In the stock market they call it the “Santa Rally” – the bounce in optimism two weeks out from Christmas. Rugby Australia’s own version may have come with the appointment of Scott Johnson to the newly-created position of director of rugby just eight days away from Christmas.
The game in Australia certainly needs some festive cheer after the year it has endured, when the Wallabies produced their worst season since 1958. And with the World Cup in Japan less than 12 months away, Rugby Australia had to do something to restore the Wallabies’ flagging fortunes and the fans’ waning faith in the team.
Michael Cheika survives as Scott Johnson is named Wallabies’ director of rugby
Having baulked at sacking besieged head coach Michael Cheika, RA is now banking on Johnson to do in Australia what he did in Scotland; the 54-year-old had been director of rugby in Scotland since 2104, a period which saw the dramatic turnaround of the Scottish national team.
The question is this: will Johnson be able to do anything that will have a positive effect on the Wallabies’ performance at the upcoming World Cup, or will he potentially only deliver long-term results? And is RA spending money it doesn’t have on a position it doesn’t need?
In a significant move Cheika, who has been a dominant figure in Australian rugby since becoming Wallabies coach in 2014, will answer to Johnson. It will be fascinating to see how these two very individualistic personalities collaborate.
When Johnson was a member of John Connolly’s Wallabies coaching staff he once turned up to a media conference wearing army fatigues. It’s unknown what Cheika would have made of that, but he does not seem to mind different characters and reporting to Johnson may only become an issue if relations ever get strained.
While Cheika is safe, Rugby Australia has not given any guarantees to his hand-picked assistants Stephen Larkham (attack), Nathan Grey (defence), Mick Byrne (skills) and Simon Raiwalui (forwards). There has been strong speculation Larkham would go, with an intriguing rumour circulating he is heading back to coach at Japanese club Ricoh Black Rams, where he played after retiring from the Wallabies.
Whoever the Wallabies’ assistants end up being, it is unlikely they will have the same input into the make-up of the team; Johnson will become part of a three-man Wallabies selection panel along with Cheika and a yet-to-be named independent selector.
The Wallabies selection policy has lacked consistency and clarity of late and this move may strengthen what is seen as a weakness in the team’s management, but it could also create friction if Cheika is forced to coach a team he does not fully endorse.
Rather than sacking Cheika, RA has curbed his powers. But the turnaround in Scottish rugby came about mainly as a result of a change of coach, not the appointment of a director of rugby.
In 2012 Johnson was promoted from Scotland assistant coach to interim head coach following the resignation of Andy Robinson. The following year he was appointed Scotland’s director of rugby and did both jobs until New Zealander Vern Cotter was appointed head coach in 2014. Cotter became Scotland’s most successful coach in the professional era, winning 19 of 36 Tests at 53%, and the most successful since Ian McGeechan between 1988 to 1993.
Perhaps Cotter, or even current Scotland coach Gregor Townsend, did not have to answer to Johnson in the same way Cheika will have to, particularly in relation to selection, which dictates strategy. But as director of rugby, Johnson could justifiably take some credit for Scotland’s resurgence because he would have been directly involved in the appointment of Cotter.
Perhaps that is where Johnson’s greatest impact will be in Australia with the appointment of Cheika’s successor. Cheika has already announced he will stand down as Wallabies coach if Australia do not win the World Cup. And the way the team performed this year RA and Johnson should be head-hunting right now.
There is potentially a long list of candidates to coach the Wallabies post World Cup, including Joe Schmidt, Eddie Jones, Warren Gatland and Scott Robertson. Maybe even Johnson, although he’s probably too smart for that. Perhaps he could persuade his old mate Steve Hansen, who he worked with at Wales and is stepping down as All Blacks coach after the World Cup, to take on the Wallabies?
Johnson will also lead the delivery of the new “aligned” national high performance model, a challenging role it has to be said. RA has been slowly creeping towards a centralised model like they have in New Zealand, Ireland and Scotland, but this policy is more a statement of intent than actual structural change.
Any new model relies on the cooperation of Australia’s four Super Rugby franchises – the Brumbies, Melbourne Rebels, NSW Waratahs and Queensland Reds – who will not sacrifice themselves on the Wallabies altar.
But that’s the trick. Creating a cohesive, collegiate approach which gets the most out of limited resources to benefit both Super Rugby and the Wallabies so everyone is a winner.
If Johnson can achieve that, Australia’s stocks may yet rise again.