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Let’s not get too down in the dumps about the Bledisloe Cup. Yes, it’s gone for another year, and yes, it is definitely possible we will all be dead before we see it return.
And yes, life in general is a relentless nightmare of bleak despair and demolished dreams that leaves us no escape but to sit and weep in the rubble of what we once called hope.
But even taking all that into account, nil desperandum!
The Wallabies, after all, were not that bad.
Admittedly, their defence was shaky. And their attack was error-ridden. Yes, the scrum was weak and the lineout prone to failure at the most crucial time. And granted, turnovers at the ruck were plentiful and the mauling left much to be desired. But those are just generalities.
Let’s look at the team piece by piece. Yes, the tight five let the team down, and the back row was slow and unable to make any impression on the All Black defence. True, the halves seemed sluggish and bereft of ideas. And sure, I accept that the back three was constantly caught out of position, and we cannot deny that both inside and outside centre looked way out of their depth.
But leaving all that aside, there are many positives to be taken from the Wallabies’ performance. And really there’s no point dwelling on the negatives, is there? No one ever got anywhere by wallowing in negativity.
Did Germany dwell on the negatives after going down in a nailbiter in World War I? No, they dusted themselves off and got straight back into it. Did Canberra obsess over the downside after going down 12-2 at halftime in the 1989 grand final? Did Jessica Watson let herself brood after going 16 years not sailing solo around the world?
No. All these great sporting heroes looked at the positives, the greatest one of which is, of course, the fact that when you’ve been belted, the only way is up.
The Wallabies need to consider that. They need to think to themselves: is it really possible to play worse than we did in Bledisloe 2? Answer: of course it is, but only if they fall victim to microscopic parasites destroying their central nervous system, and even then it’ll be 50-50. It’s entirely possible the entire team could be decapitated by a sponsor’s awning on their way to the ground, and still play better than they did at Eden Park.
So the capacity for improvement is a definite positive to focus on. But it’s not the only one.
Appearance
The Wallabies, even in the throes of defeat, looked great. Much better than the All Blacks, with their big ugly faces, unkempt hairstyles and unappealing jersey number font.
No All Black can match the perfectly-styled fringe of Israel Folau, or the flowing golden tresses of Michael Hooper or Rob Horne. The New Zealand front row may have crushed the Australian like a Christmas beetle beneath a cartoon anvil, but our front three are much handsomer.
Fair play
The Wallabies at all times abided not only by the rules, but the spirit of the game. Not for them the cynical testing of referee patience of Richie McCaw and friends. Not for them the gaining of unfair advantage. Not for them such underhanded tactics as entering the ruck from the side, or playing the ball while on the ground, or competing for possession, or making tackles on opposition players, or holding the ball for more than five seconds.
They played the game in a purer fashion, and so won a moral victory.
Diversity
The All Blacks are a monoculture. All their players on Saturday night were selected from the same sector of society: professional rugby players. On the other hand the Wallabies embraced the rich multicultural fabric of our nation by choosing not only professional sportsmen but also underprivileged schoolchildren, prescription drug addicts, and career circus clowns to don the gold jersey.
It may have not led to victory on the scoreboard, but in community outreach we are strong indeed.
Humility
The All Blacks are pretty up themselves. The Wallabies definitely aren’t. Not anymore.
Player called ‘Kurtley’
New Zealand has virtually none, but on Saturday night, the Australian team contained almost one. We showed them.
Natural beauty
Australia has many sites of natural beauty such as the Great Barrier Reef, Uluru and Phil Kearns.
So let us not get too upset. If they concentrate on the positives, and look to play to these strengths next time, I have every confidence that the Wallabies can pull off a memorable victory in Bledisloe 3, a victory that will go down in the annals of history as one of the greatest hollow triumphs that ever caused a group of fans to cry on the inside over what might have been.