Former prop Ben Darwin has blasted critics of the Australian forwards, saying the Wallabies were on track to have one of the fittest and most competitive tight fives for the 2007 World Cup.

Darwin, who quit the game after suffering a neck injury against New Zealand in the 2003 World Cup, believed heavy criticism directed towards the Australian front row after the weekend's 27-14 loss against France was unwarranted.

"I think it's ridiculous, the front row has been scrummaging very very well," Darwin said.

"I don't know where the comments are coming from, unless someone wants to put their hand up and say they can do a better job they are really not in a place to bag them out."

He said prop Al Baxter - who replaced Darwin in the side when he left the game - had "done a great job of late" adding "I'll defend the rest of them to the last."

While he said the current crop of forwards were doing the best they could, Darwin, who has taken up the head coaching role with Sydney club side Northern Districts, said what was lacking was a culture of scrummaging in Australia.

"In South Africa and Argentina they love it, it's almost like a sport on its own and something they take an enormous amount of pride in and become very very competitive.

"In Australia it has been regarded as a means to an end but the guys who are there right now are doing an amazing job particularly given the numbers we have here."

Former Wallabies coach Bob Dwyer felt that Australia's front row stocks have always been on the thin side.

"Australia has never had a massive amount of depth in the front row at any time I can remember," said Dwyer, the 1991 World Cup winning coach with the Wallabies.

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