I’m going to write ten statements that no Queenslander, no internationalist, and not many journalists would usually wish to commit to record.
Josh Dugan is a great footballer. Andrew Fifita is too. Blake Ferguson really played a top game last night.
Russell Packer could become one of the best things to happen to trans-Tasman football. Conversely, Shaun Johnson may not.
Okay that’s five contrarian points.
The World Cup will be better if Kieran Foran participates, no matter which clubs he has torched. For all the Kiwis’ attacking prowess, we really need to focus on their defensive deficiencies.
Australia has a record in rugby league that truly deserves to be applauded.
Right, that’s six, seven and eight.
Hmm…how about questioning if Roger Tuivasa-Sheck – yep the guy with the majestic highlight reels – really is what New Zealand needs at fullback?
And for a final statement, let’s just all agree that weight-for-age football is total tosh and should never be splashed across the pages of a newspaper again.
As I nestled into the couch for last night’s Test, the occasion was supposed to be all about the virtuous.
It was Cameron Smith’s 50th game for Australia, a coronation of an ambassador. The match was also going to highlight just how strong the New Zealand team was, and ergo, how far international rugby league had come.
These were the narratives that played to the heart and mind of a proud Maroon, an avowed expansionist, and a writer who loves to get deeply moralistic at times.
Except, well, it all amounted to bulldust.
Last night’s 30-12 win by Australia was not about the virtuous at all. It was about being able to accept villainy and imperfection.
Those of us commentators standing on our pulpits, tut-tutting these last few years at the exploits of Fifita, Dugan, Ferguson, Packer and Foran, got served a massive dish of humble pie.
The quintet took the field, they did stuff most of us would never physically be capable of, they got paid handsomely for it, and they’ll no doubt be invited back to do it again.
On a day when Shaun Kenny-Dowall became the NRL’s latest leper, moral gatekeepers would have been hoping karma caused some of the more troublesome players to underperform
Some self-appointed judges would not have allowed them to take the field in the first place. That’s what our modern day sense of justice has become.
The much more palatable storyline would have been the Kiwis with the flashy feet and trendy haircuts – Johnson, Tuivasa-Sheck, Jordan Rapana, Dallin Watene-Zelezniak, Marty Taupau – ushering in league’s new world order.
Or it would have been Smith providing the steady head to keep Australian necks just above water in a torrid contest.
Instead we got the bad boy trio of Fifita, Dugan and Ferguson rumbling through the centre of a Kiwis team that clean forgot how to tackle.
For the benefit of any New South Welshmen with an axe to grind, I’ll throw Sam Thaiday in there as another villain who caused the sheep-lovers some damage.
By halftime New Zealand’s missed tackle rate was just under 12 per cent. That is, they failed at approximately one in every eight or nine tackles.
At any level of football, the thing that gives an attacking side most confidence is when they know their next tackle bust is just around the corner.
Australia’s missed tackle rate in the opening stanza was almost exactly half of the Kiwis, despite being forced to carry more of the load.
But this type of analysis rarely encourages clicks or causes excitement, so expect more media focus before the World Cup on Johnson’s jinking runs and RTS leaving defenders clutching at thin air.
If moral justice and society’s desire had anything to do with performance, the clean-cut Kiwi #7 and #1 would have dominated last night.
The truth however was that Johnson failed to execute with precision, particularly in regards to his kicking and providing his outside men good ball.
Tuivasa-Sheck not only fumbled three retrievals, his support play was unremarkable, and his efforts in last-ditch defence were paltry compared to some of the Aussie’s desperate scrambles.
It was left to Foran and Packer – two guys about whom there are grave questions regarding whether they should even be participating in the sport – to provide the spark the Kiwis needed.
Foran played directly, authoritatively and cleverly. Packer butted heads (quite literally in the case of Dugan) with the Aussies in a way that makes one yearn for a long-standing rivalry with the likes of David Klemmer.
For those of us looking for the contest to provide a positive commentary about the shifting sands of international football and the virtues of an underdog, you had to take a long-term perspective.
