Twenty-five years after Andrew Slack went down in history as the first man to lead the Wallabies to rugby’s grand slam, he gravely doubts Australia will do it again.
And he’s scared to think what effect failure might have on local support for the embattled code.
The highly-respected Slack is ever hopeful Robbie Deans’ men can this month emulate his 1984 tourists but the realist in him believes success over England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales is too big an ask for a young squad with six Test losses from their last seven.
Not to mention deflating injuries to key men Berrick Barnes and Nathan Sharpe, and the extra difficulty in playing the Home Nations in their cold, damp backyards over four successive weekends.
“I think it would be a momentous achievement,” Slack told AAP on Friday. “I’m just not sure we’re as advanced as we’d like to be in terms of the personnel.
“We can do it, (but) everything will have to fall into place, they would have to have a bit of luck, and there are a few injuries.
“So can they do it? Yes. Do I think they can do it? Probably not.”
History ensures motivation is high for Deans’ team.
And there’s the desperate need for a salve to soothe the 15-man game’s current woes in Australia .
Slack, who gained the Wallabies captaincy from Mark Ella before his United Kingdom tour, has no hesitations in rating the 2009 Slam attempt as more crucial to the game than 1984.
Even though the Alan Jones-coached side finally won respect for Australian rugby and entertained the world with their brilliant backline play, the 39-Test centre said they had little to lose 25 years ago.
Today, it’s much different, with AFL, league and soccer whittling away at the ranks of rugby’s true believers.
“Rugby had its niche there and you had support and a solid core and it didn’t matter what you served up to a degree but there was a great amount of loyalty among the rugby followers,” said Slack.
“Now people are a lot more choosy.
“From that point of view they need to play entertaining rugby and win early so there is a groundswell of interest to see if they can emulate it.
“But it’s definitely a more important time for rugby than it was in `84. Whatever happened in `84 we still would have had support for years following.
“Exactly how much rugby will have next year in Australia if it’s a flop, I’m nervous to think about.”
The astute Slack, a former Test selector before coaching Queensland in 2003, rates Ireland the Wallabies’ biggest danger, ahead of Wales, but is adamant the most important clash will be the first – England at Twickenham on Sunday morning (AEDT).
“Just interest in rugby and giving it a bit of a boost I think it’s completely vital because if someone pricks the balloon on game one from a grand slam potential it will lose a fair bit of interest on a spectator point of view,” he said.
While the English team is almost unrecognisable to the one which upset Australia at the 2007 World Cup, Wallabies sides traditionally find it difficult to quickly adapt to northern pitches and the slogging British forward game.
Slack’s team certainly had their wobbles at Twickenham before triumphing 19-3.
“Even in that match we struggled in the first half and got into a bit of rhythm in the second half and we had had three or four lead-up games,” he recalled.
“These guys have two lead-up games but not much rugby prior so it will be hard to hit the ground running with new combinations and stuff and all that’s going to be difficult for them.”
Slack, often a critic of the talented yet erratic Quade Cooper who will play inside centre, believes Deans has named his best possible backline to meet England with the destructive Digby Ioane in his old No.13 jersey and Adam Ashley-Cooper at fullback.
But it’s the pack which decides results in Europe, and he sees the lineout, not the scrum, as the biggest concern.
“The front-row and the back-row we talk a lot about but the real iron stuff is on what’s in the middle of that – (James) Horwill and (Mark) Chisholm,” Slack said of the second-row. “They are going to be vital.
“I’m not sure either of them will be thrilled with their consistency of performance so far (this year) and they will have to do that over the next month.
“I really think that is the key area for Australia.”
And the chances of Ella’s amazing try-a-game feat being repeated?
“It’s highly unlikely,” he said.
“It was highly unlikely then and it’s less likely for a five-eighth to do it now, as good a player as Matt Giteau is.”
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.
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