Wallabies fullback hopefuls to learn fate
Greg Growden Chief Rugby Correspondent | June 23, 2009
WHILE James O'Connor and Adam Ashley-Cooper will today discover where they stand in the Wallabies' fullback pecking order, whoever wins the blindside breakaway spot could well find himself holding on to the position for the early Tri Nations matches.
The Wallabies will today announce their line-up to play France at ANZ Stadium on Saturday night, but provided no clues at yesterday's training session, instead using the whole session to work on their skills.
The main points of debate are whether O'Connor or Ashley-Cooper will take the No.15 jersey, and whether Drew Mitchell will sneak on to the wing. Another compelling position is No.6, especially with uncertainty over when Rocky Elsom will be available after withdrawing from the Barbarians match because of bone bruising to his knee.
There are strong suggestions Elsom may not be available for the opening Tri Nations match against the All Blacks in Auckland on July 18, and with the France game the last international before the series, whoever gets the nod can make the spot his own if he impresses this weekend.
Dean Mumm is the favourite, providing the important third lineout jumping prong, but it wouldn't surprise if coach Robbie Deans opted for two flyers, with David Pocock or Phil Waugh joining George Smith in a fast back row - especially as the French focus much of their play on dominating the breakdown.
Already this season, Deans has shown an interest in going for scavengers, picking Matt Hodgson alongside Smith and Richard Brown for the Barbarians match.
The Tri Nations squad will be announced on Thursday week, and back-row spots will be tight, especially with Hodgson and Wycliff Palu due back from injury soon. Nonetheless, the whole balance will be affected by how long Elsom is sidelined.
Yesterday, the Wallabies took on a "school's out" feeling, with representatives from eight Sydney and country high school teams training with the Test squad. It wasn't lost on the schoolteachers and more than 100 students who watched from the sideline that one of the main men in the green and gold was just a mite older than the first-XV representatives given a rare chance to run alongside their heroes.
O'Connor, 18, is just one year out of school, and will today find out whether Deans picks him to take on his first top-shelf international opponents. The safe option would be to play Ashley-Cooper, but Deans could well decide this is the right time to test O'Connor physically and mentally to see if he is ready to face the All Blacks and Springboks later in the season.
Before training, O'Connor said Deans had offered no selection clues over whether he would retain his fullback spot. "I'm in the dark," he said. "And I wasn't too happy with my performance on Saturday night, spilling a few balls I should have caught … a few times in the back line there was a bit of disruption."
O'Connor said he wouldn't be surprised if the selectors went with Ashley-Cooper. "Adam played a blinder on the weekend, is in fine form, and is such a good all-round player," he said. "It's really good competition between us. We're pushing each other, and we're both thriving because of that.
"If I do get an opportunity against France, it will be the biggest game I would have played in. And I'll be looking forward to it, because they are a structured team, and I find that I like to play more structured teams as you can pick where to inject yourself into the back line."
O'Connor said he would eventually like to play either five-eighth or inside-centre to become a "decision maker".
Mitchell is also a strong chance of returning to the Wallabies' 22-man squad after Peter Hynes received several heavy knocks during the Italy Test.
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