Defiant Australia boss Mal Meninga insists there’s no added pressure on the World Cup holders - but it is “critical” this autumn’s tournament is a success.
The Kangaroos will be under-cooked ahead of their opener against Fiji at Headingley on October 15. They have no friendlies arranged, haven’t played for THREE years and suffered a shock loss against Tonga in their last outing in 2019.
Meninga said: “Our pride was dented. But we don’t have to prove ourselves. Tonga beat us fair and square on the day. This is going to be a totally different side to even what that one was. There was a changing of the guard at the time - our future Immortals were retiring - and there’s a bit of a changing of the guard again now.”
Favourites Australia have lost just one of the last nine World Cup tournaments dating back to 1975 but rarely has there been such depth of competition. Tonga and Samoa are both vying with them for some of the best NRL talent while No 1-ranked New Zealand and hosts England fancy themselves.
Meninga will rely on the New South Wales v Queensland State of Origin series, which concludes in Brisbane tomorrow, as the Kangaroos’ main preparation. And rampant NRL champions Penrith boast a raft of potential Australian internationals. Meninga, who coached Australia to a narrow 6-0 2017 final win over England in Brisbane, said: “We'll be as well prepared as we possibly can be.
“It will probably take us a bit of time to click and find combinations. This is the beauty of the Penrith situation and likewise Queensland and New South Wales; there’s combinations already there. You don’t have to be Einstein to realise the majority of players will come from Origin. But in my mind it won’t be as smooth as it’s been on other tours because we’ve played other games before.”
Meninga, 62, insists no one’s to “blame” for the ‘Roos’ inactivity. A three-game 2020 Ashes series in England was cancelled due to Covid. Then, the World Cup’s original date last year was scrapped after Australia and New Zealand refused to travel due to their ongoing pandemic concerns.
A firm internationalist, Meninga - who recently spent time in the UK preparing for the Kangaroos' trip - knows how crucial the delayed tournament now is for getting Test rugby league on track. He said: “This is the ramifications of it all. So this World Cup becomes important doesn’t it? And it’s important we get it right, every team is strong as can be, we play as best we can and promote it as best we can. It’s like a starting point again for us. For the international game I do think it’s really critical this works. And we do everything we possibly can to make it work.”
