All Black fan Tim Cronin from Rugbyshirts.net actually has some sympathy for the Wallabies with their current plight. Well I did say “some”….
I’ve sympathised a bit recently with the plight of the Wallabies, such has been the unprecedented number of serious casualties their key players have sustained, and this remarkable injury toll came to a head on the weekend when Robbie Deans’ side quite literally ran out of players, being forced to finish their match against the Springboks with 14 men on the field.
The shocking injury toll has highlighted something which has always threatened to derail Australian Rugby, but until now hasn’t necessarily become a major issue – their lack of depth.
Sure, they compete with Aussie Rules and Rugby League for players, but, with a population of 20 million-plus people, there should be enough quality sportsmen to go around. I think there is an inherent problem with the structure of the game in Australia, which fails to retain enough decent players, and puts those that do commit to the ARU on such a high pedestal that they become arrogant divas who believe they are bigger than the game and the jersey they represent.
Following the weekend’s match in Pretoria, Deans stated that the ARU would be forced to try and rush through Visa applications to allow a number of new players to join the squad as they travel to Argentina for what must now look like an incredibly daunting tasks, such is the state his injury-ravaged squad currently finds itself in.
I believe one of the problems behind the lack of quality talent waiting in the wings for their opportunity to pull on the green-and-gold jersey lies in the structure of the national competitions, or lack there-of.
While ARU officials have frequently noted the problems, and tinker with ineffectual solutions every now and again, the fact is that the breeding grounds for young, up-and-coming players in Australia are sparse, with no national competition of note being in operation, and the Sydney club competition acting as the primary feeder for the entire countries’ Super XV sides.
Because there is no avenue for aspiring players to prove themselves and to challenge the incumbents, those that are in the national team become complacent, safe in the knowledge that the ARU probably needs them more than they need Australian Rugby. Quade Cooper is the obvious example, but I think you can see similar qualities in players like James O’Connor and Kurtley Beale, to pick on just a couple, who walk about with an air of self-importance, and seem little bothered about whether they’re actually performing and delivering results for their country or not.
While no-one could have foreseen the devastating string of circumstances that have befallen the Wallabies over the last couple of months, the simple fact is that competition for places breeds players who are constantly striving to better themselves, and constantly looking to perform every time they get the chance to take the field. Until Australia can create a system which fosters talent and creates depth they will be highly susceptible both to strings of injuries, and over-rated players with over-inflated egos, who know they can’t be dropped as there aren’t any better options.
As for this coming weekend? The All Blacks may well have done the Wallabies a huge favour by denting the confidence of the Pumas, but Deans’ patched-together team still face a huge task if they’re to avoid becoming the South American’s first scalp in the Rugby Championship.
Tim Cronin is a Rugby fan and full time writer based in the rubble of the Canterbury Crusaders’ home town, Christchurch. Tim is a part of the Pukeko Sportsteam, where his role is watching, writing, and complaining about all things rugby.
