Wallabies begin to implode?

After a season that defied most pundit's expectations, off-field incidents and tension between coaches and management threaten to distract the Machperson Intimates Wallabies from their World Cup mission.

Not a week goes by without new allegations of ructions within the camp, or a new incident involving Wallaby players boozing into the night.

The latest issue surrounds the reaction of Wallabies Matt Dunning and Lote Tuqiri to the coverage of their involvement in an assault on a 52 year-old taxi driver.

Whilst a Gold Coast man has been charged by police, and there is no longer the suggestion that Tuqiri or Dunning were involved, both players were adamant that there shouldn't be an issue with their behaviour.

"What do they want to discipline me for? I'm flabbergasted - do I have to be Cinderella and be home by 12 o'clock?" said Dunning a day after the incident.

It's this attitude which has Australian Rugby Emperor John O'Neill livid.

The general feeling amongst the ARU hierarchy, and many members of the media, is that after a long period where off-field incidents have distracted the public from the mediocre results on the field, the Wallabies "need to be doing it better and cleaner than the other guy".

In isolation, perhaps there isn't anything wrong with Dunning and Tuqiri staying out till 5am drinking and partying. However when viewed as part of a team culture, it perhaps becomes less innocuous.

Despite their believe that they're regular guys who should be allowed to blow off steam like every other 20-something, the media, the fans, and indeed their employers hold them to a higher standard.

It's part of the reason they get paid a hell of a lot more than regular 20-somethings.

And it does nothing to ease tensions between the ARU and John Connelly's coaching team when Connelly supports the assertion that his players did nothing wrong.

This despite his advice several weeks ago in his Sydney Morning Herald column:
"By observing the 'Cinderella hour' … players would significantly reduce their chances of being caught up in off-field troubles."

It's an open secret that Connelly and Emperor John don't get along. However the beauty of dealing with O'Neill is that there can rarely be a misunderstanding when it comes to his expectations.

His expectations regarding team conduct were made clear upon his return to the throne earlier in the year. Some of his first comments were around cleaning up the off-field issues that had plagued the squad, leading to suspensions and fines.

No team is immune from it's players making mistakes; witness half-a-dozen All Blacks being fined by management for being out beyond a gentleman's-agreed curfew.
However an isolated incident can be put into perspective, and when it's the same players continually engaging in activity which can be viewed negatively, a pattern becomes apparent.

Do the Wallabies have a binge-drinking culture? Given that most incidents seem to involve the same few players, it seems unlikely. Sources suggest that senior team members are as frustrated as Emperor John with the behaviour of some team members, and that this may contribute to the Wallaby World Cup expedition being declared "booze-free", along with strict curfews being put in place.

When you look back over the past year, you see a team surrounded by issues; Coaches who don't get on, an ARU regime where infighting and politics dominate, players who spend more time in the news for drinking than for winning games...the list goes on.

It certainly puts the leadership at the NZRFU, and conduct of our top players into perspective.

The expectations of an entire nation no doubt do their part in keeping players in line, as does the thought of doing The Jersey a disservice, but it also helps to recall that The 3 Wise Men have spoken on several occasions about their goal to develop the All Blacks beyond The Game.

They have taken the time to ensure that the All Blacks are young men who have the skills to contribute to society, to understand the privileged position they have been granted, and to respect the boundaries it places upon them.

It would seem that the Wallabies lack the sense of perspective needed to understand just how lucky they are.