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Rugby World Cup is ours
- Brendan Cannon
- From: The Sunday Telegraph
- October 17, 2010 12:01AM
HERE'S a crystal ball prediction guaranteed to make you choke on your morning coffee - the Wallabies will win next year's World Cup.
Relax, I haven't been slipping cognac into my cappuccino, so hear me out.
The end-of-season tour is the ideal opportunity for the Wallabies to show they are no lame ducks against the All Blacks, who are still easily the best side in world rugby.
The first significant hurdle is addressing the 10-0 ledger against the Silver Ferns from our past 10 Test matches.
Yes, it's an awful psychological statistic. But we were close in the Tri-Nations and I honestly believe we have the X-factor to roll the All Blacks in Hong Kong at the end of the month.
From there, it's up to Robbie Deans to deliver what he was hired to do - win us the William Webb Ellis trophy.
Glimpses of what the Wallabies have shown over the past six months would have the Kiwis concerned.
For significant periods of game time during the Tri-Nations, Australia were dangerous and unpredictable.
The 36 players going on the tour need to build an ingrained ruthlessness and consistency to sustain those brilliant periods of play for longer periods.
The first two halves of rugby the Wallabies played against the Springboks in South Africa contained some of the most exciting, entertaining and skilful football they have played in recent years.
That is the benchmark. The issues the Wallabies still need to address are the second-half fadeouts and a lack of ruthlessness when the opposition are most vulnerable.
Critics of Deans will argue he only has a 49 per cent win ratio and has done no better than his predecessors John Connolly and Eddie Jones.
Well, what about the brand of football the Wallabies are now playing and the fact we're in terrific shape for this tour, despite injuries to key players.
While this has been a real development year for a predominantly young and inexperienced playing group, this tour will reinforce how far the Wallabies have progressed.
There's no question about the exciting crop of talent Deans has blooded and it's great to see age isn't a factor when it comes to selections.
For other coaches, age was somewhat of a pre-occupation, but Deans has shown his hand by selecting 34-year-old Van Humphries for the four-Test tour.
Deans has stamped his own style on the Wallabies and their personnel. For mine, his critics are too quick to call for the guillotine.
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/spo...-1225939618234