Eddie Jones’ youth formula works for Waratahs coach Rob Penney

Eddie Jones has always believed that young players should not be pushed too hard or for too long.

Waratahs forward Angus Bell will start on the bench for his team’s clash with the Brumbies on Saturday. The young prop will not be forgotten, though, as he is an outstanding prospect. Picture: Getty Images

Eddie Jones has always believed that young players should not be pushed too hard or for too long and Waratahs coach Rob Penney agrees, taking the chance to ease the load on some of his Junior Wallabies stars by bringing Test veterans into his starting side for Saturday night’s clash with the Brumbies at ANZ Stadium.

In three instances, Penney has substituted a senior Wallaby for an Australian Under-20 star – at loosehead where Tom Robertson takes over from Angus Bell, at number eight where Jack Dempsey returns for Will Harris and out in the three-quarter line where Karmichael Hunt’s stunning return last week has ricocheted down the line and resulted in winger Mark Nawaqanitawase moving to the reserves.

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There was a valid reason for each of the three selections, mostly having nothing to do with age, but Penney is all too conscious that he is fielding one of the youngest units in the competition and he does not want to push them.

“I guess it is difficult to tell people but the reality is that it is going to take some time and what we don’t want to do is damage the kids along the way,” Penney told The Weekend Australian. “I agree philosophically with Eddie. You don’t always do everything the same for every athlete. Some are more robust but, yeah, you have to tread carefully initially and then you get the payback down the track.”

His reason for bringing in Robertson was to manage his game time, which is far easier to do when he is in the run-on side. But equally Bell has had to handle a workload more suited to a prop 10 years his senior. “We are really happy with Angus and he has carried a massive workload for a kid. Too much in my estimation, so it’s a great opportunity to freshen him up and bring Tom in to start.”

The change has been well noted in Canberra, with the Brumbies having worked intently on their set pieces this week in response to a disappointing performance against the Melbourne Rebels in round one. “We’ll be tested again tomorrow,” said Brumbies skipper and tighthead Allan Alaalatoa on Friday. “They’re both Wallabies props and the front-row that normally starts (for the Tahs) will be coming off the bench. The full 80 is going to be a full-on contest up-front.”

It will be intriguing to see how young outside centre Joey Walton combines with Hunt who showed all his vast experience when he returned to the fray off the bench against the Western Force last weekend after a long lay-off with a hamstring injury. He immediately turned the game around with two 50-22s, and even if the referee did apologise to the Force for awarding the first of them, it showed the value of astute tactical kicking.

Rugby Australia’s director of rugby, Scott Johnson, admitted after the weekend’s games that he was not entirely happy with the kicking out of hand displayed in the two matches. “But that was the reason we brought the 50-22 rule in and at least tactical kicking was getting through to the players,” Johnson said.

The Brumbies always accord a Waratahs match special importance in their schedule and while the Canberra side is overwhelming favourite tonight at the Olympic stadium, there are a number of match-ups that should excite fans and national selectors alike.

While all eyes will be on the clash of rival, first-year five-eighths, Noah Lolesio of the Brumbies and Will Harrison of the Brumbies, it’s a fair bet that Dave Rennie’s eyes will also be drawn to the clash of fullbacks, Tom Banks (Brumbies) and the Tahs’ Jack Maddocks. It will be Banks’ first match for four months because of a foot injury, while Maddocks has made an impressive start to the season in his two matches but there is a lot to like about both players.

The Brumbies back-row of flankers Rob Valetini, Tom Cusack and Pete Samu – all of whom tend to be overlooked at times – will surely be sweating on this occasion to mix it with the high-profile Dempsey-Michael Hooper-Lachie Swinton combination. Swinton, indeed, has attracted almost a cult following with sections of the media portraying him as “an enforcer”. That’s an unfortunate tag for a 23-year-old to have to live up to and hopefully he is not distracted by it.