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All Blacks great Dan Carter says the Wallabies must embrace the lessons of their disastrous 2023 World Cup campaign as they prepare for a home tournament, with the All Blacks' 2007 setback a template for turning failure into titles.
All Blacks legend Dan Carter says the Wallabies should not brush off their disastrous 2023 Rugby World Cup campaign, and should instead learn from it as they build towards a World Cup on home soil.
Carter, a two-time Rugby World Cup winner, spoke in Sydney this week alongside fellow All Blacks great Richie McCaw and Wallabies legend George Gregan at a Global Rugby Players Foundation charity golf day. With Australian rugby now less than a year away from the tournament, Carter said embracing the lessons of failure was one of two key elements that helped the All Blacks break through.
Turning Pressure Into Positive Force
The first was figuring out how to turn home support into a positive force rather than a source of pressure. The second was combining belief about the future with an understanding of where you have faltered in the past. Carter said confidence and belief are similar things, and players must embrace the challenge and genuinely believe they can beat anyone in the world.
He said the Wallabies have the players to do that, and must also take the lessons from the hard times. There are enough players in that squad who have gone through challenging moments, and learning from those moments can often make a team stronger, he said. Carter said 2023 should not just be brushed off, and the players who were there should learn what went wrong.
The All Blacks' own version of that disaster was the 2007 World Cup, when they went in as raging favourites after losing only five of 43 games in the four years prior. For the third straight tournament, they crashed out in the playoffs. Carter said the All Blacks never used to look back at previous World Cups, and would just focus on a new cycle.
Learning From Past Rugby World Cup Failures
That changed only after their worst ever Rugby World Cup in 2007, when they sat back and learned what went wrong before turning things around. He said teams want to look forward and play with real confidence and belief, but also need to learn from the past to avoid similar mistakes. Carter and McCaw were in Sydney with Gregan as part of their work with the Global Rugby Players Foundation.
The trio have 12 Rugby World Cup tournaments between them, four each, and a combined five William Webb Ellis Cup wins. But sizing up the current contenders and predicting who will win the 2027 Rugby World Cup is another matter. McCaw said the top half a dozen teams all have the ability to beat each other, and the margins become even smaller at World Cup time.
Carter said it is still anyone's tournament, and very rarely is the form side a year out the one that goes on to win it. He added it is hard to go past South Africa right now, as they have continued to grow and evolve since the last World Cup. South Africa are the world's top-ranked side and beat the All Blacks 3-1 in their recent Test series, including a win in Perth last week.
Assessing Home Advantage for Twenty Twenty Seven
Carter said the power of having a World Cup at home cannot be underestimated, and it can add extra pressure or become a major advantage. He said if there is anywhere in the world you would want to play a World Cup, it is in your own backyard, and pointed to what home advantage did for the team in 2003. He said they grew another leg, and it is an amazing opportunity for the current group of Wallaby players.
McCaw said the pressure of a home World Cup can be a double-edged sword, and cited England's pre-finals exit in 2015. He said it can be helpful but can also be a burden, with everyone watching and players living in a fishbowl. He said the All Blacks used it to their advantage, but teams have to make sure they approach it the right way.
Asked about the Wallabies' flyhalf situation, Carter said his guess is as good as anyone's and that it is a piece of the puzzle Australia will try to solve in the next 12 months. He said it is still anyone's race to claim that spot, with Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt saying he would opt for Noah Lolesio.
Gregan said the Wallabies had bounced back from a flat spring tour and turned a corner in the Nations Championship games in July, with strong starts and attacking intent. He said winning becomes a good habit and losing becomes a bad habit, so it is great to keep the winning cycle going and break the other one. Gregan said there is a really nice energy within the group and the players are playing for each other.
Foundation Supporting Transition Into Life After Rugby
The legendary trio were talking at the Global Rugby Players Foundation charity golf day in Sydney. The Foundation is chaired by Gregan and was founded in 2024 by stars including McCaw, Carter, Jonny Wilkinson and Thierry Dusautoir. It also includes former Australian sevens stars Alicia Lucas and Sharni Williams. The charity's purpose is to provide professional rugby players with resources, skills and support for the often difficult transition into life after rugby.
McCaw said leaving the game leaves a hole and it takes a while to get your head around that. Gregan said it sounds simple, but there is often a real loss of purpose, something also heard about in the military. He said the Foundation is trying to work with players and provide programs and support that enable them to leave the game in a positive way.
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brisbanetimes:This story was compiled and edited by the HeadTopics newsroom and HT AI from the reports above.
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