By Hoy -
December 4th 2009 @ 5:48am
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Video says much about Wallabies attitude
At the end of this article is a video of the Wallabies‘ change room after the Welsh win. I love how, during the Lions’ tours, they have a camera in the change room to show you what happens before the match. And this is also a frank look at the dressing room after a good win by the Wallabies.
Beale talks openly and humbly about his first cap and how they wanted to turn the results of the week before into a positive.
James O’Connor larks around like a gangsta giving high fives.
Giteau takes a stab at his detractors, showing how the press must have hurt him after the Scottish game. He says how he prepared for the Scottish game exactly the same as every other game, but “it just didn’t work out”.
He shows a side of himself that people on this site might doubt, in that it shows it does hurt him when the Wallabies lose, or perhaps they will say that it hurts him when his worth is questioned.
Later on, AAC even jokingly says, “Gits finally had a blinder”.
So even the squad must have known that Giteau has been down on form recently.
Genia also talks towards the end about Giteau and how he has answered his critics. I think Giteau did play really well, but he did so from second receiver, not first receiver.
Drew Mitchell drinks from the cup and dances around like he actually did something.
A lot of them speak about the midweek game and what that did for the squad. Certainly, I think they should keep up midweek games on these tours, if for no other reason than to suss out how the reserves are going and give them game time.
Beale got a bench spot because of how he played in the Cardiff game. He might never have had that chance in tours gone past.
Deans talks about finally getting the right combinations.
He says he waited for it to happen rather than forced it to happen, showing that he had a plan and wasn’t just cruising along hoping for the team to gel.
In fact, this is the most I have heard Deans speak, and he certainly speaks more candidly here than he does in front of press conferences.
He talks about doubt creeping in, but you can see he feels this could be a watershed moment.
I am not so sure.
That will depend on their next game, almost 7 months away, when they will all start from scratch again and try to re-invigorate their combinations.
I think we have all thought we have had several watershed moments over the last 12 months, only to be brought back down to earth the next week.
Now, at the risk of being the Grinch and taking away the players rights to celebrate a good win, as well as harping on about the Grand Slam, I don’t see a lot of thought given to losing the Grand Slam.
I say lose the Grand Slam because looking back you really must admit they should have won it quite easily. I didn’t give them much chance before they went, but after the Wales win, it dawned on me how much they let go by the last minute try by Ireland and the surprising loss to Scotland.
It really should have been dawning on these players right then after beating Wales that had they played like they did against Wales, over the whole tour, the Grand Slam would have been theirs.
Instead, some of them could only think about how good that particular game was, and how well they played.
Perhaps that is part of the problem.
Rather than recognise what they did well in that game, and what they need to do to keep that standard up, they see they have won and that is that.
Will they improve next year, or will they continue to be marred by inconsistency?
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(29)
Short-Blind. said | December 4th 2009 @ 7:20am | Report comment
Thanks Hoy – I get a good feeling watching this. The bonding of the young players seems quite strong and the feeling of actually winning with style seems to have pleased them. You are right to question the ‘what we should have achieved’ re the GS however after silencing a big stadium and playing committed and attacking rugby for 80 mins – keeping the other team tryless….I think they deserve to celebrate. Team spirit seems good but as you say all will depend on how they forge ahead in 7 months time. It has been said before and Deans keeps harping on about it however, I do think this is a special group and if they get their heads in the right space and develop consistency they will challenge the AB next year. Can’t wait.
ps cant see KB going to league in the near future – he was stoked to receive his first cap and the desire for more is very evident.
Brett McKay said | December 4th 2009 @ 7:35am | Report comment
Great stuff Hoy, though I’ll have to watch the video at home (can’t see it at work). I’ve been saying the same thing, that Wallabies are only as good as their next game, for a little while now, and it seems to become more apt as time goes on. You don’t build consistency by winning your last game, it can only come from the next game, and so as you say, that is the big test now.
Full credit to the entire squad though for the way they lifted after Scotland. Grand Slam aside, I think over time this tour will be seen as being successful, and for that the squad does deserve the celebrations you’ve described here.
rugbyfuture said | December 4th 2009 @ 8:58am | Report comment
is it just me or does george smith seem a little down for not getting as much game time as he used to?
anopinion said | December 4th 2009 @ 9:01am | Report comment
Wow,
How poorly spoken is this team? The team in 84 has it all over them in play and in interviews. Can the team fit in any more “you know” comments? I am shocked.
