- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
No one can question the commitment and passion of Michael Cheika; a coach who stood up in a time of need and answered the cries from the ARU to help pioneer an optimistic post-Ewen McKenzie era.
The results weren’t really there on the spring tour in 2014 but most people would agree that both Cheika and the Wallabies could be forgiven for a relatively unsuccessful campaign given the obvious issues both parties faced in the lead up.
The immediate pressure Cheika faced was immense. Not only did he need to find a way to reignite the Wallabies, but the decision to juggle that position with his highly successful role as head coach of the Waratahs, meant that a difficult task was made even more so.
But Cheika and the Wallabies found a way to re-group, build identity and just like 2011 they beat the All Blacks to claim the Rugby Championship. They convinced not just Australia, but the entire rugby world that our Wallabies were a worthy team; win or lose, that we could be proud of.
Cheika had effectively done his job: reform the culture, build the gameplan and forge the identity. No fair minded person could say otherwise. Cheika had inherited a basket case.
2015 was seen a revolutionary year for rugby in this country, and rightly so. The Wallabies had topped a tough pool, found a way to make a world cup final, and were by no means disgraced by the mighty All Blacks in the final. Optimism for future success, especially the prospect of a well overdue Bledisloe triumph, were rightfully entering the minds of the previous more cautious and even pessimistic rugby community.
Now, I think it’s clearly wise to reserve judgement of the Wallabies until after the conclusion of the entire Rugby Championship. Who knows, they mind find something next weekend and keep our dying Bledisloe hopes alive.
But here lies the main thesis of this article. I thought it was worth exploring a level of admiration for Michael Cheika. For the reasons I explained earlier he had done an excellent job and had answered his nation’s call.
But that doesn’t mean I agreed with his appointment at the time. On the contrary, I believed this was a perfect opportunity to bring in a highly skilled and experienced head coach from overseas. It’s admirable that we have a preference for an Australian to coach our national team, but if the pool isn’t there, what other choice do we have?
The main issue for me with the appointment of Michael Cheika, was that it seemed like a rushed decision that involved a fair amount of panic as well as a stubbornness to not even entertain the idea that it would be a wise time to bring in someone reputable from overseas.
There seemed to be a kind of falsehood that a coach who maybe wouldn’t entirely adopt the ‘Australian’ way of playing rugby would lead to a backlash with disillusioned fans. I don’t believe this to be true. On the contrary, a coach who would ultimately adopt a more balanced and conservative game plan, as long as it lead to more consistent performances, wouldn’t affect the attitude of the Australian rugby public.
My preference at the time of the coaching transition, would have been to bring in Jake White. Like him or not, this is a coach who knows how to work with strengths and weaknesses of his personnel. Furthermore, White was desperate for the job by all reports and was outraged he’d missed out to Ewen before that.
This would have let Michael Cheika go back to the Super Rugby in order to keep building his case to potentially one day become the unbackakble and logical choice to coach the Wallabies when the time was right to do so.
The premature appointment of Cheika has actually done him a major disservice. It has denied him the opportunity to properly fine tune his game plan at a lower level to help him build a case for higher honours at a later time. If for instance the Waratahs had gone on to form an impressive dynasty, or been of great service in some other capacity, then Cheika becomes a serious contender for the Wallabies when the time is called for.
I actually felt the same when Ewen McKenzie was appointed. And although I ended up having immense sympathy for the way everything turned out for him, I wasn’t sure on what basis he had earned the right to coach the Wallabies. A Super Rugby title in 2011 was not what he was coming off the year he was appointed, and like Cheika was actually having a hard time at that level in the same season of his appointment.
And yet, those two coaches were the one’s handed the keys to our national teams. I’m not saying it’s entirely a bad thing, but I would call for thought process and competition on that highly crucial decision.
It might be argued that there is no other basis to measure coaching suitability other than Super Rugby success, but we only have to look across to New Zealand to see that this isn’t true. The way they constantly groom and succeed quality coaches who are completely dedicated to the national program is something that should be advocated here. In fact, there are so many things that we could learn from New Zealand it’s hard to know where to start.
There’s no doubt that Michael Cheika is up to it as a leader and as a man with much integrity, passion and heart, but I just feel as if the horrors of our recent performances are in fact a symptom of his weakness in thinking, tactics and gameplan.
These things would’ve either been found out or improved upon with further seasoning of his experience with the Waratahs if he’d been given an opportunity to do so. I’m not saying that Cheika should’ve been aware of this either, rather that it required wiser decision making and thinking by those in charge to enable this preferable scenario to take place.
In saying all this, I’m certainly not calling for heads to roll but as we’ve seen on so many occasions before, the Wallabies are going backwards. I fear that this is a symptom of the points I’ve tried to raise.
In a similar way to Ewen McKenzie, Cheika has been asked to step up to something that he has not yet learnt to master. He may well have success, and I truly hope he does at some point, but if it continues to derail you can’t help but think what might have been had his impending suitably been more wisely handled.
The Cheika appointment wasn’t wrong, but more so a mistake. So think of this article as a potential reflection on the scenario more so than a direct criticism of Michael Cheika.
I do think he can turn it around, but it would have been preferable if he was allowed to obtain that wisdom at Super Rugby level first. Hopefully he can sort it out before another tough call is made.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.