Joe Schmidt’s hunt for alternatives as Wallaby coach is beginning to feel like a third series White lotussuch was the nature of a process that was first delayed by Kiwi’s own decision-making.
That aside the fact that Queensland Reds coach Les Kiss remains a short-priced favorite to take charge of Wallaby later this year, while smash hit television shows around the world have achieved thrilling unknown conclusions.
The emergence of former British boss Stuart Lancaster suggests that Rugby Australia has since been canvasing all options before oiling Schmidt’s successor.
However, given the continuity factors and the fact that RA boss Phil War was already recorded, it seemed that in December, the kiss always had his nose in front of him.
A decision could be made within two weeks, and Kiss’ Reds has round 10 goodbye at Easter. It seems like an ideal week to reveal the former Queensland native star as Wallaby’s first Australian-born coach since Michael Cheika.
Not so ideal if the kiss brings a hard-line stance to Super Rugby Pacific’s penalty goal. He will not be a coach for the Chaeca Light Wallabies.
As it stands, Queensland has yet to score a penalty goal at Super Rugby Pacific this season. That approach also helped clear the Highlanders two weeks ago, bringing them two thrilling victories over the Western forces, but that road victory was the result of their dominant scrum.
But their decision to kick the horn while knocking down a man was poor on Friday night in a rainy Hamilton.
Queensland’s wise play was to absorb 60 seconds for a near-impossible penalty attempt just to the right of the post, as Prop Jeffery Toomaga-Allen guilty at 1:57 following a dangerous clean-out.
However, they went to the corner instead, lost the formation at the Rolling Mall and handed over the ball to the Chiefs. They remained deadlocked with the Chiefs at 10 All when the Reds were three points ahead, when they were able to kill in less than a minute before Tomaga Allen’s return.
When the visitors were given the opportunity to kick the point six minutes later, they were willing to accept and regained a lead that would not abandon. On a wet night, when the points got premium, the Chiefs recognized the value of the pressure on the scoreboard.
The Reds weren’t – and learned tough lessons along the way.
“If there were 15 players on the field, we’d probably take three,” Reds captain Tate McDermott said when asked about his decision not to take a shot at the goal while Tomaga Allen was off.
“We’re obviously going to wear it as the captain. It was an argument we had on the field and we were in favor of the boys. That’s what we did all year round and obviously it didn’t come off, so we’ll see why it didn’t come off.
McDermott blamed the decision brilliantly. However, Buck stops with the coach and the kiss has to raise his hand for the mentality that sacrifices valuable three points to his side.
He could also send a message to the touchline, requesting his side take three.
Did you swing the game just based on that decision? It’s definitely not. And the Reds were right to point out that a similar call gave them five points in the first half, with Rolling Mall and Hooker’s Matt Fessler scoring.
But it was stupid to be firmly tied to their offensive mindset despite the game and state of affairs – and if he is given the honor of coaching them, the kiss cannot take away Wallabies from such mindset.
“We play interesting brands and take risks from time to time. We took risks tonight, but that didn’t go wrong,” added McDermott.
His kissing support for his players is one of the reasons why he will become a popular decision as Wallaby coach if he is announced as Schmidt’s successor. And while Red will never end in Super Rugby Pacific this season, they still have a top two finish that is important. They also have a game with the team to compete with the chief on weekends.
As McDermott mentioned, the Reds’ style is played, entertaining and warmly received by national team fans.
However, we cannot sacrifice practical and measured decisions. That was ultimately one of the reasons that led to Cheika’s downfall in 2019 after the Wallabies were embarrassed to be England 40-17 in the UK quarterfinals.
“That’s how we play poorly,” Gutted Cheika said of his all-cost game plan on his part. “I’m not going to go to a kick-and-defense game. I might call me naive, but that’s not what we’re trying to do. I’d rather win the way we do it.
Kiss is a much more modest character than Cheika, and he is a coach with experience all over the world and already works as an assistant at the Test level. He is measured by what he says and does, and if he switches red for gold later this year, his temperament becomes incredibly valuable.
But it also needs to be filtered out to his on-field leaders.
The Wallabies are not yet ready for Cheika’s return, and they also don’t need a Cheika lightless kiss.