Australia v England: Reinforce Wallabies pack with veteran steel
Former Wallabies skipper Simon Poidevin has urged Michael Cheika to reshuffle his forward pack in expectation of an English assault on Australia’s set piece.
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Former Wallabies skipper Simon Poidevin has urged Michael Cheika to reshuffle his forward pack in expectation of an English assault on Australia’s set piece.
Tatafu Polota-Nau, Sekope Kepu and Rob Simmons — who all came off the bench last week against Italy — should be picked to start at Twickenham against Eddie Jones’ side, Poidevin said.
“Eddie doesn’t miss a trick and he will have observed that the Australian scrum has been very inconsistent in 2018 following the departure of Mario Ledesma to coach Argentina,” Poidevin said.
“England were outstanding against a very accomplished All Black scrum two weeks ago and will invariably attack the Wallabies scrum to force penalty opportunities for Owen Farrell.
“Additionally the English scrum will look to exhaust our front row to counter their high workloads in ball carries and defence, which has been a feature of our team this year.
“Michael Cheika and Simon Raiwalui should take the lessons of the exceptional Ireland versus All Blacks game in Dublin, where Kieran Read and Aaron Smith utilised perfect ‘channel one ball’ to clear the scrum contest as soon as possible when Ireland began to exert pressure on the All Black scrum.
“The Wallabies have an infuriating habit with Will Genia trying to keep the ball in the scrum to try and milk a penalty, which invariably turns to custard.
“Additionally, Polota-Nau and Sekope Kepu need to return to the starting line-up given their scrummaging prowess.
“Given the way Brodie Retallick severely disrupted the English lineout at Twickenham, the Wallabies need to start the Test with Rob Simmons and Izack Rodda — with Simmons calling the lineouts.
“Bring Adam Coleman on when Jamie George enters the arena as he cannot throw into the lineout when under pressure.
“Saturday we have two desperate coaches fighting to regain their credibility going into the 2019 Rugby World Cup year — both know they need to be ruthless and pick the players capable of mentally and physically putting their bodies on the line.”
Jones had predicted on Monday morning that old Randwick boys Poidevin, Bob Dwyer and David Campese would make their views known on the coming game.
Asked if England would target the Wallabies scrum and lineout, Jones replied: “I’m sure Bob’s got something to say about that, let’s just wait and see what Bob says.
“You know the timing, it’s usually Wednesday. When’s Poido due? Tuesday? Campo will be Thursday.
“It’s all lined up, here’s the order, I’m just waiting for it.
“It’s all co-ordinated, it’s all fun. If you’re a bookmaker you’d bet on when they’re going to say it.”
Poidevin gave his views when contacted by The Daily Telegraph following Jones’ comments.
Jones also expects injured Wallabies flanker David Pocock to play.
“I hear this every time we play Australia, Pocock’s not going to be fit,” Jones said.
“When I heard it, I thought, ‘Here we go again’. You know those merry-go-rounds at the Royal Easter Show? It’s a bit like that.”
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Originally published as Australia v England: Reinforce Wallabies pack with veteran steel