Three weeks ago, Australia arrived in Europe self-assured and quietly confident of taking a few prized scalps. And why not? They had come within a single refereeing call at the breakdown of claiming a British & Irish Lions series win. They had hammered the world champion Springboks in Johannesburg. They had shown great chutzpah to beat Argentina after the hooter and they still carried the glow of last November’s win over England.
This was a side developing shape and steel, a side capable of the sublime, a side beginning to coax long-dormant fans back to the code while tempting home several stars who had crossed to rugby league. This tour was supposed to confirm, unequivocally, that the Wallabies were back. Instead, they’ve gone backwards after a sorry performance against Ireland in Dublin where they received a 46–19 shellacking that still managed to flatter them on the scoreboard.
