There we were, the reptiles of the media at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Coogee, listening to the CEO of the ARU, John O’Neill, outlining what is going to be a classic Wallabies Test series against Wales this June.
But before the Wallabies come into the sights of Wales, they play Scotland at Newcastle on Tuesday June 5.
As O’Neill pointed out, this will be the first rugby Test at Newcastle. As one of the great breeding grounds of Australian rugby (remember Chris McKivat and Phil Hawthorne of blessed memory), the Newcastle region deserves to have this honour. It is about time.
The game will be a sell-out as locals and out of town visitors get their first look, at the ground, of what will be a new-look Wallaby side looking to re-group after the third place performance at the Rugby World Cup 2011 (a good result in my opinion).
This new team are also looking towards the new Rugby Championship tournament with South Africa, Argentina and New Zealand as the reigning, and last, Tri Nations champions.
O’Neill also pointed out that the SFS comes back as a rugby Test ground this season for the first time since 1998. The third Test in the series against Wales will be an afternoon contest at the SFS (which is great news for supporters with families). The second Test is at Melbourne at Etihad Stadium on June 16.
For the first time in the professional era, a northern hemisphere rugby power will play a three-Test series in the June season.
In time I believe the visiting teams for the June Test series will bring out enough players to play mid-week matches. This, in turn, will bring back the tour to the southern hemisphere rugby nations, aside from the British and Irish Lions which tour a SANZAR country every four years.
With a happy and not coincidental sense of timing, John O’Neill’s presentation was book-marked by the announcement of the latest series of ARU Classic Wallabies Statesmen. This program has been in place since 2008 and works by selecting former great players from each of the decades since the 1940s. These giants of Australian rugby hand out jerseys before Tests and generally work in the rugby community spreading the goodwill gospel of the game.
This cohort of Wallabies Statesmen was: 1940s Max Howell (centre 1946 – 1948), 1950s Dick Tooth (flyhalf 1951-1957), 1960s winger Lloyd McDermott (winger and the first Indigenous Australian to play for the Wallabies in 1962), 1970s Tony Shaw (flanker 1973 – 1982), 1980s Brendan Moon (wing 1978 – 1986), 1990s Richard Harry (prop 1996 – 2000), George Gregan (scrumhalf with a record 139 Test caps 1994 – 2007).
Peter Jenkins of the ARU (the author with statistician Matthew Alverez of the definitive ‘Wallaby Gold’ history) interviewed six of the Wallabies Statesmen present. There were nuggets of gold in what they had to say.
Max Howell, who became an academic and a leading historian of Australian rugby, revealed that he was 58kgs when he first represented Australia against New Zealand at the age of 19. The ball-boys now are much bigger than this! On his debut at Dunedin in 1946 he became the first player in Test history to be substituted.
Howell’s top three players, reluctantly offered because of the many, many players he admired over the decades including Geoff Cooke, the burly Queensland second-rower of the 1940s, were Tom Lawton snr, the incomparable Ken Catchpole and Tony Shaw.
Dick Tooth revealed that he was educated at Newcastle Boys High, which was a rugby league school. He played grade league with Clive Churchill. He only started playing rugby when he attended Sydney University as a medical student. He was captain of the Wallabies when he was controversially left out of the 1957/58 team that toured Europe.
My colleague Greg Growden, who has written a number of excellent books on the history of Australian rugby, suggested to me that Tooth had fallen out with the manager and in the age-old rugby tradition the official won out against the player.
While the Wallabies were in the UK, Tooth was in London doing post-graduate medical studies. He performed the first cruciate ligament operation on an athlete and had a sterling career as a sports doctor.
Lloyd McDermott gave up his short but brilliant rugby career to become a leading lawyer. Just as he was the first Indigenous Australian to become a Wallaby, he was as well the first Indigenous barrister in Australia.
McDermott revealed that 20 years ago he was struck by the fact that only five Indigenous Australians had represented in the Wallabies (himself, the three Ella brothers and Lloyd Walker). He realised that Aboriginal families couldn’t get their kids to where rugby was played. So he set up the Lloyd McDermott Foundation to bring rugby and its values to the kids. The Foundation is a great success story. And, as Peter Jenkins pointed out, there were five Indigenous Australians in last year’s Wallabies squad.
Tony Shaw reckoned the highlight of his rugby career was winning the Bledisloe Cup in 1978 and retaining it in 1980. He looked at Robbie Deans who was sitting in the front row and told him in that forthright manner that was such a mark of his rugby, “I don’t want to put too much pressure on you but it’s time we got the Bledisloe Cup back.”
