'Clever' rugby for passionate Cheika
Never short of passion, new Wallaby coach Michael Cheika said there won't be wholesale changes to the way Australia play.
Cheika, confirmed as the new coach on Wednesday and charged with the task of leading the Wallabies to a third World Cup triumph in England next year, has a suspended sentence hanging over his head.
His appointment follows in the wake of the Ewen McKenzie-Kurtley Beale saga, with McKenzie walking out on the Wallaby job in dramatic facshion after his team's one-point loss to the All Blacks in Brisbane last Saturday.
Cheika is expected to continue his cavalier approach to coaching, a style that saw him lead the Waratahs to a long-awaited maiden Super Rugby title in August.
The Australian squad will depart on Friday on a tour of Europe, with Tests against Wales, France, England and Ireland.
"I am going to have to work hard and learn quickly, but I am up for the challenge," Cheika said.
He added that there is no need for radical changes to the Test team's approach.
"It's really important that we are clear with our identity, so when our supporters come to watch us play that they know exactly what they are going to see," Cheika said.
"Not just running rugby but that smart, clever style of play that has allowed us to compete against teams that have bigger packs or whatever that may be.
"Nothing beats hard work. Nothing beats great skills. I think driving that idea every day of training will create more consistency."
Cheika knows he will have to be on his best behaviour, or he could miss the World Cup if he delivers one of his infamous passionate outbursts.
Cheika currently has a suspended six-month ban hanging over his head, after being found guilty of abusing a sideline cameraman during a Waratahs' Super Rugby encounter with the Sharks in March.
SANZAR judicial officer Nigel Hampton issued Cheika with a six-month ban, suspended until August 31 next year, which would kick in if he again breached the organisation's code of conduct.
The SANZAR release in April stated: "The judicial officer suspended Cheika from involvement of any kind in all forms of rugby at any level for a period of six months, suspended until 31 August 2015; a ban that would be triggered by a subsequent proven breach of the applicable Code of Conduct."
A SANZAR spokesman confirmed the ban would apply to Test matches, given the ARU are a signatory to the joint venture between the Australian, New Zealand and South African rugby unions.
With the World Cup beginning in September next year, a disciplinary slip by Cheika at any point during the November Tests or Super Rugby season next year could see him trigger the suspension and imperil his build-up to the tournament or even miss the World Cup itself.