Hoy said | December 4th 2009 @ 9:18am | Report comment
It all started with professionalism. Once the players stopped having jobs, down went their education. The team from ‘84 would have had doctors, lawyers and Indian Chiefs. This team has footballers. You could even tell the difference between the turn of the century and this team, and how poorly they speak… you know…
rugbyfuture said | December 4th 2009 @ 12:09pm | Report comment
remember though that some of them still are pursuing uni degrees, but yes i agree, theres a couple there like quade cooper who just cant speak proper english
Brett McKay said | December 4th 2009 @ 9:27am | Report comment
Hoy’s beaten me to the punch. These guys are professional footballers, you know, and speaking is, um…. in their handbook. The great 1984 team were genuine professionals as Hoy said. Doctors, Optometrists, etc. They also used to wear whatever jersey’s they had for training too (although I think Alan Jones was among the first coaches to find a set of training jumpers, so they looked like a team even when they trained).
warrenexpatinnz said | December 4th 2009 @ 2:52pm | Report comment
Sorry mate but to have a dig at some of the players just because they don’t talk with a cucumber sandwhich in one hand is a bit rich. Some of the players such as Elsom, Smith are used to the media scene and speak ‘eloquently’ however we were lucky enough to see a team high spirited, enjoying a victory and being themselves.
Quade Cooper isn’t paid to teach english, he is paid to play rugby union and to play for his country, well he must be a bit better than the average player and I think on the night he showed us all what he is capable of.
anopinion you may have but ‘dissing the boys’ because you don’t like the way they speak is almost unaustralian but then again I am not privately school taught so what do I know.
anopinion said | December 4th 2009 @ 3:15pm | Report comment
Warrenexpatinnz,
As for the cucumber sandwich comment, I am not concerned with annunciation. I am concerned with an ability to further themselves and the game through positive media events. If you think this display was ok then I shudder to think what speaking display would alarm you. As for private school, it was not a classist comment, instead, a comment about the waste in school fees by the boys parents. If I am paying $15-20 thousand a year I would expect to see from my son the kind of oral skills that would allow him a place in a boardroom.
anopinion said | December 4th 2009 @ 3:39pm | Report comment
Warren,
May I remind you of these comments you made? warrenexpatinnz said | September 23rd 2009 @ 9:24am |
“Very well put and if the players themselves took onus of their poor display last Saturday then you would think they would stand up and ‘do the right thing’.
If my staff perform badly on a task which tarnishes our companies reputation or stuff up causing non chargeable repair work they put their hand up and don’t submit time for what ever is needed to repair the damage or to ‘make it right’.
Now my staff aren’t on $200K plus so this is a huge sacrifice for them.
Doing what is recommended in this article will ‘out’ some players and their MANAGERS and make them aware that they are playing for their National team”
I know you are talking about playing rugby but I think your words would support my arguement quite well.
Pete said | December 4th 2009 @ 4:05pm | Report comment
Can these guys actually please fans?
One week its ‘you played poorly, show some ticker…”
the next week, ‘great game but you can’t articulate… ‘
… for crying out loud… there is always something to find fault with…
anopinion said | December 4th 2009 @ 4:21pm | Report comment
Yes Pete we come to this site to say nice things and agree with each other. Read my past posts no negatives re player efforts, just player capabilities. By the way, the posts by people come from many different people, each have things they want to get off their chests. No one hates every thing.
anopinion said | December 4th 2009 @ 10:17am | Report comment
I should have written earlier that I believe the ARU should be ensuring the flagship players are helping to keep a shiny luster on product Wallaby.
Professional footballers should be marketable. “Mate”, some of these “boys” are not. Surely there is some on camera training provided for them. I believe RL players receive some tuition. David Beckham was the worst speaker ever, he has improved with allocution lessons since becoming a professional footballer. Tiger Woods is a professional and he manages to talk eloquently. I bet some boxers manage to banter with more verbal agility than Cooper and Beale.
Most of the Wallabies went to private schools and plan careers after rugby. Thus, I suggest some improvement is needed.
Hoy said | December 4th 2009 @ 10:42am | Report comment
I guess on the speaking side of things, the camera work and interviewing was probably done by a Wallaby squad member. How do we talk to our mates? Probably a bit differently to how we would speak to a business meeting…
CliffyTahTah said | December 4th 2009 @ 11:53am | Report comment
I think giving them a hard time on the interview techniques is a bit harsh. If I was a 19-23 year old kid (just recieved my first cap in one case) that just got off the pitch where the team buckled Wales, the last thing I will be thinking about is my interview techniques. Its been a long and bloody hard year for them, I dont think they need flak at this stage of the season.
Hoy is right, most of the camera work done on the tour has been filmed by James OC, KB, and Quade Cooper. They try and make it a bit fun for the viewers. Most of their stuff is on the ARU website under Spring tour tv.
anopinion said | December 4th 2009 @ 2:06pm | Report comment
Actually Cliffy I think this is the right part of the season to have them work on anything that may make them better ambassadors for rugby and Australia. They have a couple of months with little rugby. Can you suggest a better time?
