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- By Iain Payten
- From: The Daily Telegraph
- December 28, 2009 12:00AM
2000 ... Wallabies captain John Eales holds up Tri-Nations trophy. Source: The Daily Telegraph
IT WAS a decade of highlights and lowlights for Australian rugby. It began in the middle of a golden era on field for the Wallabies and in Super rugby and the 2003 World Cup on home soil proved a huge success.
But silverware was hard to find as lean times hit in the second half of the Noughties.
IAIN PAYTEN sifts through the memories to choose 10 unforgettable rugby moments.
Nobody's kick
When you think about it, it was faintly ridiculous. An exhausted Australian second-rower knocking over a penalty goal after the siren, to beat New Zealand in Wellington. But not just beat them. The goal also retained the Bledisloe Cup for a third straight year and helped go on to win the Wallabies' first ever Tri-Nations title. Who else but John Eales?
Lions walk the plank
Bagged as a plod and a plank by motormouth Pom Austin Healey, Wallabies lock Justin Harrison got the last laugh by stealing a crucial lineout in the dying moments of the decisive third Test against the British Lions. A massive crowd in Sydney saw Australia escape their danger zone and win an epic series. A watershed moment in the growth of Australian rugby's profile.
Cup heartache
Remembered for Jonny Wilkinson's extra-time field goal but Australia's incredible effort in almost winning back-to-back World Cup wins is often forgotten. Unrated after lacklustre early form, the Wallabies produced arguably their best game of the decade to upset New Zealand in the semi-final. There was no trophy to lift after the thrilling final but the World Cup was a high water mark for rugby in Australia. The final is still TV's highest rating sports event ever.
Brumbies run wild
The final hurrah of a superb era in Canberra. The star-studded Brumbies made the final in all but one season between 2000-2004, and won two titles. Led by the likes of George Gregan, Stephen Larkham and Owen Finegan, player power dominated at the Brumbies and it worked. After sidelining coach David Nucifora mid-year, the Brumbies beat the Crusaders in the '04 final. Australia hasn't won a title since.
Hello Sailor, Rogers and Tuqiri
"When Dell sells, watch these babies spin''. Rugby's turnstiles did indeed whirr like fans following the defection of high-profile league stars Wendell Sailor, Mat Rogers and Lote Tuqiri. All at the peak of their careers, the moves ended one-way traffic to league and marked the birth of rugby as a professional rival. Sailor was a huge drawcard and Tuqiri and Rogers were skilled Test stars.
Goodbye Sailor, Rogers and Tuqiri
The ARU's sacking of Lote Tuqiri earlier this year saw the last of that same trio leave rugby after tumultuous stints of off-field strife and cross-code culture clashes. Sailor was the first to go after being suspended for cocaine in 2006 and Rogers quit his contract to re-join league in 2007. The pair both said later that they never felt welcome in rugby union.
Lifetime beer supply
Many point to the All Blacks' 35-34 win in 2000 as the "Greatest Test Ever Played'' but Toutai Kefu's 79th- minute try a year later trumps all in terms of jump-off-your-chair victories. Slamming the ball down to deny the Kiwis again at the death, Kefu was promised a lifetime shout by retiring skipper John Eales.
New Force field
On April 26, 2006 a new Australian Super 14 team in Perth won their first point with a 23-all draw against reigning champions the Crusaders. They went on to win the spoon in their first year but the Force have since carved out a strong, new rugby market in WA, and turned out some brilliant young talent in David Pocock and James O'Connor.
Dingo's first bite
Robbie Deans' appointment as Wallabies coach in 2008 was hoped to ressurect the dwindling fortunes of Aussie rugby, which hasn't seen a Bledisloe Cup or Tri-Nations title since 2002. In his first game against the countrymen who spurned him, Deans guided Australia to a win over the All Blacks in Sydney. Two largely fruitless seasons on and things haven't quite panned out like the ARU hoped. Next year? Please?
Stirling effort
Stirling Mortlock and George Smith are the only two current Wallabies who've seen out the entire decade. Smith's highlights are too many to list, although Mortlock's efforts in hostile Africa stand out for the big centre. Young Mortlock nailed a post-siren penalty from the sideline in Durban in 2000 to win the Wallabies' first Tri-Nations title.
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/spo...-1225813991207
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