Hewat is Burke’s pick
1 May 2006
Former Wallabies and NSW fullback Matt Burke has backed Waratahs No 15 Peter Hewat to earn his first Test cap this season.
Burke, who recently re-signed with English club the Newcastle Falcons until 2008, said the form of the Waratahs team and its players should force new Test coach John Connolly’s hand at the selection table.
“I’ve seen a couple of games and they’re playing some good football, they’re playing expansive football, knowing when to take it tight and that sort of stuff,” Burke told the Sydney Morning Herald. “They’re getting the right mix of how to play this competition. The battle the Waratahs have had in the past is keeping that consistency and they’ve been going extremely well.”
“And that obviously follows that they’ve got some talent in the team, and with a new Australian coach it should be pretty easy to pick (the Wallabies team), it picks itself, as (SW are) one of the form teams in the competition.”
“You’ve got a number of guys who are going well, and the first one that springs to mind is Hewat. He’s killing it again, and he didn’t get a show last year so hopefully they’ll give him a go this year.”
The former NSW captain has been watching the progress of the Waratahs this season and believes the current outfit is a genuine contender for a title that has eluded them for 10 years.
18 Comments
1 May 2006, 20:27 pm
They’ll find a way to lose the title.
1 May 2006, 20:47 pm
Derek
It seems most of them are.
1 May 2006, 22:42 pm
hewat is really on fire this season. his vision is amazing; if he makes a chip-kick, there always come something from it. definitely no one-season wonder.
i rate the waratahs as favourites to take the title. their chances of playing the final on aussie stadium are very good and that will make a huge difference.
have the crusaders peaked too soon this year?
1 May 2006, 22:49 pm
GCC, let’s hope they’ve peaked to soon. A bit like the All Blacks peaking between world cups!
2 May 2006, 01:36 am
GO THE TAHS!!!!
2 May 2006, 04:39 am
Hewat is probably the one player who represents the single biggest one-man threat to ANY other team.
He’s a new Christian Cullen, isn’t he?
2 May 2006, 04:55 am
Tackler
Hewatt won me a **** load of points in the Fantasy league last year when Eddie Jones was writing him off as a one season intercept wonder.
2 May 2006, 05:06 am
Hewat has had a second superb year for the ‘Tahs – He is currently the top point scorer in Super Rugby for the second year running. How you can write someone with those stats off as an intercept wonder is beyond me. He has been kicking at 78% this year, and seems to somehow get better each game.
With Hewat and Rogers fit for the final I believe this is our year.
—
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2 May 2006, 05:38 am
Yip dem Tah’s are a very good team and will make da final. Did the Bully boys not give dem a spanking da other day?
2 May 2006, 05:45 am
Hewat will be picked cause there is know one else to pick. He he he.
2 May 2006, 06:25 am
I got the impression that Eddie actually resented picking anyone who didn’t play for the Brumbies.
2 May 2006, 07:48 am
pompies
hewat is currently better than any current sa and nz fullback. the only one coming close would be leon mcdonald.
2 May 2006, 08:23 am
GCC
What about Rogers and Latham?
2 May 2006, 09:09 am
Cameron Shepherd is not a bad player himself in a new franchise finding its feet, though it found its wallet before learning to walk.
Australia have players of similar build and style of play and yet they offer different attacking skills.
Mark Gerrard
Drew Mitchell
Peter Hewat
Cameron Shepherd
Sam Norton-Knight
Dan Halangahu
Mat Rogers
Chris Latham
Almost like the Oz’s have begun cloning, scary how good the depth Oz rugby have after 2005.
2 May 2006, 09:16 am
CSI
That’s true of wing and fullback where most of those players can interchange, but not of other positions. There’s the obvious problem in the front row and 9, 10 and 12 is also a bit thin.
2 May 2006, 10:32 am
Tackler,
Mate I have got to disagree with you hewat being the same as Cullen, no similarity at all. Cullen is in a class of his own and no-one has ever come close.
Hewat I think will not survive tight games at least at this stage give him another year or 2.
Last year the first tough game, hewat fell apart knocking on and missed tackles this was against against crusaders.
Hewat again this year crumbled against the same opposition due to the tight nature of the game plan played by saders.
Jones knew this and I would be suprised if knuckles will do the same, who knows.
2 May 2006, 10:58 am
hardly surpising, one waratah picks another, seems to be an unspoken code in australia. Hewat is superb, but with Latham, Rogers, Mitchell, Gerrard plenty of competition.
2 May 2006, 15:12 pm
too slow and a terrible defender. He is however peerless at the chip and chase.
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