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Sam Cordingley may start as Wallabies No.9 Luke Burgess struggles with flu
From Darren Walton in Paris, France
November 22, 2008
AUSTRALIA coach Robbie Deans won't hesitate to thrust veteran half-back Sam Cordingley into the fray against France in Paris on Sunday morning (EDT) if Luke Burgess continues to struggle with the flu.
Burgess has been sick all week in Paris, missing one training session altogether, before passing a fitness test on Friday.
"He was blowing a bit and, if he's not right, I'll start with Sam," Deans said.
Watch the Wallabies play France in Paris LIVE on Fox Sports 3 from 7am on Sunday 23 November
Any game time - and he is bound to get more than usual - will be extra sweet for Cordingley, who played his firtst Test start against France in Paris in 2000, when Australia last defeated Les Bleus on French soil.
Cordingley, skipper Stirling Mortlock and flanker George Smith are the only survivors from that triumphant side.
On his last Wallabies tour before linking with French club Grenoble, the 32-year-old Queenslander had the honour of handing out the Wallabies jerseys on Thursday, a rare treat for someone actually playing in the match.
The Wallabies have a long day ahead before kick-off in Paris, but Mortlock was confident the late start wouldn't affect the team's preparation.
"We're quite used to playing at seven or eight o'clock, so it's only an hour or an hour-and-a-half on top of that," he said.
"So it's not that different. I guess it's different when you're on a tour where the majority of the games have been 2.30 or 3pm.
"But, realistically, where we normally are as a group, it's not too different. We'll be doing a slightly different routine for this game just to get the guys together to make sure we're in the right state of mind."
A decade has passed since Australia last beat England and France in successive spring tour Tests, and Mortlock said the Wallabies were desperate to back up, especially after losing key Tri-Nations games this season the match after posting watershed wins over New Zealand and South Africa.
"In the past, these tours have always been difficult," Mortlock said.
"The opportunity for us in particular this week is to start forming a habit.
"This year we've struggled to back up and everyone in the team is fully aware of that. We spoke about that prior to the tour.
"But that's the uniqueness of the opportunity in front of us, is to start putting down solid efforts consistently.
"This week it's France at the Stade de France, which is a great opportunity, a great challenge.
"It's a unique venue. They're an extremely passionate nation and to play them at home is a tough ask and one that I think everyone is up for, or I hope everyone is up for.
"But it seems like all the signs are right." AAP
http://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,...-23217,00.html
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