Wallabies coach Robbie Deans says starting well in the inaugural Rugby Championship is a big priority as he contemplates back-to-back games against the world champion All Blacks.
Australia host New Zealand in Sydney on August 18 on the opening weekend of the four-team tournament and face the All Blacks again in Auckland seven days later.
Should they lose both games, not only would the Wallabies’ decade-long Bledisloe Cup drought be extended but their quest for the Rugby Championship crown would be on life support.
The Wallabies enter the tournament as the last Tri-Nations champions, but remain ranked second in the world behind the All Blacks.
Deans was adamant New Zealand’s World Cup win last year would not be an excuse for Australia to settle for second spot.
“There’s no wriggle room. You enter every game to win it,” said Deans on Monday at the announcement of his first train-on squad for the Championship.
“We’re starting in the deep end and two fixtures back to back against the All Blacks.
“That’s going to be a big priority for us, starting well.
“There’s no such thing as an average All Blacks side, they always put out a good team.”
Deans said the June Tests gave a good indication of what to expect from the 2012 All Blacks under new coach Steve Hansen.
Ireland went desperately close to securing a first ever win over the All Blacks in their second Test but copped a belting as the Kiwis responded in the third match and swept their three-Test series.
“The Irish got close to them and had a great opportunity in the third outing to show how close they were, or possibly get a result, and they got the message that the All Blacks not only consider themselves to be No.1 but are No.1,” said Deans.
Deans’s 27-man train-on squad comprises players from all Australian Super Rugby franchises except the Queensland Reds who are involved in the finals series beginning this week.
It includes 13 players from the disappointing NSW Waratahs who lost their last eight games and finished 11th, including Test wingers Drew Mitchell and Lachie Turner, both of whom missed a big chunk of the Super Rugby campaign through injury.
Uncapped players named included Western Force winger Nick Cummins, Melbourne Rebels centre Mitch Inman and Waratahs prop Paddy Ryan.
“It’s about how we can bring our playing group together and fit them to roles that suit them,” Deans said.
Force lock Nathan Sharpe, who deferred his retirement form international rugby to play in the Championship, was rested from the train-on squad’s July 24-26 training camp.
Among the injured players not considered were star back James O’Connor who Deans expected to miss the first two Tests.
tony
Guest
but am looking fwd to the Bledisloe games
tony
Guest
Jeznez..oops looks like I have touched a raw nerve. ..as i said just an opinion and like most Kiwis I am a humble guy
jeznez
Roar Guru
Thanks Tony, are you a humble kiwi helping correct the thinking of us arrogant Aussies? How good of you to pop in and tell us what is going to happen when we discuss what our team need to do in order to be competitive.
tony
Guest
Worlds Biggest... cant find the story but in a recent article I think on Rugby Heaven George Gregan was inferring that the Wallabies could prob win in Sydney then take the cup 2-0 in Auckland..on this thread people have been postulating what the Wallabies need to do to win. Im just saying that I dont think it will happen looking at the strengths of both teams.
Worlds biggest
Guest
Tony, who said the Wallabies had any edge over the AB's. Otherwise your stating the obvious, even the most optimistic wallaby supporter will concede the trophy is staying across the creek.
jeznez
Roar Guru
Apologies, I had inferred from your downplaying the importance of the set piece and constant promotion that 7 is the most important player that you didn't think tight fives were that important in the modern game. I will say that your clarified position of Reds with all players on deck becomes a different kettle of fish. I quite rate Gill and would say that the Reds with all players fit and firing (even without Pocock) are a hard team to beat, you may have noticed that the squad is quite similar today to the team that won last years title. (Note that is a long way from basically unbeatable)
whats so hard to understand that having the only two australian world xv players would give a s side a huge advantage? its a team game so even though some positions are more important you still need decent players in most positions. If Poock played for the reds with genia i would suggest they'd just about be unbeatable yes (i did not say invincible: that is the absolutisim that you seem to try and instill in my comments) becaue the others would need only to hold their own. but thats a red side with all there wallabies including cooper okay? you start taking players out of any side and they become more vulnerable. how is that not a given. and if you read my articles you'll know i've never said a tight five is not important. your super imposing your own take here. the tight five at set piece is not as important as it once was. that doesn't make it NOT important. I've never said that. stop inferring that what i've said.
