Gudday Cobbers,
Welcome to the match pre/evaluation for the third Take a look at of the Wobblies 2024 Autumn Nations Collection. Our lately considerably much less wobbly Wobblies will take to the hallowed turf of the well-known Murrayfield Stadium, a wee bit to the south west of Edinburgh Fort, at 1340hrs (Haggis time) on Sunday, 24 November, together with the ever-accommodating native bearers of the Sgian Dubh (actually ‘the faeries sword’) and wearers of the Scots Thistle, to frolic about and butt some heads within the bracing and salubrious Scottish sunshine.
I’ll publish this primary iteration on Friday, 22 November (Sydney time) after which come again to do reside updating through the match on Monday morning (additionally Sydney time).
Preamble:
As at writing, the tour has gone surprisingly properly for the Wobbs. We received off to a cracking begin a fortnight in the past with a ‘so late it was after hours’ 42-37 win for the ages over the Cleaning soap Dodgers at Twickers itself. And from the overall noise afterwards you might’ve been forgiven for considering we had answered alchemy and that some child from western Sydney known as Joey Suaalii was akin the third coming of Christ Himself (after Dizzy Folau).
From there we did donnybrook with Tîm rygbi’r undeb cenedlaethol Cymru (EP?) at sunny Cardiff final weekend. And given the Taffs current type had hardly been inspiring (as they’d not received a single check up to now this yr), it was no actual shock when the Wobbs got here away with a win over the struggling Welsh Dragon. That mentioned, successful 52-20 did elevate an eyebrow or two, each in scoring +50 factors but in addition in letting a workforce that dysfunctional rating 20 factors in opposition to us. However one other win it was, and given the parlous state of our trophy cupboard lately a welcome win at that.
And so right here we discover ourselves considering Murrayfield at two wins from two begins and newly put in at a dizzyingly excessive eighth on this planet rankings, lining up in opposition to the irrepressible Jaapie Exiles Australian Exiles Scots. The Haggis Eaters are ensconced in sixth spot and had proven fairly good type of late by accounting for the likes of Fiji (57-17) and Portugal (59-21) whereas making a great present however finally taking place to South Africa 32-15 some three weeks in the past.
Having a watch to historical past, we first ceilidh with the lads in humorous skirts again in October 1929 (received 16-15 by the Wobblies) and have since exchanged pleasantries some 34 occasions, with the honours break up as 22 wins to the southerners and 12 to the Haggis Eaters. In more moderen occasions, since 1998 truly, we’ve battered one another over the Hopetoun Cup, a nice piece of Royal Doulton named after John Hope, seventh Earl of Hopetoun (1860–1908) who was the previous Governor Common of Australia and presided over Aussie Federation in 1901 (y’know, the household BBQ that neither New Zealand nor Western Australia confirmed as much as and have by no means fairly defined why). We’ve battered one another some 16 occasions over that nice lump of glass with the Wobbs carting away the crystal 11 occasions. That mentioned, our final 10 conferences have heralded a Scots revival with the wins way more evenly unfold at 5 apiece, together with one win to the Wobbs on a wee night in 2015 from which the Scots nonetheless really feel arduous executed by and simply can’t appear to let go.
However historical past means little in a two horse race. And it means even much less while you’re eyeing off some random Begbie-wannabe hardcase in a pub behind the Haymarket Rail Upkeep Depot with a handful of Jaapies, a few Ockers, the requisite Kiwi and some locals in shut tow. So, let’s get it on!
See you simply previous to kickoff for reside updates and chat beneath.
Groups the final time I checked.
Scotland (15-9, 1-8): Blair Kinghorn, Darcy Graham, Huw Jones, Sione Tuipulotu (c), Duhan van der Merwe, Finn Russell, Ben White, Pierre Schoeman, Ewan Ashman, Zander Fagerson, Grant Gilchrist, Scott Cummings, Jamie Ritchie, Rory Darge, Matt Fagerson. Replacements: Dylan Richardson, Rory Sutherland, Will Hurd, Alex Craig, Josh Bayliss, George Horne, Tom Jordan, Kyle Rowe
Australia (15-1): Tom Wright, Andrew Kellaway, Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, Len Ikitau, Harry Potter, Noah Lolesio, Jake Gordon, Harry Wilson (c), Carlo Tizzano, Rob Valetini, Will Skelton, Jeremy Williams, Allan Alaalatoa, Matt Faessler, Angus Bell. Replacements: Brandon Paenga-Amosa, Isaac Kailea, Zane Nonggorr, Lukhan Salakaia-Loto, Langi Gleeson, Tate McDermott, Ben Donaldson, Max Jorgensen
First half: Effectively, the pregame chat was however chaff within the wind as soon as referee Chris Busby blew time and
Oranges:
Second half:
Last rating:
Nutta’s Man of the Match:
Nutta’s Muppet of the Match:
Closing ideas:
Frankly, pre-tour, this was the sport I needed us to pinch. I assumed we’d doubtless lead the English solely to lose on the loss of life, to then have a great restoration win over the Welsh and thus come north of the Wall (Hadrian’s) to get the tour again on observe with a gutsy scrap of a win over the gallant Scots. That will’ve made me smile again in September. However, with wins over the English and the Welsh, expectations lifted so as to add the Hopetoun Cup to the poolroom mantle alongside the Cook dinner Cup and Jimmy Bevan trophy, after which to form up on the Irish for a tilt on the Grand Slam as did these legends of Aussie Rugby in 1984.
Now? To cite my outdated dad: “What’s executed is completed, boy, and can’t be undone. All we will change now’s what occurs subsequent.” And so it’s on to the Irish subsequent week.
Tell us your ideas beneath.