Roger the G.O.A.T. and Serena have only just left. There's still months to go in the domestic cricket calendar. A heat wave is upon us.
Nonetheless, this weekend, at a time when sand and sun invade every bodily crevice, that one-time winter indulgence, the Australian rugby season, will begin. We have the Sydney Sevens, while the Waratahs and Brumbies head bush to Mudgee for a trial. Next weekend it's the Brisbane Global Tens, several more trial tussles, and then the Super Rugby tournament starts. With it the most excruciating of marathons begins. While the toil on players from an ever-lengthening season that now goes from the first week of February until early December, is well chronicled, often forgotten is how it affects coaches at the top level.
From this weekend, the coaches are under intense pressure. They must produce, cultivate, cajole, create and keep the critics happy if they want to stay in the job for any length of time. They, like the players, aspire.
Those at the Super Rugby level realise that higher honours are a distinct possibility, especially at a time when the Wallabies are wonky and the local coaching pool is far from congested.
The dearth of player depth in Australian rugby is constantly noted, but less so is the lack of capable coaches at all levels of the game. From grassroots and schoolboys levels, a common complaint is that the local coaching ranks are short of experienced, knowledgeable leaders -- instead often being filled by well-meaning parents or volunteers. Admittedly numerous capable Australian coaches, like players, are lured away by the European or Japanese currencies, but at home the ranks are slim.
It hasn't taken long for Andrew Hore, who as the chief executive of the Waratahs sits in Australian rugby's biggest rugby franchise, to realise this is a serious dilemma. He can provide some perspective as he was involved with the Crusaders in New Zealand and Ospreys in Wales before joining NSW.
In a recent interview with ESPN, Hore said: "Australian rugby has a massive problem in coaching development."
"If you lose Cheik [Wallabies and former Waratahs coach Michael Cheika], where do you go next? We need to make sure that we invest more in coaching, from grassroots right through. Your coach is your CEO of the player. The better the coaches we produce, the better the players we produce. It's a key area where Australian rugby falls behind large parts of the world.
"Elite youth development here, compared to other environments I've been in, is quite stunted. More investment is required in that arm of the game to develop more kids quicker and also more coaches."
With the Australian Rugby Union constantly crying poor and seemingly more obsessed in the fringe elements of the game, such as Sevens football, than focusing on coach and player development, we have a situation where only three of the five Super Rugby head coaching positions are filled by Australians.
Stephen Larkham, (Brumbies) Nick Stiles (Reds) and Tony McGahan (Rebels) are local products, while Daryl Gibson (Waratahs) is from the other side of the Tasman and Dave Wessels is part of the distinct South African tinge at the Western Force.
As for higher ambitions, there may be some openings, especially if the opaque clouds hovering over the Wallabies fail to lift.
ARU chief Bill Pulver keeps saying that Cheika is safe until at least the next Rugby World Cup in 2019. And Cheika is clearly the dominant one in that lopsided relationship; he basically does what he likes.
But to keep the other members of the ARU board contented, Cheika needs to transform his team from an often-inept outfit to inspired performers. That happened during the 2015 Rugby World Cup campaign, which resulted in an unexpected final appearance at Twickenham, but last year it all fell away with just six wins from 15 Tests. A 2017 Test win over New Zealand -- as Cheika can only boast one victory in six attempts against the All Blacks -- would come in very handy.
Cheika's success rate of 55 percent (17 wins from 31 Tests) is underwhelming. After all, Eddie Jones was sacked from the same job in 2005 when his success rate hit 58 percent, and Ewen McKenzie departed in 2014 with a 50 percent record.
Also, Cheika was not helped by several loony moments last year when he ridiculously reacted to media provocation as well as carefully aimed barbs from one time club-mates --- Eddie Jones and Glen Ella -- who joined together to transform last June into a month of gloom for Australia with three successive defeats by England.
The craziest moment came when the New Zealand Herald, on the morning of the Auckland Bledisloe Cup Test, playfully ran a cartoon of Cheika dressed as a clown. He should have laughed along with the rest. Instead, Cheika frothed at the after-match conference, tossing up some misguided conspiracy theories. A competent and strong support staff would have stopped him from losing the plot that night by inferring that the All Blacks were in cahoots with the local media to mock the Wallabies. All this silly issue did was confirm that those at the ARU advising the coach on such matters are either not doing their job or are too scared to say anything.
So now every opposing team knows Cheika can be provoked. And they will keep prodding away.
The heir apparent is supposedly Larkham. But sometimes it's smarter for the next in line to keep their distance.
Joining the Wallabies later this year as full-time assistant coach could easily work against Larkham. Succession planning sounds great. But there is a real danger through association, especially if the Wallabies keep losing. This Super Rugby season will also prove whether Larkham has it as a coach, as the Brumbies have lost so many notable players -- in particular leaders David Pocock, Stephen Moore and Matt Toomua. Larkham could either excel or be exposed.
McGahan has his supporters, while Stiles is too raw. After Robbie Deans failed to transform the Wallabies, the ARU are unlikely to head down the overseas coach path again. So, forget about Gibson and Wessels.
There are some good Australian coaches working overseas, such as Laurie Fisher and Scott Johnson, but none with the profile of Cheika when he was lured back home.
What must not be under-estimated is that the ARU adores everything Sevens, particularly women's Sevens. In an otherwise bleak season, the Australian women's team did provide them with some much-needed love in 2016.
Left-field choice? Australian women's Sevens coach Tim Walsh. After all, he does boast an Olympic gold medal victory. After the Rio triumph, Pulver labelled Walsh a 'super coach'. Hmmm!
Sevens and Super Rugby tournaments are only days away. With it the clipboard brigade start developing migraines.
Aspire. Perspire.