By Graham Thomas
John Devereux is backing Warren Gatland to send Eddie Jones packing on Sunday night – and leave the Aussies as silent as they were back in 1987.
That was at the first Rugby World Cup when Wales shocked Australia, 22-21, to clinch third place at the tournament in New Zealand.
It will be less of a surprise if Wales boot the Wallabies out of the 2023 version, so bad have they been since Jones and his players landed in France.
But if Gatland’s Wales can clinch their own place in the quarter-finals, whilst condemning the Aussies to an early flight home, former dual code international Devereux reckons they will be just as quiet.
“When we won in 1987 in Rotorua, there was an after-match party laid on for both teams and the Aussies just stayed in their rooms,” says Devereux, one of a small handful of players to have played rugby union and rugby league for both Wales and Great Britain.
“You don’t normally find Aussies so averse to having a beer, but I think we shocked them. They thought they only had to turn up to beat us.
“They had an air of confidence, that maybe tipped over into arrogance, and usually Australians are good enough to back that up. That day, we beat them and they went very quiet.”
Great night in Cardiff last night for the Welsh Sports Hall of Fame dinner, and Congratulations to Widnes and Wales legend John Devereux who was inducted into the Welsh Sports Hall of Fame and it was an honour for myself to present him with this great honour. pic.twitter.com/M9RMjpxOtm
— Jim Mills (@millsjim44) September 15, 2023
Wales and Gatland have reverted to the same team that beat Fiji, but Jones has ripped up the Wallabies outfit that crashed and burned against the Flying Fijians.
Devereux – who launches his book, Double Dragon, Double Lion next month – reckons Aussie teams like being in a scrap for survival, but thinks Gatland is now getting a tune out of Wales following a Six Nations that left fans with their fingers in their ears.
“I feel a bit uneasy when the Aussies are written off by everybody and the same goes for the All Blacks,” says former centre Devereux, renowned for the hardest ramrod hand-off in both codes.
“I don’t actually think Wales have played that well so far at this tournament, but Gatland has got them looking really fit.
“He does it every time. Whenever he has players together for a stretch, he seems to get them up a few notches in terms of fitness.
“He didn’t really have time to do it when he came back for the Six Nations, but with this World Cup the players look ultra-fit, as fit as anyone else there.”
Former @CardiffMetRFC, Wales & Lions cross-code rugby legend John Devereux was inducted into the Welsh Sports Hall of Fame.
(Our student @CianTookey edited the montage they played on the big screen as John walked up to collect his award)
⭐️@WelshSportsHoF @DevereuxJohn13⭐️ pic.twitter.com/A1WPYET7p1
— Cardiff Met Sport TV (@CMetSportTV) September 18, 2023
As for Jones, not even in his darkest days at Twickenham has he looked as crestfallen as he has in France and his press conference line on Friday could be his epitaph.
“Look mate, I’ve let Australian rugby down,” he said after losing six of the seven matches he taken change of in his second stint.
He is likely to be sacked if Australia fail to make the knockout stages, something they have never experienced.
“I thought the Aussies would come on strong and beat Fiji in the late stages because Fiji started to play some dumb rugby,” says Devereux.
“But Eddie Jones is in a deep hole. Even though we have seen the Aussies snatch victory from Wales so many times, I just think there’s a lot missing from their game at present.
“They don’t have enough key players any more and I fancy Wales to win.”
