This feature article comes from a night where I was embedded with the Brumbies coaches through the lead-up and during the tour match last month between the Brumbies and the British and Irish Lions.

It was a wonderful experience, both as a writer and a rugby fan, and was first published in the July issue of PLAY Canberra magazine. I was thrilled The Roar wanted to republish it here today:

The first thing that strikes you is the calmness. For the average Brumbies fan watching from their Canberra Stadium seats, or from the couch at home, game time is rarely the time for calm rationality and clarity of comment and observation.

In the heat of battle, with the British and Irish Lions looking to finish fast over the top of the Brumbies, White remains calm up in the coaches’ box. Save for the odd exclamation for his team to “play, play, PLAY!” the discussion between White and his assistant coach, Laurie Fisher, is measured and cool.

And that’s obviously the difference between the fan and the Head Coach.

None of the screaming at the play that happens in the seats below, or at the televisions at home. Rather, just rational thinking about how to maintain the upper hand, and clarity in moving his human chess pieces around the 25,000-seat board. It’s engrossing to watch from close quarters.

For the Brumbies’ tour match against the Lions last month, I was granted an absolute exclusive. For the first time in his professional coaching career, a resume that includes junior and senior Rugby World Cups and Tri-Nations titles, Jake White allowed a writer or journalist to shadow him on match day.

To have witnessed what I witnessed on the day before, and on the night of the Brumbies’ historic 14-12 victory over the tourists, was both enlightening and exhilarating, and will almost certainly remain a highlight of my sports writing career.

You just don’t get opportunities like this every day, and it was an absolute privilege, both as a writer and as a rugby fan, to write this story as the first person to be able to have done so.

Monday: The captain’s run
Anyone who’s been to a captain’s run will know the session is really just there as one last opportunity for the captain to see that everyone in the side is comfortable in their patterns and positions, and to see everyone is ready for the game the following day.

The sessions are rarely run at full pace, rather an opportunity to nail down running angles, restart formations, and set-piece plays on the eve of the match.

But the captain’s run before the Lions game was different. There were a lot of British journalists and commentators in attendance, and there was nervous tension in the air within the Brumbies.

Jake White would tell the press conference and TV crews he was excited to be taking on the Lions for the first time in his career, and there was a different level of eagerness within the players.

An opportunity many of them will never get again was just 24 hours away.

Match day: pre-game
The realisation I was going into uncharted territory was confirmed when I met the Brumbies in the Gold Room, deep within the bowels of the Australian Institute of Sport.

My bright red media accreditation is trumped by the blue All Areas pass Team Manager Tony Thorpe hands me, with the magic words ‘PERMITS CHANGEROOM ACCESS’ emblazoned across it. I’m officially part of team entourage.

The Gold Room is eerily quiet. It’s around three hours to kick off, and the players are getting their ‘game faces’ on.

Guys come and go to get strapping and stretching needs attended to in the boxing hall downstairs, while the rest remain among an impressive array of headphones, smartphones, and tablet devices. Some guys listen to music, others read, while some watch videos or movies. All are stretched out on bean bags, and some will nap.

White tells me outside this is the same sort of preparation he used to do with the Springboks, and that England and the Bulls all do something similar. Thorpe confirms the Crusaders used to do similar during his eight years with them, though not quite to the same degree of fastidiousness as the Brumbies.

The team breaks into backs and forwards units for a quick meeting, in which Fisher reiterates to the forwards the importance of taking their already relentless breakdown game up a notch further against their international opposition.

Stephen Larkham tells the backs to maintain their intensity for 80 minutes, and to make “good decisions in contact.” Flyhalf Matt Toomua lists off the plays they’ll use, and the likely order.

The squad comes together for White’s final address before they make their way through the dark from the AIS to Canberra Stadium.

His message highlights the parallels between the two sides, despite the 550+ Test cap difference.

“Tonight I can really help you, boys,” White says. “I’ve coached at international level, and these guys are no different to you.

“All these guys have been in your shoes, boys.”

Despite the fact they are currently British and Irish Lions, they all started somewhere throughout England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales as professional club players. Whether they played for great clubs like Munster, Saracens, or Cardiff, they are all ‘just’ professional club players like the Brumbies are now. These Lions are not superhuman.

Larkham plays a video clip, a pre-recorded message from all the guys in the Wallabies squad missing the game. There’s a genuine passion in their words, particularly from regular captain Ben Mowen, from whom you sense a real disappointment he can’t lead the team out, even though he’s set to make his Wallabies debut only four days later. The emotion level in the room is right up.

White leaves his side with two key messages:

“All I want to see tonight is no-one standing back,” is the first message, urging his team to not hold back, and give the Lions everything. It’s a neat follow-up to Larkham and Fisher’s earlier messages about 80-minute intensity.

