Tim Horan: One-off performances aren’t good enough because Australian teams need to be more consistent
Twelve months ago the Wallabies were on top of the world, not literally of course, but, still, feeling pretty good about things. Then it came crashing down. It serves as a brutal reminder for all Aussie teams.
Opinion
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On the anniversary of the Wallabies’ wonderful win over the All Blacks at Perth last year, it’s timely to remember the biggest challenge Australian rugby faces.
I can still recall the euphoria that exploded the next day.
Before I flew back to Brisbane, I saw people running around parks wearing their Wallaby jerseys and a mate of mine who was at the City to Surf in Sydney, rang me to say he could see gold Wallaby jerseys everywhere.
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I was excited too because that’s what beating the All Blacks means to so many supporters but I was also a little bit nervous about what was going to happen next.
And sure enough, the next week, the All Blacks beat us 36-0 at Eden Park.
Inconsistency has been a big problem for Wallaby teams over a long period of time and it starts with our Super Rugby teams.
The Brumbies are the only Australian team that have been consistent for a long time even though they had some big lapses of concentration in last week’s loss to the Rebels.
All the other teams have shown they have the ability but they’ve struggled to string consistent performances together.
The Waratahs produced one of the best 40 minutes of rugby I’ve seen from a NSW team in years when they beat Queensland last week and that’s great for Super Rugby AU because it shows that the competition is so close and now wide open.
But the real test for the Waratahs is whether they can keep their feet on the ground because once is not enough, they have to do that three or four weeks in a row.
That’s what the really good sides like Saracens and the Crusaders do week in, week out. Even when they lose their performances are still top notch and that’s one of the keys.
It’s not about winning every single game you play, it’s about bringing an up tempo, tactical and physical game week-in, week-out. That’s why teams like the Crusaders are so successful because there’s very little variance in their performances.
That’s what new Wallaby coach Dave Rennie will be looking for, not only from teams but from individuals as well.
One of the positive things for the Waratahs is that their record victory over Queensland will have elevated another three or four of their players into Wallaby contention.
Take a player like Jake Gordon. His performance last week will have put him in the frame for a possible Wallaby jersey but he needs another two or three matches like that if he wants to make the 23-man Test squad.
I’ve always been a big fan of Jake Gordon but he needs to play like that more often because when it comes to consistency, Tate McDermott is the form halfback.
That’s the same for every position.
If players want to be picked, they need to play at that same high-level every week or the euphoria of nights like last year will be short lived again.
Originally published as Tim Horan: One-off performances aren’t good enough because Australian teams need to be more consistent