Under-fire Cheika says he still has the belief

JAMIE PANDARAM Tests this year, but he’s shown no signs of concern about his job security this week in Italy and says it’s due to self-belief.

“You’ll have some success and you can’t enjoy the successes unless you enjoy and acknowledge the hardships that come to you too,” Cheika said.

“You’ve got to have melancholy, you’ve got to be upset and angry sometimes and sometimes you’ve got to be extremely happy. It’s how we work.

“That’s a reflection of life too. It comes from a lot of intrinsic belief in oneself.

“I believe in myself a lot, very humbly as well. I know I’ve got stuff to learn and people to learn from but I believe in the intent of what I am doing always, so it makes the challenge more interesting because you are putting yourself on the line.”

Australia has never lost to Italy. Defeat to the hosts this weekend would presumably seal his fate as Wallabies coach but the emotional rollercoaster of the job is “an addiction”, Cheika said. “I believe in everything we are doing and I know that in life things sometimes don’t go your way and you can’t cry about it,” he said.

“Don’t be scared to make decisions that not everyone may like. As long as your intent is for the success of the people you represent and the team you are part of then every decision is good. I’m never scared to make those and also accept the consequences.

“It’s an addiction of some sort, maybe, the adrenaline, the thrill of it as well as trying to make sure that you have prepared yourself correctly to make the right decisions.”

It hasn’t been coming off often enough for the Wallabies, who under Cheika have gone from World Cup finalists in 2015 to a record low seventh in the rankings.