The final message, a quote by Winston Churchill, has been on the whiteboard in the Gold Room the whole time they’ve been in there:

“History will be kind to me for I intend to write it.”

It won’t be the last time I hear White talking about making history on this night.

The warm-up
The whole warm-up process, which is only around ten to 15 minutes, is meticulously planned and timed down to the minute, with one of the trainers telling the team the time count.

The players go through their own thing to start with; kickers kick from hand and from the tee, hookers practice lineout throwing. Outside backs go through some run-throughs, while the young props set some two-on-one scrum engagements.

The team breaks into forwards and backs, with Laurie Fisher overseeing the set pieces, and Stephen Larkham and the backs running some quick plays as well as practising their offloads into contact.

All the while, Jake White is back up on halfway, watching the British and Irish Lions go through their own drills. He pays particular attention to their breakdown and set piece work.

Fisher gets right into the forwards while they go through their pick-and-drive, really firing them up. There’s an intensity involved as they focus on accelerating through the contact, with cleanout runners following.

The team comes together for some final defensive work as a XV, and on their attacking plays. The talk and intensity lifts again, this is essentially the last hit-out before kickoff.

A short, sharp session and the team go back into the dressing room. It’s game time.

Kick-off
Whereas on the Canberra Stadium concourse the build-up is a gradual dialling up of the volume to a fever-pitch as the teams run on, up in the coaches’ box it’s almost the exact opposite.

Initially, it’s a bit of a mad dash upstairs from the changeroom up to the box in time for kick-off as the players walk out. Once up in the box, Fisher settles into his spot at the window, next to performance analyst Warwick Harrington and his array of laptops and screens.

White takes up a seat in the back row, and checks Larkham and Thorpe can hear him at ground level over the radios, as well as the trainers on both sides of the ground.

The opening exchanges are very quick, and in no time at all Tevita Kuridrani crosses in the corner for the Brumbies to get out to a 5-0 lead.

There’s more noise made about Ian Prior missing the conversion than of the try itself, though White and Fisher are both really impressed with Jesse Mogg’s decision-making in throwing the long pass that made the try.

Little did we know it would be the last try of the night.

The half goes on with the Brumbies maintaining the upper hand, and most of the play has been down in the Lions’ half.

Early concerns arise about the scrums, and White asks Fisher about swapping the props, where young Ruan Smith would switch to loosehead, and Wallaby squad member Scott Sio to go into the tight. Fisher acknowledges the concern, but suggests waiting to talk to the props at halftime.

The Lions elect to take a shot at goal from a penalty, which has White nodding, saying, “respect, respect,” a nod to the dominance his team has had in the first half.

A Brumbies penalty shortly after, with a Lion not releasing the ball in a Colby Fainga’a tackle, has him shouting proudly, “that’s how the picture should look!”

Another Brumbies penalty nearing halftime has White straight onto the radio to Larkham, who was already on the field.

“Tell Jesse to have a crack, if he can,” White says. Mogg steps up to take the shot from 55m, but he pushes it left. Prior has another shot soon after which he also misses, meaning the Brumbies have left eight points on the ground in the first half; points White would dearly have liked.

The Lions’ scrum still has White thinking about his props, while Fisher sends a message for the backrowers to stay bound to the scrum for longer than they are.

Mogg adds three more points to take an 8-0 lead, but Lions flyhalf Stuart Hogg gets three points back right on halftime, and after White has already started making his way down to the sheds.

The mood at halftime is still one of calmness, and though they’d like to be leading 16-3, they’re happy enough with 8-3. Fisher reiterates the set-piece message in the break, while White tells Rod Kafer on Fox Sports he’s really happy with the effort against an international side.

In the only conversation we have during the game, on the way back up to the coaches’ box, White tells me he’s very happy with where they’re placed.

“Tonight we make history,” he tells me, with a knowing look.

Second half
On the resumption, Lions captain Rory Best’s lineout throwing troubles continue, but the Lions are straight back in Brumbies territory. The Lions aren’t making any great advances though, and the Brumbies win another relieving penalty. Though there’s much cheering in the stands, the coaches’ box remains calm.

With the Brumbies in attacking territory, White starts talking about holding onto the ball, and playing more in the Lions’ half. It’s consistent with how the Brumbies have played all year.

A penalty against Lions flanker Dan Lydiate draws a composed, “knock it over, take the points,” and Mogg pushes the score out to 11-3.

Ian Prior drops another midfield bomb, which is becoming a concern, but after the Lions are ruled offside at the kick, White comes to life with, “play, play, play,” as the advantage is called.

A Toomua kick out on the full gets boos from the crowd, but just a “Pup, Pup, Pup,” up in the box. White’s poise is astounding to me, while I’m scribbling notes and struggling to stay silent.

