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Jake Gordon might become the best PR the ARU can bank at the moment.
The Waratahs halfback starts just his third Super Rugby game tonight, but it’s not too far-fetched to suggest he’s put himself in the frame for a Wallabies jersey as early as June.
While Gordon has been pretty impressive in a disjointed Waratahs side, his Wallabies stocks have been enhanced by the slide of his Australian rivals for the No.9 jersey. He’s jumped over the top of 52-Test Nick Phipps at the Tahs, Nick Frisby is out of favour at Ballymore, Nic Stirzaker can’t raise the Rebels and in-form Western Force scrum-half Ryan Louwrens is sidelined for the season after busting his knee last Friday night.
Perhaps Paris-based Will Genia will still get the nod – he’s only 29, super fit and was again one of the Wallabies’ best in a dismal international campaign last year. He’s been typically slick in a below-par Stade Francais side, but he’s also struggled with a knee injury recently.
However, Michael Cheika might take advantage of the relatively weak international oppostion for the June Tests – Fiji, Scotland and Italy – to throw in a rookie at halfback with an eye to the future.
Joe Powell at the Brumbies is probably in pole position to grab a spot in a match-day Wallabies squad given Cheika last season showed he was a fan by calling him up for an extended training camp. In fact, Cheika is hosting a get-together of Wallabies probables and possibles in Canberra this weekend, with Phipps and Powell reportedly attending but Gordon and Frisby not required.
Powell is getting a start only because Argentinian Tomas Cubelli stuffed his knee in the pre-season, and perhaps his biggest ally will be his coach at the Brumbies, Stephen Larkham, who is also the Wallabies’ backs coach.
But 23-year-old Gordon will get his best chance yet to show he’s got the class to match it with the best when tonight he takes on the hottest halfback in Super Rugby over the first six rounds – TJ Perenara.
He does it all for the Hurricanes. His passing is immaculate, his kicking precise, he’s a wily defender and he can embarrass defenders – and referees – just as easily. Perenara is heaping pressure on Aaron Smith to snatch away his No.9 All Blacks jersey.
If Gordon can put in a solid 60-minute shift in Wellington he’ll lay the base to further his Wallabies case leading into the June 10 Test against Fiji in Canberra. Following the ‘Canes, the Waratahs will hammer the Southern Kings and then take the bye. The next five games will be defining. The Reds – and probably a clash with Frisby – are next followed by the Blues and then another bye. The Melbourne Rebels provide another chance to outshine another Wallabies aspirant, Stirzaker, and then two brutal away tests await: the Highlanders and Chiefs.
In his early outings, Gordon has looked cool and assured. He reminds me a bit of former Sharks and Springboks halfback Ruan Pienaar, a tall and strong presence at the scrumbase with a reliable kicking game and an excellent support player. His timing to hit the midfield gap against the Crusaders last Sunday and power between two defenders to score was eye-catching.
Also in his favour is his combination with one of the first picked for the Wallabies, Bernard Foley, which has the chance to blossom over the next nine weeks.
Beseiged ARU boss Bill Pulver certainly won’t be pinning all his hopes on Gordon rising to a Wallabies jersey but he sorely needs a good news story.
Under-performing Australian Super Rugby franchises, speculation over the probable axing of one of those franchises, conjecture over falling participation numbers, ongoing financial struggles, falling crowds, Bob Dwyer calling for his resignation – Pulver has copped the blame for plenty of the recent woes affecting Australian rugby.
Gordon is a top graduate of the National Rugby Championship, which Pulver pushed so passionately as a breeding ground for future Wallabies. Last season, he played a huge role in sparking the NSW Country Eagles to the grand final following two years with the Sydney Stars.
He was the joint leading try-scorer in 2016 with nine and was named the NRC Players’ Player.
He played his junior rugby with Canterbury and pushed onto the Shute Shield with Sydney University.
He’s one that’s moved along the so-called pathways the ARU – and every other sporting organisation – sets for those aspiring to go all the way to the top of their sport.
Reece Hodge, Samu Kerevi, Tom Robertson and Sefa Naivalu have trodden similar paths and Reds pair – centre Duncan Paia’aua and backrower Adam Korczyk – are on Cheika’s radar.
Gordon might not be the one that ignites the Wallabies to break the Bledisloe drought or the Nick Farr-Jones type that leads the Wallabies to World Cup glory in 2019. Of course it’s early. Time will tell.
But Pulver and the ARU will be keen to celebrate any such graduation – any little win – in a fairly gloomy period for rugby union in Australia.