Crushed

Sigh…
The All Blacks struck back in resounding fashion, crushing the Wallabies at Eden Park 39-10.

Sigh…

Deans 1 – Henry 0

Graham Henry finds the pressure mounting post the Wallabies 34-19 destruction of rugby’s perennial number 1, the All Blacks in Sydney last weekend. Australia sit back and bask in vaulting to the top of the Tri-Nations series, and winning the first of the Bledisloe Cup games.

New Zealanders the world round were left feeling “what if…” post the dismantling of the pride of the nation.  Robbie Deans was widely regarded as being the right man for the job post the quarter-final loss in the World Cup last year, over Graham Henry – the man who coached them during the campaign that many Kiwis saw as ending in a debacle.

There was no denying Henry’s pedigree, despite the loss in France last year. Henry had created a squad that many saw as being incredibly deep, and on their path to the World Cup, Graham Henry’s All Blacks were the winning-est team ever to don the Silver Fern.
However, many a Kiwi regarded Henry as the past, and Deans as the future. Whilst Henry has the winning percentages with the All Blacks, the loss in France (in the quarters, salt on the wound) stands out to many as a stain that no gloss can shine over. Deans is the most successful coach in the history of Super 14s. And there’s no doubting that the Crusaders side he created is one for the ages.

And the Australian team that took the field had many similarities with past Crusaders teams. They played an expansive game, the defense had better structure, and they were well-prepared for the All Blacks.
All Black back Dan Carter declared to AAP that the biggest change was how Deans had given the Wallabies confidence.

“What he does is bring the best out of players and the Wallabies are playing with real confidence, the way they play is a lot more expansive.”

New Zealand head into the next game with some major injury concerns.  Both Andy Ellis and Jimmy Cowan were injured in the game, and for once the All Black pantry looks pretty bare. Piri Weepu – once discarded by the ABs – looks like an obvious choice, but beyond him the options are pretty raw.

For sure, the New Zealand crowd in Auckland on Saturday will be screaming for Australian scalps, but for the first time in many years, the Wallabies will be well-prepared, and eager to take on the All Blacks.  And should the locals falter, it won’t be Australian blood that the mob are baying for…

Sports Immigrant? Welcome to the ARU’s latest acquisition!

Introducing the latest NZ immigrant to Australia – and he isn’t even applying for the dole!

In an almost unheard of positive move by the ARU, Robbie Deans is officially crossing the Tasman and is the new (and first foreign) coach of the Wallabies. Deans has signed a contract that takes him through the 2011 RWC in New Zealand and ushers in a new era in Australian rugby.

5 things I like about this move.
1) The Wallabies are now coached by the most successful provincial coach of the past decade.
2) He’s a hands-on coach who gets out the paddock and runs his own show.
3) He signed a contract that takes him through the RWC. With Graham Henry’s contract only being until the end of 2009 there was always the danger that Deans would hedge his bets and see if he could slide in the back door to the All Blacks (hang on, that sounds like something that Murray Mexted might do…) In signing for 4 years Deans has made a strong commitment to Australian rugby and signaled his intent to finish what he started.
4) Most Kiwis will tell you that this is the man who should be coaching the All Blacks. Despite their flaws (and don’t get me started on how many of them there are), Kiwis know their rugby and can identify talent. Deans is the one that got away for NZ rugby.
5) RWC in the Shaky Isles in 2011. Imagine what will happen if the Wallabies can bring Bill home lead by a Kiwi. It makes George Gregan’s “4 more years” sledge pale by comparison!

Nice work by the ARU – and we don’t get to say that too often!

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The New Face Of Australian Rugby?

[Editor’s note: You may have seen him commenting around the traps here… his real name’s Rob & we’ve known each other for … well, a damn long time. I keep pestering him to write, well he has. Enjoy.]

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Robbie Deans.
This is the face of the new Wallabies coach – barring an unexpected disaster.
Deans is the most successful non-international coach involved rugby today. His record in Super rugby is unparalleled, unmatched and unrivaled. He has sustained excellence for well over a decade. Deans has helped to produce some of the most prodigious talents on the world rugby stage. He’s a tactical genius, he gets the best out of his players, he knows how to win…

Oh yeah, and he’s a Kiwi.

When it comes to sports there are few things that I am more passionate about than the Brumbies and the Wallabies. I live and die with each Wallabies game and have massive doses of depression-like symptoms whenever we lose.
I want to see the Wallabies succeed more than anything else I wish for in sports.
The last few years, in fact, the last 6 years, have been mired in a morass of mediocrity – the improbable run to the RWC final in 03 not withstanding. It has been a gradual decline since Rod MacQueen rode off into the sunset. Some bad coaching, no coaching (S-C-R-U-M is not a dirty word), off-field indiscretions (Wendell, Matt Henjak, Lote, Matt Dunning, Wendell again, Mat Rogers, Wendell yet again) and some abject displays have eroded confidence in what used to be the jewel in the crown of Australian sport.
As an Aussie, the thought of a Kiwi coaching our Wallabies is anathema to me. Why not get Jake White or Clive Woodward if you want someone to hate?
But you know, at the end of the day, it’s about winning… and it’s about the best man (or woman) for the job.
Right now Robbie Deans is the best choice available to bring back some respectability to Australian rugby and end the years of ‘over-paid and under-performing’.

Of the other candidates, only David Nucifora has any kind of pedigree to go into the job and he is light years behind Deans in results. Concerns over Deans’ ability to be 100% focused on an Australian victory in a Bledisloe Cup match do no justice to the professionalism of the man nor to ability of any of us to do our job in any situation whether we have conflicting emotions or not.
Rugby, as with so many other sports, is a global game, with a global outlook and options beyond our national boundaries.

In my opinion, Alan Jones has the resume but has been out of the game for too long to be considered a serious contender. If David Nucifora, Ewan MacKenzie, John Muggleton or Laurie Fisher came close to Deans’ resume I would be wholeheartedly supportive of an Australian coach. The fact of the matter is that the best available coach is a Kiwi. Hire him. And if Jake White or Clive Woodward were available? As unpalatable as it might be, they would have to be considered because they too have the credentials to help the Wallabies rise from the mire.
It’s time to start
calling him Deansy, buy him a beer… and get with the program!

…

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