Prospects grim for wallowing Wallabies
Ten months before the start of the Rugby World Cup, the Wallabies look a million miles away from lifting the William Webb Ellis Cup for a record-equalling third time.
After the euphoria of the 2015 run to the final at Twickenham — the undoubted high point of Cheika’s four-year reign — the Wallabies head into 2019 with far more questions than answers.
Nine defeats in 13 matches, slumping to sixth in the world rankings, forward set-piece issues and no clear indication who the first-choice hooker, second fiveeighth and centre pairing will be come the World Cup opener in Sapporo against Fiji, Cheika’s positivity masks many problems.
The under-fire coach’s preparations for Sunday’s 37-18 loss to England — a record sixth straight loss to their old rivals — were hit by the hotel scandal that broke on the eve of the match.
Cheika claimed to the media in London on Thursday that Adam Ashley-Cooper and Kurtley Beale’s omissions were down to form and game plan.
When it emerged that it was because of breaking of team rules at the Cardiff hotel they used during their first loss to Wales in a decade, the coach said it was a minor issue and praised the squad’s leadership group for bringing the breach to his attention.
It was a minor infraction, but when the team is under pressure and one of the perpetrators was Beale — a previous disciplinary offender — the headlines were predictably hostile.
Rugby Australia will conduct a review within a month after the Wallabies’ year from hell and plenty is riding on it.
They simply can’t afford to do nothing, not least because their supporter base is disillusioned and angry.