Ignore Australian rugby history at your peril
Roar Guru By sheek, 19 Nov 2009 The Crowd is a Roar Guru
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- 1984 Wallabies, Australian rugby, Rugby Union, wallabies
1984 Grand Slam Wallabies Mark Ella, Steve Williams, current coach Robbie Deans, Alan Jones, Roger Gould, Simon Poidevin and Andrew Slack arrive at the John Eales Medal Awards in Sydney, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2009. AAP Image/Sergio Dionisio
Some Roarers, most likely of the younger generation, have been exasperated and disparaging of older Wallabies fans dredging up former great players and teams.
Especially by comments that the 2009 Wallabies aren’t in the same league, errr make that union, as the 1984 Wallabies, who won the Grand Slam against England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
Fortunately, any thoughts of a comparison here are no longer relevant.
It’s a shame Australian rugby fans don’t pay more attention to their history. Ever wondered why New Zealand and South Africa continue to remain the consistently best rugby nations?
Part of the reason why Australia isn’t as consistently successful lies in poor national domestic structures that blight our progress to this day, but that’s another story for another day.
However, every time a new All Black or Springbok pulls on his country’s jersey, he is gripped by a fear of failure. A fear of failing to measure up to and maintaining the legacy of success of his predecessors.
Generally speaking, failure is not an option for the All Blacks and Springboks, and failure is seen as a great shame, even though rugby might only be a sport after all.
Australian rugby’s international record may not be of the same high standard, since we only began to be consistently successful from the 1980s onwards.
However, get away from the impersonal scorelines, and into the lives, characters and personalities of many of the individuals who have represented the Wallabies, and it’s a rich treasure-trove, believe me.
Although the Wallabies might not have been as historically successful as the All Blacks and Springboks on the scoreboard, quite often the individual stories of former Wallabies are far richer.
Read about the tragic Lonnie Spragg, or Snowy Baker, or Paddy Moran, or Tom Richards, or James Clarken, or Weary Dunlop, or Nicky Barr, or Stan Bissett, or Lloyd McDermott, or the Thornett brothers, or the Ella brothers, as just a few examples of this rich diversity.
We can ignore our history, in any field of endeavour, but only at our personal cost of knowledge, wisdom and enlightenment.
So who are our most successful Wallabies teams in history?
Usually, the 1984, 1991 and 1999 teams are put forward as the best three. The 1984 team won the Grand Slam, while the 1991 and 1999 combinations won the Rugby World Cup.
Realistically those three teams had a slightly longer reign: 1984-86, 1991-94 and 1998-2001. Personally, I prefer the 1984 team, not because they were necessarily the best, but they thrilled me the most with the breathtaking audacity of their backline play, and forward toughness.
The 1908/09 Wallabies to England and Wales, who also won the gold medal for rugby, were a good combination without being great. Britons rated them behind the 1905/06 ABs and 1906/07 Boks.
The 1927/28 Waratahs (so called because NSW was the only rugby union playing state from 1920-28) thrilled European fans with their breath-taking running rugby.
But they only won 3 out of 5 internationals.
The 1929/30 Wallabies were quite awesome, containing most of the 1927/28 mob. The beat the ABs 3-0 in 1929, and won a lone test against the Lions in 1930.
This team was led by the legendary flyhalf ‘galloping ghost’ Tom Lawton senior, whose grandson Tom Lawton junior, was hooker in the 1984 GS team.
This team also produced our first great front-row, comprising Wild Bill Cerutti at tight-head, Eddie Bonis at hooker and Eddie Thompson at loose-head.
The 1934 Wallabies won the Beldisloe Cup for the first time (inaugurated 1931) with the soon to be legendary war surgeon Weary Dunlop appearing in his second and unfortunately last test.
We didn’t win the BC again until 1949, but 30 of NZ’s best players were in South Africa. The 1947/48 Wallabies didn’t concede a try in the 4 internationals against the British and Irish teams, but overall only won 3 out of 5 internationals.
In 1963, under John Thornett’s leadership, the Wallabies split the series 2-2 with the Boks, and beat them again in both tests at home in 1965. The win at Pretoria in 1963 remains our last win at altitude in South Africa.
