Sparky debutant wants another chance to put things right
Look out for amuch better effort from thewallabies in Bledisloe IV on Saturday than what they mustered in Sydney last weekend.
That’s the promise that has been madeby rookie Wallabies halfback Tate Mcdermott, whomade his test debut for Australia off the bench in the 43-5 drubbing atanzstadium— the biggest All Blacks win over their Tasmanneighbours in 117 years.
Speaking to media alongside fellow debutant and Queensland Reds teammate Fraser Mcreight this week, Mcdermott said the entire squadwas left reeling in the wakeof the crushing result.
“For us, we’re going in thesame mindset of making amendsand doing our best out there, which is whatwe didn’t putup on the weekend,” the 22-year-old said ofhowhe and his side are looking at this weekend’s final Bledisloecup match at Suncorp Stadium.
“We’ve got a lot to work on. I’m not bigon making promises, but what I will promise is that there will be a better showing on theweekendthan that was.
“Whoever gets selected, I’m sure they’ll do awonderful job and represent Australia with pride and passion that probably wasn’t there on the weekend.”
Defensive awareness and in-game temperament are just two aspects of test match rugby Mcdermott stressed leading into this weekend’s deadrubber showdown.
“Icameup against TJ Perenara, who’s obviously a pretty experienced campaigner. Yousaw that [with] that blindside try [to Rieko Ioane] on our five metre line. In hindsight, we should have brought another defender across in order to stop that,” Mcdermott noted.
“The other one is just having composure out there. I think as a whole team, with the 15 playerson there, weneed to be cool-headed. We knewthe plan, wejust didn’t execute it.
“It’s very tough coming on with 20 minutes and trying to change what has been done inthat past60 minutes, particularly against the All Blacks, whoare one of, if not the best, in world rugby at the moment.”
Such a tough induction onto the international stagemayhave been an overwhelming experience for some, although Mcdermott is confident nobody within the Wallabiescampis too dismayed.
In fact, the loss seems to have left Dave Rennie’s squad in a redemptive mood, with the one-test prospect refusing tomakeexcuses.
“I don’t think there’s toomany people here that would have their confidence shattered. In saying that, we’re hurting. All ofus are hurting. Welet somanypeople down.
“These are the building blocks. We’re not going tomakethat excuse that we’re a young side and all that rubbish that we’ve done in the past.
“I think that’s the start andwecan only go up, so, like I keep saying, we’ve got a lot to work on, and each of us are doing that. We’re trying to get better.”
Whether or not Mcdermott and Mcreightwill get an opportunity to makeup for their team’s shortcomings remains to be seen, but both were impressive in their cameos off the bench.
“I’m a seven, I’ve got a pretty good mentor and player in front of me, who is also captain as well, so I’m not really banking on starting anytime soon,” the 21-year-old Mcreight said of Michael Hooper.
“I’m here to work, I’m here to get better both on and off the field, and I think the best thing I can do is just soakupall the knowledge that Hoops can give me.”
This article was originally published at Rugbypass.com and is reprinted with their permission.