Wallabies selection winners and losers as ex-All Black joins select group, ANOTHER new skipper and returning stars
Wallabies duo Alex Hodgman (prop) and Nic White (scrum-half).
With Joe Schmidt having named his team for Australia’s Test against Georgia in Sydney on Saturday, here are our winners and losers from the selection.
Schmidt has made 10 alterations to his starting line-up after last weekend’s triumph over Wales, which sealed a 2-0 series victory over Warren Gatland’s charges.
That means the Wallabies will be brimming with confidence and here’s our winners and losers from Schmidt‘s matchday squad.
Winners
Alex Hodgman
After being included on the replacements bench, the loosehead prop is set to join a select group of players if he takes to the field in Sydney as he will become only the fourth man to represent both Australia and New Zealand at Test level, and the first in 50 years.
Owen Stephens was the last to achieve the feat (New Zealand 1968, Australia 1973-74) while Des O’Connor (Australia 1957-59, New Zealand 1961-64) and Ted Jessep (New Zealand 1931, Australia 1934) also played for both countries prior to that.
At the age of 31, Hodgman, who made four Test appearances for the All Blacks in 2020, might be in the twilight of his career but he has impressed for the Reds in Super Rugby Pacific this year and will be hoping to replicate that form in the Test arena.
Allan Alaalatoa
After back-to-back appearances off the bench against Wales, the Brumbies tighthead prop returns to the Wallabies’ run-on side and Schmidt has also handed the captaincy to him for this encounter.
That means that Alaalatoa will become Australia’s third skipper in as many Tests after Liam Wright and James Slipper – who are injured and rested respectively – but he is no stranger to the leadership role as he has captained his country before.
With 68 Test caps, the 31-year-old is an experienced campaigner who impressed when he entered the fray in those victories over Wales and he will be keen to build on those efforts after missing last year’s Rugby World Cup in France due to a ruptured Achilles.
Darby Lancaster
The 21-year-old speedster joined the Rebels at the start of the season and was one of their best players as he made his mark with several outstanding performances for them in Super Rugby Pacific. But his world came tumbling down when Rugby Australia axed the Melbourne-based side at the end of that competition last month.
However, his performances for the Rebels caught Schmidt’s eye and after missing out on selection in both Tests against Wales he finally gets a chance to transfer his club form to the Test arena.
Blessed with plenty of pace, Lancaster knows his way to the try-line, and he will be determined to repay the faith which the Wallabies coach has shown by selecting him for this Test.
New half-backs
Although Brumbies fly-half Noah Lolesio and Waratahs scrum-half Jake Gordon were the preferred half-backs against Wales, Schmidt has brought in the Western Force’s Ben Donaldson and Reds’ Tate McDermott to start at fly-half and scrum-half respectively and they will be determined to grab their chance show their head coach than they can do the job by getting the backline firing against Georgia.
Donaldson came on during the latter stages of the Melbourne Test against Wales while it was a similar story for McDermott the previous week and they will relish their chance from the start on Saturday.
Tight five trio
Hooker Billy Pollard made an appearance as a replacement in the first Test against Wales while loosehead prop Isaac Kailea came off the bench for both Welsh Tests, but second-row Nick Frost was not in the matchday squad for either of those fixtures.
However, all three have been named in the run-on side for the clash against Georgia as Schmidt rewards the trio for excellent form during Super Rugby Pacific for the Brumbies (Pollard and Frost) and the Rebels.
Pollard and Kailea showed glimpses of their ability against Wales and although Frost has not played at Test level yet in 2024, he is the most experienced of these three players and will be hoping to show Schmidt that it was a mistake not have him involved earlier.
Five starting XV survivors
Wallabies: Joe Schmidt rings the changes with third captain plus an ex-All Black against Georgia
Although it is still early in Schmidt’s reign as Wallabies head coach, he has rewarded the quintet of full-back Tom Wright, wing Filipo Daugunu, centre Hunter Paisami, and the back-row duo of Rob Valetini and Fraser McReight after they displayed good form during the victorious Welsh series.
This will be the third successive start for each of these players and it’s not surprising as they were amongst the Wallabies’ best players against Wales and will be keen to continue where they left off against Wales when they take on the Lelos.
Harry Wilson and Len Ikitau
This will be the first time in a while the duo will see action after being ruled out due to injuries during the series against Wales.
For Wilson, it will be his first appearance for the Wallabies since 2022, after he was overlooked by Schmidt’s predecessor, Eddie Jones, and he displayed good form for the Reds at Super Rugby Pacific level before sustaining a broken arm in May.
He has now recovered and is set to return to the Test arena while Brumbies centre Ikitau is in a similar situation after overcoming a hamstring injury he suffered on the eve of the series against Wales.
Losers
Liam Wright
After being the first choice captain for the opening Test against Wales, things have gone pear-shaped for the back-rower as he sustained a shoulder injury in that encounter against Sydney.
Wright subsequently missed the next Test in Melbourne as Schmidt said he did not want to rush him back but he indicated that the player would likely return against Georgia.
It wasn’t to be, however, as he did not recover in time and will now have to wait for further game-time during the Wallabies’ Rugby Championship campaign.
Tom Lynagh
The young Reds fly-half made his Test debut off the bench during the latter stages against Wales but was overlooked for the second Test in Melbourne as Donaldson was the preferred back-up to Lolesio on that occasion.
Those roles have been reversed now as Donaldson is set to start against Georgia while Lolesio will start amongst the replacements.
With the Rugby Championship’s start looming on the horizon, it does not augur well for Lynagh as it looks like Lolesio and Donaldson will be battling it out for the number 10 jersey when the Wallabies kick off their campaign in that competition against the Springboks in Brisbane on August 10.
Nic White
The experienced scrum-half has been included amongst the replacements for the Test against Georgia but with McDermott starting and Gordon being the first choice number nine in both Tests against Wales, it looks like White is behind them in the pecking order.
The 34-year-old is streetwise with an astute rugby brain and will be hoping for some reasonable game-time off the bench this week, after he came on for an 18-minute cameo against Wales in Melbourne – which was also his only appearance of that series.
Langi Gleeson
It’s a similar story for the Waratahs back-row, who was overlooked for the first Wales Test before making an appearance off the bench on the hour-mark in Melbourne.
Gleeson did not make a big impact in that encounter which probably cost him a starting spot against the Lelos and when he does come onto the field this weekend an improved effort will be expected if he wants to be in the selection mix by the time the Rugby Championship gets underway.
Uncapped squad players
Schmidt named his 38-man squad a month ago and from that group the uncapped trio of Reds second-row Ryan Smith, Force centre Hamish Stewart and former Rebels utility back David Feliuai’s services were deemed surplus to requirements.
With Georgia viewed as weaker opposition than Wales, this weekend’s encounter would have been the perfect opportunity for Schmidt to blood the trio in the international arena as it is unlikely to happen during the Rugby Championship, which means they will have to wait a little longer for their Test debuts.
