The potential horror of it all is starting to dawn on New Zealanders. Losing to Australia always hurts but defeat on Sunday would be something else again. If James O'Connor and Quade Cooper, who grew up in Auckland and Tokoroa respectively, combine to steer a Kiwi-coached Wallaby side to a Rugby World Cup final at the All Blacks' expense, the nightmare really would be compounded.
As kids, O'Connor and Cooper both ran around their backyards dreaming of pulling on the silver fern. O'Connor lived in the Auckland suburb of Te Atatu from the age of five to 11, watching the Blues and idolising Christian Cullen and rugby league's Stacey Jones, before his Rotorua-born father, Warren, relocated the family to Queensland. Cooper also spent his primary school years on the north island before the local paper mill closed down and his parents opted to move in search of better employment opportunities.
The pair, as a result, know precisely how the Kiwi psyche works, with Cooper already contemplating the funereal reaction should he condemn the All Blacks to the bronze-medal play-off game rather than the final. "That would be a tough one for them to swallow I suppose," came the nonchalant response. "They're supposed to have won this World Cup for the past three tournaments and this is no different. There's a lot of pressure on them to win this competition on their home soil." Note the crafty use of the word "their". Quade is sure of foot on and off the field.
With the former Wallaby skipper Rocky Elsom giving the pot a further stir – "You get a feeling around town that they won't tolerate anything less" – there can be no question the Australian camp feel there is mileage in discussing New Zealand's darkest fears. In some ways Australia's inability to win at Eden Park since 1986 increases the pressure on the All Blacks even more. "I didn't know there were any ghosts there," muttered Elsom dryly. "I'll tell you on Monday if that's an issue."
Given the likely absence of Kurtley Beale, who has a hamstring strain, the two men New Zealand will be most wary of, however, are O'Connor and the outstanding Wallaby openside David Pocock. The latter has all but overtaken the limping Richie McCaw as the world's most feared No7, and O'Connor's baby-faced looks disguise steely nerves. It was the 21-year-old's coolly taken penalty kick which ultimately earned Australia their unlikely 11-9 victory over South Africa in the quarter-finals; his last-gasp try and touchline conversion also earned Australia the famous win over New Zealand in Hong Kong last year that ended a 10-game losing streak against the Kiwis dating back to 2008.
O'Connor is already the second youngest player in history – behind Jonny Wilkinson – to score 100 Test points and is a reliably elusive presence whatever number he happens to be wearing. Assuming Beale is ruled out, he could well shift across to full-back from the wing, having defended stoutly against the Boks on top of his goalkicking duties. Playing at Eden Park, whatever happens, was a childhood dream from the outset. "The first games of rugby union I started watching were the All Blacks, Christian Cullen was my favourite player and I definitely supported the All Blacks. Whenever I was in the backyard playing rugby I was always Christian Cullen."
There was a time in his teens when the New Zealand Rugby Football Union expressed an interest but, despite his father being "a passionate New Zealander", he insists he was never tempted. "I feel Australian. I was born here … this is where my dream started to be a professional rugby player." Victory on Sunday would also bury any question marks over his commitment to Camp Wallaby, which reached a climax in August when he slept in after a night out and missed the formal squad announcement at Sydney airport.
Appropriately, perhaps, he has just signed a two-year deal to join the Melbourne Rebels, having parted company with the Western Force. With Beale and Danny Cipriani potentially set to be involved in the same backline, it is an interesting move, although he still has a way to go before he starts to match Cooper for notoriety in these parts.
The latter endured a rough game against South Africa but swears he will not be ruffled by the abuse likely to be aimed at him by All Black fans who have taken a strong dislike to him. "You can hear noises in the crowd and I know they're directed at me, but it's not a distraction," insists Cooper. "We're the closest enemy to New Zealand so we're going to cop it a lot more than any other team. They can do what they want. I'm not going to try and control everybody else's lives. I'm sure they'll be worrying more about winning this competition than myself." It promises to be a lively weekend.
