1
'Offer on table' for Taniela Tupou
By Online Editors
Taniela Tupou will arrive at the World Cup as the fresh face of a Wallabies forward pack feeling as if he "owes Australia something".
Nicknamed Tongan Thor, it would be easy to assume everything is simple in the powerful prop's crash and bash world.
But Tupou - the pup of the Australian forward pack at 23 and with soft hands that belie his 130kg frame - admitted after Saturday's tight Test defeat of Argentina that the season had been testing.
On the cusp of re-signing with Rugby Australia, the Queensland Reds powerhouse is back to his best and part of a forward pack that's doing as coach Michael Cheika hoped before September's World Cup.
"There’s an offer on the table ... I’ll make my decision in the next few months but I think I still owe Australia something," he said.
"I haven’t done much here ... and I think I might end up staying here.
“At the start of this year I went through a lot, some personal stuff, and it was really tough for me.
“To be honest I didn’t even think I’d be in a team because in my head I wasn’t happy, I wasn’t enjoying it, but I did the right thing in speaking up."
Cheika was pleased with how Tupou, James Slipper and Tolu Latu continued the dominance of Argentina's pack after replacing starters Sekope Kepu, Folau Faingaa and Scott Sio after halftime.
They proved the difference in the end, scrum penalties leading to the Wallabies' only second-half points as the hosts learnt to accumulate in a much-needed 16-10 victory.
It was a far rosier outcome for Tupou than the preceding week in Johannesburg, where he had his phone stolen out of his hand and was then dubiously yellow-carded for a late hit deemed a shoulder charge by officials in the loss to South Africa.
Tupou admitted he had stopped himself from barrelling into a similar scenario in Brisbane and his coach said those efforts hadn't gone unnoticed.
"Taniela’s been working on himself hard to get better (to see) if he can fulfil his potential," Cheika said.
"I thought the starting front row and the replacements did very well."
- AAP
Trending on RugbyPass
2
South Africa player ratings | 2024 Autumn Nations Series
3
Scotland's Sione Tuipulotu admits anger at Australian rugby
4
Fissler Confidential: Willie le Roux rumours ignite after Bok star spo
5
Latest Comments
Even with absences we still had the cattle to make the playoffs. As it was, we nearly stumbled our way into the top 8. Which shows just how easy it was to get there. And still we failed. As for Razor, there are many instances of him patching up the Crusaders roster. Numerous. Several players I'd never heard of. Also, using AB legend John Afoa was a classic.
But, some of the games we were losing were from schoolboy errors, or downright confusion. Either the players were really dumb (they weren’t) or they were poorly coached. Given the repetitive nature of errors, brain fades, poor decision making, & loose structures, this all lands with the coaching group.
With only six playoff spots now in SR, & Aussie franchises now consolidated to four, 2025 looks like a tight one. I'm picking we'll have to tough it out under Penney & hope for the best.
Go to commentsAgree we need a 10, 12, 13 refresh. ASAP. Well, next season now lol. Reiko should be put back on the wing. He'll be an absolute menace there. Imagine 11 Reiko 14 Clarke 15 Jordan as the backfield unit.
Go to comments