After an encouraging Test performance first up against Wales, the focus now switches to Paris as the Wallabies look to add to the momentum against an unpredictable and currently under-performing France.
As we all know, French rugby is a funny beast.
The culture of individualism, and club before country, is strong. Not only does this impact on the players’ motivation to perform, as is usually apparent during the limp visits to the Southern Hemisphere for their end-of-season June Tests, it also impacts at times around selection.
High profile appointments are invariably based around alliances rather than performance.
It’s why a coach like Guy Noves, whose record of success through the years running Toulouse is Alex Ferguson-like, has never had a shot at Les Bleus.
It is also why incumbent Philippe Saint-Andre is still there when the results have been so poor that the French team Australia carved up mid-year had dropped to its lowest ever IRB ranking (7th), while there are major issues behind the scenes with discord among the players.
If it all sounds familiar, that’s because it is.
Australian Rugby hasn’t quite reached the point where the national side is totally subservient to the whims of the club owners yet, but we are on our way, and need enlightened leadership from the top to ensure we don’t head further along that path.
One area in which a progressive tone could be set is around the issue of accessing foreign-based players for the Wallabies, albeit on a special case basis, as opposed to open slather, which would quite simply stuff the domestic game.
It was sad to read the other day that the chances of Nick Cummins returning from Japan for next year’s Rugby World Cup are virtually non-existent. Not only has the ‘flying mullet’ developed himself into one of the better wingers on the world circuit, as he showed again with the Baabaas, Cummins also brings much needed personality and character to the game in Australia.
‘Badgery’ is now a global phenomenon, as was evidenced by the look-alikes wearing Baabaas jerseys in the crowd at Twickenham, and the presence of the IRB television crew which accompanied the ‘Honey Badger’ throughout (almost!) every move of his maiden Barbarians experience.
Whether they understood anything that he actually said is another matter!
In his own unique way, the Honey Badger has taken the game into new areas of interest in Australia.
People who don’t know much – or anything – about the game, seem to know about the rugby player who calls himself the Honey Badger, even if they don’t actually know his real name.
And the beauty is, he is one of our own, a lad who grew up playing rugby, and came through the Australian rugby development system, as opposed to being recruited from another sport. If ever there was a reason to bend the eligibility rules slightly on promotional value as well as playing grounds; then surely the case of Nick Cummins is it.
For all that, Australia needs to come up with more innovative solutions to either retain, or continue to tap into, some of the expertise that is being lost in increasing numbers.
The mail is that the end of 2015 is going to see a bit of an exodus and the Wallabies simply can’t afford that, there are far too many Australians of either Wallaby or Super Rugby pedigree playing offshore already.
Which brings me back to Paris, and what my advice would have been to the ARU covering this week. I’d have turned the team hotel into Stalag 13, with armed guards on the front door, and special passes required to go in and out.
All trainings would have been closed-door affairs, while I’d have had satellite monitors on all of the players, with armed escorts to prevent any contact with undesirables (that being French player agents).
Ok, I’m joking about the Gestapo-style tactics, but the reality is that any expedition to France is like being part of one of the huge open-air goods markets the Europeans are so fond of. While not all of the produce (that being the players) might be available immediately; relationships are established by the agents that can bear fruit later.
One freshman on his rookie tour a few years back remarked to me that he couldn’t get over how many agents were around, and the large volume of his teammates who seemed to be disappearing out of the hotel to free meals, show performances and other such attractions, all of which was being organised by local recruiters, who were acting on behalf of the clubs.
The player concerned caught on quick – he is now plying his trade in France.
It’s big business, and it clearly works, now more than ever, judged by the exercise I have done assembling a France-based Wallaby squad, which I reckon would give the current touring party a decent go – probably more so than the French did in June.
The squad includes a handful of players who have yet to play for the Wallabies. One is even an Australian Under-20 rep from earlier this year, centre Lalakai Foketi.
I’ll admit now that I have cheated in one position.
The French don’t seem to buy many of our props so I’ve seconded ex-Wallaby Salesi Ma’afu and recently ex-Western Force prop Kieran Longbottom from their English bases to complete the front-row.
I’ve also bolstered the bench a bit by including guys who, while not eligible for the Wallabies, have contributed to the Australian game by playing for our Super Rugby sides. Their selection is valid for the purpose of this exercise: if they weren’t now in France, they might all still be here.
Several lads from D2 (the competition below the Top 14) have been promoted also but, second division or not, they are all guys who would still be handy to have back here in ‘Australie’ (that’s Australia in French!).
