In 2012, Wallabies legend Mark Ella made a “stunning” prediction in the pages of The Sydney Morning Herald.
asserted
Ella → make → Herald
“We haven’t won the Bledisloe Cup for 10 years – and I think it’s going to be another 10 years before we get there,” Ella said.
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Ella → win → years
“It’s almost like the depression …
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It → ’ → depression
we need to get out of it.”
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we → need → it
It turns out the genius in a gold No.10 jersey was having his Nostradamus moment – and an optimistic one at that.
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genius → turn → that
Not only did another decade pass without Australian players getting their hands on the Bledisloe Cup, the drought has now stretched into a 24th year after last Saturday’s 50-19 thumping by the All Blacks at Eden Park.
With the trophy contested over two matches this year, Australia cannot reclaim it, reducing Saturday’s return clash at Accor Stadium in Sydney to little more than a dress rehearsal for the sides’ World Cup pool clash at the same venue on October 9 next year.
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Australia → pass → October
Contacted this week about his prediction 14 years ago, Ella admitted he rarely watches rugby these days and doubted he could offer much insight.
uncertain
he → contact → insight
He also skipped last week’s reunion in Sydney for Wallabies who were part of the 1984 grand slam tour of the UK and Ireland or Australia’s 1986 series triumph in New Zealand.
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who → skip → Zealand
“The Bledisloe Cup was hard to win, whether it was in my day or the current era,” Ella says.
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Ella → win → day
“We’re still struggling.”
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We → struggle → ?
Which raises a question that once would have seemed absurd: will the Wallabies win the Bledisloe Cup again?
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Wallabies → raise → Cup
Sure, it’s a provocative question.
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it → ’ → ?
But if you believe those “experts” who reckon artificial intelligence could wipe out humanity within the next decade, the Wallabies might genuinely be running out of time.
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Wallabies → believe → time
George Gregan was the last Australian captain to lift the trophy, in 2002.
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Gregan → lift → 2002
For an entire generation of supporters – anyone under about 25 – the Bledisloe Cup isn’t something Australia wins.
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Australia → win → 25
It’s something New Zealand owns.
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Zealand → ’ → ?
Once a source of national pride and enormous interest, the trophy has become a symbol of Australian rugby’s decline, an annual reminder of the glory days at the turn of the century.
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trophy → become → century
In 24 Bledisloe series from 2003 onwards, Australia have lost 19 and drawn five.
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Australia → lose → five
Those five drawn series – in 2004, 2007, 2011, 2015 and 2019 – were all two-match affairs.
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series → draw → 2004
In individual Tests during that period, the All Blacks have recorded 51 victories to Australia’s nine, with three draws.
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Blacks → record → draws
The scale of Australia’s failure can be measured in more than wins and losses.
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scale → measure → wins
Seven Australian prime ministers have held office during it.
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ministers → hold → it
Seven Wallabies coaches – from Eddie Jones, twice, to Les Kiss – have tried and failed to wrestle the trophy back across the Tasman.
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coaches → try → Tasman
Matt Dunning, Wallaby No.786, was the first player to make his debut for Australia during the Bledisloe Cup drought, in October 2003.
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Dunning → make → October
He will turn 48 before the year is out.
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year → turn → ?
Massimo De Lutiis became Wallaby No.1000 in August, so more than 200 players have worn the gold jersey without experiencing a Bledisloe Cup triumph.
Stan Sport presenter Michael Atkinson recently asked Wallabies great Tim Horan on the Today show, with more than a hint of exasperation, whether Australia would ever win the Bledisloe Cup again.
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Australia → become → Cup
Horan, now 56, said he hoped Australia could win the trophy again in his lifetime.
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Australia → say → lifetime
“You’d hope it’s going to turn within another 10 years,” Horan says in a follow-up interview.
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Horan → hope → interview
He won’t put a date on it, but believes this Wallabies side has the talent to end the drought – provided it strikes soon.
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it → put → drought
A potential exodus of players to overseas competitions after next year’s World Cup could make the task even more difficult.
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task → make → Cup
“If we have our top 15 to 18 players out there without being injured, we would win two out of 10 games [against New Zealand],” Horan says.
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Horan → have → Zealand
“If it’s not in the next two years, it’s going to take a while.
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it → ’ → while
“We will win the Bledisloe at some stage in the next 10 years.
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We → win → years
I hope we win it two or three times.
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we → hope → it
We all get so excited coming into it.
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We → get → it
Last Saturday, about 15 Wallabies from the 1980s gathered for a few beers at the Royal Oak hotel in Balmain to reminisce about their glory days.
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Wallabies → gather → days
Among them was Wallabies great Simon Poidevin, who later slipped back home to Coogee to watch the match.
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who → slip → match
He prefers to watch Bledisloe Tests in the privacy of his own home in case emotion gets the better of him.
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emotion → prefer → him
It was a wise call as others stayed at the pub to watch the onslaught.
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others → stay → onslaught
“We want that hoodoo to be broken,” Poidevin says.
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Poidevin → want → ?
…and 33 more, not listed.
The Aporia
