Are the Brumbies Really Really that Good?

Last night's Super rugby clash at a rainy and windy Cake-Tin turned out to be the clash of two sides with lots of inexperienced but highly talented, young players. In the end, Jake White's baby Brumbies beat Mark Hammett's young Hurricanes, making a tremendous comeback in the 2nd half after being 10 points down at one stage.

Zack Holmes

There may not be many established internationals in both squads - the Brumbies have Ben Alexander, Stephen Moore and Pat McCabe, Hurricanes have Victor Vito, Conrad Smith and Cory Jane. But you'd think there may be many more to come by the end of this season at the earliest - the talent of Hurricanes' Beauden Barrett, Brad Shields and Julian Savea has already been recognised by All Blacks selectors with their naming in the 35-man training squad to prepare for next month's test series against Ireland and you can expect a few more Brumbies to be named in the Wallabies squad for their series against Wales next month.

There is no doubt that Jake White has really done wonders with this young, inexperienced squad and is the right fit for the Brumbies at the right time - the wrong type of coach would have struggled, and the Brumbies would not be in contention for a playoff spot.

He has unearthed some real talent in the likes of Jesse Mogg, Sam Carter, Michael Hooper, Zack Holmes & Joseph Tomane. He has also turned the likes of the slightly more experienced Ben Mowen & Christian Lealiifano into the guiding lights of this infant team.

Suddenly, Australian rugby's depth looks a little bit better even if it's nowhere near the depth of South Africa and New Zealand. Let's not forget that the Reds do have quite a few decent players too like Horwill, Cooper, Genia, Higginbotham and Shipperley.

I think Robbie Deans' philosophy on picking a youthful Wallabies side could see a few Brumbies in his soon-
to-be announced Wallabies team.

As for the game, it was one that the Hurricanes probably could afford to lose if there is ever such a thing, as the competition dictates there needs to be at least one Australian side in the playoffs, with the Brumbies looking a fairly safe bet to fly the Aussie flag in the post-season after this win. It certainly does boost their respectability on the table - they are now 3rd on the overall ladder by virtue of competition points as well as being Aussie conference leaders. 

Meanwhile, the Hurricanes will learn from this and definitely will win a few more to push their claims for a wildcard spot - not a bad achievement in itself given they were not really the plaudits' choice at the start of the season. It has already been a good season for the Hurricanes with greatness not that far away.