After two weeks of media torture the Wallabies will be relieved to finally get the chance to express themselves on the pitch, albeit against New Zealand. It’s probably a stretch to say that Ewen McKenzie’s job is on the line, but when a chief executive has to assure the public that one’s position is safe it’s probably best to assume that it’s not. While a win would be akin to a Christmas miracle, anything short of a blowout will surely secure a stay of execution.
Unfortunately Steve Hansen quips about experimentation turned out to be mind games, and a very powerful All Blacks side await with sympathy cards on short order. Wyatt Crockett, Dane Coles, and Brodie Retallick are all recalled to the starting pack, while Jerome Kaino and Ben Smith are rested. Liam Messam and Cory Jane step in with more than 80 caps between them, not exactly a downgrade in service.
Sam Cane takes Messam’s spot on the bench, with big Patrick Tu’ipulotu summoned as lock cover. Both Steven Luatua and Jeremy Thrush miss out. T.J. Perenara returns in place of desperately unfortunate Tawera Kerr-Barlow, and Charles Piutau gets his first crack at test rugby since last November. Despite rumours of a training injury Beauden Barrett is fit to play flyhalf, with Colin Slade retained as cover.
Coach McKenzie has resisted a knee-jerk reaction to the loss in Mendoza with only two changes to the run-on side. Rob Simmons has recovered from a head knock to take the place of James Horwill, while Matt To’omua drops out for the same reason with Christian Leali’ifano brought in out of the cold for his first test action of 2014. Another significant returnee is Quade Cooper, who will start on the bench having recovered from both shoulder and hip surgery. Bernard Foley hasn’t quite made the most of his opportunities and Cooper will be keen to remind him of his own claim to the jersey.
Adam Ashley-Cooper becomes rugby’s newest test centurion, the third inductee in recent weeks following South Africans Jean de Villiers and Bryan Habana. Along with captain Michael Hooper, he has been bombarded with microphones all week and it’s a shame his richly deserved achievement has been overshadowed by the drama in the buildup. Hopefully the Suncorp faithful will show him their appreciation when he runs out before the match.
Nobody expects Australia to win this. Not the media, not the fans, and definitely not the bookies. The question is do the players? Terms like ‘dead rubber’ have been tossed around all week, but the All Blacks are coming off their first loss in nearly two years. They will be anything but complacent. If the Wallabies play within themselves they will be shattered. One would hope they have more pride than that. New Zealand are the better side and should win this regardless, but the scoreline is heavily dependent on which Australian side shows up. Expect the emotion to sap their strength late in the game. New Zealand by 20.
AUSTRALIA vs NEW ZEALAND
Saturday, October 18, 10:00 GMT, Brisbane
Referee: Craig Joubert (SARU)
Assistants: Jaco Peyper (SARU) & Marius van der Westhuizen (SARU)
TMO: Shaun Veldsman (SARU)
