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Opinion
The rugby gods reserve a cruel form of punishment for the Wallabies fan.
Years of fresh starts, promising juniors, high-profile coaches, only to be constantly crushed by false dawns, failure to deliver, basic errors, ill-discipline, player drain to richer nations, administrative blunders, debt, reducing public interest… you name the problem, we have managed to find it.
What I find the most frustrating though is how the Wallabies constantly find new ways to lose a game. The call against the All Blacks was obviously controversial, and more than enough words will be written about it that I don’t need to add anything.
But all Foley had to do was kick the bloody ball out! No need for any prolonged discussion with the forwards about the line out or whatever his excuse was.
From there we could have moseyed on up to the line out, taken our time to set, use one of our now patented long and complicated line-out rearrangements and time would have been up.
But no, our re-called playmaker, in the side for his experience comes up with a way to clutch defeat from the jaws of victory – a trend we have seen in the Bledisloe for too many years to mention.
Referee Mathieu Raynal speaks to Nic White and Bernard Foley (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)
After a slow start, including some dropped ball and missed tackles, Foley actually played quite well in the second stanza, running at the line, distributing well, kicked all his goals and setting up a couple of tries.
But an inexplicably dumb decision not to just step up and put the ball in touch or listen to the referee about wasting time led to the inevitable.
He’s not the only offender though, our inability to exit from the 22 cleanly after Nic White’s penalty really cost us. Kick off receipts have been a huge problem for us for some time and tonight was no exception.
But similarly, how many times towards the end of a game have the Wallabies or SR sides been pinged for sealing off like that when trying to chew up time on the clock?
It’s silly rugby, negative tactics and rightly comes under intense scrutiny at that stage of the game. It’s not ground-breaking stuff, run from depth, aim for the gap, have support runners in place and clean out hard. I can’t stand the meek surrender into the tackle, and it rarely works.
But there is an opportunity now to start reversing the trend. The team showed a huge amount of character to come back from three tries down.
They showed an ability to play fast, direct and accurate rugby which led to well worked team tries. Despite all the yellow cards, the team trusted each other, dug in and backed their ability.
We have the bones of a good side here, but no doubt a few tweaks are required. Foley showed more ability than Noah Lolesio to unlock our outside backs, so earned another shot.
Assuming his unavailability for the Spring tour though, Ben Donaldson and Tane Edmed should be brought into the squad. Tom Wright has had his best season this year, but is still prone to some reckless errors.
It’s a good opportunity to give Vunivalu a go next week, with a view to him getting more game time on the Spring tour in Marika Koroibete’s absence.
Suliasi Vunivalu. (Photo by Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images)
Pete Samu must start as 7 again and be given an extended run – he was immense and played the best game by a Wallaby openside this year.
Blindside and lock remain problematic though. Darcy Swain has potential but like Tom Wright is prone to silly errors, so Nick Frost should take his place.
Frost could even start at six with Matt Phillip and Jed Holloway in the second row again. There will be some injury replacements required next week too, perhaps including Slipper.
But the 2023 Bledisloe Cup starts next week. This group needs to prove to themselves and the fans that they have the mental fortitude to win in New Zealand.
Do it this year and the task next year is much easier. The Rugby Championship trophy is up for grabs too – though a bonus point win would probably be required for us to take the title and then rely on the outcome of Springboks vs Pumas match.
A win next week would give a huge momentum boost going into a tough spring tour too. For the good of the game and us long suffering fans, it’s time to stand and deliver.
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.