Waratahs coach Chris Hickey told Grandstand's Tim Gavel that it is remarkable to see the Super Rugby competitions of the last few years consistently coming down to the final rounds to decide the play-off standings.
Tags: sport, rugby-union, super-14, australia
Showing posts with label Hickey. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hickey. Show all posts
Monday, June 20, 2011
Interview: Chris Hickey
Published:Saturday, June 18, 2011 4:04 AESTExpires:Friday, September 16, 2011 4:04 AEST
Interview: Chris Hickey
Published:Saturday, June 18, 2011 4:04 AESTExpires:Friday, September 16, 2011 4:04 AEST
Waratahs coach Chris Hickey told Grandstand's Tim Gavel that it is remarkable to see the Super Rugby competitions of the last few years consistently coming down to the final rounds to decide the play-off standings.
Tags: sport, rugby-union, super-14, australiaFriday, June 17, 2011
Hickey hopeful on Tatafu, Robinson
Updated June 14, 2011 19:09:00 New South Wales coach Chris Hickey remains hopeful Tatafu Polota-Nau and Benn Robinson will be fit to face the Brumbies in Saturday's crucial Super Rugby clash in Sydney.
The injury-ravaged Waratahs must beat the ACT side at the Olympic stadium to secure a playoff berth as they continued to count the cost of their 33-7 victory last Saturday over the Highlanders.
New South Wales lost powerhouse number eight Wycliff Palu for the remainder of the season with a fractured shoulder while hooker Polota-Nau is battling a knee injury and prop Robinson has an ankle problem.
And on Tuesday inside back Berrick Barnes announced that he was taking an indefinite break from the game to deal with head knock-related issues after lasting just 33 minutes against the Highlanders.
"There's a few players who probably won't train until Friday," Hickey said.
"We're still hopeful of Benn Robinson and Tatafu Polota-Nau that they'll be right.
"Lachie Turner (hamstring) is one of those players who may only train on Friday ... very lightly at least on Friday but we're still optimistic."
There was some good news on the injury front for the Waratahs with centre Ryan Cross passing a fitness test.
Cross injured his knee in the loss to the Sharks in South Africa and has missed the Waratahs past two matches.
The Waratahs also have returning Wallaby second-rower Dan Vickerman available for selection.
Vickerman, who last played for New South Wales in 2008, had spent the intervening period studying in England and only returned to Australia on Saturday.
Hickey is expecting a torrid clash with the Brumbies who are aiming for three consecutive wins after beating Queensland and Melbourne.
"This will be a tough game ... they'll have their agenda and we have our agenda, that's what's most important to us. It's about winning this game and getting a spot in the finals series," he said.
One man capable of preventing the Waratahs from playing in the finals is their 2012 signing Adam Ashley-Cooper.
The Wallabies utility said the Brumbies had plenty to play for after a difficult season.
"The fact that it's my last game with the Brumbies is important to me and it's certainly a special game knowing there's a few other guys leaving next year, so it's the last time we'll be able to play again together," Ashley-Cooper said.
"It would be a shame to go out and make the last two wins a waste.
"All of the guys love playing the Waratahs and they beat us last time at Canberra and with it being up there it would be great to get one back.
"I've alluded to the boys during the week that I'm not a Waratah yet, so I'll be going out there to perform as well as I can."
- AAP
Tags: sport, rugby-union, super-14, sydney-2000 First posted June 14, 2011 18:49:00Thursday, June 16, 2011
Interview: Chris Hickey
Published:Saturday, June 11, 2011 10:22 AESTExpires:Friday, September 9, 2011 10:22 AEST
Waratahs coach Chris Hickey told Grandstand that his team's commitment in defence was outstanding in a 33-7 win over the Highlanders at the SFS.
Tags: sport, rugby-union, super-14Media Call: Chris Hickey
Published:Thursday, June 9, 2011 2:16 AESTExpires:Wednesday, September 7, 2011 2:16 AEST
New South Wales coach Chris Hickey says he will wait until Friday before finalising his line-up to face the Highlanders at Sydney Football Stadium on Saturday night.
