Oval Office January 2008

All Blacks’ loss is Wallaby gain

By Grant Batty

When sports tradition and sports pragmatism meet head-on, one of them usually has to go.

It happened in Australia last week and pragmatism won hands down. But many would have thought the Southern Cross was about to fall from the sky and destroy the world as we know it.

It was all about rugby coaches and, more specifically, who would lead the Wallabies into the next World Cup. The list of candidates was interesting, without offering an obvious candidate, although I was keen to see Allan Jones get the job. Then fate took a hand and delivered unto the beleaguered Aussies a saviour of biblical proportions.

The man of the moment was of course Crusaders’ Super 14 mentor Robbie Deans who rose spectacularly from the inferno ignited by New Zealand’s abysmal World Cup campaign, doused the flames during a quick flight across the Tasman, chatted with Australian rugby’s powerbrokers and deservedly walked away with a handsome contract in his suit pocket.

Pragmatism won hands down and, with hindsight, it was an entirely predictable solution to Australia’s coaching dilemma.

But there was more to it than that. The behind the scenes wrangling and bungled decision-making in New Zealand, make one wonder whether some of rugby’s southern hemisphere administrators would not be better suited to the selection of a Sahara desert underwater hockey coach.

At the close of the World Cup, both Blind Freddie and Elvis could have told you that both Australia and New Zealand had failed badly.

In Australia’s case John Connolly had made it known he was not in the market for another stint as Wallabies coach. This was wise, because there was absolutely no prospect of him being given another shot at guiding the national team.

Connolly had his chance and wasn’t about to be given another. That’s where Robbie Deans really entered the equation.

But Robbie was a lot smarter than the average rugger coach. He hedged his bets knowing full well there was about to be a inquest into New Zealand’s messy exit in the quarter finals and that he was in line to oust the dour Graham Henry from the All Black’s coaching box.

While making it privately plain to the Aussies he was interested in the possibility of defecting across the Tasman, he publicly announced his intention of going for the All Blacks job.

That’s why it is no coincidence the Australian Rugby Union procrastinated over their decision until nearly a fortnight after the Kiwis were making their call.

Despite their protestations to the contrary, the Australians were never going to make a decision until they were absolutely certain Deans was out of the running.

Without Deans their options were limited!

As they say, it’s wonderful when a plan comes together and the brain dead Kiwis obliged.

Instead of welcoming Deans to the fold and relaxing in the knowledge that the world’s best Super 14 coach was going to work his magic on a clearly disparate and disillusioned All Blacks team they, incomprehensibly, handed Henry back the job. That’s like winning the lottery but opting to take fourth prize instead.

It’s obvious that some kind of “old boy’s network” prevailed in the New Zealand decision. There can be no other explanation unless Henry had in his possession glossy pictures of some members of the Kiwi rugby hierarchy getting up close and personal with a particularly unattractive sheep!

Across The Ditch in Australia, all was not rosy either.

One of the Australian candidates, Waratahs’ coach Ewen McKenzie went so far as to suggest that the appointment of Deans would make a mockery of the entire selection process.

He observed that he had devoted a considerable amount of effort to the preparation of his submission and it would all have been a waste of his valuable time if he didn’t get the job!

Welcome to the real world, Ewen.

Outside of the back-slapping, forelock-tugging rugby firmament, that’s what people have to do when they apply for jobs and the mere submission of a CV is not a guarantee of a job in the pocket.
“How can a Kiwi coach the Wallabies,” fulminated rugby’s old guard. ”It’s traditional that an Australian should coach the Australian national team … this is the end of the world as we know it … the New Zealanders will learn all of our secrets.”

Was there an outcry when Australia’s national soccer team appointed a Dutch coach? Of course there wasn’t because the soccer fraternity was smart enough to recognise there was nobody in Australia who could do the job.

Cricket has for years crossed international boundaries is the search for coaches. Why should professional rugby be any different?
In addition to that, the Wallabies squad is a lot like the All Blacks squad. Both look like the United Nations with Samoans, Tongans, Fijians, South Africans (even Argentinians at one point) wearing the green and gold or black and silver.

So why should the coach be any different?

And, finally, the Aussies should brace themselves for more unpleasant surprises.

When Deans was asked after his appointment about the make-up of his Wallabies squad, his answer was succinct to the point of brutality.

“There are no Wallabies at the moment,” was his ominous response.

Good on you Robbie. It’s time someone rattled the establishment cage!