key, making sure we’re connected and that we’re ready for a game that’s going to be very physical.
“They’ve got some strike players in the forwards and guys out wide who can really tear you apart if you’re connected as a team.”
Originally published as Waratahs v Reds clash a key platform for Wallabies stars
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