- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
Wallabies playmaker Berrick Barnes has fired the first psychological shot to trigger another week of inevitable mind games before Sunday night’s Rugby World Cup semi-final showstopper against the All Blacks in Auckland.
Not even more injury concerns for both camps could remove the spectre of Australia’s well-documented, 25-year, Eden Park hoodoo.
But the straight-shooting Barnes needed just nine words to remind edgy New Zealanders that the All Blacks had demons of their own to bury before they could start thinking about lifting the Webb Ellis Cup for the first time in 24 years.
“They’re worried about us come World Cup time too,” Barnes said.
Australia have never lost to New Zealand at the quadrennial tournament and famously sent the All Blacks packing with semi-final muggings in 1991 and 2003.
“There’s Aussie hoodoos left, right and centre here and 80 minutes at Eden Park come next Sunday,” Barnes said.
Having long-time sparring partners Robbie Deans and Graham Henry in the two coaches’ boxes only adds to the spice of the occasion.
Both will be desperate for their teams to advance after being in the All Blacks’ corner for New Zealand’s premature exits from the past two tournaments.
Henry presided over the All Blacks’ worst campaign ever in 2007 while countryman Deans was assistant to John Mitchell when Stirling Mortlock’s long-range intercept try inspired Australia to their semi-final upset in `03.
Now Deans is plotting New Zealand’s demise and insists the Wallabies’ quarter-of-a-century drought at the All Blacks’ Auckland fortress counts for nothing.
“Well, it’s the first occasion we’ve played them in a semi-final of a World Cup at Eden Park, so there’s no history,” he said.
“We’re hugely excited. It’s fantastic. We know each other well as teams. There’s a huge amount of history; there’s no more history than between the Wallabies and the All Blacks – and there’s a lot of history at World Cup time as well.”
In what should please the Australians, South African referee Craig Joubert, rewarded for his work in charge of the free-flowing Wales-Ireland quarter-final, has been appointed to control the blockbuster.
Henry, a former school headmaster, knows only too well that such history favours Australia, despite top-ranked New Zealand having been perennial favourites since winning the inaugural Rugby World Cup in 1987.
The All Blacks’ inability since is perhaps why Henry won’t be stressing his 2011 hopefuls out about the magnitude of Sunday’s Tri Nations final encore.
“It’s important that it’s done systematically and gradually and we build again for Sunday’s game,” he said.
Henry suspects the semi-final will be a different style of contest than when the Wallabies defeated the All Blacks 25-20 in their most recent meeting in Brisbane in August.
“Australia are a very good rugby side. They have some very talented players, they play real well,” he said.
“I think the nature of rugby changes a wee bit in finals football when the result is you can ‘die’ if you lose and that probably makes both sides a wee bit more conservative in the game they play.
“So they don’t chance their arm as much as they normally would do.
“Like the South African situation at the weekend, where they turned the ball over under their sticks and Australia scored a try there – you just try to avoid those situations which can result in winning or losing.
“So I think it will be a pretty careful approach on Sunday.”
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.