Brumbies looking for more tries with new style
New Brumbies Head Coach Dan McKellar has told Fox Sports that the team will look to improve the team's try-scoring record by tweaking the team's style of play in favour of more attacking play.
“We’ve been focusing on it for a while now, but certainly this pre-season we’ve changed the way we want to play the game,” McKellar said.
“If you think of the Brumbies over the last few years — certainly while I’ve been here over the past four years — we’ve been known for our lineout, our maul, our breakdown and our defence, so we’ve identified that we need to score more tries.
“To do that, we’ll tweak how we’ll play the game and certainly make sure we’re more threatening from unstructured situations and transition.”
The Brumbies have made the Super Rugby playoffs the last two years as Australia's conference winner but were bundled out in the first round both times.
Whilst having a strong set-piece the Brumbies scored just 43 tries in 2017, miles behind the finalists from the last two seasons Hurricanes (97), Lions (92) and Crusaders (86).
McKellar said the Brumbies would still look to use their set-piece as a weapon, but the team needed to become better rounded to beat the top teams.
“I was told a stat recently from (new backs coach) Peter Hewat — there are 30 turnovers a game on average, so you need to make sure you’re taking advantage of those transition opportunities from kick return and turnover attack.
The Brumbies scored just three tries from their own half last season.
“Making sure that we’re stretching the defence, keeping them under pressure for as long as possible and capitalising on those opportunities.
“We can’t be so reliant on our lineout and our maul and our set-piece to win a competition.
“Whilst that will win us games at times, in conditions and oppositions that we’re playing against, it’s not going to win us the Super Rugby comp and that’s our end goal.
The return of classy flyhalf Christian Lealiifano will help bolster the attack, while Force-recruit Chance Peni will add some strike power out wide with established stars Tevita Kuridrani and Henry Speight.
McKellar said in many respects he would be continuing to build on the attacking foundation left by Larkham.
“We certainly tried, we worked on it last year, this is not new,” McKellar said.
“Stephen identified that last year and after that bye round (in round seven) we came out against the Reds and we had done a lot of work on transition and kick return and we blew the Reds away at home, so it’s certainly not something that’s new.
“As individuals we all have our own ways of how things can be done.
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It’s going to be Scott Barrett. He’s the coaches mate and captain of a previously elite team. Ardie a great option but scooter has worked with the coach and Ardie still as big a leader as needed.
Go to commentsI commend Colin Scotts bio All Balls. He was the first Aussie to make it to NFL. But he was poached and did a full apprenticeship at the University of Hawaii. He was 130kgs surfed played 1st grade cricket etc. big guy by normal but not NFL standards and a top athlete. Even then the nfl were picking up Tongans and Samoans for their natural size and explosive power. They want explosive power not cardio from the big boys so a guy like Taniela Tupou would have been good if picked up young enough. He has fast twitch and they’d bulk the little lad up and give him something to do. soccer teams set up academies and look for Over Sara’s talent eg Messi was at Barcelona since a teenager and harry kewell went to Leeds as a teenager like 16 or something.
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