NSW are like a power serve-and-volley player in tennis. When their game is working, it can be hard to stop, but over the past two weeks they have engaged in far too many baseline rallies with technically superior opponents. NSW's game hasn't really changed since Michael Cheika's return - they are reliant on their big runners winning the gain line and Bernard Foley can pick and choose his moments to attack with front-foot ball.
That happened in the second half against the Hurricanes, but the game was already gone. It's a brutal style that is hard to play. Emotionally and physically, your pack has to be able to dominate week after week. That is a big ask, particularly when even NSW fans would admit that the current pack does not measure up to the 2014 version, and they are also being cruelled by a poor kicking game from halfback in particular. Â
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2. Scott Fardy is still on top of his game.
Were the push factors more influential than the pull ones in his move to Leinster? You'd hope not. Fardy is head and shoulders the best No 6 in Australia and he added another string to his bow by captaining the Brumbies in their 43-10 demolition of the Reds. Age is not a factor. Fardy is younger than a swag of All Blacks who won the World Cup in 2015. Fardy was everywhere on Saturday - stealing lineouts, contesting the ball on the ground and generally making life uncomfortable for the visitors. He even copped a clearing kick to the face and it barely seemed to register. Tough and inspirational, Fardy is the sort of player Australia can't afford to lose.Â
3. Reds are no better post-Richard Graham.
The Queenslanders have played 20 games since they punted Graham at the start of last year and have won only four. That is no better than the winning percentage that meant Graham was shown the door, and they appear helpless to stop the rot. Moreover, the worse-case scenario of Nick Stiles' appointment is starting to unfold: with Stiles consumed by head coaching duties, his specialty - the scrum - is starting to suffer. Injuries have not helped but they were completely dominated by the Brumbies on Saturday. Their vaunted pack has not turned up this season and young Jake McIntyre's struggles continue. The departure of Mack Mason to the Waratahs looks like being another in a long list of recruitment and retention failures in recent years.Â
![One-way traffic: The Brumbies open up during a woeful Reds effort.](http://web.archive.org./web/20170412192317im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/v/h/a/t/z/image.imgtype.articleLeadwide.620x349.png/1491728026085.png)
One-way traffic: The Brumbies open up during a woeful Reds effort. Photo: Getty Images
4. Force save their worst performance of the year for Kings.
The Force finished over the top of the Kings in Perth on Sunday but I doubt anything except the impact of the bench will please coach Dave Wessels. Despite the high scoreline, the Force are a better team than they showed against the Kings and the soft tries they gave up to the visitors will annoy their coaching panel. However, we cannot be too unkind. The extraordinary circumstances of the game, with SANZAAR's axe hovering over them, has no precedent in my memory and has been a blight on the first part of the season. It is a credit to them that they have produced more potential new Wallabies this year than any of their rivals, young left wing Alex Newsome the latest of them.  Â
5. Upskilled Stormers show Australians have no excuse.
The South African side showed plenty of their traditional grunt in beating the Chiefs in Cape Town, but it is clear they have added a few things to their game in terms of skills and fitness. Dillyn Leyd's offload to SP Marais to set up a try was quite stunning and although the Chiefs' all-round skills were slicker, it is clear the South Africans have closed the gap. New Zealand sides are not as invincible as the Australian sides have made them out to be and the Stormers' yearning for self-improvement is a lesson that Australian fans would like to see their fans take on board.
Team of the Week
1. Scott Sio (Brumbies)
![Across the gain line: Michael Hooper finds open space.](/web/20170412192317im_/http://www.theage.com.au/content/dam/images/g/v/h/a/q/8/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gvh6i7.png/1491749610144.jpg)
2. Robbie Abel (Brumbies)
3. Allan Alaalatoa (Brumbies)
4. Rory Arnold (Brumbies)
5. Will Skelton (Waratahs)
6. Scott Fardy (Brumbies)
7. Chris Alcock (Brumbies)
8. Isi Naisarani (Force)
9. Joe Powell (Brumbies)
10. Bernard Foley (Waratahs)
11. Alex Newsome (Force)
12. Andrew Smith (Brumbies)
13. Tevita Kuridrani (Brumbies)
14. Henry Speight (Brumbies)
15. Aidan Toua (Brumbies)
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