Tags: sport, rugby-union, super-14, australiaSunday, June 5, 2011
Hickey upbeat despite 'Tahs loss
Posted June 4, 2011 14:04:00 NSW Waratahs coach Chris Hickey remained optimistic about his injury-ravaged side's Super Rugby finals hopes, despite a 23-17 loss to the Bulls and incurring several more casualties.
The result in Pretoria on Saturday morning (AEST) enabled the defending champions to leapfrog NSW into fifth place on 49 points.
NSW dominated possession, but could not convert enough opportunities and played the last 13 minutes with 14 men, after replacement lock Pat O'Connor was sent off for an alleged head butt.
Television footage of the incident appeared inconclusive and Hickey expressed reservations about the decision, but O'Connor was scheduled to front a judiciary on Saturday evening (AEST).
Another Waratahs lock, Kane Douglas, was cited to appear before the judiciary for an alleged dangerous tackle, after allegedly grabbing Bulls centre Wynand Olivier in a headlock.
Already without captain and flanker Phil Waugh, number eight Wycliff Palu, winger Drew Mitchell, prop Sekope Kepu and centres Rob Horne and Ryan Cross, NSW lost four more players inside the first 50 minutes.
Prop Benn Robinson and number eight Ben Mowen (ankle), winger Lachie Turner (hamstring) and replacement prop Paddy Ryan (AC joint) joined the lengthy injury list.
Hickey said Robinson, who lasted just 18 minutes, was in doubt for next Saturday's critical home clash with the eighth-placed Highlanders, but the extent of all four injuries would not be known until the casualties had scans after returning home.
The Bulls scored two tries to one, but a bonus point moved NSW onto 47 points, level with the Sharks, who were scheduled to play the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein early on Sunday (AEST).
And Hickey knows NSW cannot afford another defeat in their two remaining games at home to the HIghlanders and Brumbies.
"The Stormers, the Bulls and the Sharks have got all got to play each other over the next three weeks, so it just means we start to ride other teams results, which you prefer not to," Hickey said.
"But I still feel think if we can take care of our own games against the Highlanders and then the Brumbies I'm still reasonably optimistic that the other results may flow our way and get us into that top six spot."
Both teams kicked two penalties before converted tries to Olivier and winger Bjorn Basson in six minutes either side of half-time gave the Bulls a 20-6 lead.
NSW battled their way back to within three points after scoring the next 11, from two penalties to full-back and man-of-the-match Kurtley Beale and a try to replacement winger Atieli Pakalani.
Five-eight Morne Steyn gave the Bulls some breathing space by kicking the penalty awarded for O'Connor's transgression.
Beale cracked the Bulls defence with a chip and regather in the closing minutes, but NSW could not finish off the opportunity.
"I'm certainly proud of the effort and the character that the team showed in difficult circumstances," Hickey said.
"If you are going to look at our performance critically, you'd say we had quite a few possessions in the Bulls 22 and we failed to complete them for points."
- AAP
Tags: sport, rugby-union, super-14, australia, nsw, sydney-2000, south-africaFriday, June 3, 2011
Hickey urges Tahs to remain patient
Posted June 2, 2011 21:15:00 NSW coach Chris Hickey will preach the virtue of patience, as his side battles to retain control of its Super Rugby destiny by beating the resurgent Bulls in Pretoria.
The defending champion Bulls have bounced back into finals contention with four straight wins heading into the clash on Saturday morning (AEST).
Entering the round, the sixth-placed Waratahs (46 points) are just one point and place above the Bulls with the Highlanders a further point back.
NSW could drop to as low as eighth if they lose to the Bulls and the Highlanders score a home win over the struggling Force in Dunedin a few hours earlier.
Hickey predicted a fair bit of fluidity among the places in the lower half of the top six over the remaining rounds.
"Getting a win out of one of these games in Africa, keeps our fate in our own hands, particularly going back to play the Highlanders, one of the teams that are competing for a (finals) spot," Hickey said.
"The Sharks, the Bulls and the Stormers have got to play each other over here over the next three weeks as well, so I think there will still be a fair bit of movement around those four, five, six positions on the table."
