Wallabies team: Winners and losers as Joe Schmidt backs Ellis Park heroes but ‘bafflingly’ overlooks forward
Wallabies flanker Fraser McReight and an inset of head coach Joe Schmidt.
Following the announcement of the Wallabies team to face the Springboks in Cape Town, we pick out our winners and losers.
Joe Schmidt has been forced into making three changes to his starting XV due to injuries, with further alterations on the bench.
Without further ado, here are our winners and losers from the Wallabies team.
Winners
Tom Robertson
With James Slipper ruled out of the second Test against the Springboks, Schmidt has turned to Tom Robertson to fill his void. It’s a huge sign of faith from the head coach with the Western Force forward playing much of the season at tighthead prop.
Schmidt could have quite easily selected ex-All Blacks prop Aidan Ross, who has played on the loosehead side all season, instead, but Robertson has clearly jumped ahead in the pecking order.
While the Force front-rower has played mainly on the tighthead side this season, he was mightily impressive at loosehead against the British and Irish Lions for his club.
Fraser McReight
Arguably the best Wallaby in 2025, Fraser McReight gets the honour of leading his country this weekend with usual captain Harry Wilson not risked.
A former Australia U20s skipper, McReight will become the 91st player to captain the Wallabies. The flanker takes over the armband this weekend after standing in for Wilson after he left the pitch in Johannesburg.
The 26-year-old has been in sublime form, and getting the captaincy nod is just reward for the tireless loose forward.
Corey Toole
Speedster Corey Toole will make his long-awaited Test debut for the Wallabies. The Brumbies winger has been on the fringe of selection since 2023 but has been overlooked repeatedly.
The Wagga Wagga junior made his mark on the sevens stage before breaking through in Super Rugby with the Brumbies. An Olympian with the Australia Sevens program in 2024, Toole replaces Dylan Pietsch, who fractured his jaw last week, in the starting XV.
Toole gets the nod after scoring 11 tries in 17 appearances for the Brumbies this season and is reportedly the fastest man in Australian Rugby.
Nick Champion de Crespigny
While Schmidt’s hand has been mostly forced due to the injuries, the coach has made an unforced change as Nick Champion de Crespigny replaces Langi Gleeson on the bench.
Champion de Crespigny was initially named on the bench for last week’s game after Ben Donaldson’s injury in training, but Schmidt altered the selection on the eve of the match.
However, this week he looks set to finally add to his single Test cap after an impressive debut in the first game against the British and Irish Lions.
Veteran half-backs
Nic White and James O’Connor have been rewarded for their performances in the historic victory at Ellis Park with consecutive starts.
The experienced duo were the driving force in the Wallabies’ come-from-behind success, with White kicking marvellously from the base while O’Connor regularly found routes in behind the Bok defence with stunning bridge passes.
Losers
Harry Wilson
The Wallabies have confirmed that Wilson is being managed after limping from the field in Johannesburg.
The outstanding number eight, who scored two tries in the win, will be pleased that his injury wasn’t too serious, but he would have relished the opportunity to get another one over the Springboks.
Dylan Pietsch
The speedster was outstanding against the Springboks, backing up the form he showed in the victory over the British and Irish Lions.
However, Pietsch got his tackle on Siya Kolisi all wrong, and his game was ended with a jaw injury.
It’s a real shame for the Western Force winger, who had made the most of his opportunities in the run-on team after Harry Potter’s injury in the first game against the Lions.
Andrew Kellaway
Even though there has been another injury on the wing, Andrew Kellaway has still not been given the nod for a starting role.
The 29-year-old has once again been included on the bench and perhaps rightly so, considering how impactful he was in the second half last week.
Still, Kellaway would have fancied his chances in the starting XV, having yet to earn a spot in the run-on team this year.
Lukhan Salakaia-Loto
Lukhan Salakaia-Loto can certainly feel hard done by again, particularly because Champion de Crespigny has been named on the bench instead.
The Queensland forward was sublime against the British and Irish Lions in the touring matches and deserved a crack in the Test series, but that never materialised.
It’s hard to fathom why Schmidt continues to overlook the 28-year-old – a truly baffling call.
Overlooked players
Salakaia-Loto joins the likes of Ross, Carlo Tizzano, Josh Flook, Ryan Lonergan, and Hunter Paisami in leaving South Africa without any minutes.
It’s completely understandable that Schmidt has mostly stuck with the Ellis Park heroes for the Cape Town clash, but Tizzano will certainly feel aggrieved that he didn’t get a shot at the Springboks. The Western Force man was a standout performer against the Lions, but has once again been overlooked for a place on the bench.
It was always going to be tough for Flook and Paisami to break up the partnership of Len Ikitau and Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii. Meanwhile, Lonergan has been made to wait even longer for his Test debut.