That is to think, centuries from now when humans are hopefully playing the same sport in a similar fashion – and players don’t have to leave the field to assess chipped fingernails – historians really will marvel at how Australia maintained its dominance.
How a population of 24 million people without an obvious genetic disposition for power sports kept such a vice grip on the code for so many decades will hopefully be retold like the Battle of Thermopylae.
As much as I want to see other countries catch up, credit is due where credit is due.
Which kindly ties into the last contrarian statement I wanted to make, which will no doubt see me turfed out of the Press Club and the worry-wart columnists brigade.
Wasn’t Australia (or more honestly caucasian Australia) supposed to have been over-run by the numbers of Pacific Islanders playing junior grades for the past ten years?
Last night Australia not only comfortably won the men’s Test, but also beat New Zealand well in the women’s and junior fixtures.
Matt Gillett, by no means the biggest forward around, was the player of the match in the main game, while a number of smaller players who presumably grew up tackling bigger ones also fared well.
Maybe that’s because a necessary ingredient in the sport is having a bit of mongrel.
And political correctness and morals are best left to those who watch from the sideline.
James
Guest
The people's game? In QLD and parts of NSW. They shouldn't even be called Australia
Kenw
Guest
Do Dugan's knockers think he crime was skipping training or that he was drinking a girly drink? It was 3-4 years ago now, he's really knuckled down since then, hasn't had an incident since (I hear he drinks manly drinks now), is considered a leader at club level and has consistently performed well on the field. As a Dragons fan I'm still conflicted about Packer though. That was a true crime he was guilty of. I respect that he did his time, came back humble and has worked his arse off in football and community programs to do what he can to atone. Intellectually I know that it's better for society to not restrict someone following that path, he can do good things himself and possibly influence someone not to do what he did. But I still can't bring myself to actually cheer for a bloke who almost stomped an unconscious man to death.
Christov
Guest
The aus rl team has exactly what the ru team lacks, grit, determination and doggedness. Hopefully the ru can realise that coddling players from private school rugby comps is not going to bring success. They need to become the peoples game like rl. But hey thats just my opinion not based on any facts
allblackfan
Guest
Exactly, Geoff. No class barriers in NZ rugby.
Pete
Guest
I think Chris Love its all about discipline and treasueing the Kiwi jersey look at the All Blacks they too have polynesian players and they never lift their foot of the gas thats what makes them a super team discipline and treasuring the jersey
thomas c
Guest
You do realize you need the fans? Taking a hostile view towards attitudes that try to foster a family friendly vibe seems... odd. But sure, having rough edges is fine, provided they keep on the right side of self immolation. Plus i'd assume some of the players might be the first to distance themselves from prior behavior and believe in personal change, such that when we see a ratbag, they might see someone having undergone personal change, growth or even redemption. I'm just not sure where you're headed with the point about ethnic makeup. The australian sides having polynesian and indigenous players is as it should be, surely?
Bloody R Bull
Roar Rookie
I totally agree, amazing how being a great league player has something to do with being a great person on and off the field. Some are some aren't. Go right back to the start of league & the biggest basturds are some of the immortals of our game. To much scrutiny on young players today with all the modern tech devices, making everyone a leading news reporter. Good players are good players, pick on form. Simple as that !!!!!
Wolly
Roar Guru
Pains me to give QLD credit but I honestly believe they would more than match it with the Kiwis.
The Barry
Roar Guru
They were only 'bad boys' after the game though not during. Their form should improve for the next test though...
Michael Keeffe
Roar Guru
Add in Jesse Bromwich and Kevin Proctor now too...
