Test that saved Australian rugby
Rarely does a sporting contest deliver as Bledisloe I did as the Dave Rennie era kicked off with a pulsating 16-16 draw.
Rarely does a sporting contest deliver as Bledisloe I did in Wellington. In the end all the hype of a new Wallabies era, all the hope tied into Dave Rennie’s debut as national coach fell short of what reality actually delivered on the field as the Australians fought out a pulsating 16-16 draw with the All Blacks.
Like an epic basketball contest, a gripping match was all distilled down to the final frenetic five minutes. In that period Australia had the match won 16-13, then saw the Kiwis draw level again, then seemingly had it won a second time when Reece Hodge launched a penalty goal bomb from 60m, only for the ball to hit the uprights. But the Wallabies had chased the kick in numbers and won the rebound and were setting themselves up for a winning James O’Connor field goal when, cruelly, the ball was turned over.
In the end, there were only groans of relief from all players as O’Connor, standing in his own in-goal, took the sensible option and wearily nudged the ball into touch.
Both sides were out on their feet after more than 85 minutes of unrelenting action, scarcely able to continue. Yet both sides hated the outcome.
The Wallabies, it could be argued, had reason to hate it more. Down 13-3 after 44 minutes, they stormed back to score two second half tries and were dominating momentum right up to when they delayed their field goal shot one phase too many right at the death. Replays showed that the All Blacks’ opening try should have been disallowed because Rieko Ioane put a foot on the line but Australian linesman Angus Gardner – who will control the second Test at Eden Park on Sunday – missed it despite being in perfect position.
There was, as well, widespread criticism of Paul Williams who, because of the Covid pandemic, became the first New Zealander to control an All Blacks Test since 1978. Not that the criticism came from the Wallabies, it must be noted.
He twice penalised the Australians when they were hard on attack a metre from the NZ line, twice short-armed the Wallabies for early engagement on their scrum feed and generally penalised them to the tune of 14-7.
Still, Australia has had to put up with a lot, lot worse from whistleblowers over the years. It wasn’t his fault the Ioane foot into touch wasn’t called, and while he may have missed a forward pass in Aaron Smith’s try, he did disallow what should have been a gift try right on halftime because of a minuscule fumble by the All Black centre as he placed the ball. Like replays of a disputed slips catch close to the ground, it only confused the issue but, whatever, the Australians dodged a bullet.
In the final analysis, Australia still hasn’t broken its 19-year losing streak on New Zealand soil and Rennie’s win record as Wallabies coach still stands at an implacable zero. That is the cruel and unforgiving nature of a draw. It effectively counts as a loss for the team and the coach and that is pretty much how the Wallabies were viewing it. “We’re certainly not celebrating in the change rooms,” Rennie said.
While they might be struggling for a time to see the bright side of this result, back home in Australia the new Rennie era was being greeted with enthusiasm and relief.
The draw means Australia only has to win two of the remaining three Tests to reclaim the Bledisloe Cup and whatever happens the series will be alive when the two teams venture to Australia.
What had lit up Sky Stadium on a gloomy afternoon was the shining appreciation by the Wallabies that they understand rugby is more than a one-dimensional run-at-all-costs game. Australia played wide, Australia played close, Australia kicked, Australia ran with purpose. And there wasn’t a single member of the starting side that would want to have the game over.
“Out of the rubble of this year, the game is back and will be bankable all the way through to France (for the 2023 World Cup),” said Rugby Australia chairman Hamish McLennan who now will find that broadcasters and sponsors actually might take his calls in future. “That’s the point about rugby – you get to play for your country and they did us proud with a gritty, tough performance.
“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, but there needs to be a big thank you to Dave Rennie and (director of rugby) Scott Johnson. They have been dodging arrows for the last couple of months but they have ushered in a new era for Australia rugby that is humble, focused and determined.”
Ironically, while the draw – always portrayed as being akin to kissing your sister – has done wonders for Rennie’s reputation, the other new coach involved in yesterday’s Test, the All Blacks’ Ian Foster, is already starting to feel the heat. There was a wide belief that NZ Rugby erred by not going with Scott Robertson, the multiple Super Rugby title-winner with the Crusaders, and the incoherent way the All Blacks played will not have changed that view.
“I thought the Aussies played a high retention game and did really well but right at the end there were two teams throwing everything at it and neither was good enough to get across the line,” Foster said. “We had to make a lot of tackles and in some ways that’s a positive things because we nailed their attack pretty well but there were two pretty well-matched teams out there and we didn’t really get a chance to play at them and put our game on them.’
It has been a long while since an All Black coach has spoken so flatteringly of the Wallabies and it sets up a thriller next week at Eden Park where it has been 34 years since Australia last tasted success.
“We certainly know it’s Test match times and full credit to Aussie, they played with a lot of passion. So it will be full on.”
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