Australian rugby embarks on a new era when Robbie Deans becomes the first foreign coach to take charge of the Wallabies in their opening international of the year against Ireland tomorrow.
The highly rated New Zealander, who coached the Canterbury Crusaders to five of their seven Super rugby championships last month, ushers in a new-look Wallabies, rebuilding after their early exit from last year’s World Cup.
There are five new faces in Deans’ first selection from John Connolly’s team that crashed 12-10 to England in the quarter-finals in Marseille last October, with two debutants in the starting XV — scrum-half Luke Burgess and winger Peter Hynes.
PHOTO: AFP
Deans has also opted for Cameron Shepherd at fullback, James Horwill to partner Nathan Sharpe in the lineout and tight-head Benn Robinson in the often maligned Australian front-row.
Two more players — former rugby league centre Ryan Cross and second-rower Dean Mumm — are likely to make their international debuts off the reserves bench.
More importantly, senior Wallabies are speaking of the galvanizing effect Deans is having in his short time with the team, unshackling them from an obsession with structured play and allowing them to make on-field decisions and back themselves.
Australia will likely be vulnerable in their first international outing of the season, a virtual work in progress, while the Irish are coming off a solid 21-11 loss to New Zealand in Wellington last weekend.
Ireland have not won in Australia since 1979 when Ollie Campbell kicked them to a 9-3 win in Sydney after winning 27-12 a fortnight before in Brisbane.
Deans said the match-hardened Irish represent a massive challenge for his underdone Wallabies.
“I was pretty impressed with the Irish [against the All Blacks], particularly their physicality,” he said yesterday.
“They’re a group that’s played a lot of rugby together and particularly in their respective units of up front and out the back,” Deans said.
Wallabies skipper Stirling Mortlock said he was excited about once again opposing Ireland and British Lions captain Brian O’Driscoll in a battle of two of the rugby world’s best outside centers.
“He’s a great player,” Mortlock said.
“You’ve certainly got to be on your game defensively. He’s a very enterprising attacking player and he’s a great defender,” he added.
O’Driscoll also has an abiding respect for the Wallabies.
“I’ve always said that I think the Australians are the best thinkers in the game and certainly when you’ve had a halfback pairing of [Stephen] Larkham and [George] Gregan, they were very smart and canny footballers,” he said. “There’s certain guys like [Matt] Giteau and [Stirling] Mortlock who are of that mould.”
Peter Stringer will extend his record as Ireland’s most-capped scrum-half with his 84th international appearance against Australia.
Stringer is one of two changes in the Irish lineup with Ulster hooker Rory Best selected to win his 24th cap ahead of Jerry Flannery.
The wily Stringer will give Australian rookie scrum-half Luke Burgess a testing debut.
Taiwan kept their hopes of advancing to next year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Saturday, backed by solid pitching. Taiwan last night played against Nicaragua. As of press time, Nicaragua was leading 6-0. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan on Saturday kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen struck out one and allowed no hits, except for a hit-by-pitch over
Taiwan kept its hopes of advancing to the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome last night, backed by solid pitching. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. The win was crucial for Taiwan, as a loss would have eliminated the team from contention for the next WBC. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen (沙子宸) struck out one and allowed no hits, except for
Team Taiwan are set to face Spain in a win-or-go-home match tonight for the final berth at the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC), despite losing to Nicaragua 6-0 in the WBC qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Sunday. The home team’s loss on Sunday means Nicaragua finish first in the qualifier round in Taipei with a perfect 3-0 record and advances to next year’s finals. After crushing South Africa 9-1 earlier on Sunday, Spain took second place in the four-team qualifier with a 2-1 record. With a 1-2 record, Taiwan finished third while South Africa placed at the bottom with
Team Taiwan avoided missing the World Baseball Classic (WBC) for the first time by defeating Spain 6-3 in a do-or-die game in Taipei last night. After narrowly escaping a mercy-rule loss to Spain in the WBC Qualifiers opener on Friday last week, the home team — winner of last year's WBSC Premier12 title three months ago — got their revenge against the 2023 European champions at Taipei Dome. "It felt quite different from when we won the Premier12," Taiwan captain Chen Chieh-hsien (陳傑憲) said after the game, recalling the ups and downs the team has experienced over the past few days. Unlike in
RSS