Rugby: Team ratings after Rugby Championship

All Black halfback Aaron Smith sent his quick passes out to the best backline in the tournament...
All Black halfback Aaron Smith sent his quick passes out to the best backline in the tournament during this year's Rugby Championship. Photo Reuters
The inaugural Rugby Championship has come to a conclusion with the All Blacks claiming the spoils to cement their place as best team on the planet.

They were to go unbeaten and but for a brutal encounter against the Springboks in Dunedin, were never really challenged.

Australia, South Africa and Argentina all showed glimpses of brilliance, but all were too inconsistent and while remaining competitive with each other, none threatened the All Blacks for the title.

But as the championship comes to a conclusion it is now time to look back and rate each team.

New Zealand

Attack: B+

They were always going to be dangerous with a backline possessing more threats than the other three teams put together. And the endeavour was always there to use them. By the final two games they were operating as smoothly as ever, running rings around their opponents in the way they were expected to.

But early on they were disjointed and made too many mistakes. Had they been better they would have put away an average Wallaby outfit by 40 points. They came right in the end, and that's got to be a good thing if your an All Black supporter.

Defence: A

When their attack was messy it was their strong defence that kept them in front. Time and time again they defended their line with desperation, not letting their opponents through. They were always well organised and brought a physicality to their game that prevented the opposition gaining too much momentum.

In six games they conceded just six tries, enough said.

Backs: B+

Were disjointed at times, but came together well at the end of the Championship and showed themselves to be clearly the best backline in the world. They played a game of fast, running rugby and weren't afraid to be creative. Defensively they were rock solid, never putting a foot wrong in
this department.

Would have got an A had they consistently played the way they did later in the season.

Forwards: A-

Strong as always, matching their opponents for physicality and easily the fittest pack in the competition. Provided an excellent platform for the backs to work off and got forward momentum.

In the loose they excelled, particularly Richie McCaw and Kieran Read, who both showed themselves to be hard as nails on defence and adept ball runners. The set piece was good without being dominant.

Overall: A-

They may have performed below where everyone had expected them to early on, but the facts remain that they were undefeated against four of the best teams in the world and that shouldn't be underestimated. Fitness-wise they continue to be in a class of their own and it was this as much as anything that saw them gain two resounding wins in La Plata and Soweto.

Australia

Attack: C

Injuries to key players proved a major setback for Robbie Deans' Wallabies this year. Photo Reuters
Injuries to key players proved a major setback for Robbie Deans' Wallabies this year. Photo Reuters
There was generally endeavour to attack from the Wallabies, they just lacked spark.

With Will Genia injured, they no longer possessed the dynamite threat from the base while Kurtley Beale had little outside him to work with. The midfield never struck fear into their opponents, while the outside backs rarely got a chance in space. And let's not even mention Quade Cooper, proving once again that he can be either brilliant or awful. On this occasion he was the latter.

Biggest black mark comes in that they were unable to score a single point against the All Blacks in Auckland.

Defence: C+

Held the All Blacks to three tries over two games which isn't done easily. Although much of this could be put down to the All Blacks' mistakes, the Wallabies deserve some credit here. Were shown up in Pretoria, however, as Bryan Habana and the Springboks ran rampant through them, notching up 32 points far too easily.

Backs: C

Really did little to inspire anyone. They struggled to get anything going on attack which ultimately cost them, but did prove reasonably solid on defence. Never really settled on a starting backline either, which made it hard to get any continuity going.

Forwards: C

Similar to the backs. Never really instilled fear into their opponents. While their defensive record held up ok, they never brought the physicality of the other three teams and didn't give their backs a good platform to work from.

Losing James Horwill and David Pocock were huge blows, as these two would have made an enormous difference.

Overall: C

Injuries set them back severely this year. James Horwill, David Pocock, James O'Connor and Will Genia all saw little or no in the Championship and would have all made big differences. A 50% winning record sees they get a pass mark, but really are capable of so much more and need to find some spark that's going to bring it.

