Wallabies: Why Joe Schmidt should ‘take one for the team’ and ‘follow Dave Rennie’s lead’ as All Blacks squad assessed
Outgoing Wallabies head coach Joe Schmidt and All Blacks boss Dave Rennie.
He won’t want to, but Joe Schmidt should take one for the team and install Fraser McReight as the Wallabies’ new captain.
With Les Kiss weeks away from taking over from Schmidt, the experienced New Zealand-born coach should recognise he can make life easier for his heir replacement by making the captaincy call.
Not in a week or two, but now. Even if Tom Hooper, the excellent, versatile forward isn’t selected to face Ireland in the Wallabies’ opener on July 4 because of his late finish with the English heavyweights.
Harry Wilson hasn’t put a foot wrong in recent months for the Reds, but for the sake of the balance of the Wallabies forward pack, appointing McReight can ensure Kiss will come in and be able to select the loose trio he wants without thinking about who the incumbent captain is.
And it’s not just any captain either, with Wilson one of Kiss’s best for the Reds too.
If Kiss was forced to make that call, it would potentially make life harder for the incoming Wallabies coach as he prepares to lead the nation through to next year’s World Cup.
Unlike Wilson, McReight is one of the few automatic picks in the Wallabies.
As Ewen McKenzie said recently, he’s one of the few Wallabies who would challenge for World XV selection.
Unfortunately, Wilson, despite making World Rugby’s dream team of the year in 2025, isn’t.
That’s in part because the Wallabies’ tight-five simply isn’t big enough and they need more line-bending forwards.
Wilson, for all his heart and excellent link play, isn’t quite the heavy hitter that Rob Valetini is in the back-row.
But the Wallabies need more size and height than simply a Valetini-McReight-Wilson trio.
Extra height is paramount too, because after the Wallabies’ lineout fell to pieces the deeper the 2025 season went, Australia’s Super Rugby sides also struggled at the crucial set-piece area too.
That’s not just a trend either, it’s a fundamental issue holding Australian rugby back.
Lukhan Salakaia-Loto paid the price for supposedly being too slow off the ground in Super Rugby, but Wilson isn’t the fastest jumping back-rower either despite being regularly used as a jumper.
Charlie Cale’s lighting speed makes him a compelling option at the set-piece, especially at the front of the lineout, while Hooper, whose work-rate is first class, has a few extra kilos and centimetres on Wilson.
That’s not to say Wilson shouldn’t start, but the option to rotate and change the complexity of the back-row would benefit from not having him as captain.
On Monday, new All Blacks coach Dave Rennie moved away from injured incumbent captain Scott Barrett and made the decisive call to name Ardie Savea as his new man.
That unfortunately meant there was no place for Du’Plessis Kirifi – the Hurricanes’ co-captain, who was brilliant in their Super Rugby title-winning performance over the Chiefs – for now. But it also signalled that Savea would be the No.7 going forward under Rennie.
That move, in itself, will help the All Blacks’ balance in the forwards.
Now, Schmidt should follow Rennie’s lead.
Test to define Schmidt’s legacy
In 2018, Schmidt’s Ireland came from behind on Australian soil to beat Michael Cheika’s Wallabies 2-1.
Ireland sealed the series win by holding on 20-16 in Sydney.
That tense victory, where the Wallabies bombed a couple of big moments, including a forward pass out wide, was the beginning of the end for Cheika.
After Australia’s Super Rugby struggles in the previous couple of years, the Wallabies’ defeat to Ireland put in light the country’s shortcomings.
It was a win for Schmidt and then high performance director David Nucifora.
The Wallabies haven’t recovered since.
But Schmidt can kick-start the Wallabies’ engine 15 months out from the World Cup by taking down the side he once led.
The sold out Sydney crowd shows that there’s still a pulse in Australian rugby, but only victories will ensure people talk about the game beyond the odd Saturday.
Momentum is needed before the World Cup to ensure the game capitalises on the opportunities provided by the injection of cash.
If Schmidt can do it, and follow it up with another win against France in Brisbane, people will remember him as the man who got Australian rugby back on track.
Why Schmidt must end his selection policy to stand a chance
Outgoing Wallabies assistant Laurie Fisher surprised many last week when he indicated that Len Ikitau, amongst others, weren’t necessarily walk-up starters against Ireland.
While overseas stars Ikitau, Hooper and Taniela Tupou, who were all in action in finals footy last weekend, will be back in Australia later this week, because they will likely miss the first day or two of camp this week, they might miss the Ireland Test.
That’s been the way under Schmidt ever since he took over, refusing to parachute players into matchday teams without a long build-up.
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But if that occurs with Ikitau, Schmidt will lose the benefit of the doubt with the Aussie public, especially if they lose. It simply won’t pass the pub test.
After all, Ikitau is the reigning John Eales Medallist – the award given for Australia’s best and most consistent player.
And with Hunter Paisami racing the clock to be fit, the Wallabies have a proven and hardened player ready for action in Ikitau.
It’s a no-brainer to call upon him.
Rennie picked on form, Schmidt…didn’t
If there was one thing you could say about Rennie’s first Test squad, it is that he picked on form.
All four new faces stood out in Super Rugby.
Xavier Numia could always run in general play, but his set-piece work has improved immensely.
Anton Segner was a standout in a poor Blues side in 2026.
While Fehi Fineanganofo and Josh Moorby finished the year as Super Rugby’s co-record-holders for the most tries in a season (17).
Of course one or two faces were luckier than others, Beauden Barrett’s days could be numbered if he doesn’t turn it around quickly, while Luke Jacobson and Simon Parker were perhaps the most fortunate to earn selection over Kirifi.
But otherwise there weren’t many gaps in Rennie’s squad.
In contrast, the Wallabies’ new faces were picked more on potential than form.
Miles Amatosero should pack a serious punch in the international game in the years to come, but 2026 would have seemed fractionally early.
Ditto, Lachie Shaw, the efficient and hugely promising Brumbies lock.
While Declan Meredith had a great start to 2026 but faded the longer the season went.
Even James Slipper, the veteran Wallabies prop, wasn’t in anywhere near the same form he started the year.
He and fellow Brumbies front-rowers Billy Pollard and Allan Alaalatoa struggled in the last month, especially in the last fortnight.
Others like Harry Potter and Tom Wright, who was missed immensely in the second half of last year, also failed to set the world alight this year.
Wallaroos miles behind ahead of 2029 World Cup
Rugby Australia, at long last, announced their women’s high performance director on Monday, with Olympic gold medal winning coach Tim Walsh appointed to the role.
The decision was the right one, with Walsh operating in women’s rugby for more than a decade.
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Although Australia’s women bombed out on the last day of the Paris Games to miss out on a medal, one poor day shouldn’t define a coach. Just ask Sir Graham Henry and Richie McCaw.
Walsh will be tasked with looking over the 7s and 15s programs, with Australia hosting the women’s World Cup in 2029.
Although the 7s are flying, there’s much to do with the Wallaroos, who are currently ninth on the World Rugby rankings.
But the question is why it took so long for Walsh to be appointed.
After all, the respected coach has only operated inside the RA building for more than a decade.
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