Believe it or no,t Ewen McKenzie, despite your initial failings as Wallabies coach this year there are a few of us who still believe in you.
We still think you could be the man to deliver the Bledisloe cup and, if we dream for a moment, the World Cup too.
I had been wallowing in pity earlier this week after yet another despondent display from your Wallabies at Twickenham.
After a few days of grieving, something struck me – it might just be a revelation.
You see, I have been daydreaming about your glory days at the Reds in 2010 and 2011, when you assessed yourself as being ready to take on the Wallabies job.
In 2010, you took a group of young players full of potential but low on confidence and taught them how to win, and more importantly, enjoy themselves.
It seemed as though a weight had been lifted from the shoulders of Quade Cooper, Will Genia, Digby Ioane, Scott Higginbotham and James Horwill.
Finally they started to play with a purpose and the Reds future looked up.
That year the plan was simple, attack at all costs. If there was an opportunity to be taken, seize it with both hands.
Sure there were errors, and you guys didn’t win every match, but the play was positive and the players grew in confidence by trusting each other and knowing what they were expected to do.
In 2011, all the pieces fell into place. The Reds had plenty of luck along the way, the lack of injuries was a blessing.
The main reason for the Reds’ success that year was consistiency. Not only in the performance of players, but also in their style of play.
The Reds had developed from the previous year, having gained confidence and a familiarity with your methods. You stuck to the expansive game plan, allowing Will and Quade to control the team and decide when and how they should strike.
There were times when the game plan needed tinkering, against some teams a need to play down the other end of the park was necessary to avoid a barrage of penalty goals being conceded. However, the basics of the game plan stayed the same.
In 2012/2013, your seasons were decimated by injury, making continuing success more difficult. The telling difference was though, the constantly changing of game plans.
The theory was to play in a way that best suited in beating the opposition. The players did a good job of this, having played together and under your tutelage for a couple of years they had the confidence in each other to be able to pull it off.
At least to a point, when it really mattered the wheels started to shake. No longer could the Reds strike whenever they wanted, the tries started to dry up, defensive lapses started to ensue and Quade Cooper started playing fullback.
The constant changing of game plans and players to suit the opposition made it difficult for the players to build any familiarity in their patterns of play. Uncertainty set in.
The thing with uncertainty is, it leads to indecision; and indecision leads to errors and lack of uncertainty.
Some of the symptoms of uncertainty are handling errors, defensive lapses, a perceived lack of urgency, poor decision making, decreased physicality and an inability to identify and seize opportunities.
Do these symptoms seem familiar? They should, they read like the performance reviews of the Wallabies in 2013. The constant changing of players, captains and style of play is too much especially for a developing team.
I know you would expect the best 23 players available in the nation to be able to cope with your expectation of horses for courses but it’s clearly not working.
It seemed as though by the end of the Rugby Championship you had the attack sorted.
Outside backs were taking balls off the inside shoulder, centrefield players were dynamic in their support and running consistent but slightly varied lines.
Forwards knew when to hit the rucks and when to run the ball, and no-one received the ball flat-footed.
With this part of our game sorted, the brains trust of the rugby media turned their attention to defence and of course the scrum.
With one part of our game OK, we needed to tighten up others. That’s not to say that you should stop training attack, but at least there would be time to focus your time elsewhere.
Unfortunately it seems we went backwards when we landed in the northern hemisphere.
Whether it’s fatigue at the end of a long and demanding season or whether it’s confusion due to chopping and changing, only you and the inner sanctum of the dressing sheds will be able to tell.
It seems to me though, we deviated from what we had learnt and what we had just started to do well.
It seemed to many of us armchair experts the Wallabies were lost and knew not what they were doing.
The players need clear and consistient instructions on how they should go about their business. All this chopping and changing of personel and more importantly game plan is only causing indecision.
Please, Mr Mckenzie, realise that when professional athletes make schoolboy errors, it’s not due to lack of experience or skills but unfamiliarity or an overburdened mind.
Yours sincerely,
Australian rugby fans
Richard
Guest
And you know that after his lengthy tenure and the dozens of tests under his belt?
Richard
Guest
He will also have had the chance to change staff as I understand it.
Squirrel
Guest
I still believe in Santa Claus
HARRY
Guest
Actually, I think its golf!
