Australia bring on new prop
Young loosehead prop Jerry Yanuyanutawa, nephew of Fijian Sevens legend Waisale Serevi, is the surprise inclusion in the Australia A squad for the Pacific Nations Cup, starting this Saturday.
Young loosehead prop Jerry Yanuyanutawa, nephew of Fijian Sevens legend Waisale Serevi, is the surprise inclusion in the Australia A squad for the Pacific Nations Cup, starting this Saturday.
There are seven full Wallabies in the squad: Alister Campbell, Mark Gerrard, Sean Hardman, Guy Shepherdson, Sam Norton-Knight, Tai McIsaac and Morgan Turinui.
The tournament, comprising Australia A, Fiji, Samoa, tonga, Japan, and the NZ Maori, will be played in a round-robin format over the next five weeks.
There is also a reward for several up and coming youngsters for their Super 14 displays: Rookie of the Year Tyrone Smith gets the nod, as does young Reds scrum-half Ben Lucas.
The selection of Yanuyanutawa marks an amazing year, after he was plucked from third grade to play for the Sydney University in the Shute Shield Grand final against Easts in July last year.
The Brumbies will provide the bulk of the Australia A squad with 11 players; there are six from the Queensland Reds, four each from the NSW Waratahs and Western Force, and Yanuyanutawa.
Coach Phil Mooney said the PNC tournament will provide a competitive testing ground for both the seasoned internationals and the rookies in the squad.
“It is an exciting squad with a blend of seasoned Test players and some outstanding young players,” said Mooney.
“This is a great tournament which enables players to compete at a high level of Rugby on a consistent basis post Super 14.
“It also complements the Wallabies season and allows Robbie Deans to see a large pool of players in a competitive environment.
“There is no such thing as an easy match in international Rugby and part of the Australia A program is for the Wallabies coaching staff to see which players can adapt and respond at a higher level.”
Australia A begin their campaign in Fukuoka against Japan on Sunday, 8 June, before travelling to Apia to play Samoa the following Saturday.
Australia A squad:
Forwards: Al Campbell (Brumbies), Mitchell Chapman (Brumbies), Pek Cowan (Western Force), Sean Hardman (QLD), Matt Hodgson (Western Force), Leroy Houston (QLD), Van Humphries (QLD), Peter Kimlin (Brumbies), Poutasi Luafutu (QLD), Tai McIsaac (Western Force), Salesi Ma'afu (Brumbies), Julian Salvi (Brumbies), Guy Shepherdson (Brumbies), Jerry Yanuyanutawa (Sydney University).
Backs: Matt Carraro (NSW), Scott Daruda (Western Force), Francis Fainifo (Brumbies), Mark Gerrard (Brumbies). Daniel Halangahu (NSW), Josh Holmes (Brumbies), Ben Lucas (QLD), Sam Norton-Knight (NSW), Patrick Phibbs (Brumbies), Tyrone Smith (Brumbies), Timana Tahu (NSW), Morgan Turinui (QLD).
Fixtures:
June 8 v Japan in Fukuoka, Japan
June 14 v Samoa in Apia, Samoa
June 22 v Tonga at North Sydney Oval, Sydney
June 29 v Fiji at Ballymore, Brisbane
July 6 v NZ Maori at Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney