Over to you, Joe Schmidt.
Australian rugby eyes now turn to all things Wallabies after their last Super Rugby Pacific hope was emphatically snuffed out at Eden Park on Friday night.
The 34-20 Brumbies semi-finals loss to the Blues wasn’t surprising but the manner of it will be concerning to Schmidt and his coaching chums.
Watch all the action from the 2024 Super Rugby Pacific finals, with every match ad free, live and on demand on Stan Sport
Stephen Larkham’s side were strangely flat – and inaccurate – in the opening exchanges and the grateful Blues bullied their way to a 24-6 lead after just 20 minutes to all but kill the contest.
Australian teams are yet to win a Super Rugby finals game on New Zealand soil and the Blues will play the winner of Hurricanes vs Chiefs in the final.
The good news is that the going will get a little easier for the Wallabies in their first assignment of 2024 under Schmidt.
READ MORE: Bizarre twist as Cody Simpson eyes ‘last throw of the dice’
READ MORE: ‘Shell-shocked’ Sharks humbled as Hynes dealt blow
READ MORE: Why Blues would be ‘stupid’ to overlook Latrell
NEW PODCAST: Michael Atkinson and Sam Worthington react to the news of Wallabies star Carter Gordon’s bombshell NRL switch
The Wallabies, ranked ninth in the world, play two Tests against Wales (10th) and one against Georgia (13th) in July, with Schmidt set to name his first squad next week.
Wales destroyed the Eddie Jones Wallabies at last year’s Rugby World Cup but then failed to win a game in a dreadful 2024 Six Nations campaign.
“It’s about trying to re-engage the fans back into the game and the gold jersey,” Wallabies legend Tim Horan said on Stan Sport following the Brumbies loss.
“There was a real stench around what happened with Eddie Jones at the Rugby World Cup. As a commentator, I’ve been part of the broadcast for 20 odd years and that (Wales) game – seeing Wallabies fans in gold jerseys walk out five minutes into the second half – was one of the most disappointing things I’ve seen. So somehow we’ve got to try and re-engage the fans.
“It might take more than Test matches this year but we need to get the fans right for the Lions series (in 2025).”
Former Wallabies loose forward Stephen Hoiles was confident that Schmidt would get the national team humming again in the not too distant future and tipped Rebels lock Josh Canham to win his first Test cap.
“Whether he’s going to be in the 23 or the run on side – I’ve liked his work around the field and his offload ability for a number of years,” Hoiles said.
“And under Geoff Parling, the forwards coach for the Rebels – he’s also the Wallabies forwards coach – he’s got a good combination going and they’re working well. He’s getting two or three steals a game in the defensive lineout.
“It hasn’t been a good 18 months for the Wallabies. But I think what we all understand is so much of the success of the game relies on the national team. I’m really confident that they’ll turn things around.”