I just don’t understand Australian rugby, particularly when we play the Kiwis.
You don’t win games by being tricky. You win games by playing better than the other team. Our desire to play “tricky” and lean on low percentage plays is entirely based on the belief that we aren’t good enough to beat them by playing safely.
Don’t go for a cross field kick three minutes in when you’ve had three penalties in a row and are making line breaks at will. Don’t throw insane cutouts to the wing that will inevitably fly over the sideline. Don’t run the ball entirely unsupported blind off a scrum when you’re under pressure and 30 metres out from your try line, especially if you’ve just been subbed on and you’ve got less than five caps to your name. Don’t go for the short drop out when you’re clinging onto a game for dear life, especially if you’re a man down and only need to survive a few minutes to half time.
Just fucking believe in yourself and make your tackles, kick to relieve pressure and play for territory. Build pressure by never making a single fucking mistake and then hope that pressure overwhelms them. At the very least you won’t be handing points over to the other team.