Could prayer be the only thing to save the Wallabies? The continuing humiliation of the Australian rugby side raises the question of just how low the team can sink before some sort of intervention, divine or otherwise, is required.
Rob Valetini reacts after the Wallabies’ loss to Fiji at the Rugby World Cup in France.Credit: AP
The injury-ravaged and captainless Wallabies side went down 22-15 to Fiji in France on Monday and now face the prospect of being eliminated in the group stages of a Rugby World Cup for the first time. The result has ratcheted up pressure on the clearly flailing Australians ahead of their next pool match against unbeaten Wales in Lyon. A Welsh triumph would consign the Wallabies to a 1-2 win-loss record before their final pool match against Portugal. It is a position in which the Wallabies have never found themselves before at a World Cup.
The unexpected defeat also achieved other record-book moments: not only was it rare for a rugby power nation to be handed such a pasting by a younger sibling, but it ended the Wallabies’ 15-game winning streak over Fiji – it was the first time Australia lost to the Fijians since a Test in 1954 at the SCG when a disputed call at the scrum gave fullback Taniela Ranavue an easy kick to secure the 18-16 result. In the years since, Fiji has become a ready source of players for Australia and other nations. But that has changed somewhat, especially since their own side, Fijian Drua, started competing in Super Rugby. That said, seven members of the Wallabies squad – Samu Kerevi, Marika Koroibete, Mark Nawaqanitawase, Rob Valetini, Suliasi Vunivalu, Langi Gleeson and Issak Fines-Leleiwasa – have roots in the Pacific island nation.
Not that they had much effect. Coach Eddie Jones took full responsibility for the loss. He could hardly do otherwise. Still, it raises the question of how many more attempts Jones can be given before the administration searches for a winning combination. The return of the prodigal Jones for another stint as Wallabies coach was aimed at reinvigorating Australian rugby. But fans are hardly impressed with the direction the team has been heading since he took over – so far, under Jones’ failing renaissance, the Wallabies have one win in seven matches.
Rugby has been floundering in recent times due to falling popularity courtesy of the disconnect between schoolboy rugby, club rugby and Super Rugby. Further, unlike other football codes, Rugby Australia has been tardy to expand its brand and properly develop and fund women’s rugby and taken flak for its unequal treatment of the women’s national side, the Wallaroos. The funding of women’s rugby in Australia is significantly lower than leading nations such as New Zealand and England, whose top players are fully professional. The administrative recalcitrance looks all the more embarrassing given the success of the Matildas at the recent FIFA Women’s World Cup.
Amid all the bad news surrounding rugby, promoting the game was part of Jones’ remit when he was re-appointed Australian coach earlier this year after being sacked by England last December. He had the misfortune to inherit a losing team from Dave Rennie but regrettably has maintained the tradition. Jones is only a few matches into his five-year term as coach. Should he last the distance, he will likely guide the Wallabies when Australia hosts the 2027 World Cup.
Jones’ main hope of getting there is that his Wallabies are a young side and will get better. But to survive that long, and rescue rugby from the administration-induced doldrums, Jones needs people in the stands and ratings on television and the way to do that is to coach a winning team. The Welsh cannot be allowed victory.
