Joe Schmidt can’t afford to repeat Eddie Jones’ most costly Wallabies mistake
We can all agree that it’s pretty hard to answer a call when nobody dials your number and the phone doesn’t ring. It’s certainly not what Wallaby Len Ikitau deserved from Eddie Jones.
For all the promise that Ikitau had shown in Wallaby gold since debuting in 2021, the outside centre deserved to hear from coach Jones that he’d missed out on Australia’s Rugby World Cup squad.
But there was no explanation. The phone didn’t ring.
Ikitau, who was reportedly recovering well from a shoulder blade injury he picked up during The Rugby Championship, was left to question “what the hell is going on?”
“I was in contact with the doctor every couple of days and they had me on a conditioning program for a couple of weeks,” Ikitau told Rugby.com.au.
“They had this one-off Wallabies training if you were based in Brisbane. It was myself, Quade (Cooper), Taniela (Tupou) and the rest of the Brisbane boys.
“They trained for two days and then named the squad on the Friday and I saw Quade there and said, ‘I think I’m a chance to be in the squad’.
“When they said they were announcing, they were going to call all the players the night before and it wasn’t until 9:30 pm when I thought ‘what the hell is going on’ and I get a message from ‘Webby’ (team manager Chris Webb) to get in touch with Eddie and he’ll let you know what your plans are.
“I was like, ‘does that mean I’m not in the squad’ and he confirmed.”
Veterans Micheal Hooper and Quade Cooper dominated pretty well every headline after missing out on that Wallabies squad.
There was even a gigantic image of Hooper on the side of a building in Paris during the Rugby World Cup. Everyone expected the former Australia captain to be on that plane to France.
But the absence of those two fallen greats meant that Ikitau’s omission flew under the radar. It’s not like it went unnoticed, but the mess was swept under the rug.
It was easy too as well, with the defeats to Fiji and Wales – which led to their first-ever pool stage exit – just leading to more questions about Hooper and Cooper.
Young Carter Gordon was set up to fail in France, and after doing just that many took to social media to discuss what Cooper or Bernard Foley could’ve done in the Wallabies’ No. 10 jumper.
That became the talking point.
But Ikitau was rarely mentioned. The shortcomings of the Wallabies’ midfield wasn’t discussed much. After nine Tests under coach Jones, it still wasn’t clear who Australia’s best centre pairing was.
Samu Kerevi had fallen away after a series of poor performances, and Jordan Petaia continues to fall below the high expectations set of him. Waratahs duo Lalakai Foketi and Izaia Perese are still a work in progress, too.
The only Wallabies centre who seems like a sure thing going into 2024 is Len Ikitau. Once again, that begs the question of why he wasn’t at the World Cup at all.
“I was just disappointed at the comms I received. A good head coach would’ve called you and told you why you weren’t in the team but at the end of the day we got the manager doing the rounds,” Ikitau said.
“I was disappointed with that and the reasoning around why I wasn’t in the squad was because they didn’t want to take injured players and there was three or four injured guys in there.
“It was quite disappointing because at least be honest with the reason why I wasn’t in the team.
“I was ready (for the World Cup). I was already on the way to Barbarians and thought I was fit to play but I sent (Eddie Jones) a message saying I’m ready to go if anything happens and he just wrote back ‘that’s good’.”
It was a campaign that many want to forget, but to do that would be a bigger travesty than even the pool stage exit. The Wallabies need to learn as they prepare to usher in a new era.
Last Friday at Sydney’s Allianz Stadium, Joe Schmidt walked into the press conference room as the Wallabies’ third head coach in as many years. Schmidt has signed on with Rugby Australia through until at least the end of next year’s British and Irish Lions series.
It’s a big coup for the sport Down Under. By securing the services of the former World Rugby Coach of the Year, the Wallabies have already taken a step forward.
Joe Schmidt’s Wallabies won’t take the field for quite a while yet with Warren Gatland’s Wales set to play a couple of Tests in Australia later this year.
But let’s just hope that Schmidt doesn’t make the same mistake as Jones. No, not necessarily by overlooking Hooper or Cooper, but the mistake that defined the Wallabies’ woes.
Schmidt, to his credit, is one of the smartest coaches in international rugby. It would be both nightmarish and surprising to see the New Zealander make the same mistakes as his predecessor.
The absence of Len Ikitau was Eddie Jones’ biggest mistake. Ikitau, 25, is the glue to the Wallabies’ defensive structure – the type of player you build a backline around.
If the Wallabies are serious about winning Tests in 2024, then Len Ikitau needs to play. If not, serious questions will need to be asked about whether they consider winning a genuine possibility at all.
Comments on RugbyPass
Tamati Tua. …the Taniwha NPC midfielder. Ollie Sapsford, Hawkes Bay NPC midfielder…doing well
1 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…
1 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 commentsBig difference from the Saders. Forwards really muscled up and laid a solid platform. Scooter brought some steel and I liked the loosie combination. Newell has been rather disappointing this season but stepped up big time - happy also to see Franks dot down. He should do that more often! Reihana had a good game and there seems to be more flair and invention with him in the saddle. McNicoll plays well from the back and is reliable plus inventive when he joins the line. Keep it up chaps!
3 Go to comments🤦♂️🤣 who cares who’s the best . All I know is the All Blacks have the star coach but have few star players now …
33 Go to commentsJe suis sûr que Farrell est impatient de jouer avec Lopez et Machenaud et d’être entraîné par Collazo… 🤭
1 Go to commentsAn on field red (aka a full red) in SRP must surely carry a bigger suspension than a red card given by the bunker as that carries a 20 minute team punishment. Had Damon Murphy abdicated his responsibility as a ref and issued both Drua players a yellow, which would have been upgraded to a 20 minute red by the bunker, that would have killed Australia and New Zealand’s push for the 20 minute red to be trialled globally from July this year.
11 Go to commentsEver so often you all post a Danny Care story that isn’t the announcement that he has finally re-signed for one more, victory tour season at Quins and I’m just like, “well you fooled me again!” My absolute favorite player ever, we need to make his final year at the Stoop (and Twickers) official already. I know he supposedly snubbed France but I won’t feel better until he signs.
1 Go to commentslate hit what late hit it wasn’t at all late and can clearly see he was committed before the tackle
4 Go to commentsChristian Lio -Willies 2 try perfomance was a standout. As was captain Scott Barrett. Up front was where the boys won it.They are a great team and players. Fantastic Crusaders , you can keep going.
3 Go to commentsI don't know how the locals feel about that? I guess if you call yourselves the Worcester Wasps that might be appease. But really we need more teams in the Premiership in my view so they are not padding it out as they are at the moment. It might curtail so many players going abroad as well
5 Go to commentsNZ 😭😭😭is certainly rivaling England for best whingers cup!😭😭😭 !!!
33 Go to commentsYup. New Zealand won 3 out of 10 world cups played. SA 4 out of 8 attempts 30 Vs 50 per cent.🤔🤔
33 Go to commentsShould've done this years ago. Change Saturday kick off times to around 11am. Up and off and back home before 3pm, limit travel time too. Allows players to actually do something else with their Saturday that's family oriented or being rugby fans they could ‘watch’ pro rugby. Increases crowds etc. How can anyone that enjoys grassroots and pro rugby have to choose between the two on Saturdays?
9 Go to commentsI bet he inspired those supporters just as much.
1 Go to comments