1975 saw a new attitude of aggression from the Wallaby pack, including famous (or infamous) names like Ray Price, Mark Loane, Tony Shaw and Steve Finnane.
Australia didn’t win the BC again until 1979 under the captaincy of the rugged Loane, and as 1980 came into view, a new generation of stars were about to build on the inconsistent but worthy success of their predecessors.
Like I said, we can ignore our history, but only at our personal cost. On the other hand, if you take the time and effort to read up on the old players and teams, there’s a rich treasure-trove waiting for you.
Us old-timers get frustrated because the current generation appear more interested in their bank balances than the rich personal history of the Wallabies jersey.
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November 19th 2009 @ 1:10pm
vinay verma said | November 19th 2009 @ 1:10pm | Report comment
Sheek,on a more general note the Study of History,when linked with the study of knowledge and tradition has only positive benefits,including economic. Take the knowledge and tradition of Yoga. This has been shared with the World where it now is a 30 Billion dollar Industry. The Indians did not take out Intellectual property cover on mathematics. In many instance India is accused of copyright and piracy infringements but the fact is that Tradition and Knowledge ,as History shows,when shared achieves good.
The players you mention icluding mark Loane and Mark Ella are Rugby Greats and should be celebrated in Print and Electronic Medium. Is there a comprehensive History of Australian Rugby on tape or DVD? It should come free with the next Sun Herald.
November 19th 2009 @ 2:57pm
sheek said | November 19th 2009 @ 2:57pm | Report comment
Vinay,
Some years ago, but not too long ago, a DVD was produced titled, “The Rise & Rise of Australian Rugby”, detailing the rise of Australian rugby from the nadir of 1973 (losing to Tonga) to the triumph at the world cup of 1991, & beyond. The DVD was a support act to a book written by Phil Derriman.
There’s a book by Peter Jenkins, ‘Wallaby Gold’, the 2004 edition featuring every test team from 1899 to 2004. The creme de la creme is ‘Australian Rugby; The Game & The Players’ by Jack Pollard. I have both the 1984 & 94 editions featuring extraordinary pen-portraits of former Wallabies, & history of the game.
I’m sure you can also pick up DVDs of Bledisloe Cup matches, Tri-Nations, etc. And that’s just a start…..
November 19th 2009 @ 3:06pm
Brett McKay said | November 19th 2009 @ 3:06pm | Report comment
great stuff Sheek, thoroughly enjoyable read as usual. I always enjoy your history lessons!!
November 19th 2009 @ 8:18pm
Spiro Zavos said | November 19th 2009 @ 8:18pm | Report comment
Sam you are correct about the All blacks being technically scoreless at Cardiff against Wales in 1905. I say technically because there is no doubt(according to New Zealanders) that Bob Deans, a great relative of Robbie Deans, scored that try and was pulled back into the field of play by the perfidious Welsh.
The same perfidious Welsh ruled a conversion by the Wallabies in the 1908 Test at Cardiff did not go over the bar. In fact it crossed the bar and was blown back by a strong wind. The scoreline was 3-3 at the time. The Wallabies lost 9-6. They beat England 9-3 and a Cornwall side posing as England for the gold medal for rugby at the London Olympics. So in a sense, these first Wallabies, set the gold standard for future teams.
November 19th 2009 @ 9:24pm
bennalong said | November 19th 2009 @ 9:24pm | Report comment
Sheek
Great memories thanks. Campo was that good.And Horan. And Noddy. These nights I struggle to keep the peepers open , the Tele’s 5 x bigger, but the games just not the same
That brings us to the article old Rickety has mentioned, because it relates to the rule changes that stuffed the way the game is played. Notably the breakdown……. my pet hate so I have to respond.
Mick Cleary in the London Telegraph bemoans the changes that have ruined the game as a spectacle. In the last paragraph he says…………………
“Personally I would bring back the ruck. The administrators won’t do that citing (wrongly) safety issues…………”
I think its a must. I was watching France stick it to the AllBlacks, something I would expect to enjoy. It certainly had passion and was hotly contested by both sides, elements of a great game.
