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Former Wallaby declares Fraser McReight world’s best openside flanker
By Finn Morton
Rugby World Cup winner Jeremy Paul believes Fraser McReight is the best openside flanker in the world at the moment. The Wallabies’ breakdown specialist returned from injury in time for the Bledisloe Cup series, where he was clearly Australia’s best player in both Tests.
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McReight started the international season strongly with some solid performances in the back-to-back wins over Warren Gatland’s Wales. The 25-year-old followed that up with a try-scoring double in the Wallabies’ hard-fought 40-29 win over Georgia during the July series.
But, unfortunately for the Wallabies and their star backrower, McReight ended up missing the team’s first four Rugby Championship Tests with a thumb injury. Instead, Carlo Tizzano was injected into the Test arena in the No. 7 jumper and performed very well.
When McReight was named in the Wallabies’ squad for the two Bledisloe Cup Tests, that was still received as a welcomed boost for the men in gold. The Queenslander ended up scoring Australia’s opening try in the Sydney Test, and he did the very same a week later in Wellington.
It can be easy to look at tries as a standout statistic but McReight’s influence goes well beyond the scoreboard. The loose forward was the equal-top tackler in the Wellington Test, and he was also lethal at the breakdown with some telling involvements.
That’s led a former Wallaby to rank McReight above the rest as the world’s leading openside flanker. Ireland’s Josh van der Flier, Charles Ollivon from France and South Africa’s Siya Kolisi would likely be considered other contenders by fans around the world.
“I think Fraser McReight is the best seven in the world currently at the moment,” Paul said on The Good, The Bad & The Rugby. “I really do.
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“He’s the complete player. He’ll jackal, he’s incredibly sound in defence – can even do dominant tackles. He’s that covering, supporting defender as well, scrambler.
“But then you’ve got the attack game. If you are second last pass, first last pass or try scorer, for you to be in those positions like come attack, it’s because you can read the game exceptionally well, not just because you coincidentally be there, man.
“He is, he is a genuine player this kid.”
McReight’s scored the first try of the evening over in New Zealand’s capital, and the Wallabies were quite generally on song to start that Test. They even led late in the first half but a try to Caleb Clarke saw the All Blacks take a slender lead into the sheds.
New Zealand ran riot in the second term as they recorded a commanding 20-point win. That was the Wallabies’ fifth loss in six Tests, and that saw them finish in last place in The Rugby Championship behind South Africa, New Zealand and Argentina.
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Coach Joe Schmidt remains confident the team is heading in the right direction, but there’s no doubt they have their work cut out for them up north. During their upcoming Spring Tour, Australia will take on England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland.
That’s ideal preparation for the Wallabies ahead of next year’s British and Irish Lions Tour – a representative team made up of the best players from those four nations.
“If you look at the teams we’re coming up against, you’ve got semi-finalists, quarter-finalists, tough teams over there,” McReight told journalists from RugbyPass, Nine’s Wide World of Sports and AAP in Wellington.
“I feel like we want consistency on the board. Obviously, we want wins… we want to be competitive. It’s probably the way you want to put.
“Wins are obvious but to be competitive on the scoreboard, competitive in most things around the park; set-piece, defence, attack.
“We don’t want it to be one way or the other for sure.”
Nope not even close
Not even close. He is good, but no super star, nor will he be in his lifetime. He won nothing. I had to google him to find out who he is. Claiming a statement which is true for you don't make it true through stats. I can name plenty of players who isn't even international players that far exceeds him. Pieter-Steph du Toit is so far ahead of the rest, there is no comparison. He is the world's best, not just this year or last year. He is consistently the top. No one tackles like him, run like him, break tackles like him, offload like him etc etc etc. I can carry on and on and on. It's not just my personal opinion, but also proven fact by stats. The reason you won't see him as the best is because he is South African. Small minded folks with nothing good to say. Instead of concentrating on what the Boks brings to the world of rugby, the amazing superstars, no matter their race or origin. Instead of celebrating the innovations, the more exciting play and the Boks making the world talk about rugby, not just the regular fans, but previously non supporters. Nevermind that Bernard LaPorte stole the RWC hosting rights for 2023. The team who have won the most world cups in 2 less additions than everyone else. No, hate is the way to go it seems like. The AB's aren't the team everyone wants to beat. Neither is the French or Irish who think they can claim every trophy because their fans think they are the best. No, the real best team, the most successful team gets screwed over time and again. The Boks won their 1st WC at home. The next 3 WC trophies they won away from home. The Boks have won the easiest and the most difficult route to the final of WC's. Who else can claim that? The Boks were the 1st team to win a WC AFTER losing a game in the round robin phase. How many records need to be broken? How many trophies needs to be won? How much more dominant does a team have to be to be the best? When does it become more about hate than the truth about rugby?
Hyperbole from Jeremy.
McReight looked very good against the ABs but I think that's the first time I've seen him excel against top opposition. He wasn't impressive in the Reds vs Chiefs final for example.
If he can consistently produce these performances then he's in the reckoning but it's still a big if.
Tell him he is dreaming
It's quite inspiring how Aussies manage to deviate the conversation from the obvious - an unmitigated train wreck - to a suggestion of being world's best. I can recall Phil Kearns once suggesting that Stephen Moore was the best hooker in the world, when other pundits didn't have him on a list of 5.
McReight is undoubtedly a good player, but given the context, so what?
He can mix it with the big boys. Can he be in the same conversation as the best , not yet. This will come with experience. Talent is there but it's too soon. Jeremy doing his best putting a positive spin on everything.
I believe McReight will rise to be one of the world's best flankers, but this call is too early, and wrong in my view. Depends who one regards as a 7, but any of du Toit, van der Flier, Matera , Botia, are a level above him still.
Fair call, Jeremy, he is certainly world class. There are a lot of different ways to play the open side flanker position these days so, its a bit open to opinion, but McReight offers a lot in the way he plays the game.
Jeremy Paul is just another a kiwi trying to undermine Australian rugby, setting up Fraser McReight to fail.