The 7 key areas for the Wallabies
Sydney Morning Herald
Saturday June 27, 2009
In what will be the best June international in Sydney in years, the Wallabies will discover against France if they are contenders or pretenders. Greg Growden details the areas that the Wallabies must control if they want to be successful tonight. 1 Keep singing from the same song book. The Robbie Deans mantra is certainly working with the Wallabies. Deans has his favourite sayings and now the players are avidly reciting them. Even they are chanting "work in progress" at media conferences. The focus this week at the team meetings has clearly been the breakdown, because every player talked incessantly about it. Obviously the France-All Blacks first Test video has been shown over and over again, because the Wallabies repeatedly brought it up, particularly how the French were so brutal in Dunedin, overwhelming the All Blacks at the tackle and then using the rolling maul as the killer blow. At least the Wallabies know what they are confronting and have prepared accordingly. Yes, they are right, the Test will be won at the breakdown but the success of the Wallabies will also be defined by how well they nullify the French driving maul.2 Matt Giteau and Berrick Barnes continue to have the ball on a string. The marked improvement in the Wallabies' performance over the past 12 months has been their midfield kicking game. For many years it was an embarrassment not surprising considering that hardly any of them knew how to kick a football properly. It was sometimes like Dad and Dave on the drink. Whereas the Wallabies once relied on the unpredictable Stephen Larkham to put up the high ball, they now boast several far more reliable kickers Giteau, Barnes, Drew Mitchell and Adam Ashley-Cooper. Stirling Mortlock has also vastly improved his kicking repertoire. It has had the desired effect of, in the words of Tim Horan, turning a defensive ploy into an attacking play.3 Keep believing in themselves. The Wallabies are also true believers in another popular Deans phrase: "Play what's in front of you." And it's working. You could feel the excitement at the Sydney Football Stadium during the Barbarians game a few weeks ago, when the crowd which had become braindead by watching the ultra-negative Waratahs ignore the talents of their back line and play mind-numbing football all season was suddenly revived by an Australian team that showed initiative and intelligence. The SFS audience was also reminded of how exciting it is to see tries scored regularly. That will continue tonight, as Deans has emphasised the rewards to those who are prepared to trust their hand. It improves the tempo, the momentum, the spectacle, the positive nature of a team and the possibility of victory. Hopefully the Waratahs' hierarchy looks and learns.4 Richard Brown to fire up. It was good to see the Wallabies' No.8 being so honest about his form on Thursday. He is not happy with how he is playing and, with Wycliff Palu hovering, he knows he needs a big one tonight. This will be the first time he has played against the French and the first time he has played at Homebush Bay. Brown should excel, as he likes confrontational opponents. The French are certainly that.5 Watch your jatz crackers. The French have cleaned up their act in recent times, after having a dreadful reputation for being the dirty mongrel dogs of international rugby. Countless Wallabies can testify to the moment when their voice suddenly went up several octaves after extra fingers were found down the front of their footy shorts during a French Test. The old-fashioned French squirrel grip has quietened many fearsome Wallabies forwards who, for good measure, have also been the victims of an "innocent" eye massage in the same game. As Peter FitzSimons once said after an 1989 France tour match: "It was the first time that my eyes have been twisted so much that I have seen my brain ... and it is big." That dirty trait has gradually disappeared from the French game, but don't be bluffed into believing the visiting forward pack are a bunch of nancy boys. In the tight clinches, they will be unforgiving. Also remember, the French are the masters of denying everything. Just witness the French farce involving their centre Mathieu Bastareaud, who complained he had been bashed at a Wellington taxi cab rank last weekend, prompting an apology from the New Zealand Prime Minister, John Key. Now Bastareaud reckons that he fell over in his hotel room in a drunken state. Pffffft.6 Don't allow Cedric Heymans to do any line dancing. It's pushing it a bit to say left winger Heyman's solo try last Saturday night was one of the greatest scored, but it was still spectacular. Lachie Turner will have to ensure that doesn't happen again and his defence is up to it. Also, Mortlock and Ashley-Cooper will be hovering to ensure Heymans splutters as much as an old clapped-out Nissan Cedric. And after the French coach castigated Heymans for hogging the ball, the Wallabies must keep a look out for the French support players out wide.7 Expect the unexpected from the French. It will all depend on how the French feel when they wake up this morning. They've given away the old pre-match build-up of a big lunch, a crate of red wine, several packets of Gitanes and live adult entertainment to get them in the mood. Nowadays it all revolves around motivation and how much they want to win. They are the most unpredictable team going around. If they're not in the mood, they will go simply through the motions. But if the French fire has been stoked they can play the most exhilarating brand of football. Expect the latter, because their win over the All Blacks has revived them and, having finally sent their best team south, tonight will be real hand on the heart stuff. Expect the tears to flow when La Marseillaise is played.
© 2009 Sydney Morning Herald