Wallabies team selection debate: Time for Vunivalu to prove he is worth his pay packet
Who should line up for the Wallabies this weekend? Panda and Jules discuss the big calls Eddie Jones has to make and name a possible team.
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OK Jules, the first Test of the year, the return of Eddie Jones, at a venue Australia has never won before.
Australia has a mountain to climb, even with South Africa naming a B team for the match in Pretoria.
All eyes will be on Eddie’s first Test team.
Let’s start with the easy one, who plays five-eighth?
Linden: Every Test match is important but the Springboks have turned this one into a circus act by picking a weakened team. Shame on them but they’ve obviously got their sights set on a bigger prize and if the Wallabies are fair dinkum about wanting to have a crack at winning this year’s World Cup, they should also treat the Rugby Championship opener as a chance to experiment.
Whichever team Eddie Jones picks this weekend - one thing is certain: this won’t be the same line-up that finishes the World Cup because he’ll be keeping that up his sleeve - so be prepared for plenty of smoke and mirrors.
The playmaker role is clearly key and Carter Gordon will be that guy when the World Cup rolls around, so this is the perfect opportunity to throw him in the deep end because everyone already knows what Quade Cooper brings to the table.
Pandaram: You are kidding. Throwing Gordon in would be a lamb to slaughter at Loftus Versfeld. He’s completely unproven at Test level and every error or lapse in judgment would make him a target. We don’t need to dissolve his confidence before the World Cup, like so many prior to him. Cooper is a steady hand with experience in South Africa and knows what it takes to beat the Boks. Give him the keys and let Carter come off the bench.
We know this game will be won and lost up front, who are you trusting in the tight five to win the scrums and lineouts?
Linden: One of the saddest indictments on modern rugby is how teams can simply deploy different tight fives for each half to nullify the natural advantages the best piggies offer when fatigue sets in. So, this is more about selecting two cohesive units that cover off all bases rather than potential match winners. But in saying that, the only chances the Wallabies have of ending their Loftus Versfeld hoodoo is if they start on fire because it’s virtually impossible to come back when the lungs start to burn in the thin air at high-altitude. The Wallabies need all their wise old owls straight after the anthems - such as James Slipper and Allan Alaalatoa - with the fresher legs coming on in the second half. But they should flip that for the locks, using big Will Skelton off the bench.
Pandaram: I agree, but there is a spanner in the works. I’m hearing Slipper is in massive doubt after injuring himself at training. It’s such a concern that the Wallabies are flying over Blake Schoupp as emergency cover.
That would leave the pack enormously exposed. Having Schoupp and Zane Nonggor potentially debut off the bench is not ideal against a massive Boks pack. Angus Bell and Taniela Tupou are still not fit enough to play, and Alaalatoa is coming off that calf injury. This late injury to Slipper could be their undoing.
Michael Hooper and Rob Valetini pick themselves, but who should get the blindside flanker role?
Linden: I still can’t believe Eddie has selected Michael Hooper as co-captain. As good a player as he has been, Hooper has an awful record as skipper and a terrible habit of making the wrong calls under pressure. He also plays much better when freed of the leadership responsibilities. I’d have gone with Samu Kerevi as skipper - but, I digress, Panda. That wasn’t the actual question, was it? For blindside flanker, I’d still go with a Hooper - but Tom, not Michael!
Pandaram: If Hooper wasn’t ready to return to the captaincy he would have told Jones. I reckon he’s rediscovered his groove, and the other players follow him, so I disagree with you Jules, he’s got to be an on-field leader. But I do agree Tom Hooper is the standout option at No.6 right now, his lineout ability will be particularly valuable with Skelton in the team.
Marika Koroibete will start on one wing, who is on the other and who is fullback?
Linden: This is where Eddie needs to start putting a bit more heat on some players who have been promising to deliver but haven’t quite done so yet. The Wallabies have got plenty of choices but no-one apart from Koroibete, has nailed down a spot, so it’s time to sort them out. I doubt he will go this way but I’d give Mark Nawaqanitawase the first shot on the wing because he looked to have turned a corner on last year’s European tour only to go backwards for the Waratahs this year. Tom Wright is my pick at fullback.
Pandaram: I think it’s time for Suliasi Vunivalu to prove why he was worth the big bucks when rugby poached him from the NRL. He has failed to live up to the hype, but Eddie is clearly a big fan of his.
Vunivalu was outstanding late in the Super Rugby season and has recovered from the hamstring injury that has plagued him since switching codes. If Eddie does start Reece Hodge at No.12 for his long kicking game, you have enough boots out of Cooper, Hodge, Wright and Nic White to pin the Boks down in their own quarter, which will be the game plan to beat them.
South Africa vs Australia
Sunday, July 9, 1.05am AEST
Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
WALLABIES (POSSIBLE): 15. Tom Wright 14. Suliasi Vunivalu 13. Len Ikitau 12. Reece Hodge 11. Marika Koroibete 10. Quade Cooper 9. Nic White 8. Rob Valetini 7. Michael Hooper (c) 6. Tom Hooper 5. Nick Frost 4. Will Skelton 3. Allan Alaalatoa 2. Dave Porecki 1. James Slipper (c)/Matt Gibbon.
RESERVES: 16. Jordan Uelese 17. Matt Gibbon/ Blake Schoupp 18. Zane Nonggor 19. Richie Arnold 20. Pete Samu 21. Tate McDermott 22. Carter Gordon 23. Samu Kerevi.
SPRINGBOKS: 15. Willie le Roux 14. Canan Moodie 13. Lukhanyo Am 12. Andre Esterhuizen 11. Kurt-Lee Arendse 10. Manie Libbok 9. Cobus Reinach 8. Duane Vermeulen (c) 7. Pieter-Steph du Toit 6. Marco van Staden 5. Marvin Orie 4. Jean Kleyn 3. Frans Malherbe 2. Bongi Mbonambi 1. Ox Nche.
RESERVES: 16. Joseph Dweba 17. Thomas du Toit 18. Vincent Koch 19. RG Snyman 20. Evan Roos 21. Deon Fourie 22. Grant Williams 23. Damian Willemse.
Originally published as Wallabies team selection debate: Time for Vunivalu to prove he is worth his pay packet