You get the feeling Wallaby coach Robbie Deans is getting a little gatvol about his charges and had fair bit to say about them after another capitulation against the All Blacks. Speaking at the announcement of a 43 man squad to assemble in Sydney next week he did not hold back his punches.
Asking about overcoming the mental block that is the All Blacks he said: “Obviously it’s important that we get it done, but most importantly just taking ourselves seriously in the first instance would be a good start.”
“Until we do that, no one else is going to take us seriously.
“If we don’t respect what we do, and the opportunity that we have, we won’t produce anything that will demand a lot of the likes of the All Blacks in Tokyo.”
Deans said that was the difference between the two sides in Wellington earlier this month.
“You had an All Blacks side that didn’t want to bear the cross of being the worst in the history of the game domestically and you had the Wallabies side who would like to have won but didn’t have the same degree of want or desperation,” he said.
Deans was also asked about the mentality of the Wallabies and said – on occasions – it was more fragile than that of their trans-Tasman rivals.
“You can’t generalise because it pertains to each outing and you saw both extremes, you saw Brisbane [a 21-6 win over South Africa] and you saw Wellington,” he said.
“In Brisbane the answer was no, in Wellington the answer was yes.”
All talk and no action…Deans wants more.
“Personally I think confidence is overrated,” he said.
“Personally I think a toughness and a resilience is more important.
“It’s not about how you feel, it’s about what you do and we have an opportunity to do something significant.”
As for the squad of 43 players, it includes ten uncapped players. The newcomers include Western Force wing Nick Cummins, Waratahs midfield back Rob Horne, Reds and Australian Sevens scrumhalf Richard Kingi, Brumbies blindside flank Mitchell Chapman, Waratahs lock Dave Dennis, Waratahs and Australia Under-20 hooker Damien Fitzpatrick, Brumbies prop Salesi Ma’afu and the as yet uncapped at state level Sydney University utility forward Ben McCalman, who has been signed by the Western Force for 2010. Also included is Kurtley Beale (Waratahs) and Matt Hodgson (Western Force).
The dropkick king, Matt Dunning and prop Sekope Kepu also made the first cut whilst wing Digby Ioane will also have a run after the shoulder reconstruction he had after injury in the Super 14.
The squad will undergo four days of training in Sydney before the announcement of the final 35-man party on October 9.
After a final Bledisloe Cup Test at the National Stadium in Tokyo, Japan, on October 31 the team will travel on to Europe to attempt a Grand Slam tour of the four Home Unions and if successful will emulate the 1984 Wallaby team who successfully beat Wales, Ireland, England and Scotland.
Wallaby training squad: James O’Connor (Western Force), Lachie Turner (Waratahs), Kurtley Beale (Waratahs), Drew Mitchell (Western Force), Digby Ioane (Reds), Nick Cummins (Western Force), Peter Hynes (Reds), Ryan Cross (Western Force), Stirling Mortlock (Brumbies), Rob Horne (Waratahs), Adam Ashley-Cooper (Brumbies), Matt Giteau (Western Force), Quade Cooper (Reds), Berrick Barnes (Reds), Josh Valentine (Western Force), Will Genia (Reds), Luke Burgess (Waratahs), Richard Kingi (Reds), Wycliff Palu (Waratahs), George Smith (Brumbies), David Pocock (Western Force), Phil Waugh (Waratahs), Stephen Hoiles (Brumbies), Matt Hodgson (Western Force), Rocky Elsom (Brumbies), Dean Mumm (Waratahs), Richard Brown (Western Force), Mitchell Chapman (Brumbies), Ben McCalman (Western Force), Mark Chisholm (Brumbies), James Horwill (Reds), Nathan Sharpe (Western Force), Dave Dennis (Waratahs), Al Baxter (Waratahs), Matt Dunning (Waratahs), Pekahou Cowan (Western Force), Sekope Kepu (Waratahs), Salesi Ma’afu (Brumbies), Ben Alexander (Brumbies), Benn Robinson (Waratahs), Damien Fitzpatrick (Waratahs), Stephen Moore (Brumbies), Tatafu Polota-Nau (Waratahs).
Tour schedule:
October 31: v All Blacks – Olympic Stadium, Tokyo, 17.30 (08.30 GMT)
November 3: v Gloucester – Kingsholm, 19.45 (19.45 GMT)
November 7: v England – Twickenham, London, 14.30 (14.30 GMT)
November 15: v Ireland – Croke Park, Dublin, 15.00 (15.00 GMT)
November 21: v Scotland – Murrayfield, Edinburgh, 17.15 (17.15 GMT)
November 28: v Wales – Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, 17.15 (17.15 GMT)
BrakkenJAN