- Tim Horan describes Melbourne Rebels forward group as ‘soft’
- The Rebels went down 30-3 against the ACT Brumbies
- The future of the Rebels is in doubt due to the club’s financial problems
Wallabies legend Tim Horan described the Melbourne Rebels’ forward group as “soft” during their shock 30-3 first round loss to the ACT Brumbies, and believes the club is feeling the impact of the problems off the field.
The financially stricken club appears poised to close after this season, with the franchise more than $20 million in debt.
Appearing on Stan Sport’s Rugby Heaven programme, Horan criticized the club’s forwards after the first match of 2024.
“I thought the rebels were really poor,” Horan said.
‘(Before the season) I thought (general manager) Nick Stiles had his fingerprints all over this team (with players like) Taniela Tupou, Lukhan Salakaia-Loto and (Filipo) Daugunu. I thought, “This is as good a list as the rebels have ever had.” They were poor.
Wallabies great Tim Horan described the Melbourne Rebels forward pack as soft after the team was crushed on the park in their first match of the Super Rugby season.
Horan expected a much better performance from the Rebels’ big men, with the club counting Wallabies giant Taniela Tupou (pictured) among their stars.
‘The rebel advance party was as smooth as I’ve ever seen them.
“I really hope they bounce back this weekend because Andrew Kellaway at fullback was the only bright light for that Rebels team.”
Melbourne believe the Western Force would have turned around their Super Round rugby clash on Friday night as a must-win as both teams look to bounce back from disappointing opening defeats.
The teams face off as part of the competition’s annual Super Round at AAMI Park, with all 12 teams playing over three days at the Melbourne venue.
Of the Australian teams, the NSW Waratahs and Crusaders will meet on Saturday night, while the ACT Brumbies and Chiefs will meet on Sunday afternoon and will be followed by the Reds and Hurricanes.
Rebels attack coach Tim Sampson described their performance against the Brumbies as “deflating” after two good pre-season performances.
“After the pre-season build up to the first round, the first home game, it was quite daunting,” Sampson told AAP.
“The way we performed was well below our expectations and was across the board in all areas of the game.
Melbourne will look to make amends when they take on bottom-placed Western Force next week. The Perth team was defeated 44-14 by the Hurricanes to start their campaign.
“We were very normal, with many mistakes and bad decisions.”
He said some of the match statistics gave a positive reading, such as 42 defenders beaten and 17 tackles to the opposition’s 22, but frustratingly they failed to convert those chances into tries.
Sampson said his botched lineout, kicking game and handling errors contributed to the ugly result.
He refused to blame his off-field problems (the financially troubled club appears headed for closure after this season) for his display, but said club psychologist Andrew Waterson would be working closely with the players this week. .
Former Force head coach Sampson said the Perth club would not have been happy with their own performance and must be fancying their chances against the Rebels, who they finished top of in the 2023 standings.
“On their home field, where they pride themselves on winning, they were quite successful last year winning five of their six home games,” he said.
“They will look to bounce back because they are in a very similar situation to us and I am sure they have thought about this game and put it on their calendar for a while.”
The Rebels are not expected to make many changes to the line-up apart from the inclusion of new signing Test All Black Matt Proctor in the centres.
The Force will be without prop Marley Pearce, who was suspended for four weeks for a high tackle during the Hurricanes game on Tuesday.