Brendan Moon startled me by being so tall. We tend to think in this era of the professional giants that past players would just be too small to compete against them. But as I said to Greg Growden when Moon took his place at the microphone, “He’s still a big chap.” Moon (who was the Wallaby record try-scorer for 15 years until David Campese smashed his record) said he admired the determination of Digby Ioane to be involved. He also said he believed Dom Shipperley could be the finisher the Wallabies need if he takes his chances.
George Gregan looks so fit and trim that it is amazing he played so many Tests without incurring serious injuries. He said he was pleased that rugby was coming back to the SFS. He made his famous tackle there on Jeff Wilson, in the first night rugby Test in Australia (which, like next week’s Test against Scotland, was played on a Tuesday). He also played in the last Test at the SFS in 1998. In this series the Wallabies defeated the All Blacks 3 – 0 to retain the Bledisloe Cup.
And in a nice rounding out of the memories, Gregan recounted that the Wallaby who made the speech before the final Test in Christchurch was – Tony Shaw, who told them to go and take the game to the All Blacks – which they did so successfully.
After the formal events of the launch of the Classic Wallabies Statesmen cohort of 2012 I wandered out into the weak sunshine. I caught a glimpse of Lloyd McDermott giving a bear-hug to a smiling Saia Faingna’a.
The poignant thought came to me.
Which players in the current squad will be honoured in years to come as Classic Wallabies?
Dublin Dave
Guest
Aw Bollox!! Just announced that O'Connell is out of the tour. Not good news from an Irish point of view.
Ben S
Roar Guru
'Super 15 is not international rugby' Meyer said the same thing this week. That comment doesn't represent a surge of NH confidence.
Ben S
Roar Guru
I'd say there's quite a lot lost replacing Kaino with Vito. Kaino was world class at what he did whereas Vito is a young man still growing into Test rugby. The All Black pack has lost it's two most physical players, and without Mealamu to drag them onto the front foot a lot is going to rest with Read. The way Thorn defended around the fringes of the ruck, the way he hit rucks, the way he scrummaged... You can't just casually blow away the influence of these two players. They defined the physicality of the pack. And as for young players... It's pure speculation that they can make the transition to Test rugby.
aussie werewolf in london
Guest
I'd like to quote an article I read in this months rugby world uk about the upcoming tests. '...Super 15 is not international rugby. It doesn't have the same brutality and intensity.... all the host countries will have to reacquaint their charges with real rugby in an alarmingly short space of time' '... the brevity of the wallabies build up is almost suicidal' The Scottish and the Welsh are coming here 100% certain they are going to win. Interviews with Cuthbert (the 6ft 6 Welsh winger of this years 6 nations) and Hogg (the 19 year old Scottish version of Shane Williams) both rookies categorically stated that they're coming to Australia to win. Indeed if they're so confident (when neither the Irish players or English players seem to give themselves a chance against the AB"s or SA respectively) then they are definitely smelling an opportunity to take advantage of a ludicrous scheduling by O'neill. Mark my words Scotland and Wales are about to cause two massive upsets in the space of a few days and we only have ourselves to blame. Well we have O'neill to blame.
Spencer
Guest
Faingaa x 2. Hodgson. And ??
Banger
Guest
Beale aside, who were the other indigenous players in last years squad? Thats a far acheivement that defintiely deserves more coverage
murph73
Roar Rookie
Max Howell was 58kg??! Mate, he was my headmaster at school and he scared me sh&tless.
KiwiDave
Roar Guru
LMAO! One good thing about dreams is that they are free
Sam
Guest
Great to see Benny Moon get honored. I remember see him burning the opposition university winger on the outside to clinch the 1978 grand final on the bell for brothers.There was a classic photo of Buddha and Tony shaw emerging from the ruck and celebrating what forwards used to expect of their wingers. He was big and strong in the hip, as well as a strong tackler. Shame he broke his arm early in the 1984 grand slam. Campo and he were from different moulds. Both greats though.
Lazy Ted Failyou
Guest
On Bledisloe Cup, my prediction is that sooner or later when rugby union finally get's it act together in Australia and becomes the dominant rugby code New Zealand will become like what New South Wales has become in league.
