Rob Horne: Wallabies to stick with game plan but do it better

The Wallabies are planning to do what they did in the first two Tests, but do it better, says vice-captain Rob Horne.

Wallabies vice-captain Rob Horne passes at training. ‘What we can do better is to do our job and do our role better.’

The Wallabies are planning to do what they did in the first two Tests against England, but do it better, according to vice-captain Rob Horne.

There has been criticism of the predictability of the Wallabies’ game plan in their losses in Brisbane and Melbourne, but Horne said the players still believed in the ball-in-hand style. They just needed to execute it better.

“We know how we want to play. What are we going to do differ­ently? We’re going to do it better,” Horne said.

“We are who we are. We know what inspires Australians to support rugby. When we do it well, it’s pretty good to watch and you can really put away teams.

“We are not a 10-man rugby team. We are not going to put up the high ball and everyone chase and see what happens. We are a team that want to take control of the game and take control of our own destiny.

“What we can do better is to do our job and do our role better. There was some good stuff there, but when you look deeper, it’s pretty obvious to us internally we were falling short in our game.”

Cunning England coach Eddie Jones devised tactics, particularly in the second Test, where the men in white deliberately let the ­Wallabies have the lion’s share of possession and relied on their ­defence to win the game.

“We played a fair bit of footy,” Horne said. “Our accuracy wasn’t up there where it needs to be. It’s disappointing we didn’t convert as many opportunities as we created.

“It’s completely on us. We have to do our role. We have to do our job. The last couple of weeks, the thing about losing is it puts a microscope on yourself. You learn a lot from a loss, as opposed to a win.

“We are working very hard on ourselves and making sure we put ourselves in the right positions.

“It’s doing your job. Knowing what that is in every situation and doing it at the highest pressure point during a Test match when you need to, because during Tests there are very few opportunities that arise.”

Horne said the Wallabies had played well individually, but not as a team as they strived to develop new combinations, particularly in the backline. “Everyone who has come in has played pretty well, but as a collective all of us were doing some things well and the things that were important for the collective was not up to where it needs to be,” Horne said.

“That’s across the board. That’s all of us. Everyone is doing some good things, but as a whole we are not doing it the right way.”

The Wallabies held on to the ball for long periods, up to 20 ­phases, but would let try-scoring opportunities go begging by ­dropping the ball or conceding a turnover.

“That’s part of your job. It’s part of your role, it’s part of your craft,” Horne said. “Simple as that. You can’t lose the ball at the tackle. It’s quite straightforward.”

Errors were made in part because of the intensive defensive pressure of the English.

“They defended well,” Horne said. “They had a specific plan. When you have a mentality that you are going to tackle all day, it helps your approach to the game.

“Their defence on their tryline was very impressive. To be down there so long and not convert — all credit to them. That’s a good effort.”

The quietly spoken Horne admitted it was a challenging time to be thrust into a leadership role, but he was trying to lead by example.

“It’s quite new,” Horne said. “It’s a pretty challenging time, I suppose, to be in there. Learning a lot. I’m just trying to lead by playing well.”

Meanwhile, coach Michael Cheika is expected to make a few changes to the team, including bringing in playmaker Matt Toomua at inside centre.

Cheika has run two big centres, Samu Kerevi and Tevita Kuri­drani, in the midfield, but Toomua, who has recovered from knee surgery, would give the Wallabies more options in attack by providing a second playmaker.