David Giffin and tighthead prop Ben Darwin return to the Wallaby side but there is no place in the 22 for Chris Latham who scored five tries against Namibia.
Vice-captain David Giffin and tighthead prop Ben Darwin return to the Wallaby side but there is no place in the 22 for Chris Latham who scored five tries against Namibia last week.
The Wallabies are clearly taking no chances against Ireland in the concluding Pool A qualifying decider on Saturday under the closed roof of the Telstra Dome.
They have picked their strongest side after what Wallaby coach Eddie Jones described as the toughest selection meeting of my coaching career.”
“The guys who played last weekend gave us a real selection headache. They were precise and full of running, as if they had played every game so far.” he said.
“It gave us a lot to think about but in the end we chose this line-up which we think is the best to take on Ireland.”
Fourteen of the team which defeated Argentina in the World Cup’s opening game have been re-named, along with Ben Darwin, who has won that key role ahead of the less experienced Al Baxter.
The other main point of note in a team picked for its experience is the selection of second row forward Giffin after the sickening fall he took against Argentina when he appeared to be heavily concussed while also sustaining a shoulder injury.
Mat Rogers gets the nod ahead of five-try scorer Chris Latham while Lote Tuqiri is preferred to Stirling Mortlock on the bench.
Jones believes Saturday’s game will be as good as it gets, “Yes,” he said, ” I think we are going to see one of the best games of the tournament. Ireland are an extremely good side. We’re moving along reasonably well and both sides have a fair bit to play for.”
The Ireland team will be announced tomorrow (Thursday).
Australia.
15 – Matt Rogers
14 – Wendell Sailor
13 – Matt Burke
12 – Elton Flatley
11 – Joe Roff
10 – Stephen Larkin
9 – George Gregan captain
1 – Bill Young
2 – Brendan Cannon
3 – Ben Darwin
Replacements.
16 – Jeremy Paul
17 – Alastair Baxter
18 – Daniel Vickerman
19 – Matt Cockbain
20 – Chris Whitaker
21 – Matt Giteau
22 – Lote Tuqiri.
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