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'Eddie would be feeling the pinch': Michael Hooper on Wallabies' need for hot start
Wallabies legend Michael Hooper has no doubt Eddie Jones will be feeling the heat when Australia chase a desperately needed victory over Georgia in their Rugby World Cup opener in Paris.
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It’s been well-documented how the Wallabies are winless in five Tests since Jones took over from Dave Rennie in January.
What is less heralded is how Jones has now presided over 13 defeats from his past 14 Tests during his two tenures as Wallabies coach.
Australia lost eight of nine Tests in 2005 before Jones was sacked, and then resurrected his international coaching career in successful stints with South Africa, Japan and England.
He helped Jake White take the Springboks to World Cup glory in 2007, coached Japan to a famous first win over South Africa at the 2015 global showpiece and guided England to the 2019 final.
But for all the fanfare around Jones’ second coming as Wallabies coach, the honeymoon is now well and truly over.
The 63-year-old has arrived in France for the 2023 edition under huge pressure to revive the Wallabies’ flagging fortunes.
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“I don’t think anyone is immune from pressure so I think Eddie would be feeling the pinch,” Hooper told Nine radio ahead of Australia’s Cup opener on Sunday morning (AEST).
“This game, to start a World Cup campaign is really, really important (to) get some momentum rolling.
“So a good performance here of playing the Wallaby style of rugby that they want to play is critical and for Eddie just to be able to come in on a Monday and talk real positive about some of the performances that occurred on the weekend.”
The only man ever to win the John Eales Medal as the Wallabies’ player of the year four times, Hooper was – along with veteran playmaker Quade Cooper – among the two most notable omissions from Australia’s’ 34-strong World Cup squad.
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But the champion flanker set the record straight on speculation that he only found out through a telephone call from the team manager, not Jones.
The 2019 World Cup captain and 125-Test stalwart insists he spoke with Jones and remains confident he would have been picked if not for a lingering calf injury.
Hooper also maintains he’ll be ready to answer any SOS call from the Wallabies during the tournament while he’s in France as a television commentator.
“These things happen quite quickly. You’ve got to pick a squad, there’s injuries, you try to get the right balance. There’s heaps of things that go into this,” the 31-year-old said of his non-selection.
“I got a call like everyone else. I was treated the same as everyone else – and as it should be. I found out like everyone else through a phone call.
“The phone call was quite close to when you need to pack your bags and leave for two months but, like I said, it was the same for everyone.”
If there’s no World Cup call-up, Hooper suspects his professional career playing 15-a-side rugby is likely over.
“I’m pretty much fit to go if I got a call on my phone from over in France. I’m ready to go,” he said.
“So my only regret would not be being ready if that phone call came through, and I’m pretty much there now, or I am there.
“In terms on my 15s career, I’d say it’s starting to be curtains on that. I’m not going to go overseas at this stage, not next year anyway.
“Sevens is a real opportunity and the opportunity to go to an Olympics is there.”
Comments on RugbyPass
“While Sotutu should start at No.8 for the All Blacks against England, but it’s only in that arena that he can prove just how good he really is.” And that my friends is where simply hasnt shone despite multiple opportunities. Even in this performance you can see what did him in in the test arena..he almost always still runs at the opposition almost ramrod upright making him easier to stop than it should be.
1 Go to commentsShould have been 0-0 and a message from SR CEO to both teams - “don’t worry about turning up next year”.
3 Go to commentsGreat work Owen Franks. A great of this team, scoring his first try for the Crusaders since 2010.He was beaming, justifiably. A fine win, he and the rest did the job up front.
1 Go to commentsDanny Care. Lang in die tand.
1 Go to commentsBig empty stadium does nothing for atmosphere but munster are playing well with solid performance
1 Go to commentsYes, Fiji can win the World Cup! With that belief plus their christian faith🙏 and hard work it is achievable. Great article. Ian Duncan Fiji resident 1981-84
2 Go to commentsInteresting comments about Touch. England’s hosting the Touch World Cup this year and the numbers have exploded since their last World Cup in 2019, something like 70% more teams and 40 nations taking part. And England Touch have made a big thing about how many universities are in their BUCS University Touch Championship as well as Sport England membership. Can only see this growing even more domestically as more people become aware of it
10 Go to comments“Cortez Ratima is light years ahead of anyone on current form, while TJ Perenara has also skyrocketed into contention following the unfortunate injury to the talented Cam Roigard.” At last some sanity. Hitherto so many pundits have been wittering on about Finlay Christie to the point one wondered if they were observing a FC in a parallel universe where the FC they saw wasnt just the mediocre Shayne Philpott project of Fosters hapless AB reign in the real world. Ratima, Perenara and Fakatava are the ONLY logical 9s for Razor now Roigard is crocked.
3 Go to commentsThis game was just as painful as the Hurricanes game. It was real fork-in-the-eye stuff.
3 Go to commentsNow if they could just fire the Crusaders ground PA guy who likes to play his dance music and just loves the sound of his own voice the entire game, even when play is going on. And I thought their brass band thing of a few years ago was bad.
5 Go to commentsUnfortunately when you lose by far the two form players this season in Roigard and Aumua, you're left replacing two game changing Tanks with a couple of pea-shooters. Which is also about the speed of TJs pass.
4 Go to commentsBit rich coming from the guy with zero loyalty to anyone or any team, including happily taking a players place in a league world cup squad because well, SBW wanted to play in it and thus an already named player got told he was no longer going. And airing stuff like this, which may or may not be true, doesn't exactly say you're a stand up guy either SBW. Just looking to keep his name in lights as usual.
38 Go to commentsTamati Tua. …the Taniwha NPC midfielder. Ollie Sapsford, Hawkes Bay NPC midfielder…doing well
4 Go to commentsFiji deserve to be in the rugby championship, fans love seeing the Fijian national team play, the Fijian Drua is a wonderful idea but the players can still be stolen to play for NZ and AUS…
2 Go to commentsThe first concern for this afternoon are wheather forecast…
1 Go to commentsWhy cant I watch Rugby games please?
1 Go to commentsBeautiful shot from Finau, end of story. Gutted for Shaun Stevenson though.
4 Go to commentsThe Chiefs definitely didn’t win ugly. They had the superior scrum, a dominant lineout, and their defence was excellent once the Waratahs scored their two tries (thanks to some lucky refereeing calls mind you). They put pressure on the Waratahs lineout throughout the game, and the mind boggles as to why the referee did not award a yellow card or a penalty try against the Waratahs for repeated scrum infringements on their own try line before Narawa’s first try. And the Chiefs were slick with their passing and running angles on attack. It was a dominant performance all round, even with many questionable refereeing decisions.
1 Go to commentsWasnt late. Ref 2 assistants andTMO all saw it so who are you to say it was?
4 Go to commentsAre the Brumbies playing the Blues twice in a row?
4 Go to comments