‘Rock bottom’: Pressure mounts on Wallabies after horror World Cup

afr.com:

Rugby Australia chairman Hamish McLennan says the game will have enough money to ensure its future, but the job of paying for an expensive but much-needed restructure of the game’s administration has become far harder after a historic World Cup exit in France.

Australia was smashed 40-6 by Wales in Lyon on Monday, its heaviest defeat at a World Cup, after losing its first match to Fiji in 69 years a week earlier.

Australia’s Pone Fa’Amausili covers his face after his side’s 6-40 lost against Wales 

It now faces a humiliating group stage exit, with little more than pride on the line against rugby union minnow Portugal next week.

Wallabies great David Campese said the Wales defeat marked “rock bottom” for Australia, while his former teammate and 1991 World Cup-winning captain, Nick Farr-Jones said: “Everyone knows rugby is at a 20-year low.”

“I agree that it’s rock bottom,” Mr McLennan told The Australian Financial Review.

“We’ve been talking about structural change for quite a few years. Other unions like France and Ireland have reformed their structure and succeeded. We need to seize the moment and fix the game once and for all.

“In Australia, Rugby has a model that is very similar to the state and federal government makeup. For a sport, that is inefficient.

“Ireland is No. 1. They have a highly centralised model that ensures contracting, strength and conditioning, coaching and high-performance programs are centrally managed.

“Ironically, many Australians have gone to Ireland to build that program. We need to do it now for rugby in Australia.

“We need to seize the moment for constitutional and structural reform. This really has been a case of doing the same thing, the same way, over and over and expecting a different