Auckland came close to being relegated last year and then bounced back to be champions in 2018. The story of how they turned themselves around is quite inspiring.
THE CITY OF AUCKLAND HAS ENDURED LEAN AND DIFFICULT TIMES IN THE LAST DECADE WITH BOTH THEIR PROVINCIAL AND SUPER RUGBY TEAMS BEING SPECTACULAR UNDER ACHIEVERS. BUT AUCKLAND HAVE RAISED OPTIMISM ABOUT A BRIGHT NEW FUTURE AFTER WINNING THE MITRE 1 0 CUP A YEAR AFTER ALMOST BEING RELEGATED. PATRICK MCKENDRY TELLS THE STORY OF THIS STUNNING REVIVAL.
Is Auckland rugby back? Try telling the more than 20,000 people who were present during the incredible extratime Mitre 10 Cup premiership final between Auckland and Canterbury at Eden Park that it isn’t.
On a late afternoon in October which began in warm sunshine but ended in torrential rain, the blue and whites finished over the top of the near perennial competition winners and were crowned worthy champions after the 40-33 extratime victory.
The seeds to this triumph were planted many months before when new coach Alama Ieremia sat his team down and explained how he would help them make the most of their talents after they were within a whisker of being relegated the year before.
Bear in mind too that many of his players have connections with the Blues, another under-performing outfit.
Many of them have become too used to failure, but Ieremia, with the help of former All Blacks coach Sir Graham Henry, moulded a unit in their image; one with discipline and cohesion and resilience and of those qualities it was perhaps the first that was the most important.
Ieremia’s rules were built on respect. Good behaviour from his players was rewarded, poor behaviour punished. It’s easy to say, but harder to enforce and retain the engagement of a group of young men, especially in today’s society.
Ieremia, in his first season as Auckland coach after a difficult time with Manu Samoa and before that the Hurricanes, was moved to fire a few figurative rounds near the start of the season and didn’t have any more problems.
“At one stage there were 12 guys who paid the price and that was made clear in front of everyone,” Ieremia said two days before the final at Eden Park. The issues were a lack of proper recovery after a match and a failure to do their personal reviews.
“They were told to leave the room even before they could say anything,” Ieremia said. “That in itself is a statement. After that, nobody was late and nobody stuffed up.
hat works with one team may not work with another, but Ieremia and Henry and fellow assistants Filo Tiatia, Tai Lavea and Mike Casey found the magic formula.
“Myself and Filo did it in a way so it’s very black and white,” former All Black Ieremia said of his approach. “It’s not so much ‘this is what we do’ and this is what it looks like when we do it right, it’s ‘this is what it looks like when we do it wrong’.
“With players these days, to me that’s the biggest thing. We’ve got a society now that offers so many options, offers so many outs… that you need to make sure the players know what [isn’t acceptable], because if it doesn’t marry up they are easily weeded out and they don’t become part of your environment.
“It’s done in a way that they learn –‘this is why you’ve been dropped’.
“We have a big focus on rewarding players but if you’re not doing the right thing then you’re shot. The learning is in that and I believe that’s where the gains have been. They’ve been big because the leaders have bought into it and once they do and lead by example then you’ve got something to work on.”
The talent pool that Auckland rugby, and the Blues, possess is well known but unfortunately so are the issues; the foremost being a maddening record of serial underachievement over the past decade.
Could this be a turning point in the province and by extension the Super Rugby franchise?
Auckland came sixth of seven teams last season and were in danger of relegation. This year they led from the front and delivered when it counted against a team with proven finals pedigree. It just mightW be the start of something.
Ieremia, in the first year of a three-year deal, knows few things are guaranteed in the professional game but he has big plans to capitalise on his team’s victory, including taking them (minus the Super Rugby players) on an overseas tour in February to further build team unity.
AT ONE STAGE THERE WERE 12 GUYS WHO PAID THE PRICE AND THAT WAS MADE CLEAR IN FRONT OF EVERYONE. THE ISSUES WERE A LACK OF PROPER RECOVERY AFTER A MATCH AND A FAILURE TO DO THEIR PERSONAL REVIEWS.’ ALAMA IEREMIA
His wariness comes partly from his tough times at the Hurricanes, where he was an assistant under Mark Hammett, and Manu Samoa, where he was head coach in the end.
Success was rare during his time with both teams but his vision never wavered and it has resulted in a sorely needed rugby victory for New Zealand's biggest city.
His first job, before he addressed his players, was to find the right coaching personnel and in hindsight it’s clear he struck gold by asking Henry to help him.
“We’ve had our heated discussions and debates and we haven’t agreed on some things,” Ieremia said of Henry. “But that, to me, is a healthy relationship.
“I’ve got nothing but admiration and respect for him.
“This year, a lot was going to be based around respect and the character of the team, and that comes from the defence. And who better to do that than Ted. I know he’s been out of the game, but when he speaks about attitude, it does make a difference. But also his role as a mentor and a sounding board for me has been important.”
After finishing as head coach of Manu Samoa, Ieremia was warned against applying for the Auckland job, but his old friend the late Dylan Mika, a former Auckland and Blues player, convinced him to do so.
“He helped me and gave me the confidence to talk to the right people and galvanise a lot of people.
“I believe that what we’ve done to date, and I’m sure that Dylan would agree, is that we’ve brought some respect back to Auckland.”
The rain during the final sent the crowd, who took advantage of the free entry and flooded into the stadium, on a form of musical chairs throughout as they sought shelter and afterwards, hours after the final whistle, Auckland’s triumphant players, including prop Sam Prattley, ran, or in some cases, limped, through the downpour to their cars.
Their smiles were as wide as the huge puddles forming in the car park despite the fact they were getting soaked to the skin.
Even loose-head prop Prattley was happy as he shielded a young child from the downpour.
Prattley, a huge part of the Auckland pack and therefore their run to the title this year, was knocked out by a head clash after only five minutes of the game.
He didn’t get to play the part he wanted to, and presumably wasn’t allowed to have a beer to celebrate afterwards, but there was no containing his joy and that should apply throughout the rugby province because, this and please excuse the pun, may have been a watershed moment.
Few of Ieremia’s players will forget the experience of winning a 100-minute final and they should all be better for it, even the unlucky ones like Prattley and replacement inside back Daniel Kirkpatrick, the only Auckland reserve who didn’t get to run on to the pitch until after the final whistle.
Afterwards, Ieremia made special mention of Kirkpatrick’s role.
And Kirkpatrick and the rest of his Auckland teammates will likely return the favour.
From near relegation to worthy champions in 12 months, it has been some turnaround and that has been led by Ieremia who endured so many tough times as a coach.
The respect is back at Auckland, yes, but so is the joy and long may it continue.