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Bret Harris
- From: The Australian
- December 02, 2009 12:00AM
THE not-so-woeful Wallabies have returned from their weird and wonderful tour of Britain and Ireland, having gone excruciatingly close to achieving their first Grand Slam in 25 years.
As fullback Adam Ashley-Cooper said on arrival at Sydney Airport yesterday, Australia was only three points short of winning all four Tests against England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
One more point against Ireland (20-20 draw) and two more points against Scotland (9-8 loss) would have been enough to secure the 2009 Wallabies a place in Australian rugby history.
If anyone had told the side before it left for the tour that the only loss it would suffer would be to Scotland, they would have thought it was a joke.
But their mixed results on this tour were a microcosm of the team's inconsistent performances under coach Robbie Deans over the past two years.
At once, the results show what the Wallabies are capable of and how far away they are from what they are trying to achieve.
The ARU will conduct a review of the tour, which will take a hard look at the coaching staff, management and players.
ARU boss John O'Neill has stated that Deans' job is safe and so it should be.
Obviously, Deans has not lived up to expectations as far as the win-loss record is concerned, but it would be foolish to discard him now.
Instead, the ARU should be looking at ways it can provide Deans with more support and resources.
Deans has culled several veteran Wallabies and has introduced exciting new talent such as openside flanker David Pocock, halfback Will Genia, prop Ben Alexander, fullback James O'Connor, inside back Quade Cooper and second-rower Dean Mumm.
He has also found a leader in blindside flanker Rocky Elsom, who will not let anything get in the way of the team's success.
Sure, Deans has had some trying moments, such as the sacking of winger Lote Tuqiri for off-field misbehaviour and strained relations with star five-eighth Matt Giteau, but he is moving this young and talented team in the right direction.
"It's evident that this group has a really exciting future," Deans said. "It would be great to be part of that.
"It's a very exciting group. They are great to work with. They have been fantastic on and off the field.
"They are as frustrated as you that they didn't achieve something that hadn't been done for a long period of time, but they have laid a good foundation stone for the future."
If you are only as good as your last game, then the Wallabies can justifiably feel good about themselves after their 33-12 win against Wales in Cardiff last Sunday.
Ashley-Cooper, one of the shining lights of the tour, described the win against Wales as a turning point for the Wallabies.
"There was a lot of pride and character on the line in that Test and that game was a turning point, leading into next year," Ashley-Cooper said.
"It was disappointing against Scotland, but Wales was one of the best games I've ever been a part of.
"After the draw in Ireland, it was really tough to handle, but we really came together.
"In that last week with nothing to lose I think we showed that camaraderie."
Asked how the Wallabies would perform if the World Cup was held tomorrow, Deans said: "It's not going to be played tomorrow. We'd be a shot. I think we've shown that through this year. We just have to add that consistency, which comes with experience."
Hopefully, the Wallabies will start to move forward towards the World Cup.
If you turn too many corners, you will end up going around
in circles.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news...-1225805932526
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