Eddie Jones’ reputation is currently trash in Australian rugby, but Test prop Allan Alaalatoa admits the former Wallabies mentor could still play a part in the country’s turnaround on the field, including with the Brumbies.
Jones is set to be the protagonist in Stan’s upcoming documentary into the Wallabies 2023, which premieres on 22nd February, and the former national coach is understood to have questioned the “hardness” of Australian rugby towards the end of their failed World Cup campaign.
Alaalatoa missed the World Cup campaign because of a ruptured Achilles against the All Blacks in late July, but the Test captain said Jones had clearly identified examples in Australian rugby that needed to change for the respective teams to emerge as winners once more.
“It is a shift we can make as a team at the Brumbies but also as a country,” Alaalatoa told The Roar at the Super Rugby Pacific launch in Auckland on Wednesday.
“Eddie did come in and said the boys are used to losing and that was shown through early Test matches through little body language cues.
“Someone made a linebreak and he would show people not working hard enough to get back, and he said that was a habit of being part of a losing team.”
Allan Alaalatoa says Australian rugby needs to demand greater standards and accountability. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)
Asked whether he thought Jones had a point, Alaalatoa said the proof was in the pudding.
“I noticed it,” he said.
“That was something that brought some awareness to little things like that. It wasn’t happening all the time, but it was a point that Eddie was trying to emphasise with the group that we had a new shift to make.
“Recovering from errors was a big one. That was something I took from Eddie and I’m taking to the Brumbies.”
Alaalatoa’s devastating injury will see him miss at least the first month of the upcoming Super Rugby season, but he said the playing group had emerged hungrier than ever to turn the ship at the Brumbies.
In particular, Alaalatoa said the Brumbies were sick of being the bridesmaids of the competition and admitted there was more they could do to snap their reputation as perennial semi-finalists.
“If we’re going off the back of last year, what I’ve noticed of the boys, and the way they’ve turned up, I’d say hunger,” Alaalatoa said.
“Hunger to do better and hunger to be better as players.
“We get to represent our state and we’ve had some hard conversations and acknowledged what we’ve been doing is obviously not good enough.
“We’ve got a lot of boys from the World Cup who have a point to prove. Some experienced players, who didn’t get selected, have come back with a point to prove and had that edge throughout the October period heading into December.
“Some boys who went over to the World Cup have come back wanting more.
“We’ve spoken about as a club that we’ve been good for a number of years but haven’t won a Super Rugby title.
“We had to have some hard conversations and take a deep dive into the program, and how we’re playing and tried to think of ways of how we can make some shifts in order to head in that direction.”
Allan Alaalatoa says he’s sick of the Brumbies being competitive but not winning the Super Rugby competition. (Photo by Dave Rowland/Getty Images for Rugby Australia)
Alaalatoa said holding players to account was essential.
“It was more from my end having an understanding of what we were doing,” he said. “We thought it would be good enough to [win].
“Just little conversations in and around the team, leaders and players holding each other to count. Just little things that we do that in the past we may have looked past and accepted, which wasn’t good enough.”
The Brumbies have missed the finals just once since 2013, with the two-time Super Rugby champions only failing to qualify for the knockout stage in Dan McKellar’s first season in charge in 2018.
They have made the semi-finals in the past two seasons, including in Stephen Larkham’s return to the head coaching role last year where they narrowly went down to the Chiefs in Waikato.
Biscuit man
Roar Rookie
I have never met a Brumbies supporter who doesn’t either live in Canberra or came origianlly from Canberra. I am sure there are a couple without generalising. I have mates in Goulburn, Wagga, Cooma who are part pf the rugby community. They are all Tahs supporters and the view is no one outside of Canberra supports the Brumbies. The business case for a SR team in Canberra dissolved when Melbourne and Perth came in. With limited markets and funds Rugby needs to expand in bigger markets and close down the small Canberrra market. Its a big issue and its impacting all of Australian rugby by dissolving resources with zero growth or payback. I’m willing to listen to an argument to have a team in Canberra but have yet to see a solid argument or business case put forward. Im talking commercials here and not success on the field. The Brumbies have not converted their on field success to more TV viewers or bums on seats at Canberra Stadium. I believe the reason is a-They dont use enough local players from the ACT Comps 2-They haven’t tried to expand their market eg. taking games to Adelaide, Hobart, NT or somewhere that has an opportunity for growth of rugby fans. If the Brumbies are to continue they need to start serving more than just the Canberra Market and the need to start involving more of their own community players form the ACT. Especially with the disastrous situation in Melbourne. Dont forget that over 75% of people that watch rugby in this country live in Qld or NSW. You might not like it but that the way its is. I think there are some valid points there for consideration and I know people in the Canberra rugby community that would agree.
Cec
Roar Rookie
Biscuits. That’s a big assumption that a completely broken game can even rise up again. I’m not sure what evidence suggests that’s the correct path or if there’s sufficient future funding for recovery. With Can vs Melb, Bris and even Syd markets I just want to check that we have a pro rugby product we’re dealing with??? If so then high performance is first and foremost and ahead of where you choose to have a club. Without high performance you risk damaging the game and image with incompetence and poor play that turns people away from the game regardless how big the market is, see the Tahs. Pro rugby takes no account of where you grew up or where you first registered to play club footy. I’m pretty sure the Saders have a broad following in NZ & globally and the ABs are the most recognisable & highly valued rugby brands on the planet despite having only 4mil people. The Brums growth markets are JPN and UK (& soon perhaps VIC) with viewers tuning in to see them play which is compelling don’t you think? Those fans are there without blue or maroon tinted glasses on and just want it see good rugby. Even teens from all states look to the Brums as a destination of choice to break into SRP then if fortunate the WBs which is also compelling too isn’t it? The parochialism linked to your state residency or state of origin should be left back at grassroots rugby with the u15s as there’s no room for that sort of thinking in pro rugby else you’re left with something like the Tahs or Rebs.