South Africa

Attack: D

Winger Bryan Habana was a shining light in an otherwise miserable year for South African rugby....
Winger Bryan Habana was a shining light in an otherwise miserable year for South African rugby. Photo Reuters
It was this that really let the Springboks down this year. They were physical and their forwards always set a good platform for them, but they simply didn't seem to have a clue what to do on attack for the majority of the competition.

With Morne Steyn at first five-eighth they kicked far too much quality attacking ball away and prevented themselves from getting anything going.

With Johan Goosen in the No 10 jumper they looked far better running and put on a good show of attacking rugby in Pretoria, but this was too little too late.

Defence: C+

Their defence wasn't horrible but it wasn't as strong as we all know a Springbok defence can be. They were extremely physical and their encounters were often brutal, particularly those against the All Blacks.

However, their inability to score points meant defensively they had to be that much better, something they couldn't achieve, leaking too many points.

Backs: D+

The backs weren't a strong point for the Springboks this year. It wasn't as though they didn't have a good backline, they just didn't use it very well.

The kick and chase game plan that they have relied on for so long was once again brought to the fore, but was executed poorly and resulted in too much ball being kicked back to the opposition.

Bryan Habana was a shining light, back to his best and showing himself to be the best winger in the world despite what was happening inside of him.

Forwards: B+

The main positive to come from the past couple of months for the Springboks was their forward play, particularly in the second half of the competition. In this area they were rarely bettered and other than the second half in Soweto, had the better of the All Blacks.

They were brutal, throwing themselves at their opponents and getting good go-forward. The only blemish comes in their fitness, which seemed to affect them in Soweto as the All Black pack gained the upper hand in the second half after the South Africans dominated forward play for the first 40.

Overall: C-

It wasn't a happy year for Springbok rugby. A nation that prides itself on the strength of its rugby team was forced to watch as they managed just two wins and a draw in six games. They looked better as the competition progressed, however, and when they learn to use their attacking weapons and start making their kicks at goal, they will be a tough match for anyone.

Argentina

Attack: D

Argentina, despite going winless, showed their fans they are deserving of their place in the...
Argentina, despite going winless, showed their fans they are deserving of their place in the competition. Photo Reuters
Really didn't have a clue on attack in a similar fashion to the Springboks. They looked OK when they kept it in close and looked to outmuscle their opponents. But when they tried to move it wide they made far too many errors to be threatening. When they did put something together they looked brilliant, but unfortunately this wasn't often enough and didn't make up for the countless chances squandered.

Defence: C+

Defended well in five of their six games with the obvious black mark being the 54-15 hiding they took from the All Blacks where they leaked seven tries.

Other than this though they held up well, proving particularly strong in close where they were physical and drove teams back. It was this that
enabled them to stay competitive with the All Blacks in diabolical conditions in Wellington and was also the main catalyst behind a 16-16 draw with the Springboks.

However, when they were forced to defend wider they struggled, falling off tackles and in the case of the All Blacks game, leaking seven tries.

Backs: D+

The backline showed glimpses of brilliance, looking dangerous at times and showed their worth with their first try against the All Blacks in La Plata. But they didn't show it enough to warrant a higher grade and like South Africa, really need to be operating on a much more consistent basis to makethe most of a good forward pack.

They simply made too many mistakes which need to be stamped out of their game sooner rather than later.

Forwards: B

Forward play has been the traditional strength of Argentinian rugby, and so it was again in 2012.

Their big pack proved physical and committed as they tried to work their backs into positions to score from. They were strong in the set piece, tackled fiercely and competed well in rucks. Not much else you could ask from your forward pack.

Like the Springboks though, their fitness could be better, as it was evident the pace of the game caught up to them in La Plata.

Overall: C-

For their first year in the competition they didn't perform badly, and the fact that they remained competitive in five of their six games shows that they deserve to be there.

The highlight was undoubtedly the draw against the Springboks, a game they could have easily won, while they will look back on their game in Australia as one that got away.

Looking ahead they will need to continue to adapt to the pace of the international game and continue to develop their back play, both of which will come with more experience. Give them a couple of years and they could very well be competing for the title.

 

 

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