In 2016 the England rugby team played a series of three games against a formidable Australia team who had not lost a series at home since 1971 against the South African Springboks. England who had performed poorly in the 2015 World Cup had bounced back and were on a roll after winning the Six Nations Championship but were not expected to win in Australia where they had never won a series.

In spite of most predictions that England would fail they won all three games to achieve an historic victory. During a Sky Sports discussion with Sir Clive Woodward and former Australian captain Michael Lynagh, Jonny Wilkinson explained the reason for the success:

 

“It’s so refreshing to be in an environment that we’ve been in, and you’re starting to see there I think, where things are going well and they’re going well for a reason. It’s cause and effect. Everything’s in place and, for those guys who aren’t playing and want to play, what else is there but to go away and think: ‘How do I get better? I’ve got to get better.’ There’s no whinging and moaning and saying: ‘It should have been me.’

 

 

“What that does to the guys who are playing is it makes them think: ‘Well, he’s trying to get better, so I’d better get better.’ So you create this massive momentum. It’s like you see in New Zealand where kids think: ‘I’m going to dream big but I’m not just going to sit back and dream.’”

Dreaming without effort is just fantasyland. The reason why New Zealand is such a successful rugby country is that the kids dream big and then go out and practice, practice, practice.