Australia's World Cup win could result in a $10 million windfall for rugby union in the country over the next four years. Australian Rugby Union general manager John O'Neill predicted the World Cup bonus when the team returned to cheers and singing at Sydney Airport yesterday.
"Bill" - the William Webb Ellis Trophy - was brought home by the Wallabies to the cheers of 700 well wishers who chanted Waltzing Matilda as captain John Eales led his men off the plane.
O'Neill also revealed proposed changes to the format for the 2003 World Cup in Australia, including the possibility of staging Plate and Bowl events for teams eliminated before the quarterfinals.
He said the 1999 hosts, Wales, had an overly ambitious set up of five pools of four teams with each pool in a different country, involving France and the four Home Unions.
"Logistically, it became too hard to handle and dissipated the impact of the World Cup rather than enhance it," O'Neill said.
"So we are going for four pools of five and we'll also be looking to schedule matches so that we maintain momentum. This tournament had a lot of matches in one or two days like one quaterfinal on the Saturday and three on the Sunday, and in an ideal world you'd spread your matches over the bulk of a week."
Australia's success was hailed as a triumph for coach Rod Macqueen, who took charge two years ago. "Australian rugby hadn't handled the change to professionalism (in 1996) all that well," Macqueen's assistant, former Test flanker Jeff Miller said. "I think the players themselves still wanted all of the good things that came with the amateur game, while not fully respecting what needed to be done from a professional perspective.
"There were certain luxuries you enjoy when you're an amateur. Some of them have to be sacrificed when you're being paid to play the game," said Miller.
Macqueen was called on to revive the Wallabies' fortunes in September 1997 after a desperate run under former coach Greg Smith. They had not beaten New Zealand in seven matches, and reached an all-time low with a record 61-22 loss to South Africa in Pretoria.
Now, they are on top of the world with a record under Macqueen of 24 wins from 30 Tests, including five of their past seven against the All Blacks.
