Super Rugby: Rob Penney likens Jake Gordon to British Lions great

NSW coach Rob Penney has likened halfback Jake Gordon to the great Irish and British Lions No 9 Conor Murray.

Waratahs halfback Jake Gordon on the attack in the convincing win over the Reds. Picture: Getty Images

NSW coach Rob Penney is loath to compare players, but he has made an exception in the case of his halfback Jake Gordon, likening him to the great Irish and British Lions number nine Conor Murray.

Penney arrived at Thomond Park, Limerick, in 2012 to take over as head coach of Munster when Murray was just four Tests into what has turned out to be a so-far unfinished 81-cap career for Ireland, with another five internationals for the British and Irish Lions. After seeing Gordon is action for the Waratahs on Saturday, where he scored three sizzling first-half tries against the Queensland Reds, he was taken by the similarities between the two halfbacks.

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“He reminds me of – and I don’t like comparing players but I will – Conor Murray of Ireland,” said Penney on Sunday. “When I was over there, Conor’s kicking game really developed and he has become one of the best in the world as we know.

“I just see a lot of similarities with Jake, his physicality, his athleticism and his kicking game and then, last night, his game management.”

Almost certainly Gordon would have caught the eye of Dave Rennie. The Wallabies coach has seen the running game of Queensland halfback Tate McDermott and, in his days at Glasgow Warriors, the kicking game of Nic White who was previously with the Exeter Chiefs. Now White is back again at the Brumbies and likely to come into selection contention following the Canberra side’s bye this weekend. But it may well be that Gordon offers a pleasing mix of both playing styles.

While there was hardly a Waratahs player who did not rise in the Test rankings on Saturday night, Penney singled out his young five-eighth for repeatedly putting NSW into positions where they could attack. “I thought Will Harrison was really good at getting us around the park and getting us into the right zones as a young 10,” he said.

The Waratahs’ crushing 45-12 victory over the Reds, coupled with the Melbourne Rebels’ 30-12 result against the Brumbies, has thrown the Super Rugby AU competition wide open, but Penney cautioned against attributing the two unexpected outcomes to “coronavirus fatigue”.

“Temper that with giving credit to the Rebels (and, by implication, to the Tahs),” he said. “The Rebels are a very good side and you underestimate them at your peril. But this whole situation that we are all in is taking its toll on everyone. Some people are really good with dealing with adversity and some aren’t, in all levels of society, and the rugby boys are just a reflection of who is around in society.”

The Tahs have only a six-day turnaround before their next match, against the Western Force at Cbus Stadium on the Gold Coast on Friday. Like all teams., NSW will travel on the day although Penney is hoping the current arrangement, which has the team flying into Brisbane and then bussing south, can be changed to allow them to fly directly to Coolangatta, which would save them around 80 minutes travel.

Certainly the weekend’s results have done nothing for the Force, which is on two points, nine behind the joint third place in the race for the three-team play-offs. “But we have tunnel vision. All we seriously focusing on is us and making sure we get that bloody win,” said Force coach Tim Sampson.

Aiding their cause will be the return of captain and halfback Ian Prior who was a late withdrawal from their match against the Brumbies, the only first-round fixture in which the Force did not really come into contention for the win.

The Rebels, who will meet Queensland at Suncorp on Saturday night, are approaching eight weeks on the road but, counterintuitively, appear to be getting better.

Coach Dave Wessels attributes their improvement to the team making peace with the fact it will remain on the road until the end of the competition. But it also has much to do with the fun environment that inside centre Billy Meakes has helped to create.

“He puts on things like his weekly Tuesday night quiz,” said Wessels. “And every Monday we have the Covid Games which are between the backs and the forwards. Some egg and spoon races. Always a bit of fun. He does his best to keep the squad engaged and entertained away from rugby.”

The Reds, meanwhile, are attempting to arrange either Zoom or Skype coverage of the funeral of Jordan Petaia’s father, Tielu, later this week for the entire squad, which cannot attend because of biosecurity precautions. It is not known whether Petaia will make himself available to play against the Rebels.