A couple of years ago, I was watching a Beldisloe Cup match with my Dad when Mum decided to test out her new blood pressure monitor.
With about 10 minutes to go in the match, she put the machine on my old man’s arm and it started beeping erratically. At the next pause in play we realised that this 63 year old man, who can still run 6 kms in 35 minutes, had just recorded a ‘resting heart rate’ of 167 beats per minute whilst perched on the side of the couch.
In those days he watched rugby with passion.
Watching the Bledisloe on Saturday night, he hardly even raised a sweat. I was concerned that he had lost his will to live.
Robbie Deans has been reported as saying that the Wallabies have lost their passion, too. So I asked the old man, “Why don’t you watch with the same passion anymore?”
He simply stated, “I don’t believe we can win.” At that stage the Wallabies were in the lead. “I’ve got this feeling that in the end, it will just slip away.”
As his coach, I saw it as my role to inspire him to again watch with passion.
I remembered a quote from former Wallaby coach Alan Jones who recently gave the Wallabies a pre-match rev-up. It was reported that he told them what he told all his teams, “We are going to be OK.”
With all the commitment I could gather I said, “Dad, we are going to be OK.”
I was wrong. The match just slipped away. Again.
So now I’m preparing him for the match against England on Saturday.
Robbie Deans, how do I coach him back into form and bring back the passion?
There have been suggestions that we should change the rules of the game to bring back the passion. So I thought I should change our pre-game rituals and watch the match at the pub. But other patrons might distract him and lessen his commitment to the break-down.
Another suggestion was that the Wallabies should have performance pay. But Dad never watched rugby for money in the past. It has always been about being the best.
Then I realised: as coach, I can provide all the things he needs to watch rugby with passion, a big plasma, refreshments, and so on. But at the end of the day, it is up to him.
Dad, if you don’t want to watch rugby with passion anymore, you can pack your bags and move to Japan. There are plenty more where you came from.
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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