Debutant forward Tom Hooper is the ‘perfect fit’ for the Wallabies

Hardworking Brumbies forward Tom Hooper has been tipped to rise to the occasion in his Wallabies debut.

Tom Hooper will debut for the Wallabies in Pretoria. Picture: Chris Hyde/Getty Images

Wallabies co-captain James Slipper has backed debutant Tom Hooper to handle the pressure-cooker Pretoria atmosphere in Australia’s Rugby Championship opener against South Africa.

The 22-year-old Brumbies forward will start at blindside flanker at Loftus Versfeld Stadium on Sunday morning (AEST) in his debut Test

Fellow Brumby Slipper has seen Hooper’s development first-hand and has no doubts his club – and now national teammate – will rise to the occasion as the Wallabies chase their first win in Pretoria against Springboks.

“He’s got a really level head on his shoulders and he just wants to be the best teammate he can possibly be for the group,” Slipper said.

“For us right now, he’s the perfect fit and worked extremely hard to get where he is.

“He just goes at it. He throws his body into everything.”

Hooper fought back from a foot injury in the pre-season to finish the Brumbies’ recent Super Rugby Pacific campaign strongly.

“It’s really pleasing to see him in the team because he’s had a rough start to the year, so it’ll be good to see run out there for his debut,” Slipper said.

Tom Hooper has been tipped to shine on debut for the Wallabies. Picture: Chris Hyde/Getty Images

While pleased for Hooper. Slipper admitted it had been a “challenging week” for himself after suffering a knee injury at training.

“I had a bit of a mishap on Tuesday … but I’m pretty confident I’ll be fine,” he said.

The match is Eddie Jones’s first in charge of the Wallabies since the start of his second tenure as national coach in January.

Jones wasn’t concerned about South Africa’s decision to send 13 top players to New Zealand early to prepare for next weekend’s clash against the All Blacks and field a weakened side against Australia.

“We’re really only worried about ourselves,” Jones said.

“We’re a new team, we’ve come together, we want to play our style of rugby and we know whatever team that runs out at Pretoria is going to play with the pride of South Africa behind them and we need to meet that challenge.”

The Springboks side includes Stormers fly half Manie Libbok, who will start a Test for the first time for South Africa.

“I know they (the Wallabies) will target me, but I’ve made peace with that and the pressure,” Libbok said.

“The main thing for me is to control what I can control. I’ll have a few experienced players around me, which is also a bonus.

“This is a big opportunity for me … but I just want to go out there and contribute in my role as much as possible, and hopefully we can get the desired result.”

Originally published as Debutant forward Tom Hooper is the ‘perfect fit’ for the Wallabies