I know that I will probably cop some flack over what I am about to say but I will continue nevertheless. It is my position that the blame cannot be laid solely at the feet of Robbie Deans, after all Australia's rugby problems (i.e. its inability to win the Bledisloe Cup or the World Cup) existed prior to the Deans’ era commencing. In my opinion Australia's rugby demise over the last decade has been so gradual and/or incremental that we didn't even see it happen.
For me the alarm bells really started to become audible when Australia lost to Samoa. This was shortly followed by a dismal performance in the World Cup where Australia was even beaten by the Irish. Yes the Irish did play well, and as an Irishman I was quietly praying for that miracle victory, but Australia should never have been in a position to have lost that game, especially when given the level of purported professionalism and commercialism that presently exists at the top of our rugby hierarchy.
Now here we are in 2012 and the future is not looking any rosier! The domestic test series leading up to the Bledisloe Cup did nothing to instil me with any confidence that Australia was capable of beating The All Blacks! Firstly to have lost the water polo match against Scotland was inexcusable. And secondly the series against the Welsh did very little to enhance Australia's profile as a rugby superpower. Yes we can all blame Deans for the Wallabies abysmal performance over the last couple of years (and to a degree it is justified), however does Deans really have a great depth of real talent to work with? I believe he doesn't!
From my observations of Australian rugby over the last 30 years it has always been my view that when a key Wallaby was injured there was never really anybody of equal talent to replace him. For example I could take you back to that great era of Australian rugby during the early 90’s when the Wallabies were almost invincible. And when in 1993/94 the Wallabies sustained key injuries to players like Little, Horan, and Kearns; suddenly the Wallabies were back to being the whipping boys for the All Blacks.
During the same era when Australian rugby reigned supreme I often had the opportunity to visit New Zealand. As a consequence I became a great fan of their National Provincial Championship. From that point in time I became acutely aware from where the all Blacks were able to draw their depth and wealth in talent. Essentially every All-Black was (and still is) kept honest in his playing position because there were (and still are) generally five players of near or equal ability that can replace them if their performance was (is) sub-par. As stated above it is my opinion that Australia does not have this luxury.
I recently read an article where the ARU applauded its national junior development programme (i.e. the NGS/JGS), stating that in the last 10 years the programme had developed numerous players who went on to become Wallabies. In fact there are numerous current Wallabies who are a product of the same programme. Yet here we are, a decade later, still awaiting a Bledisloe Cup and/or World Cup and/or Junior World Cup. I'm sorry but success can only be measured by achievement, and to date the trophy cabinet is a little bare.
I can remember a time when New South Wales (and probably Queensland) had an adequate club rugby competition which relatively speaking translators to keeping Australia in touch with the All Blacks at the international level. Alas, over the years it has been neglected because the ARU have been more focused on the commodification of super rugby and the Wallabies than it has on the development of grass-roots rugby.
Please is it not the case that the chicken hatches from the egg? As far as I'm concerned the national rugby team of any country will do relatively well when its lower tiers or domestic competitions are strong, after all where does any national team draw its players? I'm sorry but a super-coach will not automatically translate to a super-team; this has been proven with Robbie Deans IMO! Perhaps my ideals are utopian as far as club rugby is concerned, but I still strongly believe that Australia will continue to roam in the rugby wilderness until such a time as it decides to go back to its roots.