Wallabies head coach Joe Schmidt likened the Wallabies' 46-19 loss to Ireland to a ‘collapse’, as the side stares down the gauntlet of a 67-year first, winless European tour.
With Stade de France and Les Bleus ahead, the head coach, along with captain Harry Wilson, has many holes to fill, with the lineout and the high ball two major areas of concern.
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“We are working hard and tiredness isn't an excuse,” Schmidt said in the post-match press conference.
“We have to put an 80-minute performance out there. We can't be 22-14 down and collapse like we did tonight.
“When we had that five metre line out, we just couldn't quite get the execution and accuracy right, and there was some good pressure from Ireland, but at the same time our execution wasn't good enough.
“We know we're going to get more of that from France next week.
“They tend to kick a lot. I think everyone kicks a lot now with the way the game is set up. It's tough to carry a lot of ball, particularly through the middle of the field so you're tending to go for competitive kicks.
“If you reach and try to create opportunity, particularly with 14 against 15, then inevitably you lose a bit of your own equilibrium and allow a bit of opportunity or time or space to the opposition, and Ireland didn't need too many second invitations.”
On top of the 16 high balls lost, the Wallabies also lost six of their own lineouts to the Irish, with Wilson lamenting the pressure those errors put on the side.
“It was really disappointing, our line-out tonight,” the Wallaby captain said.
“We put ourselves in some good positions there, and our line-out really let us down there.
“When you don't have the heart of your set piece functioning well, it really does put the team under pressure there. It was quite disappointing because we pride ourselves on being quite good in that area, and we definitely let ourselves down there tonight.”
While coach Andy Farrell still complimented the Wallabies on the year they’d had after full time, including mentioning the Ellis Park victory, Schmidt was quick to stick to the performance of the evening, with the discussion of succession to Les Kiss also front of mind.
“That was a fresher, kind of more complete team probably at the time [at Ellis Park],” Schmidt explained.
“We don't have massive strength and depth yet.
“I think that's a little bit of a slow burn, and it has to be built from the ground up. I think there were 19 debutants last year to build a broader base of international players, but the accumulation of experience through that broader group is still in its genesis, really.
“At the same time, we've got to stay competitive at the top end. I know I've mentioned it before, around having a short-term focus but a long-term vision, and it is getting that balance.
“I think as we start to get toward the end, we're disappointed with some of the end games that we've had because it was something we took real pride in.
“I think as things accumulate with players having travelled a lot and played a lot, we're just not as competitive in that last quarter.”
Schmidt now has to turn his attention to the final match of the year, as the Wallabies look to finish their long year on a high with victory over Les Bleus for the first time since 2021.
The head coach has had plenty of success at Stade de France over his long career, but he expects a big challenge from the French, who overcame a determined Fiji 34-21 earlier in the evening.
“I guess I can try to add my experience and chat to the group,” Schmidt said when asked about his record in France helping the Wallabies.
“I've had some really good experiences at the Stade de France with massive respect for Les Bleus, but at the same time, I've got huge respect for the players and how they will try to make sure they're as well prepared for next week as they possibly can be.
“I know that we didn't do ourselves justice in that second half.
“I honestly believe that if people write us off, we were written off before the Lions, we were written off before going to South Africa.
“We're just going to have to make sure that once we land in Paris tomorrow, that we recuperate as best we can, have a really clear plan, and then just go after it as best we can.”
