Giant French lock Emmanuel Meafou, who was raised in Australia, is a key example. He previously said he felt โlet downโ by a lack of opportunity in Australian rugby and elected to stay and declare eligibility for Les Bleus after five years of residency.
โWeโre 1772053614 getting lots of requests from boys who have gone overseas wanting to come back, which is great,โ Cron said.
โThey want to come back and they can see something thatโs worthwhile, which is wonderful and Iโm communicating with some of the boys who are playing overseas even now, and looking at their footage and trying to help them where I can, and show a bit of love even though theyโre playing in France or the UK.
โIf they are looking at coming back, thatโs even more numbers to have available for selection if we require. Itโs the old story, build it and they will come. I think thatโs going to be true.โ
After two seasons working alongside Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt, Cron would have loved to have pushed on to the 2027 World Cup, but at 71-years-old, he couldnโt commit to the travel demands.
Cron wanted to stay involved with Australian rugby. Alongside regular phone check-ins with the Wallabies pack, he is excited about laying stronger foundations for the tight five than the ones he inherited in 2024.
โI actually said to Joe [Schmidt] last year, if we had the energy โ which we donโt have any more โ if we stuck with these boys through the World Cup, I reckon weโd be really, really competitive and weโre all tracking in the right way,โ Cron said.
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โWeโre starting to develop some really good depth and theyโre understanding the fitness level and the strength level you need to play international rugby.
โWhen we took over, I think there was a bit of a gap with a few of the boys, but now theyโre into Super Rugby and are far more ready to get ready for international rugby and they know whatโs required.โ
Cron believes the program will take time to bear fruit, but crucially, it will lay a platform for future Wallabies coaches.
โWhat weโre doing is very rarely done … weโre getting these young men, aged between 18 and 23, some will be earlier than that, and after four years of good coaching and good tuition and good practice, they will be probably nearing the peak of their ability,โ Cron said.
โWhat you should find is a conveyor belt happening where we will keep producing the tight five…if you want the best result, it will be in five to 10 years time with the Wallaby head coach beating his bloody head on a desk trying to work out who heโs going to pick because heโs got too much choice.โ
