Wallabies coach Robbie Deans has spent the past few weeks trying to rid his side of its soft centre as he continues to transform the look of his team. The Sydney Morning Herald's Greg Growden reports.
"The Wallabies' inability to finish off matches, defeats in so-called ''unloseable'' Tests, and the All Blacks' recent trans-Tasman dominance have given rise to concern Australia are developing an inferiority complex. Deans is convinced the problem will not be fixed just by improvements in skill level, execution and tactics, but by getting the players' heads right, so they start believing they're winners.
He wants to harden them up for their northern hemisphere tour, starting with a showdown against New Zealand in Hong Kong on October 30 before they set off for four Tests in Europe. The Wallabies struggle to kill off opponents, as they showed when they lost by one point to England in Sydney, and then last month at the same venue let the All Blacks run over them in the dying minutes to lose 21-20, making it 10 wins out of 10 for the New Zealanders against Australia.
Little wonder there has been no talk over the past two weeks, while the Wallabies have been in camp in Sydney, of a possible unbeaten tour. Rather, the players and team management have focused their efforts on trying to make the team more ruthless, especially in the final quarter of matches."
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