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Heavy losses to Denmark and Canada to open the Musholm Cup overnight will not deter the Australian Steelers from their ultimate goal of fine-tuning preparations for the Wheelchair Rugby World Championship in October.
The Steelers went down 58-48 to Denmark and 70-52 to Canada to open the tournament in Denmark, but they took plenty of positives from both matches by testing the depth of their squad and providing big minutes to emerging athletes.
Emilie Miller, Ella Sabljak and James McQuillan each made their debut for Australia and took the opportunity presented to them by Steelers’ coaching staff with both hands by showing they have what it takes to flourish at the highest level.
Assistant coach Jason Lees said the trio withstood the pressure of international rugby with admirable composure and will be better for the experience after extensive court time against world-class opponents.
“It’s a great opportunity for them. We’re facing some really great opponents here and you can’t buy this experience back at home,” Lees said.
“I’ve been really happy with how they have performed in training up until now and being able to put them against some very good opposition is going to put us in good stead for the future.”
The opening day provided Lees with a career coaching milestone, although not in the way he would have liked.
A former Steeler who tasted success at the highest level, Lees is leading the team in Denmark while head coach Brad Dubberley remains in COVID isolation at the AIS European Training Centre in Italy alongside player Richard Voris.
“I was pleased with how we played, really. We were always going to run our new players, try out a few different things, try out a few different defences and offences,” Lees said.
“This competition is all about gathering information and using it for Worlds.”
The Steelers have an outstanding record at World Championship level, having reached the gold medal match at the past three editions. They won silver in 2010 and 2018 and broke through for their first ever World Championship crown in 2014 in Denmark. Lees was part of each campaign as a player.
With four more matches over the next 48 hours and just 62 days until their first match the 2022 World Championships, the Steelers are not yet focused on results. They know there is much more work to be done.
“We always knew it was not going to be easy here but we’re looking to improve throughout the tournament.
“In our next four games, we’re definitely going to try some different things out there and work on some new line-ups and work with our new players as well.
“We’ve got a benchmark from these first two games and we’ll be looking for big improvements from here.”
Musholm Cup, Denmark – Day 1
Canada 51 def Denmark 49
Australia 48 def by Denmark 58
Australia 52 def by Canada 70
By: Tim Mannion, Paralympics Australia
Posted: 9 August 2022