He was confident the Tahs could win in Pretoria if they stuck to their game plan.
"I think we've developed some strategies that we're confident will work well for us and I think it's a matter of having the patience to stick with those strategies for 80 minutes," Hickey said.
"I think it's really important in this sort of game, there's a certain amount of patience involved when you play a team like the Bulls."
NSW fortified its line-out by bringing in 202cm Kane Douglas in alongside 203cm Sitaleki Timani, with acting skipper Dean Mumm moving from the second row to blindside flanker.
"They have got a very strong line-out and you also know you've got to be competitive around the park at the ruck and the tackle," Hickey said.
"We just felt for this game against the Bulls it's important we probably took a bit more height into our line-out."
Veteran Al Baxter replaces injured in-form prop Sekope Kepu in the other change to the pack that started in last week's loss to the Sharks.
In the backs, Berrick Barnes comes in at inside centre, with Tom Carter moving to outside centre in place of the injured Ryan Cross.
"It was something we thought about there, having the two ball players and it also gives us two kicking options," Hickey said.
Bulls coach Frans Ludeke added almost 200 Super caps of experience to his pack by promoting hooker Gary Botha and flanker Danie Rossouw to the run on side.
-AAP
Tags: sport, rugby-union, super-14, australia, nswThursday, May 26, 2011
Hickey targeting fourth spot
Posted May 25, 2011 14:38:00 New South Wales coach Chris Hickey believes his team can target fourth spot on the Super Rugby table if it wins its next two games in South Africa against close ladder rivals the Sharks and Bulls.
With four rounds remaining the Waratahs are fifth in the standings on 45 points, just two ahead of both the Highlanders and Sharks.
NSW would appear to have little chance of a top-three spot, as they are nine points behind Australian conference and overall ladder leaders Queensland, which hosts the fourth-placed Crusaders (48) in Brisbane on Sunday.
A Reds win combined with a NSW win over the Sharks in Durban a few hours earlier could lift the Waratahs up to fourth.
The Waratahs' following game is in Pretoria against the defending champion Bulls, the only other realistic contenders for a finals berth, who are currently eighth on 40 points.
"If we can pick up both those games I think even a fourth place is not out of the question," Hickey said.
"But one game at a time, so we'll just keep our focus on the Sharks and do our best to come away with a win that just puts us a little bit further away from them.
"This is one of those games I think that's pivotal to both teams.
"The Sharks coming off a loss (to the Bulls) last week will be a little bit sharper I'm sure and being so close on the ladder, the outcome will be a very important four or five points for both teams.
"The Bulls and the Sharks still have to play each other in the last round as well, so like most years, it could come down to the results over that last round."
With fly half Berrick Barnes cleared to play against the Sharks after suffering a third head knock in the current campaign, Hickey reported no injury concerns following last week's win over the Lions.
"This is probably about the first week I think that we haven't had someone that's been ruled out of the game," Hickey said.
The Sharks will be without winger Odwa Ndungane and prop Jannie du Plessis, while centre Adrian Jacobs will undergo a fitness test on an ankle.
On the plus side, front row stalwart John Smit and number eight Ryan Kankowski could both return from injury.
The Waratahs boast the meanest defence in the competition and Hickey expected that quality to be tested by the Sharks' attack.
"They are a strong attacking side and against them it's particularly important to be able to control possession from the start and then to play at the tempo we want to play," Hickey said.
-AAP
Tags: sport, rugby-union, super-14, nsw, sydney-2000Thursday, April 21, 2011
Media Call: Chris Hickey
Published:Wednesday, April 20, 2011 4:48 AESTExpires:Tuesday, July 19, 2011 4:48 AEST
New South Wales coach Chris Hickey says Queensland will be a different proposition at Lang Park on Saturday night than when the two sides last met in round of Super Rugby.
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Media Call: Chris Hickey
Published:Thursday, April 14, 2011 1:02 AESTExpires:Wednesday, July 13, 2011 1:02 AEST
Coach Chris Hickey says the Waratahs were never going to get into a big bidding war over Kurtley Beale, who has signed with the Rebels.
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