Bobby Dazzler
Guest
It's great that Ewen Mc Kenzie's current selection criteria and personality have not affected the enthusiasm , skills and high work rate of Steve Moore. It's a pity that Ewen can't find another 21 rugby players (regardless of their playing position) that can also play to their full potential, regardless of what Ewen is doing to the team. Rob Simmons is a pretty good No.4 and deserves to be in the team as a No.4. But how can he all of a sudden become the best available No.6, within Australia (sight unseen). Robbie Deans showed disrespect to the No. 7 jersey at the last RWC (Aust v Ireland), when he selected Mc Calman to play at No. 7 for the first time in his professional rugby career. The match result is a good reflection of Robbie Deans' stupidity as well as his lack of respect and understanding of the required skills, specific to the position. Ewen McKenzie also seems to think that he can coach players to excel at skills that they have never previously displayed on a rugby field. No. 6's and No.8's should be able to catch, pass and tackle, but they should also be very good ball runners. Attacking forwards (just like attacking backs) are also exciting to watch, and can also win games for their team. Last Saturday, our forwards took the ball upfield for a total of 45 meters, in 80 minutes.This is a disgrace. The ARU has to fix their mistake, ASAP. Ewen will be ok. He was sacked at NSW, and then sacked at Staide Francaise, and he survived. Perhaps Ewen could become a good Team Manager. I hope Ewen can get his players up enough to beat Italy this Saturday. It's getting very scary ! Good luck on Saturday, and I hope those noisy Italian spectators will help Ewen to keep his players awake for the duration of his half time talk (isn't this why he keeps his players on the field at H.T.).
Stray Gator
Roar Rookie
AAC And the bloke who brings the kicking tee
DCNZ
Guest
Here are my Tonight Show top ten reasons for Link's current dire situation. 1) Robbie hardly handed a great team to him. 2) All those Queenslander players he had in 2011 have either lost form or are gone from the scene. 3) There is too much focus on the running backs game in Aus and not enough development work done with the forwards. 4) Link was arrogant enough to think he could play the expansive game and he has been badly punished. 5) The assistant coaches brains trust is not helping at all. 6) Australian rugby is run by state factions and the hierarchy are not working in unison. 7) Link is still very naive and inexperienced at international level. 8) The forwards are soft. 9) Giteau should never have been dropped. 10) Robbie was a Kiwi plant.
aussiecrusader
Guest
Robbie Deans has done such a poor job with the Wallabies over six years that it seems no Australian coach can rectify it.In fact it may take another foreigner not understanding Australian culture to start winning again.In the meantime lets continue to blame the refs.Cant see even stauch McKenzie fans putting up with losing for another year let alone six.McKenzie is not the saviour of Australian rugby you all thought him to be.
aussiecrusader
Guest
Robbie Deans has done such a poor job woth the Wallabies over six years that it seems no Australian coach can rectify it.In fact it may take another foreigner not understanding Australian culture to start winning again.In the meantime lets continue to blame the refs.
Chan Wee
Guest
@ Common Sense : ma8 ur living upto ur name :) cheers
Chan Wee
Guest
well , if people go the "REF" way , then each and every single match will have a case for complaint. that goes for evry team who will never be 100% satisfied with the decision making by the ref. even that Ellis park match , had moments of contention so.... :) as they say in cricket, when u get the rub of the green make the most of it !
dane
Guest
Yeah food poisoning in 1995 was a great excuse.
dane
Guest
I'm not saying that deans should have handed over his play book or that his dumping was handled appropriately. I'm just seeing things as they are right now.
Tissot Time
Guest
Why is that it is always about next year and the next RWC? It seems that Australian rugby has been developing for over a decade. Maybe the focus should be on doing your core roles well within a game plan and performing week to week. We know this is a young squad and most of them will be around come the next RC and next RWC. Apart from Moore I cannot think of anyone who is doing his core role consistently to any acceptable level. If he is not doing it now then why wait till next year or the RWC for improvement and results? He needs to deliver this weekend.
johnson
Guest
Plus 2
woodart
Guest
good post.
Pedro
Guest
You sure you want to play that game, Darth? Do we need to bring up Joubert's performance in the RWC 2011 final?
aussiekiwi
Guest
Yeah but our excuses are better than yours :)
Two Eyed Cyclop
Roar Guru
"Graeme Henry had a succession plan to ensure the All Blacks would continue to prosper after he moved on. Deans did not." Ted saw his contract to its end, so he knew when he had to deliver a succession plan to his assistant, that probably developed the plan with him anyway. Deans was unceremoniously dumbed and the job given to one of his biggest critics, so let me get this right, you expected him to be able to hand a complete succection plan to Link? And Link would have used it? REALLY?
Common Sense
Guest
Steve Hansen didn't just inherit Henry's side, he also helped develop it. He had been an assistant since 2004.