But I saw what happens if you match the AB’s at the breakdown and get away with going up the sides and using so-called “clearing out” to target unsuspecting players off the ball, and generally mucking in. (something that has been ACTUALLY been suggested as a solution)
But it was a bloody mess (literally) and there were bodies lying all over each other, sometimes seeming to outnumber the standing.
Back to ’84………….the only person on the ground was winded or wounded. You got up quickly or copped the consequences. IT WORKED BETTER. THAT WAS CALLED RUGBY. !
BRING BACK RUCKING………………………………..PLEEEEEEASE
November 20th 2009 @ 9:56pm
Dublin Dave said | November 20th 2009 @ 9:56pm | Report comment
Thank Goodness!! A non controversial topic. Good Old Sheek!
I am all for the teaching of rugby history to the younger generation. Apart from being great fun, there is one useful function it performs, especially for those from smaller countries who only experience success sporadically: it allows you to continue dreaming of a return to good times in the future during bleak periods when your team can’t seem to win at all.
The great BBC commentator Bill McLaren, always made the point that as a Scottish rugby fan you had to take the rough with the smooth. In particular, he remembered a miserable period in the 1950s when Scotland went several years without winning a game, during which they endured what was then the worst drubbing in history a 44-0 home defeat to South Africa. You could add another 18 points to that with modern scoring values.
Yet he got to live through that, see his son in law Alan Lawson score what he always claimed was the best international try ever and see Scotland win two grand Slams in 1984 and 1990, with in the latter case, a former pupil of his (he was a schoolmaster) score the winning try of the deciding match against England at Murrayfield. It surely can’t get much better than that!
I know where he’s coming from. I was brought up to learn at my parents’ knees about the exploits of the great Irish team of the 1940s Jack Kyle, Jim McCarthy, Karl Mullen etc and also of the great teams that might have been. The first few years I watched (late 1960s early 1970s) were relatively successful ones for Irish teams. Lansdowne Road was almost impregnable at the time. In fact in the first five years I watched, only England won there in 1971 when a goal kicking machine called Bob Hiller outpointed an Irish team that scored two tries to nil. Those five years also saw South Africa and New Zealand come to town and leave only with drawn games.
Such good times don’t last for ever and there have been some bleak periods in the interim. None bleaker than the 1990s when Ireland lost to everybody including Samoa, Namibia and Italy, couldn’t mount a single win against Scotland or France and couldn’t get within an asses roar of any of the Southern Hemisphere teams, with the sole exception of a close call against Australia in the world cup of 1991. Since 2000 things have been better, thanks to a great generatio of players.
The point is though, that this generation didn’t come down in a shower of rain. They came into an environment where people cared deeply about the game, ran clubs, coached kids, established leagues, raised money, bought tickets and generally kept the show on the road. To do that you have to be able to dream. And it helps if you have iconic images from the past that you believe you can reincarnate in the future. So the exploits of the old guys play a big part in preparing the way for future successful generations.
Once you get all that enthusiasm and structure in place, there’s nothing wrong with your game that the womb won’t fix.
November 21st 2009 @ 9:46am
sheek said | November 21st 2009 @ 9:46am | Report comment
Hi Dave,
It did occur to me when penning this piece, & whenever I lament Australian rugby’s current woes, it’s very tough for countries like Ireland & Scotland, which are blighted by small overall populations, which in turn affects their rugby production.
With a population of 21 million, you would think Australia can manage 4 football codes, providing each code is operating at maximum efficiency.
On the other hand, you have NZ, which achieves much good in 3 football codes, with only 4 million people.
I do think in recent times, Australian rugby’s downturn can be partly attributable to those generous, amateur, volunteer coaches leaving the sport for whatever reason.
It’s been commented on by many the poor basic skills of our leading players. How did this happen is for better minds than mine to explain.
November 21st 2009 @ 9:24am
Joh4Canberra said | November 21st 2009 @ 9:24am | Report comment
“Ever wondered why New Zealand and South Africa continue to remain the consistently best rugby nations?”