The Lions’ high bombs are becoming an issue, with White telling Larkham, “Bernie, get the message out there that someone just needs to get under those kicks and make a call. We can’t be letting it bounce.”

It all happens in a break in play while a Fainga’a tackle on Hogg is checked that it doesn’t involve a lift. “It’s just a good, solid tackle,” Fisher says, following up with, “good decision, Jerome,” on the all-clear.

Mogg stretches the lead out to 14-3 with another penalty goal, but White is contemplation mode for most of it, with his head in his hands and only looking up to the see the ball go through the posts.

He’s happy with how things are going, happy the plan is being followed, but his bench options are an evident worry. His experience within the team ends abruptly with those that started the match.

Hooker Josh Mann-Rea and flanker Jordon Smiler are injected into the game either side of the hour mark.

White knows the Lions will finish strongly, though, especially as they start making wholesale use of their bench, most of whom will be the reserves for the first Test in Brisbane only a few days later. Flyhalf Owen Farrell, a noted goal-kicker, is one of them and he adds three more penalties over the next 15 minutes to get the score back to 14-12.

The last eight minutes of official time are tense.

Even as the crowd noise grows, though, and even as Fisher starts getting more animated in his demeanour and his commentary, White still works his bench options. Positional shuffling happens quickly via Thorpe and Larkham down at ground level.

With the Lions deep in attack, White surprises me by starting to mention the intercept being on. “Intercept, intercept,” he says, sensing a long pass will be thrown.

With a penalty to the Brumbies, there’s an ironic urgency in telling the messengers to tell the players to slow the game down. Mogg kicks for touch while White is telling the sideline, “slow things down Thorpey, just take our time.” With only minutes left, and history to be made, burning time is like gold.

A Lions scrum just inside the Brumbies’ half has Fisher getting excited. “Big scrum here boys,” he says. A reset only takes up more time. On the reset the Brumbies come out with the ball and play is back in the Lions half.

The Lions lineout throw is again askew, and the Brumbies get a scrum feed on the Lions’ 22.

White has already decided there won’t be any more changes, meaning despite being concerned about his props all night, they’ve remained in their starting positions, and will play out the 80 minutes.

“Quickly get to the scrum, Bernie,” Fisher is saying down the radio. “All that matters is this scrum. We can get the hit and get a penalty here, all that matters is the hit.”

On the ground, stand-in Captain Peter Kimlin, who’s had another stormer of a game at No.8 in Mowen’s absence, and having earned a Wallaby call-up himself, is telling the forwards the same thing.

White heads downstairs, and just says, “Good luck,” to Fisher as he walks out.

The scrum packs. “Go Ruan!” Fisher is now yelling. “Go Ruan, push through!” he urges his young prop. The Brumbies come up with the ball again, and start working pick-and-drive ball into the middle of the field.

Fisher is screaming advice, to no-one in particular, they don’t need to be so fast with the next hit-up. “You’ve got ten seconds,” he says, a reminder of the five seconds available to clear the ball either side of the referee’s ‘use it’ call.

With ten seconds left the Brumbies have the scrum put-in. “One scrum, that’s all we need,” Fisher says to Larkham on the field.

The siren sounds before the scrum sets. “Go Ruan!” Fisher urges one last time. The ball comes out, Kimlin dives on it, and young lock Etienne Oostheizen thumps the ball into the touch.

The crowd erupts, though they’re not making anywhere near as much noise as Fisher is in the box. The players have already run onto the field, and the sideline staff has mobbed White.

The noise in the stadium is like nothing I’ve heard in the last eight or nine years, though one that is hopefully repeated come Super Rugby finals time.

The aftermath
Down on ground level, the players are doing a lap of honour while the Lions are coming off looking rather dejected. Their coach Warren Gatland looks as forlorn in the post-match interviews as White is absolutely beaming.

For the Brumbies as an organisation, a career highlight has just been made.

I get to White in among it all, and while I tell him he has indeed made history, he tells me I’ve just had the ultimate experience as a writer and a rugby fan.

Of course he’s right, and I’ll remain forever thankful for him saying yes to my pitch in the first place.

Soon after, the whole organisation is in the change rooms, savouring the moment. A team official from the Lions congratulates the side on their win, and invites them into the Lions’ room when they’re ready for a beer and a chat, and to swap jerseys, which the players are all looking forward to doing.

Then I get to witness something I’d only ever previously heard through walls while waiting for press conferences. The Brumbies song is belted out, comfortably better than it has been all year.

And with that, I offer my congrats and sincere thanks to White, Fisher, Larkham, and Kimlin, and leave them to enjoy what were long celebrations.

It was a thrill to both be part of, and be able to bring to life the story of, an historic night.

First published by PLAY Canberra magazine – www.playcanberra.com.au – July, 2013