When Joe Schmidt signs off from Australian rugby in a few weeks, he will leave an obvious legacy.
Principally, the Kiwi coach has brought resilience and pride back to the Wallabies. Australia were in a hole after the 2023 World Cup, with Eddie Jones’ ill-fated repeat tenure resulting in a divided team and an embarrassing early exit, the shock loss to Fiji followed by the 40-6 hammering at the hands of Wales.
But the New Zealander has turned things round, shown by a series of impressive performances in the Rugby Championship, including Australia’s first win over the Springboks at altitude in over 60 years.
The latest came on Saturday, when Australia recovered from a 20-3 deficit to push the All Blacks to the wire.
When New Zealand crossed for their third try in the 23rd minute, the capacity Eden Park crowd was in party mode, anticipating another heavy transtasman scoreline. It’s been seen so many times before – particularly at the Auckland ground, as the Wallabies can’t stem the bleeding, overwhelmed by the physicality and precision of the All Blacks, as well as the occasion. But it never happened.
The Wallabies ground their way back into the match with a mix of grunt and clever options to only trail by three points at halftime. The All Blacks dominated the third quarter – assisted by some untimely Australian errors and curious officiating calls by the inexperienced Italian Andrea Piardi – before the Wallabies again closed to within two points with 11 minutes to go in a period highlighted by smart, snappy work with the ball.
The tension around Eden Park was palpable – with an eerie silence at times – before the All Blacks lifted, as they often do, to seal the 33-24 result with Cam Roigard’s 75th-minute try.
But the signs are good for Australian rugby, ahead of a home World Cup in two years. Their apparent upward trajectory is also a positive for this country, as a strong Bledisloe rival can only be good for the All Blacks.
It’s also due recognition for Schmidt, given the way he has turned the green-and-gold ship around. It wasn’t easy – with some tough moments, particularly the 67-27 humbling in Santa Fe last year – but he has done wonders. Despite all his remarkable achievements with Ireland, it felt he didn’t get the recognition he deserved in New Zealand, perhaps because of their World Cup stumbles in 2015 and 2019.
But his work with Australia – a notoriously difficult assignment – has solidified his status as one of the best coaches and sharpest minds in the sport. Saturday was another reminder, as the Wallabies, without four or five of their front-liners, pushed the All Blacks in a way that rarely have at Eden Park in the last four decades.
Schmidt could only wonder about what might have been.
“I’m disappointed, the players are disappointed, but I’m also proud of the efforts they put in, I’m proud of the way we stayed in the fight,” he said.
“I thought with two points in it with 10 to go, we’re right in the fight. And after being 20 points to three down again early on. We didn’t quite nail the moments that we needed to.”
The performance of Piardi – in only his 14th test – was a flashpoint for many Australian pundits, with some contentious decisions among the 25 penalties, with the Wallabies conceding 10 to three in the second half, along with the late yellow card for winger Harry Potter.
Schmidt admitted to frustrations with some of the refereeing interpretations.
“It’s really hard, because what we’ve perceived is inconsistencies,” he said. “That makes it difficult and then players are asking us questions and we get clarification afterwards.”
However, the coach was reluctant to make excuses. He felt the players had to be better at adapting on the run and was adamant the Wallabies had to own the defeat.
“We missed probably three or four times as many tackles as the All Blacks did and that’s on us,” Schmidt said. “The referee is not going make the tackles for us. We got to roll our sleeves up and make sure that we deliver those. We’ve got to make sure we hang on to possession better.
“So, as I say, we have frustrations and they’re across the board. Some we can influence and some we’ve got to make sure that we improve upon for next week.”
Michael Burgess has been a Sports Journalist for the New Zealand Herald since 2005, covering the Olympics, Fifa World Cups, and America’s Cup campaigns. He is a co-host of the Big League podcast.