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Genia can help Wallabies tame Lions: Farr-jones
Scrumhalf Will Genia will need to have an outstanding series and win his personal duel with Welshman Mike Phillips if Australia are to beat the British and Irish Lions, Wallabies great Nick Farr-Jones said.
Farr-Jones, who captained Australia to the 1991 World Cup triumph, also said Genia’s opinion on who played outside him in the three tests should be taken into account when deciding whether or not to include Quade Cooper in the Wallabies squad.
Widely recognised as one of the finest halfbacks to have played the game, Farr-Jones said Genia and Phillips, whose display in the Lions’ opener in Hong Kong cemented his position as favourite for the test No 9 shirt, were two of the best in the modern game.
“Genia I rate as the best, it’s important that he be consistently good,” Farr-Jones said.
“The good ball we get, Will’s got to be able to use that well and his judgement’s going to be really critical. He’s playing with confidence, I think he’ll want to dictate the series.”
Farr-Jones said Genia would have been disappointed with his performances at the 2011 World Cup, where Australia were ambushed by Ireland, ended up on the more difficult side of the draw and were bundled out in the semifinals.
“He didn’t reach the levels the we might have expected, or at least Australia needed, to have been a force in that World Cup,” Farr-Jones added at the launch of the sponsorship of the referees for the Lions tour by Specsavers.
“I think Will will know, or at least be left in no doubt by (coach) Robbie Deans, that he needs to have an outstanding series if we are to win. You need your best players playing at their best capacity.
“But he’s up against a very physical, tough, big scrumhalf, who likes to niggle as well. It’s going to be fascinating.”
Genia has gone on record saying he would prefer to play in a halfback pairing with Cooper for the Wallabies even if his Queensland Reds teammate was left out of the preliminary Wallabies squad by Deans.
“I was lucky enough to play my first four tests with Mark Ella and the rest of my career with Michael Lynagh, it was critical to have someone you trusted, that you knew you had a great working relationship with,” said Farr-Jones.
“It gives you confidence and particularly as a scrumhalf, one thing that you need is lateral vision, and when you have confidence you have lateral vision in spades.
“So knowing that the guy outside can do the job is critical. I have no doubt from a distance that Robbie Deans would listen to Will Genia (and) I’m sure Quade’s still in the picture.”
The failure to beat the British and Irish Lions in 1989, when Australia lost the series 2-1, still haunts Farr-Jones 24 years later, he admitted.
Australia won the first test comfortably, but the tide turned when Lions halfback Robert Jones stamped on Farr-Jones’s foot at the first scrum in the second test, provoking a fight which set the tone for the “Battle of Ballymore”.
“Twenty-four years ago you get away with that more than you can now, you didn’t have 14 cameras following the play, you didn’t have touch judges with microphones and referees with ear pieces,” he said.
“That hard, physical game, including rucking, was more of an allowed thing in those days. I don’t have a problem with the way they played, they played a very intelligent game. They looked at the first test, where we won by 18 points, and realised they had to change something.
“My only problem was that we didn’t stand toe-to-toe. I have no doubt our guys (this year) will be well prepared mentally for the challenge. The boys are expecting it and there’ll be some tough stuff.”
Farr-Jones was reluctant to pick a series winner until he had a good look at the tourists, even if he thought the Lions might keep a few tricks up their sleeves for the first test in Brisbane on June 22.
“I think we’ve got a very good chance, but if I was going to put my house on it three weeks out, I’d go with the British Lions because of the continuity they get in the lead-up.” he said.