Hodge hails ‘new talent’

Wallabies wing Reece Hodge has hailed head coach Michael Cheika's policy of blooding young talent ahead of the 2019 Rugby World Cup.

21 players have been handed their Wallabies debuts in the last two seasons (including Hodge) as Cheika looks to go one better after their runners-up finish in England 2015.

Although their Rugby Championship form card reads two draws and a loss, they have improved markedly in their last two games, something which has Hodge taking an optimistic view.

“We didn’t go into the Rugby Championship expecting to lose,” Hodge told Reuters in an interview on Friday.

”In patches we’ve played the way we’ve wanted to play and restricted the other team but also had momentary lapses which have probably let us down in terms of getting the result.

”This year there’s been a massive breakthrough for the squad, there’s been a lot of new talent blooded in the past 12-18 months and I think it’s quite exciting in the journey toward the 2019 World Cup.

“But I guess in saying that, we can’t look too far ahead.”