Wallabies playmakers lapped up some words of wisdom from rugby league royalty Andrew Johns on Friday as they prepare for the Rugby Championship opener against South Africa on July 9 (AEST).
Australia coach Eddie Jones tried to sign Johns in his previous Wallabies tenure in 2005 but said the national board would not sign off on the contract terms.
Five-eighths Bernard Foley, Carter Gordon and Ben Donaldson spent time honing their skills with Johns in the Coogee sun ahead of the squad naming on Sunday.
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Quade Cooper was absent as he attended a wedding.
“We have known Andrew a long time and his ability to teach the nuances of first receiver play is second to none,” said Jones, who also called Johns into camp during his time coaching England.
“To have him down here, particularly for a such a young guy like Carter, is a great learning experience.”
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Jones took another playful swipe at NRL supremo Peter V’landys before reiterating his love of league.
Another former NRL star, Brett Hodgson, is the Wallabies defence coach and took passes from Johns during drills.
“That’s the great thing about sport in Australia though isn’t it? We have this competitive tension but we also have great co-operation,” Jones said.
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“If we feel there is someone from rugby league who can help us… I certainly don’t have any discrimination against the sport.”
The Wallabies - minus the Brumbies contingent who played in the Super Rugby Pacific semi-final – played a willing 15 vs 15 training game on Friday which featured plenty of kicking.
Jones said it was a misnomer that rugby’s ‘good old days’ were a festival of running rugby.
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“If you look at old games, there was a lot of kicking, you know, so there’s this fascination that rugby is a game where you don’t, all you do is pass and run,” he said.
“Well when I played the game, some of the best kickers of the ball were the best runners of the ball and some of the best runners of the balls were the best passers of the ball.
“And it’s interesting, you know, one of the messages I heard Joey say to them to the boys is the best running players are the best passing players and it follows then that the best running and best passing players, are the best kicking players.”
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