KEY POINTS:
A week later I am still pinching myself and asking whether what I was watching in Wellington was a nightmare. It was horrific to witness and, sorry to say, embarrassing.
Outside the first 30 seconds, there was not a moment in that game where I thought we were
in with a chance to threaten the Australians. Never has there been a display, to my knowledge, where a Kiwi team has been so totally out of its depth in a game.
No passion, no desire, no commitment; not even the haka exhibited any emotion.
I must say that the Kangaroo team were on song and played extremely well but we allowed them more space than necessary and it was obvious after a few moments that the Kiwi boys were somewhere else - or wanted to be.
Given the significance of the celebration of 100 years of rugby league, we looked like a team playing its first ever game; it was uncomfortable watching New Zealand's finest playing.
My initial reaction was that these players had no unity and were lacking direction. It would be easy to blame the halves as it is their job to direct play but there was no enthusiasm from the team overall and their body language spoke of a lack of will.
The direction I am alluding to is that from the coaches and captain. It has been stated from Gary Kemble that he knew early in the week that "the desire wasn't there". Well, I'm sorry, but why was there no desire? Surely the instinct of the coach is to sense this and if it exists then find out why. That sort of identification and intervention is essential for a team to gel together.
A week ago, I was singing the attributes of the coaching set-up but it seems now that a flaw may be detected already in Kemble's ability to bring this team together.
Brian McClennan worked vigorously on team harmony and, with the shenanigans of the NZRL earlier this year, the harmony may be off tune.
It is vital Kemble quickly finds the reason why the desire was not there and makes improvements.
After only one game, his future hangs in the balance. If he cannot remedy the situation immediately, it will be beyond repair. It must be said that this was not of Gary's doing as it was the NZRL that placed Brian McClennan in a position where resignation was his last option. But Kemble must remedy the situation and fast. If not, he is in for a tough time.
The players themselves need to accept responsibility for what transpired in Wellington last week because nothing can excuse their poor performance.
Despite the hardships and adversity that have struck previous teams, no Kiwis team has produced such a spineless display and this is not the way we were to commemorate the centenary of our game.
Not many people will forget last Sunday and what transpired but the 2007 Kiwi team must now alter history or they will be remembered for all the wrong reasons.