KiwiDave
Roar Guru
England 2003 should not be compared to All Blacks 2011. Much of the core will still be there. The post WC 2003 England squad was one of the worst English sides for the following four years. I love how many of the people here think the All Blacks are somewhat vulnerable. Lets see. Front row - intact. Locks - 1 new one here. Whitelock is good to go and Retallick while no Brad Thorn can offer up a bit. Loosies - McCaw, Read still there. Possibly a Vito. Hardly anything lost replacing Kaino with Vito. Thats the Engine Room. Not much difference there Backs could see a new halfback. This is a big plus. Weepu and Ellis are awful. First five - Carter still. Centres - Nonu and Smith. Wings - Kahui and Jane out. Savea, Guildford, Gear or even SBW could find themselves on the wing. Lose a little bit here but not enough to be a hinderance. Fullback Dagg - no loss there. And the bench will see a whole host of new exciting talent. A bunch of highly promising 20-24yo's hungry to break into the All Blacks. Vulnerable???? I don't think so. The sheer amount of talent that has come through the 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 Under 20 world cup winning sides is immense. As great as the All Blacks have been the last 8 years, I think there is even greater heights for them to reach. Haven't seen the sheer amount of talented youngsters in the NZ rugby ranks in years.
Tock
Guest
Thankyou Spiro for an enjoyable interlude. I would point those of you that haven’t read the article by Uncle Argyle in the ROAR opinions (http://www.theroar.com.au/2012/05/09/is-newcastle-a-rugby-union-town/) which outlines the strong history of Newcastle Rugby. I am really looking forward to a home test after years of travelling to Sydney to be ripped of at the various grounds for food , drink etc, at least I’ll be being ripped off at home. Seriously, NSW and Australian Rugby dropped the ball in Newcastle during the super league wars when the Wildfires were dropped from the Sydney premiership. That said its time to look forward and encourage those same administrations not to repeat those errors, keep the big games coming, I know the Newcastle rugby community will keep turning up if they do.
HardcorePrawn
Guest
You're right KOTG, The Welsh are playing the Brumbies on June 12th, in what should be an entertaining match-up.
LeftArmSpinner
Roar Guru
spiro, a masterful article and even better close.................... Hmmmmm, there are some players in the current squad who could be great. Moore, Pocock, Genia, Cooper, Higginbotham as well as the injured brethren of Beale and Horwill. But, whether they will is the other question. there are more chances to observe them, and hence more bad games to downgrade them on, but they often leave for the overseas cash well before the greatness has been bestowed. In Gregan's case, he left too late. But he was around for a long time, and i think this does define the legacy. Elsom, once dominant and a tower of strength, walked his own path, from school rugby to NRL through to the Tahs, and Irish sojourn, the Brumbies and now back at the tahs. lest we forget that he was so good that they allowed him the sojourn and he came back with an enormous reputation enhanced............as a massive ball carrier. maybe it is not yet all over. I look forward to seeing him marauding in Shute Shield. i think that these days, trophies define the very best players.
Shungmao
Guest
Like it Spiro, I hope some of the names fellow roarers mentioned come to fruition. Where would we be without the footy!
HardcorePrawn
Guest
Indeed, the Welsh are not alone in playing a 3 test series in June; as well as the Irish in New Zealand, England will also be playing 3 Tests in South Africa.
Johnno
Guest
Handles i flow over for the Manilla 10s to it was a lot of fun.
Handles
Guest
I had the pleasure of meeting the Lloyd McDermott Development Squad players in Manila this year, and watching them play in the Manila 10s. A wonderful bunch of young men, and some great, great players. Despite having just a few real forwards, they made the final, beating some impressive and highly fancied all-star teams on the way. Some future Wallabies in there, I hope. Incredible tacklers, and quite a few players who had JOC level footwork. I still live in hope that Quade can become a classic Wallaby, because I love watching him play, and I really don't want to spend the next 7 years defending him in pubs and bars! The redemption of steering Australia to 2015 RWC victory will be a great part of the story, after his personal disaster in 2011. Genia has the sort of headstart that is required to become a classic, if he can find consistency and a regular partner at 10, then he is the best bet, in my view. 12 months ago, I would have said Pocock was on his way to being a world's best classic Wallaby, but he may not even be the best 7 in the country in a year's time.
JottingsOnRugby.com
Roar Pro
Excellent post Spiro. Glad to see Max Howell is still going well. Few would know but Max also contributed plenty to the development of rugby in California & Canada. He is also in the University of British Columbia's Sports Hall of Fame http://www.ubcsportshalloffame.com/cgi-bin/search.cgi?person_id=83&searchall=1
Dublin Dave
Guest
Ferris is indeed out but Paul O'Connell is still hopeful. Much more worrying from an Irish viewpoint is that prop Mike Ross will almost certainly miss the first test. We can replace O'Connell with some adequacy. Not so our front row. Even when Rickard Strauss "evolves" into an Irishman later this year. Still hopeful of one win. As always :)