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The young Wallabies side were given gold medals after their 18-11 victory at Wembley against arguably the strongest Barbarians side put out against an international side since the series started in 1948 (with Nick Shehadie playing for the BaaBaas).
That 1948 match was scheduled to ensure that the Wallabies had some money to pay for their home trip back through the United States and Canada. Sixty years later, the match was a celebration of the generally unknown (unfortunately) achievement of the first Wallabies in winning an Olympic gold medal for rugby at the 1908 London Games.
The Barbarians, who were essentially a combination of Springboks and All Blacks, with a handful of other stars like Shane Williams, wore black sox with gold tops, the colours of the Cornwall side that represented England in the 1908 match.
Rodney Blake played strongly in the Barbarians scrum and he now looks to be ready to join the Wallaby front row with effect and impact when his European schooling is over.
The Barbarians gave up a chance to kick an easy penalty from right in front in the opening minutes of the match. But after being belted with ferocious and accurate tackling on every part of the field and unable to find a way to the tryline, despite a glut of possession, they then opted to kick for goal.
This rejection of the traditional Barbarian ethic was an indication that the all-stars really wanted to win the match, and that they realised that this would not happen by tries alone.
Against the all-star Barbarians playing determined rugby, Robbie Deans placed his trust in a team of youngsters that was bolstered by a couple of veterans, George Smith – a dominating player on the day – and Lote Tuqiri, who tackled and covered strongly.
I had three thoughts as I watched the young Wallabies defend ferociously and then turn the Barbarian mistakes into Wallaby breakouts that resulted in two match-winning tries.
First, Deans has maintained the trick he pulled off at the Crusaders of finding plenty of young talent, and then selecting and coaching them so skilfully that they grow as players capable of rising to the biggest challenge.
The 1908 Wallabies had a prodigy of a player in the 19 year-old Dan Carroll, a speedy winger, who scored two tries in the Olympic final, and ultimately played for and coached the winning USA rugby side in the Olympics of 1912 and 1920.
Carroll’s equivalent is surely James O’Connor, another 19 year-old Wallaby on debut, and like Carroll, destined to be a Wallaby great.
Until he tired and started making mistakes, O’Connor was sensational. His positional play at fullback was accurate. His stepping and running and passing were brilliant.
After the Hong Kong Sevens, I wrote a piece for The Roar about O’Connor suggesting that “a star is born.”
He can play in virtually every position of the backline (brilliantly) and kick goals, rather like Daniel Carter, another Deans discovery.
But other youngsters, like Quade Cooper and David Pocock, showed that they are now genuine long-term Test prospects.
Cooper, particularly, was a revelation from the headless-chook player who seemed out of his depth for the Queensland Reds.
The pack, too, aside from a shambles of a scrum that saw both props being severely injured, was sound at lineout time, ferocious in defence, and very fast to the ball and with the ball.
The way defence was made a smashing offensive weapon with players hurtling into rucks and mauls and the smart exploitation of turnover ball brings me to the second point: Deans has finally got a Wallaby side to play with the “play what is in front of you” skills of his famed Crusaders side.
He has been unable to achieve this with his senior Wallabies side. Perhaps it’s a case of old dogs resisting being taught new tricks and the young pups embracing change.
Which brings me to the third point: the young team that played so splendidly and resiliently against the best of the rest of the world’s rugby talent is the team that will, essentially, be the Wallabies going for gold in the 2011 RWC.
It may be that the gold medal the youngsters won at Wembley is not the last gold medal they are going to win at rugby.