So the Wallabies are the second-best team in the Rugby Championship after four rounds, with nine points - 11 behind the All Blacks but three ahead of South Africa.That seemed an unlikely scenario after they had slumped to two demoralising defeats by New Zealand that suggested their world was ending if it had not ended already. But subsequent All Blacks victories against Argentina and South Africa, equally dominant, while Australia defeated the same opponents, less comprehensively, confirm nothing, perhaps, other than teams should not be judged only by results against the worlds best team; after all New Zealand are three percent better than any other team on the planet.Australia were the better team against Argentina in Perth, as they had been against South Africa in Brisbane the week before, and there is rarely reason for complaint in a 16-point victory in which you score four tries to two.But Australia scored 21 of their points, and three of their five tries in the opening 12 minutes of the fixture, and thereafter failed much to get the ball or to keep it. Passes were thrown to no-one in particular, if anyone, and their kicking game lacked discipline and direction.And they conceded penalties as Argentina dominated increasingly territory and possession; they conceded 16 penalties to seven as Argentina tallied 67 percent possession and 68 percent territory, and those numbers against England or New Zealand, and perhaps even woeful South Africa when next they face each other in Pretoria, would likely prove catastrophic.The key stat for Australia, and for Wallabies fans, however, is that pertaining to tackles.Australia completed 120 of the 143 tackles they were asked to make as Argentina tallied 181 runs and 181 passes; of course they missed 23, but the 84 percent completion rate is so much better than their turnstile rate in the two Bledisloe Cup Tests. And the reason for that improvement is trust and discipline; they had a trust in their teammates alongside that was absent only when Samu Kerevi drifted in off the wing four minutes into the second half, when Santiago Cordero scored for Los Pumas to make an eight-point ball game.Defence, it is often said, reflects a mindset; and Australia had that mindset in spades in Perth. And that is to be celebrated, for the Wallabies will need that mindset if they are to continue their two-match winning run in Pretoria and London before returning to Europe on their end-of-year tour.They will also need the attacking thrust they displayed for the opening 12 minutes in Perth, when Will Genia and Quade Cooper were sparking the attack as if it were 2011, when the team put the ball quickly through hands rather than delivering looping cut-out passes, and when Israel Folau ran a couple of dynamic and exhilarating lines; the other 68 minutes were less encouraging, but you cant attack if you cant get the ball and you elect not to keep it; nevertheless, the Wallabies did score two more tries - the first the result of hard running from Sean McMahon to show there will be life post-Pocock in the back row, the second featuring another delicious inside ball from Cooper as the Wallabies capitalised on a dumb blind offload from Ramiro Herrera to Tatafu Polota-Nau, who then refused to be pulled down.Michael Cheika has much still to work on with his post-World Cup Wallabies, but at least they now have two Ws against their name; and that really is all that matters. He also has blooded the eighth and ninth debutants of the campaign, Tom Robertson and Lopeti Timani, in another nod to the future.Cheika and his players will head home knowing the can relax a little for defeat was a very real prospect after the teams performances last week against South Africa and New Zealand respectively. They know they didnt dodge a bullet in Perth - for the Pumas didnt fire it - and that is the one caveat against their defensive improvement. The Pumas, for all their intent and ambition, lacked quality and execution. Had the Wallabies lost to the Pumas having dominated the stats as Argentina did then Cheikas ears would be bleeding still on the flight to Johannesburg in a weeks time; his Wallabies, after all, are the worst Australia team that Rugby World Cup-winning New Zealand rugby legend Sir Graham Henry has seen. As it is, winners are grinners and hell be smiling all the way home to Sydney.Bob Uecker Jersey . 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Bobby Cox Jersey .ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable.INDIANAPOLIS -- EJ Manuels teammates and coaches were pretty darn impressed with their rookie quarterback. Buffalos first-round draft pick thought he could have done even more. Give him time. After completing 16 of 21 passes for 107 yards with one touchdown and a quarterback rating of 102.7, Manuel gave himself a "B" in his preseason debut -- a solid mark after leading the Bills to a 44-20 victory Sunday at Indianapolis. "My main thing was I wanted to operate the offence like coach (Nathaniel) Hackett has taught us and get all the other guys in position," Manuel said. "The veterans have done a great job of bringing me along and things like that. The main thing is just continuing to go out there and execute." Sure, it was only preseason and he posted most of the big numbers against Indianapolis backup defence, and, of course, there were a few mistakes. But overall, Manuel executed the safe, simple game plan the way the Bills intended. His short passes were accurate and on time. He sped up the game by quickly getting the Bills to the line. On the few occasions he ran, Manuel was effective. And when pressed to make plays in the 2-minute offence, he drove the Bills into scoring position and then fired a rocket to Dorin Dickerson for a 17-yard score that broke a 13-13 tie with 14 seconds left in the half. It may not have been as impressive as Andrew Lucks debut last season. He threw a 63-yard TD pass to Donald Brown on his first attempt at Lucas Oil Stadium, and led the Colts to a 38-3 victory over St. Louis. Luck played only two series Sunday, finishing 4 of 6 for 51 yards and was the only Indy quarterback not to lead the Colts on a scoring drive. He was sacked once. Backup Matt Hasselbeck played three series for the Colts, throwing a 45-yard TD pass to T.Y. Hilton, and departed after a tipped pass was picked off by Crezdon Butler. "Obviously, everybody, top to bottom, is disappointed. We never envisioned going out and playing a football game and having the outcome that we had," Colts coach Chuck Pagano said. "Weve obviously got to play better, and we will play better." Manuel, on the other hand, played the entire first half and improved as the game went along -- just as he did in last weekends scrimmage. Grading it may prove tough. Only tthree of Manuels completions went longer than 10 yards and two of the incompletions were throwaways.dddddddddddd While Manuel played mostly with Buffalos starters, the Colts pulled their regulars early and had second and third stringers on the field when Manuel looked his best -- going 9 of 10 for 68 yards in the 2-minute drill that impressed new coach Doug Marrone. "Here you are right before a half, 1:50, three timeouts left, and youre making decisions. Are we going to try to run out the clock? Are we going to go 2-minute? Hey, lets go 2-minute," he said. "To do that is very impressive, no matter who you are." Manuel wasnt the only productive Buffalo rookie. Receiver Marquise Goodwin, an Olympic long jumper with world-class speed, set up one Bills score with a 53-yard kickoff return and tied the score at 13 with a 107-yard kickoff return. DaRick Rogers caught a 6-yard TD pass to open the second-half scoring. Backup quarterback Jeff Tuel completed his first 10 passes and led the Bills to three scores, after replacing Manuel to start the third quarter. Cornerback Jumal Rolle closed out the scoring with a 17-yard interception return in the fourth quarter. It was a promising start for a team that changed general managers, coaches, co-ordinators and quarterback during the off-season. Indy got two field goals from Adam Vinatieri, the diving catch from Hilton, who bounced into the end zone, and a 72-yard fumble return from Daxton Swanson. Thought the Colts didnt show much with their revamped offensive line, the new defensive players or the rebuilt special teams, Buffalo saw exactly what it wanted. "I think I showed that I can matriculate the ball down the field," Manuel said. "I was glad we were able to go out there and get six points before the end of the half." Notes: Among the notable Colts players sitting out Sunday was Dwayne Allen, who Pagano said would miss a couple of weeks with a foot injury. ... Among the notable Bills missing the game were receiver Stevie Johnson and quarterback Kevin Kolb. ... C.J. Spiller averaged 9.0 yards on four carries. ... The Colts lost a handful of players to injuries. The most serious were to linebacker Justin Hickman (right foot) and cornerback Cassius Vaughn (wrist), who were expected to have MRIs. ' ' '