Um, because they don’t have to compete with rugby league and AFL as more popular winter sports and because rugby union in those countries is about as popular as Australian rugby league and AFL combined? If you reversed the roles of union and league in Australia so that the union game had the number of players, the juniors and the TV exposure that rugby league currently has in NSW/Qld/ACT and AFL has in the rest of the country Australia would be be consistently better, probably the best in the world. As it is most of the talented athletes who would be good rugby union players end up playing league or AFL. So we trundle along as a minority sport that few people know or care much about.
November 21st 2009 @ 9:38am
sheek said | November 21st 2009 @ 9:38am | Report comment
Joh4Canberra (that was 20 years ago, mate!),
Yeah, it’s true union in SA doesn’t have to compete with AF, & NZ only has to compete with RL. Both have to compete with Soccer.
However, I will still argue Australian rugby is poorly structured, which is preventing the code from realising its potential, & attracting more younger players in greater numbers.
November 21st 2009 @ 1:29pm
Joh4Canberra said | November 21st 2009 @ 1:29pm | Report comment
公平待遇的酱油瓶子
Sheek, your points are good ones. I didn’t actually disagree with you; just stirring the pot a little by pointing out the elephant in the room
As it happens our positions are not mutually exclusive. If we didn’t have to compete with RL and AFL then Australian rugby would be of a consistently better standard. AND if Australian rugby was better organised we would also be of a consistently better standard. And if both were true, well then we’d be just about unbeatable
Of course I’m a realist. RL and AFL are here to stay. So better organisation it is.
November 21st 2009 @ 7:06pm
Jim Boyce said | November 21st 2009 @ 7:06pm | Report comment
Sheek – One of the great things about your article is that you kept contributing. I did see Jackie Kyle play at the SCG.in 1950 and that was something else. Thanks to Dublin Dave to remind me of that. But Sheek I like your perspective on the whole game, keep it up.
November 21st 2009 @ 9:53pm
sheek said | November 21st 2009 @ 9:53pm | Report comment
Thanks Jim,
I really appreciate your comments. Funny you should mention Jackie Kyle. Dublin Dave knows the following story from prior correspondence.
My younger brother, who was a state U/14 100m champion many, many years ago (& runner-up in state U/15s), actually married one of Jackie Kyle’s nieces. Unfortunately, the marriage didn’t work out, but their 5 year old son is a good Aussie boy, having been born here.
Now, if he can combine his father’s speed with the extraordinary skills of his Irish great-uncle, who knows what he might be??? (Myself, I missed out on the speed in the family, being a plodding forward).
But of course, humans, like horses, don’t always follow the genetic pattern. As for the family, we’re just appreciative he is a healthy, normal, & as happy kid as we can make him, coming from separated parents.
As a byline, Jackie Kyle & his Irish contemporary & centre, Norm Henderson, were brothers-in-law, having married sisters.
November 23rd 2009 @ 3:16pm
Dublin Dave said | November 23rd 2009 @ 3:16pm | Report comment
Well that’s a useful tidbit.
Although the IRFU (Irish Rugby Football Union) is not as aggressive as its soccer counterpart the FAI in hunting down players of Irish ancestry to wear the green jersey, there has frequently been, and indeed there are, some players in the squad who speak with distinctly non-Irish accents. Tom Court, Isaac Boss and the Easterby brothers are Australian, New Zealander and English by birth but all recent recruits under the “granny rule.”
Indeed the FAI was so well organised in this regard that it was claimed its acronym stood for Find Another Irishman.
So I think a brief memo to the IRFU informing them that a young man called Sheeky living in Sydney (I presume) and born around 2004 has Jack Kyle’s bloodlines is in order. No doubt some spies could be told to maintain a watching brief on reports of schools games in years to come for any evidence of some of that vestigial talent. Especially if it is accompanied by some scorching pace, so rare in the Irish gene pool.
We could have him yet.
Just on a pedantic note. It is not the norm for Irish people to be called Norm. I think you’ll find that Jack Kyle’s brother in law was called Noel Henderson. Apparently he played centre or full back and was not particularly elusive as a runner but was a bone crunching tackler. Way before my time though. That’s more information gleaned at the parental knee.