Michael Pascoe writes:


The chief
dog is barking that Wallaby captain George Gregan is for the chop after this
weekend, but failed coach Eddie Jones has sidestepped the axe – for now.

And that is
a great shame for us Wallaby supporters. The wrong head will be stuck on a pike
outside the Australian Rugby Union while the ARU and team increasingly imitate
the proverbial headless chook. It is all the more frightening after watching
the All Blacks v Springboks on Saturday and realising that the Kiwis weren’t
even really trying when they swatted the Wallabies in Sydney two weeks ago.

Greg
Growden, the SMH’s chief rugby writer, is the best informed of the media pack
and this morning states as fact that Gregan will be dropped after this
Saturday’s test in Auckland. That’s the test Australia is odds-on to lose, making it five
losses in a row. None of the current Wallabies was born the last time that
happened – 1968-69.

It is a sad
indictment that the ARU thinks changing the half-back will make much difference
when the team culture and performance primarily is the responsibility of the
coach. There’s also the little matter of
the only obvious replacement for Gregan being of a similar age and therefore
unlikely to be working miracles at the next World Cup in 2007.

Unless the
ARU finds some gonads very quickly, the end of season tour under Jones will
become another lost opportunity – and I don’t just mean his poor record as a
touring coach. Jones’ eventual replacement – Ewen McKenzie – needs
all the time he can get to blood the half dozen new young players required to
give Australia a chance in 2007. Moving the
Wallabies play on from 2003 to 2005 is just a start.

If history
is a guide, Rod MacQueen needed all the time he had to turn the Wallabies around
after taking over as coach for the late 1997 tour in order to win the 1999
World Cup. Giving Jones another year
might make McKenzie’s task impossible. And then
there was the way the All Blacks played on Saturday – a scrum so strong it
pushed the Springboks around, a faultless and intelligent lineout, close
support in-depth. If they play anywhere near that level this weekend, a record
score is possible.