Hey Joe, All Blacks fans wishing the Wallabies luck is not actually ‘great’, it’s an indictment

Can there be any clearer sign of the Wallabies’ dramatic fall from grace as a rugby power than the reception the team has received in Wellington this week?

According to Australia’s Kiwi coach Joe Schmidt, the Australians have been warmly welcomed in once hostile turf.

“Walking down the street the other day, a couple of different people just stopped me and wished the Wallabies luck, which is great,” Schmidt said.

“We flew back with the All Blacks and the banter between the two teams is pretty positive. These guys know each other really well from Super Rugby, from Tests over the years, albeit some of ours are only dipping their toe in for the first time really at this level, which has been pretty daunting for them to be honest and was particularly daunting at 21-0 down last weekend.

“I think if people enjoy the games, then I think both teams try to play positively, I think that’s great for the game.”

When it was put to him that the Kiwi fans’ approach was an “indictment” that showed Australia wasn’t considered a threat, Schmidt responded: “Well, I just would like to think it’s New Zealanders being polite.

“I’d like to think I’m a polite New Zealander and I’m wishing the Wallabies luck, funnily enough, but probably with a little bit more gusto than the normal Kiwi who’s just keen to see a really good game.

“I think the two teams, as I said, they’ll both want to play positively and that’s good spectator value.”

A little over a year ago the mood between the nations was much more charged, fired up in his prickly way by Eddie Jones.

“Imagine Saturday night, 85,000 people, their biggest rugby crowd since 2007 and they’ve come to watch two teams that have got good respect for each other but at the same time they dislike each other,” Jones told reporters ahead of the Bledisloe Cup opener in Melbourne.

“There’s nothing better than winning against New Zealand because you feel the country sinking. It’s not just rugby that sinks, the country sinks. The whole economy goes down. The Prime Minister is there with his fingers crossed hoping the All Blacks win because he knows the economy is going to drop if they lose.”

Jones, it turns out, was a bit of an expert at sinking. He led Australia to an early World Cup exit then jumped the doomed ship to join Japan.

As successor, Schmidt has watched the Wallabies drop to No.10 on the world rankings but just as Eddie was happy to sling mud on the way out the door, Joe is keen to be everyone’s mate. To hear him, all the dislike has disappeared.

Perhaps it’s naive to expect your national coach to verbally poke and probe their opposition, get involved in mind games and talk up the battle ahead – especially when Joe Schmidt is, of course, one of them.

It’s not to say he doesn’t want to try and maximise the performance of the Wallabies, or win the games that will justify the decision to appoint him. But there’s a closeness to the enemy born from his time with them last year that can’t help but shape this rivalry.

On All Blacks coach Scott Robertson, Schmidt said: “I’ve known him for a number of years just because there’s only so many coaches in the circuit. You get to know people. Obviously I know some of the staff really well. We’ll catch up for a coffee tomorrow.

“Jason Holland. Played with and against Jason. Obviously he spent time at Munster when I was at Munster.

“There’s all sorts of connections with the coaching staff and the playing staff as well. They’re just good people. I’m just talking about enjoying people’s company. 

“The flight over from Sydney, it was great to see guys who tried to tear each other limb from limb the day before previous chatting about all sorts of things from kids to dogs to the weather to the wind.”

Talking about the weather is about as deep as Schmidt likes to go in media conferences, but there were a few honourable mentions and clarifications from the couple of changes he announced on Thursday.

James Slipper was fit to take his place in Wellington but left out. In reality he should never have been picked for game one, but Schmidt was never going to be ruthless enough to make that call with George Gregan’s Test cap record there to be beaten.

The question, unawnsered for now at least, is whether Slipper is 140 and out

“Slips was fit, we just felt that it was an opportunity for Isaac Kailea,” said Schmidt.

“He obviously gives us a little bit more ballast at scrum time and probably he’s a different sort of player to Slips as far as his ball carry and ball play is concerned – a converted No.8 and at the same time he’s really improved his scrummaging. 

“Mike Cron is impressed with the way that he’s really applied himself at scrum time. Again, he’s a young guy trying to force his way through into the mix to get right into the forefront of regular minutes.”

On Marika Koroibete’s absence, Schmidt said the Japan-based winger’s hand injury flared up on the flight from Australia and he was considered too big a risk, opening the way for a starting debut for Dylan Pietsch.

There was cautious praise too for Harry Wilson, who looks like the could be a long-term captain under Schmidt.

“Harry’s been really good for us. He’s played well,” Schmidt said.

“He’s led well not because he says a lot. There’s a strong leadership group and it means that Harry doesn’t have to say too much. He doesn’t necessarily make a lot of the decisions on the field.

“He’s got his head down, working hard, so there’s guys inevitably in behind him that are making decisions on what’s happening.

“He makes the big decisions from static play but apart from that he’s just trying to decide how he’s going to get to the ball next and how he’s going to carry that one or tackle that one.

“His volume of work has been really positive.

“What I have been impressed with is the big body getting back up off the ground and getting back into position and being loaded to go again because that’s what we need from Harry.

“We need the impact that he offers but also the volume of work that he offers and they’ve been two real positives for us. On the back of a loose trio that are trying to work really hard together.”