Australia will be out to end a 15-year drought against New Zealand on Saturday.
The Wallabies have not held the Bledisloe Cup, the annual Tasman series against the All Blacks that started in 1931, since 2002. The two southern hemisphere giants will meet three times over the next three months, in Sydney, Dunedin and Brisbane, to determine the winner.
The two meet an interesting time. Australian rugby union is in a massive hole, both on and off the field. It’s Super Rugby teams were terrible this year and the Western Force were just controversially cut from the competition. The Wallabies flattered to deceive in the mid-season Test series and even lost to Scotland. There is massive tension between the grassroots, fans and the governing body the Australian Rugby Union (ARU).
All eyes on the Wallabies.
And not in a good way.
In contrast New Zealand once again dominated the Super Rugby competition. Four Kiwi teams made the finals with the Crusaders prevailing in the final. Off the field the code is in rude health. But the All Blacks were surprisingly held in a 1-1 draw series against the British & Lions. After winning the first Test comfortably, the All Blacks lost the second with the third drawn. It was a serious dent in their aura of invincibility.
You get the impression that the Bledisloe Cup will go one of two ways.
The All Blacks, hurting and a tad embarrassed after the Lions showdown, will come out firing. They will put Australia to the sword, smashing them in all three games. They will have a point to emphatically prove to the world that they remain the best team on the planet.
Or the Wallabies, and this remains less likely than the former, will surprise the Kiwi side and exploit some of the areas where the Lions had success. They may even to manage to nick two of the three games, which they will need to win to get the Cup back. But this is a long-shot. Considering the poor way the Wallabies have played in Super Rugby this season, and in Tests already this year, the odds are long.
Australian captain Michael Hooper is adamant that the All Blacks are beatable.
"There's obviously ways they play the game, but every team that plays has weaknesses," he told The Sydney Morning Herald.
"They give you a lot of ball, but it's also one of their strengths. You can make the most of it. They're just a very good team at continually delivering the same picture. So to break them down, we've got some plans around that and it's about doing it more consistently than them."
Australia and New Zealand play each more than any other country and there is little they don’t know about each other. But this has rarely helped the Wallabies.
The green and gold will need Beuden Barrett to have another off-day with his kicking and for the All Blacks indiscipline to be on show to have a chance. New Zealand collected plenty of yellow cards and one red against the Lions, giving the Brits a golden opportunity. If the Wallabies can copy the Lions intensely physical and confrontational approach then there may just be salvation against the men in black.
But it remains a big if. History and form is not on their side.
