Sport

Critics line up after Wallabies suffer worst defeat in decades

RUGBY NEWS: AUSTRALIA’S 9-8 loss to Scotland in Edinburgh at the weekend has been labelled the Wallabies’ worst performance …

Tue Nov 24 2009 - 00:00

RUGBY NEWS:AUSTRALIA'S 9-8 loss to Scotland in Edinburgh at the weekend has been labelled the Wallabies' worst performance in decades, with former players and media lining up to criticise the team.

The head of the Australian Rugby Union (ARU) has promised a full review of the team’s dismal results this season, including Saturday’s first loss to the Scots in 27 years.

But the critics are already demanding that heads roll, savaging the team’s display and calling for player salary cuts.

“The Wallabies are not just the laughing stock of Australian sport. They are also the laughing stock of the international rugby world after suffering their worst loss in decades,” the Sydney Morning Herald wrote.

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“This defeat was not as bad as being beaten by Tonga in 1973, but it’s not far off.”

The Australian wrote that the team’s poor performances were threatening the very support of the game in a country where four football codes are all fighting for fans and sponsorship.

“This Wallabies side will be the death of Australian rugby followers, if not the death of Australian rugby.

“They are becoming the anti-All Blacks of world rugby, the Wallabies. Where the New Zealanders nearly always find a way to win, the Australians nearly always find a way to lose. Hats off to them. That’s a rare and perverse skill.”

ARU chief executive John O’Neill said he was “devastated” by the loss to Scotland and promised a full review of the team’s performances.

O’Neill said everyone would be held accountable, but coach Robbie Deans, who has managed just 14 wins from 27 Tests since taking charge last season, was not at risk of losing his job. “We have every confidence in Robbie Deans,” O’Neill said.

Bob Dwyer, who coached the Australia team that won the World Cup in 1991, said the Wallabies were struggling because they did not have two world-class locks and had lost their way in attack.

“I think one of our giant problems is we don’t have a secondrow of top international class,” said Dwyer. “No team can win at the top level without good locks. If you look at the great sides, they’ve all had great locks.”