Fox Rugby analyst Rod Kafer urges selectors not to make changes for Wallabies’ Cup clash with Wales
With calls for Will Genia to be reinstated as starting halfback growing louder after his brilliant cameo against Fiji, ex-Wallaby Rod Kafer insists the veteran is more effective from the bench.
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World Cup winner Rod Kafer has urged Australia’s selectors to resist pressure to axe Nic White and Christian Lealiifano for next week’s crunch World Cup match against Wales.
There are growing calls for the pair to be relegated to the bench after they struggled in Australia’s opening win over Fiji while their placements, Will Genia and Matt Toomua, both played the house down as the Wallabies overcame a massive fright to win easily in the end.
But Kafer said their performances were symptomatic of the entire team’s nervous start to the tournament and just as the Wallabies got their act together, the Fox Sports rugby analyst thinks they should keep their spots.
“I wouldn’t change the starting XV at all, subject to fitness,” Kafer told The Daily Telegraph.
“I think one of the things you get with guys coming off the bench is they can bring their own tempo to the game and I thought Will Genia in particular did that brilliantly.”
Calls for Genia to be reinstated as the starting halfback are already growing louder after he turned the game around when he came on in the second half.
His passing, kicking game and general management of the situation was instrumental in turning a worrying 9-point deficit into a comfortable 18-point win but Kafer, one of the game’s best strategists and thinkers, said Genia’s experience would always be more helpful to the Wallabies at the end of the game rather than the beginning.
“With his experience and cool head, he’s like a closer and that’s a brilliant role for Will,” Kafer said.
“I’m not certain that’s how the coaching staff sees it or how the selectors see it or how Will himself sees it but from my mind, I just think he could play a great role here coming into the game and bringing something different with his skill set.”
Kafer also hopes the Wallabies stick with their freewheeling attacking game even though it went off the rails in the first half against Fiji.
Panned by every rugby follower in Australia for overplaying their hand until the forwards took control and put the Wallabies back in control, Kafer said it was the execution rather than the idea that was off but what impressed him most was the way the side switched game plans so effectively against a dangerous opposition.
“If the Wallabies had gone out and scored three early tries and limped into a finish I think they’d be a little disappointed but I genuinely had the feeling they solved a few issues going behind early and being down,” he said.
“Having faced a little bit of adversity but being able to rebuild and score six tries and win the game convincingly will put the Wallabies in good stead against Wales, although it will be a different sort of game.
“It’ll be a much tougher set piece challenge at both scrum and lineout and mauls so the forward pack will have to come up a level but in some ways the Wallabies backs will find it easier against Wales than they did against Fiji who have got an outstanding fast and physical backline and brilliant one-on-one tacklers
“I think the Wallaby backline will look to probably try to exert themselves so the forward pack will really have to roll up the sleeves.”