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On the same day that Rod Kafer excitedly described the new and improved collaboration between Super Rugby coaches and the Wallabies staff already this year, Samu Kerevi was named in a new position for Queensland.
It’s March. It’s only the third game for the Reds. The Wallabies’ first Test for 2018 isn’t until June.
Everyone’s feeling their way, and no one will be getting stressed about what number Kerevi has on his back.
The same would apply to any other of Australia’s Test hopefuls. Michael Cheika and the rest of the Wallabies coaching staff will just be happy that they’re all fit, feisty and getting a run.
But it’s worth pondering how a power struggle would unfold if Cheika feels the Wallabies’ needs aren’t being met leading into the three-Test series against Ireland.
The whole increased cooperation model has come about because Cheika fumed last season when his Wallabies squad assembled for the June Tests. He believed their fitness and conditioning levels were well below where they should have been for elite rugby professionals.
He made a power play and has evidently got a bit of a result. But how far does the partnership go? How much influence does Cheika really have over Australia’s Super Rugby coaches?
Kafer, in his new role of Rugby Australia’s head of special projects, spoke in fairly abstract terms about the set-up on Thursday.
“The interaction between the Wallabies coaches and the Super Rugby coaches has been fantastic,” Kafer said.
“That high-performance structure that Ben Whitaker has put in place… has been really well received.
“The Wallabies staff will know what they’re getting out of their players.
“(They) are working around the country to get one-on-one interviews with all of their players in Super Rugby camp, with the state coaches.
“It’s never happened before.”
So imagine a hypothetical in which by late April, no one is putting their hand up to be locked in as Wallabies outside centre, and Cheika feels Kerevi is the man for the job (it’s an entirely legitimate scenario given he’s played at No.13 for the Wallabies previously and Kurtley Beale, if fit, is rock-solid for the inside centre spot).
But Kerevi is still in the No.12 jersey and carving up for the Reds.
Does Cheika sit down with Brad Thorn and, in the national interests, put the heat on him to pick Kerevi at No.13 (it’s apparently where the Reds vice-captain prefers to play too)?
You could imagine Thorn’s reaction, a first-year head coach trying to turn around a struggling club. He wants to win games any way he can. You would assume he couldn’t give a damn that Cheika would rather Kerevi audition for the Wallabies at outside centre.
(Photo by Jono Searle/Getty Images)
A positional confrontation might not be too common. Who else might be playing in a position for their Super Rugby side different to where he’s likely to be considered for the Wallabies? Ned Hanigan? Dane Haylett-Petty? Reece Hodge? Even Michael Hooper and David Pocock?
You could argue that top-tier players should be adaptable. They should be prepared to switch positions now and again.
But Cheika would probably counter with the line that what the average rugby fan would regard as subtle differences between positions can be magnified at international level. Hence familiarity is paramount.
Perhaps even more pertinent in the collaboration – given that fitness is likely to be a major theme – is the scenario in which some Wallabies probables are pushing through the Super Rugby rounds in May with a few niggles.
If the Wallabies coaching staff are privy to injury reports and updates – or get wind of them in some other way – then who wins out? Who gets their way – Cheika, who wants the player to rest before the first Irish Test, or the Super Rugby coach who wants the same player on the park and pushing through?
What if Bernard Foley and Christian Lealiifano get injured soon and Cheika is keen to see if Quade Cooper still has something to offer?
What if Thorn refuses to pick Karmichael Hunt even after he’s served any punishment that may have been dished out by Rugby Australia?
It’s a familiar dilemma – club vs country. So how much influence does Cheika really have?