Robert Burgin
Expert
Yep, you are right. A more accurate way to say what I wanted was "virtue counts for nothing once the whistle blows, other than the rules administered by the referee". It definitely can impact the off-field, club management side of things. I think within many people, as sports fans, is a desire to see only the cleancut succeed. But life teaches us that it's not always the most diplomatic or conformist person that prospers or can be effective. And maybe that's a lesson to take away. If I had not been filing this story at midnight and thought of it earlier, I would have drawn a parallel with the military pageantry which accompanied the game. The most effective soldier in a war is not always the one who is the most ethical. I have been very pious and righteous in previous articles about players' moral indiscretions, but the older I get I am starting to believe more and more that if someone has done something so heinous they shouldn't be participating, it should be in the hands of the law. While the criminal justice system is not perfect, it is far more comprehensive and geared to consistency than kneejerk reaction to public opinion.
Robert Burgin
Expert
William, his struggle with depression is certainly not a reason to include him as a bad boy. He was investigated for other matters though, which were ultimately unproven but at the upper end of the serious scale.
Jacko
Guest
Where both teams are weaker than NZ
Jacko
Guest
Yes I am looking forward to the Christmas test in january. Should be great. Maybe even the Queens birthday test in November.
Fix the scrums
Guest
Crap game hardly worth watching. Australia is just too strong for these rep games. Bring on origin.
Sava
Guest
Well I didn't watch last nights "Test" as It should have been played on Anzac Day,what would have been wrong with having the SainTsv East game as a curtain raiser,plus we have come soo far away as League being a sport. Fancy wanting people with Mongrel in them playing either with you or against you,and being mauled by one of the brutes . What fair minded Parent would want a son and now a daughter to grow up being a mongrel?. Sava
Geoff from Bruce Stadium
Guest
Interesting comment Albo. Is part of the reason due to union in Australia being played mainly in middle to upper class private schools while league is much more a game for the people which provides opportunities for some of the tough nuts we see playing who may have come from less privileged circumstances. Not sure what the situation is in NZ - I suspect those that play union come from all walks of life.
Geoff from Bruce Stadium
Guest
Pretty disappointing contest really. I thought the Kiwi side looked pretty strong on paper but they simply folded in the first half. I thought Foran was the only one of the much vaunted NZ spine that looked dangerous. The Aussies just rumbled through their sets like a professional side should but the NZ defence was awful. The second half performance by the Kiwis was a bit better but by then it was done and dusted as a contest. Just wondering who these moral police are that would be disappointed that the bad boy quartet of the Aussie side all played well. I think a lot of supporters just want the best players available picked for the team and I think it was the way the selectors seemed to have picked some of the team based on reputation rather than current form that disturbed the most. But credit needs to be given to Mal and the rest of the selectors. Maybe Mal has struck on a formula with the Qld state of origin team that works for the Australian team. Pick a core of strong solid players that you can rely on and stick with them rather than chopping and changing too much from match to match. Many - including myself - have queried whether Dugan should be playing out of position in the centres and whether Ferguson had enough form on the board to warrant selection on the wing. But to their credit they played their roles perfectly. And I thought it was a no-brainer to select Fifita who should have been picked ahead of Boyd in the first place.
Albo
Guest
Yep ! I can agree with your premise that in sport the players promoted as the exciting and "beautifully skilled " types who keep their noses clean, are not necessarily the types that will win you high level sporting contests. A degree of "mongrel " is an essential ingredient especially where it is transformed into a committed desire to win at all costs. So the players you highlighted do show such qualities. The real difference as displayed last night is that the Australian team has a far greater number than even those mentioned with the "mongrel" quality, though less obviously displayed. Players like Smith, Thurston, Cronk, Klemmer, Chambers & Boyd are also full of mongrel and commitment to win at all costs. The kiwis lack such a culture across the board, with only the likes of Packer coming close. its a strange dichotomy between our two countries' rugby codes. The All Blacks have it spades whilst the Wallabies are completely devoid of it, whilst the Kangaroos reverse the comparison in the Rugby League code. Hence the domination of both these teams in their respective codes.
Clint
Guest
Yeah his rep form never seems to translate to good performances at club level. It's usually the other way around! I don't know if it's because he's only interested in the big games or if Robinson doesn't utilise him effectively.