It’s time for Cheika to let someone else

It’s been a wild ride, Michael Cheika. Thanks for the memories. The Wallabies coach should resign in coming days to clear the decks for the rebuild. He said it himself, on February 27, 2018. It was the Webb Ellis Cup or nothing.

‘‘The way I see it is like this: we came second in the last one and you have got to improve,’’ he told News Corp.

‘‘So there is only winning the World Cup, otherwise it is probably somebody else’s opportunity to do it.’’

So that should be it, although Cheika is contracted until the end of the year and could take his time to exit.

Nevertheless, while this is failure it should be viewed in context. Australia’s quarterfinal exit after a 40-16 loss to England on Saturday is relative to their recent performances and results. After the horrors of last year, when the Wallabies won four of their 13 tests in their worst season since 1958, Cheika has done more with this team than anyone expected was possible, given he was still in charge.

At the end of last year, as grim a test season as any Wallabies fan can remember, Cheika’s coaching success rate sat at 48.3 per cent, with 28 wins, 28 losses and two draws.

With a panel of selectors and a new attack coach he improved that to 50 per cent. It is still the equal-worst rate of any Australian coach in the professional era.

For another sobering statistic, look at Australia’s record against current tier-one nations (New Zealand, South Africa, Argentina, France, Italy, Wales, England, Ireland and Scotland). This year it sits at 40 per cent, last year it was 42 per cent, the year before at 40 per cent. They were the poorest figures in the professional era barring the season that cost Eddie Jones his job (33 per cent).

There are systemic reasons for the decline that are being addressed too late for Cheika. The painful and damaging demise of the Western Force has started to help lift the performances of the remaining four Super Rugby teams. The schools and U20s pathways have been reformed and are already producing top results.

But it is also not all systemic. Cheika’s loyalty to players and assistants cost him. He stuck with Bernard Foley, Nick Phipps and attack coach Stephen Larkham for too long.

Australian coach Michael Cheika is disconsolate after his team’s crushing defeat to England that may spell the end of his troubled tenure in charge of the Wallabies.