The depth of our foreign legion is also highlighted by the appointment of a couple of France-based Aussies as coaches. Between them, Lyon’s Tim Lane and Bayonne’s Patto Noriega represent one-seventh of the Top 14’s head coaches, so they will organise my team.
Lyon 2IC Scotty Wisemantle, Narbonne head coach Justin Harrison and his offsider Chris Whitaker will act as the assistant coaches.
And just for good measure, I’ve added an Aussie CEO, Rocky Elsom.
Yep, for those of you unaware, the ex-Wallaby captain is these days the big boss of Narbonne, a French second division club, which he part-owns among a consortium of fellow Aussies.
His old teammate Harrison is the coach, although he might be sitting uneasily in the chair at the moment as Narbonne, after narrowly missing out on promotion to the lucrative Top 14 last term, is currently 15th of 16 in the D2, from which the top two earn promotion.
Maybe both he, and the ARU, needs to recruit a few from my Aussie Foreign Legion XV.
Fullback – James O’Connor (Toulon)
Wings – Drew Mitchell (Toulon), Blair Connor (Bordeaux-Begles)
Centre – Digby Ioane (Stade Francais)
Inside Centre – Matt Giteau (Toulon)
Flyhalf – Brock James (Clermont-Auvergne)
Halfback – Ben Lucas (Montpellier)
No. 8 – Ben Mowen (Montpellier, captain)
Flankers – George Smith (Lyon), Peter Kimlin (Grenoble)
Locks – Sitaleki Timani (Montpellier), Mark Chisholm (Bayonne)
Props – Kieran Longbottom (Saracens – England), Salesi Ma’afu (Northampton – England)
Hooker – John Ulugia (Clermont-Auvergne)
Reserves: Alfie Mafi (Brive), Napolioni Nalaga (Clermont-Auvergne), Lalakai Foketi (Bayonne), Richard Kingi (Stade Francais), Daniel Halangahu (Narbonne), Brett Sheehan (Narbonne), Jono Jenkins (Narbonne), Hugh Pyle (Stade Francais), Hendrik Roodt (Grenoble), Leon Power (Oyonnax), Huia Edmonds (Narbonne)
Train Without A Station
Roar Guru
I'd have a problem with Australia making an exception for those players.3 are pretty disappointing Wallabies and the 4th has never been capped and prior to 2014 was never in consideration.
Crystal Ball
Guest
The depth of Australian rugby would definitely benefit if Os players were eligible and they should be. However we seem to be doing ok for small nation, rugby nation that is, we punch above our weight, we have just beaten the Babas, the Welsh and next the French and all this with a depleted team according to some, we have a ton of talent, we have finally identified the problem, EM is gone and we have a practical, hands on coach who is not a wimp runing the show, he speaks his mind, he has that command presence!! With statements like, "we have to love to scrum" now we are identifying the common language between the pigs and coach, got to het Hooper etc to keep their heads down and work harder, we are a hard working people, we need to apply our life lessons to our game, we are a smart country, and we are starting to play smart again, re the field goal against Wales, a brute force scrum penalty try sure but we can wrestle the lead back with cleverly executed phase play followed by a field goat! The Wallabies are back with patients and clever play!!
AndyS
Guest
Didn't help that, at the same time they added teams to bring players back, they also added the salary cap to ensure no-one could afford to.
Shane D
Roar Rookie
RT - the rules are set down by the IRB. If a player starts dictating to a club when they are going to be released outside of the test window & how many minutes they are going to play at contract negotiation time then selecting them won't be an issue as they wont get signed.
RT
Guest
All of those matters can be dealt with at the contract level. Players must be released for internationals. Can only play x number of minutes etc etc
Rugby tragic
Guest
Anyone remember when Aust got the 4th super team (Force) that was justified in brining back talent from Europe because we only had 3 teams to nz 5 & SA 4. Then we justified the 5th team on.,..,,, oh the same reason. So now we import players who are not qualified for Aus to boost numbers or experience. If we can select from Europe Aus might as well go back to 3 super teams.
Josh
Guest
Not to mention Salesi Manu (Benetton), James Hilterbrand (Edinburgh), Jake Ball (Scarlets), Sitaleki Timani (Montpellier - yes he was originally on the Force list), Lachy McCaffrey (London Welsh), Jayden Hayward (Benetton - was less than a year away from being eligible through residency), Ben Jacobs (Wasps), David Smith (Toulon), Luke McLean (Sale - capped for Italy) And that's just players playing in the Top 14, Pro12 and Aviva Premiership...
Shane D
Roar Rookie
That's correct NOS. The limiting of the games only applies the the French elite squad.
