“We’ve lost our culture … kids have got no idea who we are”
Australia’s greatest ever rugby union test tryscorer says today’s kids can’t name a single Wallaby and don’t want even free tickets to games.
Twenty years ago, there was a moment between Hollywood megastar Russell Crowe and Wallaby great David Campese that tells you exactly how high Australian rugby was flying.
In Monday’s launch episode of The Australian’s bombshell new investigative podcast The Breakdown, Campese reveals he was in his shop in Sydney’s The Rocks in the early 2000s when Crowe’s personal trainer popped in to buy a framed jersey for the Oscar winner’s birthday.
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“I apologised as they weren’t for sale but I suggested that if he would be interested in a ‘memorabilia trade’ we could work something out,” Campese said.
It was agreed that the trade would include his 1991 World Cup jersey (the one he wore to beat the All Blacks) and the great All Black Jonah Lomu’s Test jersey.
“Then one day as I was working into my shop at the Rocks there was a mysterious black Mercedes parked opposite. Russell appeared and walked over to me with something rather bulky in his hand. Once we were in the shop he revealed what it was, which was a total surprise. There in front of me was one of two of the original masks he wore in the Gladiator movie.”
one of the masks the superstar gave him.
Campese was Australian rugby’s first superstar, starring in an ad many fans can still sing along to today: the “I want to be a Wallaby” campaign.
But Campese has no role in the game he gave so much to and rugby is without a new superstar that young fans want to be.
Australia’s greatest ever tryscorer has coached in South Africa, England and Italy but a full-time coaching job in Australia with a Super Rugby team or the Wallabies has eluded him.
Campese says he doesn‘t hold any grudges about it, but makes it clear that he would still love to coach at an elite level in Australia.
“I am now at the stage in my life where I have the knowledge and wisdom that I would like to pass on to the next generation of players and coaches,” Campese said.
“We have lost our way and our culture in this country. We don’t have an Australian rugby identity anymore. We are not revered or respected as leaders as we once were. It’s so disappointing for not only me, but all the fans and staunch supporters who remember when Australian rugby dominated the world.”
While the AFL and NRL seem to embrace their legends, with many going into coaching consultant roles or as senior coaches, the rugby union fraternity has overlooked a generation that made the code boom in Australia.
The Breakdown is a six-part investigation, with a new episode launching each day this week, that looks into how the game that once boasted $40 million in the bank and TV audiences of three million has ended up broke and struggling for relevance.
It also asks: who can save Australian rugby?
Listen to The Breakdown now
In the app: swipe to the Podcasts section
On the web: Visit theaustralian.com.au/thebreakdown
The Breakdown features exclusive interviews from former prime minister John Howard, billionaire Andrew Forrest, former CEO John O’Neill, Wallabies greats John Eales, Phil Kearns, George Gregan and Nick Farr-Jones, former Wallabies coach Michael Cheika, former Rugby Australia board member Ann Sherry, current board chair Hamish McLennan and many others, all having their say on the “game they play in heaven”.
“The grassroots are in a catastrophic state at the moment,” says Jeff Messitt, secretary of the Bundaberg Waves Falcons Rugby Union club.
“Kids can’t name a current Wallaby … funny the only one that they know is Israel Folau. And he’s now gone.”
Since his return from living in South Africa in 2018, Campese has partnered with Classic Wallabies and offered coaching clinics across Australia.
This opened his eyes up to the state of the game: most kids in his clinics couldn’t name a Wallaby, and even private schoolboys weren’t interested in free tickets to Wallabies games.
“I must say I had two fantastic years coaching, travelling around Australia with my academy … but it was just interesting to see the sort of disconnect from the grassroots … and if the kids don’t understand and watch the game, I mean, what sort of future have we got?” Campese said.
“After training, I always ask the kids, What position do you play? ‘Number 10’. Who‘s your favourite player? ‘I haven’t got one,’ or they would name an All Black. They play rugby, but they don’t have Australian idols and don’t aspire to be like any of the Wallabies”
out each day this week on our app or theaustralian.com.au/thebreakdown
In Monday’s podcast Campese laments the impact of professionalism on Australian rugby and says the game has lost its culture.
“I just think we just need to get the culture back,” Campese said. “I think that‘s important. I think we’ve lost our culture, players have got no idea who we are, the kids have got no idea who we are, where we came from. I was taught that the only way to be the best is to aspire to win. It seems like the winning mentality has been lost. Mediocrity is accepted and normalised.
“If you talk about ‘winning’, people get offended and tell me it’s all about participation? How can you be the best with an attitude like this? We shouldn’t have to apologise for wanting to win and be the best.”
Listen to The Breakdown now
In the app: swipe to the Podcasts section
On the web: Visit theaustralian.com.au/thebreakdown
Do you know more? Email us: breakdown@theaustralian.com.au
