It’s 11 years since the international rules series had a pre-Test media conference in Croke Park with nothing to talk about. The current format of the one-Test series doesn’t provide any entrails to be examined. It’s all hypothetical and when the match is over there’s no time left for talking about it.
Australia have brought as strong a team as ever the AFL have sent, selected with the requirement that each player must have won an All-Australian award at some point in their career.
The captain, from the AFL's dominant club Hawthorn and last year's Australia Player of the Series, Luke Hodge, did explain to Friday's conference however that there was a reason for the willingness of top players to take part in the series – a phenomenon that hasn't always been a feature of past contests.
“We got the call last year, a lot of the older guys last year. We realised that the previously couple of series, 2012 and 2013, didn’t go down that well. We were embarrassed a bit. There was a game out here where the Ireland boys kicked over 100 points. Looking back on it, our country needed to do something about that.
“We got a really good squad together last year; we took it really seriously and played really well. It’s been the same this year. We were lucky enough to go away to camp, just with the boys and a couple of partners, just to start planning, preparing for it, because it’s going to be another intense game on Saturday night.”
The Australia coach Alastair Clarkson was reminded that even if the temperature rises in Saturday evening's Test, it will be only metaphorical. He was unfazed.
“We live in Melbourne and we have a range in temperatures there from zero degrees temperature right through – I think if you look at the radar, it’s 40 degrees in Melbourne at this point in time.”
Clarkson, who has been the stand-out coach in the Rules game – the only one with four premiership titles, was asked about the possibility of the series acquiring a second Test in the future.
“I think that’s a reflection of where the series has gone over the last four or five years. For whatever reasons the series just drained a little bit . . . We didn’t bring our absolute best players on a couple of occasions and we paid the price for that.
“All crowds, no matter where in the world it is, or what sport it is, they want to see a contest. And when one of the sides turns up like we did two years ago we don’t really give ourselves a chance to compete, then we don’t get the crowds. That put the series at risk and they have chosen to have one Test in the last two years, last year in Perth and this one in Croke Park.
“We are hoping – and I’m sure Joe and the Irish would be of the same view that it is a long way to travel for one game but we believe in the concept – and we want to keep the series alive and thriving. I’m sure in the future if this is successful and we get a good crowd tomorrow night, a good contest and bring the best players from both games together, then I’m sure we will get more than one Test in the years ahead.”
Whether the strength of Australian engagement comes from the players, the presence of Clarkson as coach or a renewed organisational commitment, it has been impressive over the past two years.
Australia are constrained by the demands of the professional AFL clubs and their co-operation in making players available. Late November seems to suit better than the previous dates but realistically how possible will it be to field such strong selections on an ongoing basis, especially if there is to be a second Test.
“It is a challenge in professional sport,” said Clarkson, “because in a lot of the professional competitions there is so much money at stake, so much sponsorship, so much broadcast money, so decisions aren’t just made by players as much as they are made by administrators.
“That’s a challenge but our code has made a commitment in the last two years. That has come from right at the top of the AFL and has been inducted down through the management and coaching to the players. We want to bring the very best of our game to this Irish series and we have a strong belief the Irish try to do the same thing.
"If players are available to play they put their hand up and play. I'm sure some of the more senior players, like Luke and Nick Riewoldt are involved, and Robert Murphy and these type of guys, then it will draw a lot of our young players and while we've got that I'm sure we'll have a good quality of players in our representation."
