While Jedi Eddie decides his spin of the week, the sobering question coming into Bledisloe 1 has to be how badly the Wallabies are going to cop it.
The news cycle this week is trying to pull out some headlines which won’t stick, but we’ll read ‘em anyway and let’s be honest, everyone expects a walloping this week. Which means that Jedi Eddie gets to control the script a bit and its going to be a hard week for him, after telling off Laurie Fisher for his “inappropriate” comments Fisher was pretty spot on – in my view – but remember we are in a World Cup “smash and grab” cycle, so unorthodox is du jour. After all there are successful non-traditional coaches around the traps – here’s looking at you physio-cum-coach Jacques Nienaber.
Wallabies coach Eddie Jones. (Photo by Sydney Seshibedi/Gallo Images/Getty Images)
In the interests of full disclosure, I was very excited about Eddie joining the Wallabies, sprints are his thing and his unorthodox approach has proved to bear results.
However as the Boks found out, it’s not a good idea to come into the All Black Test undercooked, in that awful first 20 minutes South Africa was like chicken sashimi, raw enough to dish out a dose of salmonella.
Is there a good news story to distract the Wallaby fans or is everyone going to end up watching the Panthers vs the Sharks? Possibly.
The underdog card is loved by all, but no one will dispute that this weekend the men in gold are up against the firing squad, blindfolded and handcuffed. Someone has to take responsibility for that, better yet, someone has to deliver a plan.
It’s Eddie Jones’ job to provide a great escape, not spin some fairytale and distract a pretty disillusioned fan base.
Pretoria showed that you gotta put your money where your mouth is, and clearly the bank is empty from all of those offers to league wingers. The Argentina game was better, admittedly not by much.
There’s a flash at times with the Wallabies, especially when the backs (rarely) have the ball, and there are some tireless workers in the squad, you can’t help but feel bad for the.
Heck, I sent myself down a rabbit hole wondering if Jedi Eddie was doing a misdirection play, sending that team to South Africa to keep his main strength for the more winnable Argie game. Eddie Jones is good, he’s very, very good, and I keep looking for a bigger picture that shines a light. This week is different though.
Do the Wallabies have the depth to go into this game and get more critical injuries? Probably not. Can Eddie afford not to throw out his best side? Also, probably not.
One injury to Marika, Tupou, Slipper, Skelton and this RWC might prove even more of a mountain to climb than it already is. That thought will be playing on the coaching group and the players, as Australia doesn’t have the competition for spots that the rest of the top teams do.
NZ with their tails up and players playing for spots makes them daunting enough. Coming off the back of that win at Mt Smart makes them daunting enough.
That said, much like the Wallabies this week, there will be extra pressure to perform.
Or down a VB and hope that they have a rugby hangover after that performance in Auckland.
Hope, as a wise man once said, is not a strategy.
Unless Fozzie and crew make radical changes, expect the scoreline to be ugly.
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.
It didn’t come as that big a surprise when Sam Cane announced he was walking away from the All Blacks on Monday. That’s not…
Sam Cane has stood down as All Blacks captain and might have played his final Test after signing a new three-year deal with Suntory.…
Seven months after the Springboks sensationally elected for a scrum from a mark inside their 22-metre line during their run to a fourth Webb…
Column: So, elite test rugby might be going to Qatar. Interesting. I can’t say I’m too enthused. Nothing to do with sportswashing, but we’ll…
Australian rugby has many problems - financial crisis, ever-shrinking audiences, shortage of coaching expertise, Greg Martin, etc etc. But one problem which I have…
By my count, the Brumbies have played three teams of consequence this season. The first two - the Chiefs and Blues - thrashed them…
