News

Mooney is oozing confidence

Wednesday 12th December 2007

Digby Ioane in action for the Rebels

Rookie Reds coach Phil Mooney believes the newly-adopted Experimental Law Variations (ELVs) could transform the Reds from being the worst performing team in the 2007 Super 14 to serious title contenders in 2008.

Although the Reds have struggled in the southern hemisphere's premier competition in recent years - they finished last in the 2007 Super 14 - they boast a number of talented backline stars, which Mooney feels is the team's strength.

"I think it (the ELVs) will be a good fit for us. We've got Digby Ioane, Chris Latham, Clinton Schifcofske - guys of that ilk are very good from broken play and there will be more of that," Mooney told RugbyHeaven.

The new laws have been designed to speed up the game and inspire more attractive running rugby.

Latham, Schifcofske (both Ballymore Tornadoes), Ioane (Melbourne Rebels), Andrew Walker and Quade Cooper (East Coast Aces), and new signing Morgan Turinui (Sydney Fleet) have already been exposed to the new ELVs during the Australian Rugby Championship (ARC) earlier this year.

All six players played particularly well during Australia's premier domestic rugby competition.

Mooney realises that there will still be a tremendous emphasis on the set-piece, despite the new laws and has indicated that forward play would still be an important facet of the game that the Reds needed to concentrate on.

"One of the great things about rugby is that there is a place in it for all the body types. The set-piece is still immensely important, so the technical excellence from the bigger blokes in the scrum and line-out is vital," he told the website.

"Potentially we've got a very good forward pack, but there's still a massive emphasis on the set-piece. If we can get that up to speed, we'll be a pretty dangerous commodity I reckon.

"The bigger guys that can get around the park with the ability to dominate contact and offload is a fantastic commodity. It still caters for all the body types but it will be a better spectacle because as the game progresses, those different body types come to the fore," concluded the Reds coach.