Mal Meninga names Kangaroos squad to face New Zealand, with some selection surprises
TOM Trbojevic to partner Latrell Mitchell. Dane Gagai on the wing. Ahead of the Test against New Zealand, Australia coach Mal Meninga has ushered through a new generation of Kangaroos with some selection surprises.
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AUSTRALIAN coach Mal Meninga has ushered through a new generation of Kangaroos with just eight survivors from their successful World Cup campaign last year.
The revamped Kangaroos squad includes four debutants and a new skipper in Boyd Cordner. Roosters premiership trio James Tedesco, Latrell Mitchell and Luke Keary will be joined by South Sydney’s Damien Cook to make their debut against New Zealand on Saturday.
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Perhaps the biggest selection gamble by Meninga has been picking Tom Trbojevic in the centres with South Sydney centre Dane Gagai picked on the wing. Trbojevic played in the centres for Australia against Lebanon during the pool stages of last year’s tournament.
Gagai and Valentine Holmes are the only backline incumbents from the squad which beat England 6-0 to claim the World Cup.
Aaron Woods is on the bench despite being axed from the NSW squad while Tyrone Peachey and Reagan Campbell-Gillard are the two players from the 17-man squad to miss selection.
Daly Cherry-Evans will play his first Test in four years and is expected to be Cordner’s vice-captain. They face a Kiwis side who sprung a selection surprise of their own by handing the captaincy to Dallin Watene-Zelezniak
The Australian side travelled to New Zealand on Tuesday on a chartered flight from Brisbane. The Kangaroos were joined by the Jillaroos and the Junior Kangaroos on the plane. The three teams attended army barracks in Brisbane on Sunday.
Back-rower Tyson Frizell, who celebrated his 27th birthday on Tuesday, said Meninga had created a new feeling of membership among the players.
“We’ve made an effort to bring all three teams together,” Frizell said. “We spent a couple days together in Brisbane.
“Mal made an effort to make it a memorable occasion. It’s been 100 years since the first World War ended. We had dinner and a few people told some stories. They relate back to mateship which this team is all about.
“It’s the first time all of us have been together. Mal wants everyone to be on the same page and the direction we want to go as Australian rugby league players. Everything we’ve done the last few days has been together.”
Felise Kaufusi said the squad represented a “new era” for the Kangaroos.
Cordner is the most capped with just 16 games, compared to that of Cooper Cronk, Billy Slater and Cameron Smith who played a combined 124 Tests before retiring last year.
“It’s exciting to see what the boys can do,” Kaufusi said. “It’s always going to be hard. I’m sure they are jumping out of their skin to show what (the players) have got.”
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Originally published as Mal Meninga names Kangaroos squad to face New Zealand, with some selection surprises
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