From 2011 the Australian selection table as it were will increase with the addition of the fifth rugby franchise in the form of our Melbourne Rebels.
The question though is with the Wallabies currently undergoing what seems to be a recent historical trend of some wonderful performances followed by some less than ideal results – would the insertion of a few Rebels make a difference?
In the Wallabies last 12 months they have experienced the dramatic highs and lows that have made them infuriatingly difficult to support, giving fans glimpses of what appears to be world beating potential, followed by moments of “what on earth has gone wrong!”
Towards the end of the 2009 Tri Nations, the Wallabies became only the second team at that point in the year to beat the all conquering Springboks, yet the following match suffered a 27 point loss to the All Blacks.
In Murrayfield, Scotland ground out their first victory against the Wallabies in nearly three decades, and a week later the same Australian team would smash Wales.
This year the Wallabies looked like champions when beating England in Perth, before crashing to lose to the same opponent in Sydney.
This trend has led to the focus on a key word – consistency.
It was something religiously preached by Melbourne Rebels coach Rod Macqueen when leading the Wallabies, and something that Australian Rugby Union CEO John O’Neill has recently stressed is letting down the national side of late.
When looking at the potential test selection table if adding eligible Rebels, there are some names in there that could add much to a young Wallabies team.
Laurie Weeks, Nic Henderson, Adam Frier, Adam Byrnes, Luke Jones, Richard Kingi, James Hilgendorf, Stirling Mortlock, Julian Huxley and Peter Bethan would all be available for selection considering they were signed to an Australian Super 14 club in 2009.
From next year, that selection list will broaden, with Rodney Blake, Alistair Campbell, Jarrod Saffy, Sam Cordingley, Lachie Mitchell, Cooper Vuna, Mark Gerrard and Luke Rooney all becoming eligible for international selection.
Thinking what an impact those two lists of players would make to the Wallabies is even more exciting to think that those are the men who will form our Rebels team!
But we digress.
Probably the most valuable addition to the Wallabies right now would be Stirling Mortlock.
The 32 year old, who made his test debut under Rod Macqueen in 2000, would be simply invaluable for the fact that he would provide leadership support to current captain Rocky Elsom.
One of the notable facts of the “Elsom era” is that he did not serve an apprenticeship under a current captain, when compared to the All Blacks Richie McCaw, who not only wore the Crusaders leader’s armband first, but played nearly 20 test matches under Tana Umaga before taking the captaincy.
Mortlock captained the Brumbies in 2003, and assumed command of the test team in 2006.
Furthermore, the centre’s renowned line breaking abilities and defensive mettle would give the Wallabies some much needed clout in the midfield, while Mortlock’s boot (third on all time Australian test point’s scorers) would be useful considering occasional inconsistencies of both Matt Giteau and Quade Cooper from the kicking tee.
Many lament the fact that the Wallabies do not have the seemingly bottomless talent pool that both the All Blacks and Springboks have.
But the Rebels will not only march to give Victoria their Super Rugby team, but in the future will provide an invaluable addition to the national selector’s pool of players.