If I didn’t know he was an All Black fan I’d say Tim Cronin from RugbyShirts.net was trying to jinx the Lions against the Wallabies…
The British & Irish Lions secured a series white-wash of the Wallabies on the weekend, despite the team not having left the northern hemisphere, or for that matter been named.
The Lions haven't won in Australia since 1989, but an injury to the Wallabies’ finest player on the weekend means that is all set to change. That's how important I think David Pocock is to the Wallabies, and if he is in fact out for the Lions tour, as early speculation suggests following the injury he sustained against the Waratahs on the weekend, I'm happy to completely write-off Robbie Deans' men.
In all reality I thought Wales should have won their series 3-0 in Australia last year, rather than ending up on the wrong side of that same score. Sure, the Welsh lacked the experience and killer instinct to turn solid performances in to test match victories in those three matches, but there's no denying how good David Pocock was. In fact, he was so good during that tour that I believe, to put it simply, he won the series for Australia, and without him they would have lost.
I've often said there's essentially no depth in Australian rugby. They managed to rectify that somewhat last year when, due to a horrific string of injuries they were forced to blood new talent. But realistically they only have two world-class players –halfback Will Genia and Pocock.
When these two combine with a number of other very good players, like James O'Connor, Adam Ashley-Cooper and Scott Higginbotham the Wallabies can be quite formidable. Indeed, they are one of the very best sides in the world. But take any of those top players out and things very quickly start looking shaky. Take Pocock or Genia out and they immediately fall apart.
As hard as it is for a Kiwi to admit that someone even comes close to the great Richie McCaw there's no denying that David Pocock is simply phenomenal at the breakdown. Physically he's an absolute brute, a virtual 'immovable object', and his ability to turn over possession is almost unstoppable.
In Michael Hooper and Liam Gill the Wallabies have two fantastic young flankers in their ranks. But have no doubt, there is still a vast gulf in ability between these two rising stars and the dominant force which Pocock represents. Like Sam Cane to the All Blacks, Gill and Hooper are promising players who can hold their own at test level. But like Cane they are yet to display the ability to single-handedly determine the outcome of a match, as the truly great flankers frequently do.
Whoever they field against the Lions the Wallabies will put up a decent fight – they are too proud as a sporting nation to do anything but. However, if Pocock does miss the series I think any chance they may have had, however slim, of overcoming the Lions, will vanish. They simply don't have enough top-quality talent to counter the loss of such an influential player, and Robbie Deans is set for some sleepless nights in the coming weeks as the full extent of his star loosie's injury becomes apparent.
Tim Cronin is a Rugby fan and full time writer based in the rubble of the Canterbury Crusaders’ home town, Christchurch. Tim is a part of the Pukeko Sportsteam, where his role is watching, writing, and complaining about all things rugby.
