Matthew Burke
If there was a World Cup without the All Blacks, we would have a great chance of lifting the William Webb Ellis trophy. Unfortunately that isn’t going to happen.
I say this because perhaps we may have been a little harsh in our criticism of the Wallabies in relation to our neighbours across the ditch.
The Wallabies are in a predicament, along with South Africa and Argentina. The three of us contest a competition against a side who right now are clearly the best rugby-playing nation.
Rugby Heaven
We need to be realists. The All Blacks are the dominant team in world rugby, plain and simple. Their records speaks for itself. Two World Cups, Bledisloe domination, Tri-Nations triumphs and now success in the Rugby Championship.
They haven’t lost a Test in Auckland since 1994 and only lost just once since Steve Hansen took over from Graham Henry after the successful World Cup campaign in 2011, winning 32 of their 35 Tests. (They have drawn twice with the Wallabies.)
Counting their World Cup run, the All Blacks have won 39 of their past 42 Tests. I am not condoning that we strive for second best, but that record is pretty bloody good.
When you do play against New Zealand, it’s about taking the small opportunities they give you and seizing on them.
When the All Blacks have an off day they still have the ability to win. On the rare occasion they are off key, you have to take the chance. You need to cash in then because when they have their good days you are in all sorts of strife.
That off-day scenario was on offer in Sydney six weeks ago and unfortunately the Wallabies missed the chance.
In the recent Test in Auckland I had a brief catch up with Henry, who upon finishing his stint as coach, has been on the speaking circuit at the request of international sporting franchises delivering presentations on why the All Blacks are so dominant.
Explaining the iconic nature of the brand, the team work, the culture and the drive for success, he has delivered these addresses to businesses, NFL teams and other sporting franchises.
It is quite remarkable to think how a team from a small nation can be so influential on the world stage. They have some of the biggest franchises looking for that same edge.
Man for man, some individuals may have the wood over some of the players in the All Blacks, but this team is dominant as a unit.
They trust in each other to do a job. No doubt there is a huge sense of history behind them, but it’s about the current players doing the job.
The difficult part for the Wallabies and everyone else is that they are up against a team that is arguably the best in history.
Take a different sporting analogy. Remember back to when Tiger Woods dominated golf and it didn’t really matter who was second, or so I thought.
That was until I heard Scottish golfer Colin Montgomerie say something that I found very interesting. It went against all my beliefs and psyche. He mentioned he would be very happy to be known as the second best golfer in the world.
Montgomerie reached the lofty heights of No.2 at one stage, like many others chasing Woods, with the surprising admission that he was comfortable with that tag.
His thinking was that if you are never going to get there, then be the best at being second. Maybe that’s what it’s come down to – being the best of the rest.
The All Blacks don’t look like giving up the mantle anytime soon, so embrace a tag of second best, which right now is only 0.32 ranking points behind the Springboks. So when the opportunity presents itself, grab that elusive victory and bask in the glory of toppling the No. 1. You never know, that day could come in a World Cup final.