Biscuit man
Roar Rookie
The quicker we break it the quicker we can start fixing it. No point in prolonging the pain when it's a train wreck. The fact that we look like having no team in Melbourne and a team in Canberra is a serious flaw in RA's governance. A vote of no confidence should be raised against the entire board.
Cec
Roar Rookie
Biscuits you’re deflecting again. If you’re going to make outlandish statements then that’s fine but just be prepared to back them up with logic & facts rather than insults. So, why does our game have to be sped up to breaking point?
Cec
Roar Rookie
Biscuits, are you saying Eddie didn’t lift the bonnet before buying in, or that he wasn’t seeking his own due diligence from his many contacts here? Remember he’s a Randwick boy. Very very very unlikely claim your making there Biscuits. Eddie from the start was saying rugby in AUS was broken and he’s here to fix it. The other side of this story is that Eddie has again proven to be way past it as a top line coach and is why Eng & now Aus sacked him. Just rewatch the RWC and his selections made versus the experienced WB players from 24yrs old and up that he left behind. I’m happy to bet 8-10 of Eddie’s bolters and left field picks will be replaced with experienced players. I think Joe will pick similar to how ABs and Boks pick for big tournaments and older players will be preferred with your mid late 20s players. The early 20’s player will feature more in tier 2 or AUS A games and the teenagers will be sent back to SRAU.
Cec
Roar Rookie
GPS is counter productive to broadening the talent pool. The concentration of players at schools which only a small portion of the general population can afford makes league an easy alternative. When you take talent out of the regional areas it diminishes the quality of play in those regions and is again another win for league. Absolutely agree Hoy the clubs need to be the pathway.
TonyH
Roar Rookie
Biscuit Man: did I say I wanted Dave Rennie back??? I was simply pointing out that his record with the Wobbs compared favourably with Eddie Jones's!
Biscuit man
Roar Rookie
How do you know what he was told when he came in? Maybe the trash pile in RA wasn't disclosed to him then he started to lift the bonnets and found out how bad things were. Two sides to every story here. Eddie almost beat the All Blacks in Dunedin then he became irrational. RA are not the most transparent organisation which is the cause of half the issues.
Biscuit man
Roar Rookie
Cec-You like to keep your dirty laundry behind closed doors like RA. Thats the problem.
Biscuit man
Roar Rookie
You have to be kidding. Back to old Dave Rennie again. No wonder we cant move forward. Next you will be saying bring back Loliseo. :laughing: :laughing: :laughing: So predictable.
Hoy
Roar Guru
This is where I think RA needs to jettison schools... Lets face it, schools are not here for "rugby"... they could not care less... they want to win, and rugby just happens to be the sport. So they will give scholarships, and they will select and play those League kids who are already signed to League clubs. Schools don't owe RA anything... so RA needs to push away from schools, and push the clubs. Back the clubs to get kids involved. Tough sell maybe, but it would be better for rugby in Aus long term.
Fishman
Roar Rookie
You do not have to be an expert to notice how non committal Australian players are. Slow to get up, slow to react, fast to deem the job to be someone else’s
Cec
Roar Rookie
Particularly when juniors develop at different times in their journey into maturity. We lose sight of those players too soon. Is this what’s happening at the Reds & Tahs pathways I wonder. I’m not being cheeky but it’s odd that over nearly three decades we’ve had so many QLD & NSW discards that were not given a fair go but they still ended up at WB through the Brums.
savant
Roar Rookie
That was when we had men, not boys, as senior players. Coaches then, by and large, tolerated the voices of experienced players (Dwyers first go excepted) and in some cases negotiated with them. Nowadays the coaches are dictators and the players cowed for fear of being ostracized or dropped. Jones dropped Cooper not long after he was seen to be addressing the players post match and Slipper was reduced to silence. Nobody said boo to him. And if we ever needed proof that total servility is a recipe for complete failure, Eddie’s style is it. But he’s not alone. Cheika had no time for Fardy or Higginbotham, both leaders at their clubs. Slipper was more vocal under Rennie and that regime seemed more tolerant. But the distance between players and coaches appears to have grown in the last 20 years.
Mike88
Roar Rookie
I've read over this twice. It's absolutely infuriating to think professional rugby players representing their country need cajoling to 'put in'. We just noticed we don't try hard enough...seriously! I pray there's more of a clean out of players. I'm sick to death of the fun boy gym sessions etc etc and the half effort players. Joe's first rule should be no d#£kheads and no bludgers.
carnivean
Roar Rookie
We don't need to look at the 6 Nations when we have NZ doing it on our doorstep and kicking us year after year. This is the value of players like Whitelock to the Crusaders and the All Blacks. They play as if every match, every involvement is vital, and they demand the same of the others.
ScottD
Roar Guru
…
carnivean
Roar Rookie
Not only do those players get picked consistently, they block the paths of the harder working players and we don't have the pathways in place for them to play their way into contention.
Bodger
Roar Rookie
He use to but that dropped off.
savant
Roar Rookie
But Hooper is the guy that does all the second effort stuff. He chases, never gives up. But Eddie took guys that don’t like to chase!