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Nick Farr-Jones could be a relic from a lost age. He should
have been born in a time when men wore top hats and England ruled
the waves. He studied in the sandstone halls of Newington College
and Sydney Law School. He has travelled the world; chatted with
queens, presidents, prime ministers. He can stand before a 1000-strong
crowd and speak with calm eloquence. And he could bullet passes
to the chests of five-eighths at 20 metres superbly enough to
play 63 Tests for the Wallabies. As a captain he saw the underside
of Lord Bledisloe and Master William Webb Ellis. This is a man
who encompasses the Renaissance ideal of mens sana in corpore
sano (a healthy mind in a healthy body); he should have walked
the same corridors as WG Grace, Doctor Livingston and Lord Kitchener.
Instead, he shared a mineral water with Inside Sport
to talk about the decrepit state of Australian rugby.
Can Australia win this World Cup?
Yes they can. Is it likely? No, not at all. And one of my real
reservations is that I just don’t think the scrum can muscle
up. I know the history of the World Cup, and the five teams that
have won it have all had very strong forward packs with particularly
good scrums. I don’t think our scrum will provide the platform
that will produce the consistency to win a World Cup. And when
I say consistency, I mean three big matches. We can win one on
our day. Can we win three? I doubt it.
What’s happened to our scrum?
I just don’t know. Personnel can be cyclical. I suspect
they’re training till their noses bleed, so it’s not
a matter of not training hard enough.
Bob Dwyer said that to win a World Cup a team has to have five
players that would choose themselves in a World XV, five who’d
be just below that standard and five who are tried and proven
international players. Would any of our front rowers currently
make a third or fourth World XV?
Should George Gregan captain the side?
I think he definitely will. I think he’s got his spark back.
I think it was a wise decision not to go to Europe. He obviously
adds a lot to the spirit of the team. He gets a lot of respect.
And I’m pretty sure Matt Giteau doesn’t want to put
his hand up for the No. 9 jersey. I think it would be a fitting
end to George’s career.
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