Hoy,
How do we talk to our mates? I would think naturally, with out the nervous “you knows”. I think the problem is that they were aware of the camera and struggled with it.
Stash,
Was not concerned with how they acted, rather how they struggled to express their thoughts in a way that might suggest they could be more than just footballers.
We do people no favours by allowing them to struggle with the English language. Ask Nick Farr-Jones if his ability to discuss issues without constant umming, arring or you knowing, has helped him in his life during and after rugby.
I am not suggesting others join me in bagging them, just that the ARU or other concerned groups such as RUPA help them.
CliffyTahTah said | December 4th 2009 @ 3:47pm | Report comment
Maybe before a tour commences? Not at the end where they are now on holidays until Super 14 pre training starts in Jan. As for being ambassadors for the game and Australia, they did that on the field and through sportsmanship, not how they construct a sentance in front of the camera. Nick Farr-Jones was a lot older and was a professional outside of rugby.
I am not disagreeing with you, just think the team, and especially the younger guys, need to be cut a bit of slack.
Stash said | December 4th 2009 @ 12:37pm | Report comment
Fair call Cliffy – If I was 19 and had just beat Wales then I would be acting like an idiot.
Well safe to say that the Wallabies are going to have a better year in 2010… in fact I’ll throw in a lazy 100 if there’s any pessimists out there that think Deans could go worse.
Ryan said | December 4th 2009 @ 2:34pm | Report comment
Great to see the passion and excitement in the change room after the win. I hope they remember how good that felt and how bad it felt to lose to Scotland.
As for Kurtley and his umm, ahhs and you knows. What did the Brothers at Joeys teach him other than footy. As mentioned above I am not having a crack at the kid but the ARU should do right by the young players and help them improve their speaking skills. I am sure Nick Farr-Jones would be more than happy to hold a public speaking session for the ARU.
warrenexpatinnz said | December 4th 2009 @ 2:54pm | Report comment
Really enjoyed the video Hoy, as I don’t get too see much of the after match celebrations as don’t get Fox sports in NZ. Well done to the ‘boys’ and hopefully there will be plenty more celebrations like that to come.
mattamkII said | December 4th 2009 @ 6:48pm | Report comment
I am not a Drew Mitchell fan but he did a couple of good things and put someone over the try line.
mattamkII said | December 4th 2009 @ 7:00pm | Report comment
Might sound a bit gay but did anyone see Pocock with his shirt off? the guy is a monster!
DaniE said | December 5th 2009 @ 12:43am | Report comment
Matta you have just made my day… lol…
AndyS said | December 4th 2009 @ 8:30pm | Report comment
Thanks for that Hoy. Nice for a change to see some genuine responses, rather than everyone picking carefully over their words. Much more humanising and relateable, and would love to see it more often.
Nick said | December 6th 2009 @ 2:25pm | Report comment
GREAT ARTICLE HOY!
Good point about the opportunities lost for the tour, why do they need to have their “backs against the walls” for them to perform, it shows a lack of will. But thank god they did, putting some respect back into the jersey that has had so much taken out of it over the past years since 07 world cup.
ohtani's jacket said | December 6th 2009 @ 7:37pm | Report comment
There was some weird tension between Deans and Giteau in that video.
What’s with this news about Quade Cooper facing a robbery charge?
lcroft said | December 6th 2009 @ 11:04pm | Report comment
from the body language in a couple of recent vidoes (press conferences as well as dressing room) i think giteau looks like he’s having a major dummy spit and there doesn’t appear to be a lot of love lost between him and deans. just read the report about cooper and my first thought is “good grief, is there no end to the ways these guys can torpedo themselves?” even if it doesn’t come to anything, it’s a cloud over his head
nicknelo said | December 7th 2009 @ 10:35am | Report comment
I agree lcroft. “major dummy spit” Deans comes over, lays a hand on him, offers some banta… and what does Giteau do? nothing, just offers a cheeky smile back at the camera, he does not even acknowledge Deans. Giteau shrugs off his terrible performance against Wales as just “one of those things” saying he prepared in the same way he does every game, and just had a bad night. I suspect it may have been more then that, I think it was a big dummy spit, like a child braking all his toys in disgust with not getting his way, maybe because of the threat he faces at being moved to 12.
Parisien said | December 8th 2009 @ 9:10am | Report comment
The Giteau /Deans moment is a picture that tells a thousand words, or in the words of WS, “something is rotten in the state of Denmark”.