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I settled down to watch Bledisloe II with little to no expectations of a Wallabies win.
Perhaps each season since the 2015 World Cup has left me feeling more and more jaded. Perhaps it was simply a defensive mechanism, given that I was watching the match in a veritable Land of the Philistines – the lounge room of a zealous Kiwi.
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To my mind victory in New Zealand was the unlikeliest of outcomes, and I was uncertain as to what the next best result would be. Surely having another 50 points put on us would be absolutely deplorable. And yet during the week I read and heard many wise rugby minds state unequivocally that a close loss would be the worst possible outcome for Australian rugby.
The theory is that as fans, coaches, and players, in tight losses we can look back and pick out key moments to hang the loss on. If only that moment had gone our way, the match would have been ours. The risk being that such an attitude can distract us from the deficiencies which led to defeat.
Certainly there were many moments to choose from in this match. Bernard Foley leaving nine points out on the field certainly didn’t help. The Wallabies failing to capitalise on their first half attacking pressure. Sean McMahon being denied a penalty over the ball late in the second half.
(Photo by Phil Walter/Getty Images)
Truthfully I’m not sure any of those moments were central to the loss. Despite a vastly improved, and quite admirable, defensive effort the Wallabies still conceded 34 missed tackles for the match.
They were misses which even an uncharacteristically rusty New Zealand side were able to exploit in their counterattacks and off the set piece.
The scrum was not pretty, and consistently facing another attacking phase after losing these only exacerbated the tackling issues. These are areas where the Wallabies cannot allow the closeness of the result to distract them from the need for even more improvement over the week to come.
As the match ended and I headed home, I’m not sure I felt either pride or disappointment. Though I was as into the match as ever, even as Kurtley Beale leapt over for the Wallabies to take the lead in the 76th minute, I didn’t allow myself to believe they might actually pull it off.
So when the All Black counter came, it felt so inevitable that instead of disappointment came dispassion, almost emptiness. That disturbs me.
The challenge for the Wallabies is to not fall into a similar attitude. They must strive this week to get over the gap of emotions that exists between a tight loss and the possibility of a famous victory.
By all means, appreciate and applaud the improved handling skills, the admirable defensive efforts, and the knowledge that you pushed the world champions right to the final whistle. You should rightly be proud of the guts you showed in this contest. But I hope that you do not allow yourselves to fall into a contentment that says a valiant defeat is enough in the face of an opponent whose win was inevitable.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.