tony
Guest
Wallabies v AB's Bledisloe Cup ...for the life of me cant see anywhere where the Wallabies have an edge over the AB's when you look at all positions man for man except perhaps Genia and that margin is closing with the likes of Smith and Perenara. The intensity, speed and variation in attack in the the AB's v Ireland tests was light years ahead of the Wallabies v Wales tests which I thought were very slow and stodgy. Just my opinion . Sorry guys but for me the Bledisloe stays on this side of the Tasman again. Bring on Quade :)
jeznez
Roar Guru
Wolfie - just read a couple of posts above. You stated: "if Genia and Pocock played for the ........ reds ......they’d be basically unbeatable." Since Genia does play for the Reds the only thing missing from your "unbeatable" Reds team is that they have Gill rather than Pocock. Your last post above acknowledging the importance of Cooper and the tightfive gels completely with my thinking. You have repeatedly stated that you believe 7 and 9 are the most important players in the modern game - and backed it up with hypothetical statements delivered as fact that Genia and Pocock would make certain teams invincible. I tend to think that 3 and 10 remain the cornerstones of a great team. (not sure where you get 8 as one of the two most important players from). The absolutist comment of "unbeatable" comes from you - it just doesn't then match with the sensible comments you've been making about some of the other vulnerabilities/frailties of this Reds team which are spot on.
stainlesssteve
Guest
thankyou mania and justsaying, i stand corrected.
soapit
Guest
only 5 tries in three games. i think more will be required against nz and sa (more spark to achieve that same figure even)
soapit
Guest
and its not like there's not a lot of options for fun over there.
mania
Guest
yes stainlesssteve , they were called the canter-blacks then. yes they dumped many veterans that werent from canterbury, most noticeably chrsitianCullen and jeffWilson and canterburies own son andrewMehrtens. back then deans persisted with carlosSpencer just as he's doing with quade now. they didnt however lose 5 in a row, that was during johnHarts reign as the worst ever losing streak in AB's history.
justsaying
Guest
Um, Mitchell and Deans only lost 4 matches in their entire tenure with the ABs, so I'm not sure where "lost about five in a row" comes from. The "flat back line" was introduced by Wayne Smith and Graham Henry in 2004, and is still shredding opposition defences around the world. Overall Mitchell and Deans' coaching record was extremely successful - their downfall was their bizarre attitude to the media and a "key loss" in November 2003...
you're not listening. I haven't mentioned Gill. he is not in the spine. because Qld have a decent nbut not good tight five and a an average full back they need both cooper and genia to make up for that. Genia can't do it all on his own. Gill is no Pocock mate. He and Schatz do a great job as flankers for the reds but the rest of their forwards are only fine players nothing more and they are made to look better than they are having such fantastic half backs. basically JN what you are doing is taking my point and putting your own simplistic absolutistic take on it. If i've ever said that Poccok and Genia could orchestrate wins against the all balcks even if they ran out with the randwick 3rd grade side i apologise. I don't think i've said that though. I think i've made the point that 9 and 7 are the modern day 10 and 8 in terms of importance (i'm certainly not the only one to throw that idea around here in the UK) and that they need only have decent players around them to influence games.
jeznez
Roar Guru
so has your position changed? Or would they be ok if they had Pocock - is it only because they have Gill rather than Pocock that they need Quade?
murph73
Roar Rookie
+1
SamClench
Roar Pro
Don't be surprised if we see a similar scenario to the second and third tests against Ireland play out. Wallabies could win in Sydney with the home advantage, then get hit by a blacklash seven days later at Eden Park. Certainly wouldn't be the first time.
Its bot all about tries, if you outscore your opponent by two tries to one, more often than not you will still win.
Adam-15
Roar Pro
you didnt answer my question