Horsing around with Robbie Deans…

by Andrew Simpson - www.rugbypassion.com

Welcome to the Crown Casino for the final Victorian Rugby Union (VRU) luncheon for 2005 with four hundred of Melbourne's finest and vocal rugby supporters in attendance.

On the 28th of January 2006, Olympic Park will host the Crusaders (Super 14 Franchise, Christchurch, New Zealand) in their first ever game in Melbourne against West Australia's Western Force. The Force are about as popular as a Wallaby scarf at an All Black home game, since winning the fourth Australian Super 14 franchise ahead of Victoria last year. It came as no surprise when MC called on the assembled to get behind the Crusaders when attending the preseason trial match.

Patron of the VRU, Sir Edward Weary Dunlop is a national hero here in Australia, a World War Two prisoner of war surgeon, Victorian Wallaby and champion boxer. Weary graduated from Melbourne University in 1934 with first class honours in medicine. His nickname 'Weary' came from his unflagging energy - and the claim by Dunlop Rubber that their tyres never wore out. In 1969, he was knighted in recognition of "his unfailing courage, organisational ability and power of leadership were an inspiration to all ranks during the extremely difficult conditions of the Burmese railway camps." OBE citation.

John Harden, CEO Melbourne Commonwealth Games board member led the guest speakers,  "15 Fridays until the Commonwealth Games." "The Rugby 7s competition will be fierce with 12 of the top 16 Rugby 7s countries participating." The Grand Final of the Rugby 7s on Friday the 17th of March 2006 is already a sell out. "The fifty thousand strong supporters at Telstra Dome will be the largest Rugby 7s crowd ever."

Jeremy Paul, JP to his best mates, was the next guest, fortunately leaving his Brumby at home. For the record JP is an eight year Wallaby veteran with two world cup campaigns under his belt, nine caps shy of his hundred for the ACT, Brumbies and in 2005 was the recipient of the prestigious John Eales player of the year.

When asked how he thought the current Wallabies tour of Europe was going JP responded "European tours can be fun if you're winning. The beer tastes sweet and you don't feel the cold but if you're loosing everything is shithouse."

JP was then put on the spot about the Wallaby forward's soft performance "Listen, you blokes blame the forwards when we lose and talk up the backs when we win, so go figure". Are the forwards too small continued the interviewer? "Too much has been said about the size of the pack, it is a load of crap."

How do you think the Western Force will go? "If the Western Force wins more than three games next season I will come to a Weary Dunlop luncheon and run around naked".

The crowd enjoy JP's frank, sly humour and is given a resounding round of applause.

Just three weeks after Makybe Diva won the Melbourne Cup for an historic 3rd time in a row, horse back history of another kind was about to be made. To the right of the stage there is a roar from the crowd as Crusaders Coach Robbie Deans makes his entrance on horse back, dressed as a Crusader. Circling the punters with sword sheathed and two hands firmly on the pummel Deans has that "this sounded like a good idea at the time" look on his face. Disrobing and mounting the podium Deans made the observation "that entrance gives you an indication of where the game is at after 10 years of professionalism".

Deans' friendly style is disarming and he soon has the audience engaged with statements like "clearly you are rugby frustrated" and "we (the Crusaders) are keen to bring our game to this (Melbourne) a world class tourist destination."

Deans mount is led out of the ballroom and expels a noisy whiney to the great amusement of the audience and a wag on a nearby table yells out "That's the most sensible thing that's been said here today!"

Deans then shares with the audience the mistakes the Crusaders made in the earlier years of professionalism. "There was a lot of resistance in the Christchurch province to players being paid" Deans said. "Add to this the bonus points, bastardised jerseys and imported players not playing much club rugby, things were not going well". Both on and off the paddock the Crusaders weren't winning the professional race.

From Donkeys to thoroughbreds in ten years, Deans, the Crusaders administration and players are the most successful team in the Super 14 competition. What is the secret to their success? Deans believes the crucial point is seeking the answer to the question "Why are we here?" In the amateur days the answers where relatively simple "you played the game you loved and generally for the town you grew up in" explained Deans.

Turning the corner into a new millennium the Crusaders changed their strategy. "We wanted to stand for something, we wanted to operate a professional club with an amateur ethos" said Deans. "Initially we started from within and now we are getting out into the community."

Deans explained the values the club aspires to through an acronym T.E.A.M.W.O.R.K. Togetherness, Equality, Attitude, Meshing, We (not me), Organised and Kindred Spirits.

The audience were treated to the first ever team motivational video for season 2000. This emphasised the need for the Crusaders to seek inspiration external to the club, the video featured amazing feats including; Peter Snell, Kiwi Olympic gold medallist in the 800 metres at the 1960 Rome games and perhaps the most famous Kiwi, Sir Edmund Hillary standing aloft Mount Everest with Nepalese Sherpa, Tenzing Norgay (we not me) by his side on May 29, 1953.

Finally, Deans regaled the audience with some school rugby memories and invited the audience to "support the Crusaders against the impostors from the West" in next seasons trial match to be played at Melbourne's Olympic Park.

Ron Steiner, President of the VRU thanked Deans commenting that "the Crusaders are the Man United of the rugby world". Steiner went on to say that Victorian school boy rugby had doubled participation rates during the season and with the 7's and Wallabies v England Test to be held at the Telstra Dome in 2006, Victorian rugby fans "had much to look forward to".

The raffles were drawn, the door prize awarded and the lucky seat announced, none of which your correspondent won. Nothing unusual about that, having cleaned up in the sweep stakes in the race that stops the nation early this month (Melbourne Cup) my quota of luck is used for the next ten years. The networking, spectacular red wine and plenty of horsing around from Melbourne rugby identities made this yet another wonderful rugby experience.

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