Shane D
Roar Rookie
Redsback - rugby is a very popular sport in SA. In the white population it is the winter sport. SA super teams get viewers & crowds because the teams are based on provincial areas with generations of support - they are not competing with more popular sports for the crowds or viewers. If the Australian Super teams became weakened because the ARU opts to allow selection from outside their competition then how many new fans will they get if they are uncompetitive? Couple of other factors to look at as well. The clubs esp in Europe are loathe to release players outside of the agreed test window. Are the Wallabies going to be better if their top players are unavailable for training camps or warm up tests outside of the mandated window? How long will European based wallabies want to play when they have to fly around the world every couple of weeks to play for their club in between tests? How quickly will financial pressure from their clubs cause a key player or two to retire from test rugby? The contracts Australian players get now are at a premium because they are not missing club games, change that & the dollars will drop in anycase. Both Wales & England have just changed their selection criteria to exclude players not playing in their domestic competition mainly due to problems getting players released for international duty & preparation, do you think the ARU will go better with the French clubs then the RU or the WRU?
RobC
Roar Guru
Thanks. As per the last couple of weeks, I have little idea what's going to happen this weekend. Except this weekend its doubly so, because its against the French!
kipper
Roar Rookie
As a Force fan, its sad to see all those ex-players listed in your team - especially that back-line....damn Fullback – James O’Connor (Toulon) Wings – Drew Mitchell (Toulon), Alfie Mafi (Brive), Inside Centre – Matt Giteau (Toulon) Flyhalf – Brock James (Clermont-Auvergne) Halfback - Brett Sheehan (Narbonne), Props – Kieran Longbottom (Saracens – England), Salesi Ma’afu (Northampton – England) Reserves: Napolioni Nalaga (Clermont-Auvergne),
Michael Hickey
Guest
Hendrik Roodt? How does he qualify as an Aussie expat?
nickoldschool
Roar Guru
Agree Hugo. 10 Foley, 11 Mitchell, 12 Giteau 13 Kuridrani 14 JOC 15 Folau is imo the most balanced backline the wallabies could have on the w-e. I think Folau needs 2 experienced wings who have played fullbacks next to him. They would help his positioning, cover when needed, have a good kicking game etc. No better than JOC and Mitchell for this role. Same with Foley-Giteau-Kuri. I think Foley is a steady ten a la Wilko and would do well with Giteau. Same for Kuri outside Gits. Imo Foley/Kuri aren't imo too dissimilar to Wilko/Bastareaud and Giteau made these 2 look good when they were next to him at Toulon last season.
jeznez
Roar Guru
Have to take Ruben Wiki-pedia with a grain of salt but searching 'Rugby Union in Australia' and doing the same for Argentina suggests there are a total of 87,000 registered players (that is kids and adults) in Oz and 110,000 in Argentina. Rugby has deeper penetration as a proportion of population in Oz but if those numbers are anywhere near correct then there are greater absolute numbers in Arg and a major part of that would be their larger population base.
Dubaikiwi
Guest
Australia will become another Samoa if you allow to pick from all overseas players. The clubs dont care about international rugby, so there is no time off to allow bringing players together before tests. There is no resting of players for fatigue. The seasons dont align to the international window, so you wont have access to them for the first of the test window. The Wallaby team will have more losses, go down the rankings and further disenchant the local fan base. Just saying more thought process needed before voicing comments.
Redsback
Guest
There is a much bigger base for rugby in Australia than there is in Argentina. In Argentina, rugby is played at only the most elite private schools and clubs. In Australia, it is played in the majority of private schools, at least in Qld, NSW and VIC. We also have in place an existing professional structure. Argentina doesn't have that. The reality is that we cant keep competing financially and when the gap gets to a certain point, what do you expect players to do? The proposal only serves the interests of the Super Rugby teams at the expense of the national team. They talk about clubs running national set ups in Europe, but that is exactly what this is. Don't get me wrong, I want the Reds, in particular, to be as strong as possible and I don't to lose players like Genia, Horwill and Cooper. But the first 2 are as good as gone after the world cup and the only thing keeping QC is his ability to create a buck by having a big profile here and boxing. Why should we just throw away the services of Genia and Horwill who are going to go anyway? What people don't seem to realise is that these players are going to go no matter what. That being the case, why are we punishing ourselves?
IronAwe
Guest
Agreed, longbottom would be the greatest asset. I dont think mitchel would offer much more than what we walready have in speight/tomane/AAC etc
pop
Guest
thats pretty much what the sabbaticals will do isn't it?
IronAwe
Guest
Haha, we were all thinking it
grapeseed
Guest
Yes, and Fiji is a north eastern QLD shire.